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“Yes. My bag is in the car already. Mitchell likes being prepared.”
I giggled. “Smart guy.”
“He’s going to panic. I know he is. It’s all for nothing. I’m sure it’s just a false alarm.”
“Nah. He was a cop, he’ll be fine, and better to be safe than sorry.”
We made our way over to the guys. When we stopped in front of them and stood there in silence, the three of them turned to us.
Mitchell looked at Corina and frowned.
“It’s probably nothing,” Corina said with a light-hearted laugh. Then she looked down at the ground. “Or…it is something.” Her head jerked up, and I knew.
“Your water broke, didn’t it?”
She nodded.
“Wait! What?” Mitchell yelled. “Water broke! Now? It’s time? You’re in labor?”
We stared at Mitchell as he spun in a circle to the left, then to the right. His hands pushed into his air and then down his face.
“Right now? It’s not time!”
Jonathon grabbed him. “Mitchell. Dude! Calm down, you freaking out isn’t going to help Corina.”
That seemed to snap him out of it. In one second, he calmed. Rushing to Corina, he cupped her face within his hands and gave her a sweet smile. My God. Every single one of the Parker brothers were handsome. Each of them had a smile that was sure to melt any woman’s heart. The way Mitchell was looking at Corina right now was even melting my heart.
“Are you okay to drive to the hospital, Mitchell?” I asked.
Tripp’s gaze bounced among all of us. “Hold on. You’re going to have the baby? Like…right now?”
I laughed. “Not right now, but her water broke so we need to get her to the hospital in Uvalde. How about I ride with Corina and Mitchell? Tripp, you follow me, and Jonathon, you get on the horn and alert the family.”
“I’m on it,” Jonathon said, pulling out his phone. He kissed Corina on the cheek. “See you soon. You’ve got this!”
Turning to Mitchell, he gave him a hard look. “You’re fixin’ to be Papa Smurf.”
We all laughed and Mitchell’s shoulders relaxed. He wrapped his arm around Corina and guided her to the car.
“Tripp, can you get the towel in the backseat of your truck? Oh, and grab my purse.”
He nodded and took off. Mitchell made it to Corina’s car, and I glanced over to see what was taking Tripp so long. He ran up and handed Mitchell the towel. He laid it in the passenger seat and helped Corina back into the car.
Handing me my purse, Tripp kissed me on the lips quickly. “Y’all be careful driving, and I’ll meet you there.”
By the time we got to the hospital, Corina’s contractions were getting closer together. I was proud of how calm Mitchell kept himself. By the time the entire Parker clan arrived, Mitchell and Corina were checked in and had disappeared to their room. Waylynn held a sleeping Liberty in one of those front pouch things. She was still so tiny at three months old. My chest fluttered at the thought I might be pregnant. I remembered the test in my purse and sighed.
Looks like I won’t be sharing any possible news tonight…
I wasn’t sure how I was going to keep my hands off that test. But I had to. I wanted us to find out together.
Amelia and Wade sat in the corner. I wanted desperately to pull her to the side and demand she tell us whether or not she was pregnant. She looked tired, and my heart ached for her for a reason I wasn’t clear about. I could see sadness in her eyes, though, and that made my stomach knot up.
Paxton sat on the floor and played with Gage. He was walking now, and it kept Paxton and Steed on their toes.
Steed sat next to his parents, Chloe in his lap, as he softly read her a story.
Melanie and John sat with their hands intertwined. John’s leg would jump up and down every now and then, until Tripp leaned over and said something. Whatever he would say, John would calm him down for about ten minutes. Then his leg would jump again.
Melanie’s eyes scanned the room, landing on Waylynn and Liberty for a few moments before moving on to another one of her loved ones. This time it was Jonathon and Paxton who were both trying to keep Gage interested in the game they were playing. Then her eyes locked on mine. I smiled and she returned the gesture.
“Harley, stop pacing, honey. Come sit down,” Melanie said.
“I can’t seem to sit still.”
Tripp stood. “Let’s go find some coffee.”
I nodded. “Good idea.”
We walked off, and I glanced back over my shoulder. “Don’t you need to see who wants some?”
He chuckled. “No. It was an excuse to get you some fresh air.”
“Oh, I could use some fresh air.”
The elevators closed, and I wrung my hands together. The thought of the test sitting in my purse was driving me crazy. Wondering how Corina was doing only added to the insanity.
