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“I know that, Blythe.” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “But I’m not givin’ up.”
“What does that mean?”
“For now, I’ll be your friend—your best friend. I’ll be here when you need me. I’ll help you with the pregnancy, and once the baby’s here, I’ll help you then, too. I’m here for you, Blythe. That’s all you need to know right now.”
“You’re sure about this?”
“Never more sure of anything.”
The ultrasounds they performed indicated Blythe’s baby seemed perfectly healthy. She was far enough along that they should have been able to tell the baby’s sex, but Blythe insisted she didn’t want to know.
The doctors wanted to perform an amniocentesis soon, saying it would give them information the ultrasound could not. Blythe hadn’t decided whether to do the test or not. There were risks that the doctors said were minimal, but any risk was too much. Blythe didn’t want to put their baby through anything else—how he or she had survived this long was a miracle.
More often, Blythe found herself turning to Jace when she had to make a decision about the baby. She listened to her parents when they gave their opinion, and to Bree, and even Renie. But when the time came to make a decision, it was Jace whom Blythe listened to.
He was the one who convinced her to consider the amniocentesis. Whatever they learned, he told her, they’d face together. Ultimately, if there were anything wrong—and he was sure there wasn’t—it would give them a chance to do more to help the baby.
Three weeks later, Blythe received the results. These tests, too, were very positive. She started calling the baby “Miracle,” and so did Jace.
He was always close, affectionate, but not in a romantic way. When Blythe was with him, she was calm. When he wasn’t around, she grew anxious. Everyone sensed it, especially Jace.
Sunday afternoon Paige and Mark were hosting a barbecue, and the Cochran house was full. Billy and Renie were staying at the ranch in Black Forest, so they came over. Ben and Liv flew in for a visit and brought Jace’s parents with them. They wanted to see Blythe and let her know they would support her in any way they could.
Jace could feel Blythe’s exhaustion from all the activity in the other room. She needed him. He could feel it. Billy was in the middle of a sentence Jace wasn’t listening to anyway, when he walked away.
He sat down next to her and drew her into him. As much as he knew he shouldn’t, he was falling in love with Blythe. He didn’t know if she’d ever love him the way he loved her, but it didn’t matter; he’d never leave her. His brother had, but he wouldn’t.
Blythe rested her head on his shoulder.
“You’re exhausted, sweetheart.”
For now, Blythe was staying in the guest room on the main floor of the house. Next week, she was scheduled to have the cast removed from her arm, and if all went as planned, she’d be able to stop using the wheelchair shortly after.
“Time for you to get some rest,” Jace said, picking her up and carrying her into the bedroom.
“Maybe she wasn’t tired.” Bree met him when he came back out the bedroom door.
“Blythe was beyond tired, Bree.”
“She has a mind of her own, you know.”
“She does that.”
“You know she doesn’t want you here.”
It was one thing for Blythe to say it, because he knew that half the time she tried to push him away, she did it because she believed it was for his own good. Hearing it from her sister hurt, far worse than he would’ve expected it to. Jace tried to walk away, but Bree grabbed his arm.
“I don’t like the way you treat her.”
“I couldn’t care less what you like or don’t like,” Jace growled at her. “The only thing I care about is the woman on the other side of this door. The one who needs rest. Now get the hell out of my way before our arguing wakes her up.”
Jace stormed past her, unintentionally bumping her into the wall when he did. Bree wasn’t with Blythe every waking hour like he was. He’d had just about enough of her telling him anything about the woman he’d promised to take care of for the rest of her life.
Before Bree could follow, her mother stepped in her way. “Let it go.”
“He doesn’t let her think for herself,” Jace heard Bree say to Paige.
“He’s exactly what she needs right now. Let it go. I won’t say it again.”
