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“The ultrasound photos,” she replied softly.
I studied her, ignoring the photos. Katie’s full attention was on the picture I held. Her eyes followed them, twitching every time the paper fluttered.
I glanced down at the photos.
“Katie?”
Her gaze flashed back to mine. “Yeah?”
“What the fuck am I looking at?”
It was a couple of circles and blobs in the middle field of snow like on Pappy’s old tube TV set when the antenna had been knocked sideways and needed adjusting. Katie crawled onto the bed next to me. I tucked her under my arm and held the photos before us.
“The ultrasound tech gave me these. When Liam and I spoke afterward, he showed me a video on his tablet, but the two shapes in the circles…that’s the babies.”
Please, God.
Hours later, we were on the plane to Seattle with the security team, not including Adam and Brock. They were still out of touch. It was pissing me off. I had Katie and two babies to protect now. I needed all hands on deck unless they had a lead. I had failed to protect us already. I could only hope I proved worthy enough of them in the future.
If my wish is granted.
Having looked at those two little blobs and held their first photos in my hand, I wanted them so much more than I would’ve ever thought. I wanted to watch Katie ripen and glow as they grew within her. And while Katie remained stoic about our chances of getting the desired test results, I could tell she felt the same.
Her hand would drop to her waistline, resting over the little ones every so often, but then she’d snatch it away. She was afraid to hope. The same as me.
I couldn’t keep my eyes off her. She was enchanting on the regular, but there was something else now. It drew you in. The problem was it wasn’t just me being drawn in. I noticed the team watching Katie. At some point, every one of them witnessed Katie’s hand dropping to her stomach, protecting her womb and the lives within. They all seemed okay with it, but I caught theshock on Hayden’s face before he turned away, concealing it from me.
What’s his problem?
About halfway through the flight, Katie said she wanted to lie down. I went with her, holding her while she dozed off. As soon as I was sure she was asleep, I returned to the main cabin, closing the door to the bedroom. I sat in the chair outside the door, putting myself between her and everyone else.
Hayden sat across from me almost immediately. He stared at me. And I at him. He had no right to be pissed or shocked. Our relationship was none of his fucking business. I had zero problem setting him straight. Katie was mine.
“Is she?” he asked.
I continued to stare at him.
“Jackson?”
“Not your business.”
“Dammit, Jackson. If she is, we need to know,” he reasoned.
“Again. Not your business. If there is something y’all need to know, we’ll tell you. As of right now, there’s nothing you need to know,” I told him.
I stood up and went back to Katie, closing the door behind me and sealing us away from prying eyes.
Once we were on the ground, it was a mad dash to the waiting vehicles and the hospital. Liam was standing there when werolled up outside the ambulance bay entrance. I don’t know how he knew we were arriving when we did because I hadn’t messaged him. I’d forgotten entirely.
I nodded at Liam as I asked Katie, “Did you?”
She smiled and nodded, placing her hand in mine as I helped her from the SUV.
“So this sneaking around shit is a regular thing for the two of you?” I asked, smirking at her.
Still smiling, she threaded our fingers together and hugged my arm to her chest. “Worried?”
I laughed as we stepped up to my uncle. “Sneaking around with my girl, Uncle Liam? For shame. I should tell Aunt Liz.”
