Page 48 of Sawyer’s Mistake

“No,” she said. “This would normally be something for the two of us to discuss in private, but in this case I think it’s important you all know.” She looked at all of them for a moment then looked straight at Storme. “I’m pregnant.”

Storme’s mouth opened and closed several times. Sawyer thought of all the words that could be going through his friend’s mind and silently congratulated Storme for not letting any of them escape.

“You’re pregnant,” Storme repeated, his expression shuttered.

Eva nodded. “I’ve only known for a few minutes.”

What a cluster fuck.

For a long time, nobody moved or said anything. Sawyer read, in his friend’s tight expression, worry and fear. Which made sense, because things weren’t what they used to be, and so much could go wrong. Then Storme blinked the fear away, and when he opened his eyes again, his gray gaze held only love for his woman and their unborn child.

Storme crossed the space between them and enveloped Eva tightly in a hug. They held on for a few moments, supporting each other, until Storme’s frame shook in a giant sob. It propelled Sawyer to action. He stepped to his friend and eased his arms from Eva’s slighter frame.

“Come on, mate,” he said, guiding his friend gently towards the couch. “It’s going to be okay.” He lowered his voice to a whisper.

Storme looked up. There were shadows under his gray eyes that hadn’t been there minutes before.

“We’re going to have a baby,” Storme said.

Eva nodded.

“A baby,” Storme repeated, his voice full of wonder.

Eva walked slowly towards him. He leaned forward on the couch, pressing his face gently against her flat stomach.

“It’s going to be okay, Eva. You’re going to be okay,” he said.

“We’ll make sure of it,” Zander added.

“We will protect this baby with our life,” Meir said, his expression serious.

Kopf clapped Storme loudly on the back and seemed about to do the same to Eva when Storme pushed him away. The big man laughed.

The group’s support removed some of the worry lines from Eva’s face.

Now that the tension was diffused some, Sawyer added his congratulations. “This calls for a drink or at least some iced tea.”

“After we’ve had a shower,” Kopf said.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Sawyer replied. He didn’t want the grime he was carrying to touch Saoirse.

Saoirse smiled softly. Sawyer could tell she was thinking about the baby. He could easily imagine her holding a baby. Storme’s and Eva’s baby, but maybe also theirs one day. He shook his head, not knowing where that thought had come from. Then, because he was looking at her, he saw the moment her thoughts changed and the light dimmed in her eyes.

#

Saoirse.

They all shared a light dinner of canned ravioli and juice. From the speed at which the men ate, Saoirse imagined they could comfortably have eaten two or three times the amount, but nobody complained. Storme and Eva disappeared right afterwards, the soldier’s arm draped protectively over Eva’s shoulders.

Sawyer walked up and raised Saoirse’s chin lightly until they were looking into each other’s eyes. His hair was still damp from the shower. She wanted to reach up and tuck a few loose strands behind his ears.

“Now, care to tell me what’s going on, Saoirse?”

She shook her head. “Nothing’s going on. I’m just worried about Eva.”

“We’ll do everything we can to protect her. You know that.”

She tried to smile, but that just made him frown harder.