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“She’ll want to be here for you, sweetheart, and we could be here for a while yet. Willow will be distracted by Mia arriving,” he reasoned and I nodded, agreeing with him. Willow loved Mia and she had been complaining she missed her since we arrived there.
“We’re going to get through this, sunshine, together. We’re all right here with you and we’re not going anywhere,” Kai promised. I grabbed his hand and clung to it as I sobbed once again. I wasn’t sure how I was going to find my way forward. My child was dead, was there a way forward from that? I didn’t think so, but I knew I had to find one, not for me, but for my daughter. I had to be there for her, no matter how broken I was. I just hoped the men surrounding me would be enough to help me find that path I needed to keep going.
CHAPTER 24
NICO
Maddie was sat in Hunter’s lap in one of the armchairs in the suite we had been shown to. The room was nice, painted in tones of grey and pale yellow, decorated with pictures on the wall. There was a seating area with armchairs and a sofa around a coffee table, and a hospital bed in the back. It had an adjoining shower room and a view out over a garden area, which was covered at the moment, the blinds drawn. It was a pleasant room and the staff had been kind and understanding, but none of it helped to break the pain that filled the room. Maddie’s pain and ours. Maddie had lost her child, but we all felt we had too. We had been so excited to welcome Maddie’s second child into the world. We had fallen in love with him or her before they even arrived.
We had been decorating the nursery back at the house whenever we could. Just the other day I had assembled the changing table to go in there, dreaming of being stood there changing diapers, excited to play a role in the life of Maddie’s child who would hopefully one day call me ‘daddy’ but now that would never happen.
“I c-can’t do this!” Maddie cried as she curled into herself and gripped Kai’s arm so hard I saw her nails digging into him. It had been this way for two hours now, ever since the pills Maddie had been given had kicked in, inducing labor, and starting the contractions. She was in agony every time they hit, and they were getting closer and closer together. It was killing all of us standing there just watching, unable to do anything to ease her pain, or her grief.
“You can, sunshine. You’re the toughest person I know. You can do this,” Kai told her. It was all we could do – be there for her.
“I only got through it l-last time because I knew I’d have my baby in the end. This time…he or she is dead, Kai. My b-baby is dead,” Maddie sobbed.
Cam stood and crossed the room, walking over to crouch before her. He took her hand in his and held it until she looked up at him.
She looked exhausted, her skin pale and her eyes red from crying. She was trying to stay strong, but she was in so much pain, both physically and emotionally. It was killing me to be so fucking useless!
“We still get to see him or her. We get to hold them and show them just how much they’re loved. We’re going to bathe him or her and dress them, and we’re going to take some pictures so we can always remember the moments we got together, okay? We’re going to make some memories. I know they’re not going to be enough, or the kind of memories you wanted, but we’re going to do all we can to make sure this baby is forever a part of our hearts and that we will be a part of theirs,” Cam told her, and I was once again tearing up at the pain in his words, and the truth in what he was saying. It wasn’t the memories any of us wanted to make, but if it were all the opportunity we got, we would make damned sure this baby knew he or she was loved.
“You’re right,” Maddie sniffled. “We h-have to give them a name, too. I haven’t even picked any yet.”
“We’ll think of one, Maddie,” Hunter promised.
I glanced to my cell on the table at the sound of an incoming text. I picked it up, seeing it was Mia and let out a small sigh of relief at her text that told me she was here and downstairs.
“Mia’s here,” I announced.
“Go, brother. We’re good for a few minutes,” Hunter said as he nodded to the door.
“Will you ask her to tell Willow I love her?” Maddie asked as I approached her.
“Of course I will, sweetheart. She’ll be okay with Mia, Sam, and Garth,” I assured her as I leaned in and kissed the top of her head. She reached her hand up and cupped my cheek, staring into my eyes for just a moment before she let me go. “I’ll be right back,” I promised, then I hurried from the room, wanting to get back as soon as possible.
I didn’t have the patience to wait for the elevator, so I ran down the stairs, taking out a little of my rage, at what had happened to my girl, on the doors when I passed through them, as I stormed towards the foyer of the building.
“Nico!” I heard my sister call as I bypassed the cafeteria and looked around for her. She was near the entrance, Tyler at her side. They both had small carry on cases beside them and Mia was clutching a pink hold-all in her hands. As I moved her way, she dropped the bag and ran at me, launching herself into my arms when she was close enough. She wrapped her arms around my waist and held me so tightly I could hardly breathe, or maybe that was the tears that choked me up at just seeing her. All of my emotions rose to the surface from where I had been pushing them down all day, and my eyes filled with tears as I held her as tightly as I dare.
“I’m so sorry,” she whimpered, her words muffled by my shirt. She held me for a few more moments and then pulled back, looking up at me. “How is she?”
“Devastated and in a lot of pain with the labor,” I sighed as I swiped at my eyes. I wrapped my arm around her and led her over to where Tyler waited, clearly giving us some time alone.
“Hey man,” I greeted him.
“Nic,” He nodded to me. “I’m so sorry for what’s happened. If there’s anything I can do,” he offered as he patted me on the back.
“Thanks for coming with Mia. I think Maddie will feel better knowing Willow has someone she knows well here.”
“No problem,” he shrugged.
“The guys refused to let me come alone, and they were all busy with work.” Mia explained. I glanced to my cell in my hand, feeling guilty for all of the work calls I had been ignoring. “Don’t, Nico. They have it handled. You just worry about Maddie.”
“She’s right, bro. Park told me to tell you, not even think about Milite. He has it all in hand.”
“I should get back up there,” I said as I worried about leaving Maddie for so long. “The guys said Sam knows you’re coming. There’s a ton of rooms at the house so that won’t be a problem. Willow’s excited to see you.”
