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Her heart began to thump hard.
“Even tonight,” Em continued. “First thing he did when he saw and recognized me was scope out everyone who was with me.”
“Oh my God, he did,” Lexi confirmed from her stall. “I remember wondering why he looked so relieved when he focused on my face after gaping at my huge belly. I bet he was worried I might be you, thinking you’d gotten married and were going to have another man’s baby.”
Jo Ellen flushed, even more uncomfortable with this conversation. She sat her hand on her flat stomach, remembering, wondering—
“I'm with Em on this one, Jo Ellen,” Lexi said. “I'd make a go for the Cooper guy if I were you. He's yummy.”
“I'm not making a go for anyone,” Jo Ellen growled and flung Lexi's panties over the side of the stall door, forgetting to warn her they were coming. When Lexi yelped out a startled sound, she gasped. “Oops, I'm sorry. I should've told you I was sending them over.”
“No worries. I caught them."
A moment passed. Jo Ellen crinkled her eyebrows into a mini scowl as her twin glared at her. Turning her back to anymore crazy notions, she hurried to the sinks and scrubbed her hands with plenty of soap and scalding water. Behind her, Em thankfully remained silent, obviously deciding she'd said all she was going to say, which was an utter relief. Jo Ellen couldn’t bear to hear another word about either Travis or Cooper tonight.
But when a small moan of agony came from the other side of the stall, she jerked to attention.
“Alexa?” Jo Ellen called, setting her hand on the door, ready to break it down if need be. “You okay in there, sweetie?”
“Oh...” There was a pause as if she had to think about her answer. Then, “I…yeah, I'm fine. I just...it's those stupid barbequed ribs. I was so starved before we got here tonight I was having these major hunger pangs. But now, I only feel worse after eating them. Stomach cramp.” She sucked in a pained breath.
Jo Ellen exchanged a worried glance with Em. “Want us to go get Dexter?” she offered.
“Dear Lord, no! That man can't handle it when he thinks something might be wrong with me. He totally freaks out. And when he freaks out, he yells. Loudly.”
Jo Ellen grinned as the stall door opened and a refreshed-looking Alexa stepped out to join them. “Nope. Don't bother him. Everything’s fine now.”
Yet as soon as she spoke, her smile fell. Eyes widening, she grasped her lower stomach and hunched over it as she gawked down at her feet, or at least tried to see them past her baby bump.
Jo Ellen scanned down as well to find the insides of both of Lexi’s pant legs much darker than the outsides. Wet drops trickled from the hem of her slacks into the small puddle forming between her feet.
Emma Leigh's mouth fell open. “Holy shit, you peed your pants again?”
“I...I...” Lexi shook her head dramatically, tears welling in her eyes. "I couldn't help it!" she wailed.
“But are you certain—” Jo Ellen quieted and bit her lip, not sure if her suspicions were correct. She didn’t want to alarm anyone if she was wrong.
“Are we certain…about what?” Emma Leigh pressed, waving her hand with an impatient flourish to encourage Jo Ellen to speak her mind.
With a wince, she faced Alexa. “I could be wrong. I mean, I have no experience in this but…” She hesitated.
“What?” Em cried, clearly frustrated.
Jo Ellen sucked in a breath and took Lexi’s hands. “Lex, I’m not so positive you’re wetting your pants. What if…what if your water broke? You said you were having stomach cramps,” she rushed to add when the two women merely stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. “I just wondered what if they’re labor contractions instead of hunger pangs.”
“But I’m not due for another four weeks,” Alexa insisted, swishing her head back in forth in adamant denial. She whirled to Emma Leigh and demanded
, “Is this what your water breaking was like?”
Em’s eyes widened. “I don’t know. I had a C-section. There was no breaking of the waters with me. No contractions.”
Lexi’s fingers clamped down hard on Jo Ellen’s and turned ice cold. “This can’t happen,” she whispered, looking horrified. “I…I’m not ready. I’m not home. I want to go home!” Her wail startled both twins and made Emma jump. “I can’t have a baby in Texas. What if he talks with a twang!” She paused with a thoughtful wrinkle in her brow. “Actually, that might be kind of cute.”
A surprised laugh bubbled from Jo Ellen. When Emma Leigh and Alexa scowled at her, she delicately cleared her throat and straightened her spine, humbly apologizing. “Sorry.”
“Oh, God.” Lexi groaned, bending to gape down at the mess she’d made. “What’m I going to do?”
“Well, there’s only one thing to do.” Jo Ellen made sure to keep her voice level and calm. When the other two women turned with quizzical expressions, she rolled her eyes. “We need to get you to a hospital. Now!”
