“I’m here, Claire,” Jake called out to her.
When the two gurneys were side by side, Jake reached out and took Claire’s hand as she extended it and gripped his. She gasped as another contraction took hold.
“Claire’s been having contractions all the way in the ambulance,” Jack Porter said calmly. “She said they started right after their truck was hit. There’s no vaginal bleeding. Her water hasn’t broken. Pains are getting closer, the last one was four minutes ago. She said she banged her right leg on the door of the truck, but it doesn’t appear to be broken. I don’t see any other external injuries.”
“What about Jake?” Brody asked as he indicated for the emergency team to take the two of them into the examination area.
“The laceration on his left arm needs sutures, Doctor Walters,” Jack said quickly. “Vital signs for both of them are good. They were damned lucky that they were both belted in. The woman who hit them wasn’t so lucky.”
Brody nodded, knowing that the driver of the SUV that had hit Jake and Claire had been seriously injured. She had been brought in and was now on her way to emergency surgery. Luckily, the woman hadn’t had her children with her.
“We’ll take care of the laceration and make an evaluation of both of them,” Brody said quickly, rushing beside the gurneys as the emergency team prepared the area. “I’ve paged Claire’s obstetrician. He’s on his way.”
“Angel, I’m so sorry,” Jake said, easing himself over the lifted side bar of the gurney to kiss Claire’s knuckles lightly.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Claire yelled at him with such anger, everyone in the hallway looked at her. “You’re taking responsibility for what another driver did to us? Oh, no you aren’t, Jake McKade. Don’t even think about it!”
“Claire, angel, don’t get yourself upset,” Jake said, doing his best to hide the smile that he couldn’t help but display.
“I won’t get upset if you don’t internalize this accident,” Claire told him firmly. “I need you to be angry at the situation—not at yourself.”
“You want me to get angry, Claire?” He was surprised by her words.
“Yes. Get angry. Get strong. I need you to be strong to help me,” Claire said, gasping as another contraction began and grew in intensity. “I need you to help me because I’m having this baby right now.”
“Brody!” Jake yelled.
“I’m right here, Jake. You don’t have to bring down the entire hospital with your yelling,” Brody told him calmly. “I’m taking you both to the trauma unit now. Claire’s obstetrician in on his way. I’m going to suture your arm and check both of you over. We’re going to take care of all three of you, Jake. I promise.”
Jake looked at his cousin, seeing the truth in his hazel eyes. Brody had always had the ability to calm all of the members of the McKade family. He had a goodness that was so deep, it couldn’t help but spill out onto all of them. Jake calmed a little, believing his cousin would make sure that Claire and their baby would be okay.
“Jake,” Claire whispered, drawing his attention from Brody. When Jake turned to face her, she smiled at the panic that was displayed on his handsome face. “We’re all going to be okay. Melanie told me we were going to have at least three more kids.”
“Holy hell, Claire! Why didn’t you tell me that before?” Jake asked, squeezing her hand gently.
“I don’t know. I guess I was a little worried,” Claire admitted.
“About what, angel?”
“Well, I guess I was afraid to tell you that I wanted us to have eight kids,” she said softly.
“Eight!” Jake turned to Brody in desperation. “I think you’d better check her head, Brody. She must have hit it.”
Claire laughed and tugged on Jake’s hand to get him to look at her. When he did and she saw the way his blue eyes were glazing over, she was more than concerned.
“Add one more and you’ll have a baseball team,” Jack Porter spoke up as he helped to push Claire’s gurney toward the cubicle that was separated from the next one by a curtain. “Don’t draw the curtain. They’re going to need to see each other if we want them to remain calm.”
Brody nodded, unable to keep the soft laughter from escaping him. “She’s going to keep you on your toes, cousin,” he said as he pulled on a pair of surgical gloves and started his examination of him.
“Check Claire first, Brody,” Jake said, pushing Brody’s hands away from him.
“I’ve got Claire,” a female voice spoke up, drawing Jake’s attention.
He was glad to see that Claire was already being evaluated by the doctor. He watched silently, cringing every time Claire experienced another contraction. She was pretty much silent as she was examined, and Jake was thankful that he saw no obvious bruises or cuts on his wife’s body.
“Is my wife okay?” he asked, ignoring the way Brody was taking his blood pressure and listening to his heart.
“I’ll let you know in a minute,” the doctor answered, reaching out and touching Claire’s right leg gently. “Do you have pain here, Mrs. McKade?”
Claire looked up at the doctor and nodded her head, glad to see Doctor Evans looking down at her calmly. “It’s a little sore. I smacked it pretty good against the truck door when the SUV hit us,” Claire admitted.
“How’s my patient?” her obstetrician asked as he came into the curtained area and looked down at Claire before sitting down on the bed at her hip and taking her hand in his.
“I think I’m ready to have this baby,” Claire said, sighing with relief that Doctor Andrews was finally there. “I’m early. Is my baby going to be okay?”
“It’s actually not too early, Claire,” Doctor Andrews assured her. “Your due date is in two weeks. Women have babies early all the time. I doubt your little one will be in distress, but let’s get you on up to the obstetric wing and get you monitored.”
“Jake, I don’t want to leave you,” Claire said worriedly, looking over at her husband.
“I’m going with you,” Jake said firmly, trying to sit up and climb down off of the gurney.
“Hold on, Jake,” Brody stopped him. “Let me stitch up your arm. It will only take me about twenty minutes.”
“I’m not letting Claire go through this alone, Brody. You can stitch me up later,” Jake told him firmly.
“That’s not really true,” Brody told him calmly. “The window of opportunity to stitch you up is a small one. We’ve only got about six hours to play with before your body’s healing capabilities take over. We may not be able to close the wound. That will run the risk of an infection. Claire could be in labor a long time. We would miss that window.”
“I don’t care,” Jake said with determination. “I’m going with Claire.”
“Well, Claire isn’t going anywhere until you’re stitched up,” Claire said loudly, giving Jake the fiercest glare she could muster. “Go ahead, Brody. Do what you need to do.”
“Claire,” Jake’s deep voice warned her, a definite growl of warning escaping with his anger.
“Be quiet. Go on, Brody. I’m waiting for Jake.” She turned to Doctor Andrews and huffed. “I’m waiting for Jake. Are you going to argue with me, too?”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, Mrs. McKade,” Doctor Andrews said, smiling. “As long as you and your baby aren’t exhibiting signs of distress, I’m fine with monitoring your labor right here until we can all go upstairs to deliver your little one. He or she is calling the shots right now, you know. If your baby wants to be born now, there’s nothing that’s going to stop that sweet child from coming into this world.”
“He’ll wait for his father,” Claire said firmly, believing it without a doubt. “He doesn’t want to be born without his daddy.”
She looked at Jake and saw that he was still struggling to stand. Brody was looking at her in frustration. They both knew that if Jake McKade wanted to get off the gurney, he was going to get off the damned gurney.
“Jake, lay your handsome butt down and let Brody s
titch you up,” Claire told him with such hardness in her voice, she surprised even herself. “The faster you’re taken care of, the faster we can have this baby. Lie down!”
Jake snapped his mouth shut, grinding his teeth together and mumbling about the stubbornness of his wife. He settled back on the gurney and didn’t move while Brody set up the suture tray beside him and got to work. Jake’s eyes never left Claire throughout the entire procedure.
Claire couldn’t have care less how much her man grumbled. All that mattered was that he was accepting the medical help that he needed.
Stay put and be patient, baby, she told her little one. Daddy needs you to be healthy and wait for him.
Claire smiled as she felt the warmth of their child’s love filling her. She looked into Jake’s worried eyes and smiled.
“Our baby just let me know how much he loves his daddy,” she whispered.
Jake’s entire body filled with a glowing warmth that he knew was the love that their child was sending him. It was a feeling that he had experienced often during Claire’s pregnancy. He loved feeling the connection to their child.
Little one, make sure you stay strong and help your mommy to be strong, too, he whispered to their child. I love you and can’t wait to hold you.
He knew that the Great Spirit was helping him send his message of love to his son—or daughter. He didn’t care what Claire had. He was happy to have either. He just wanted his wife and his baby to be okay.
Daddy, a little voice called to him.
He had a vision of his baby holding out his little hands to him as he lay in the cradle of his mother’s arms. He saw himself picking up their son and holding him gently against his chest. The baby cuddled against his shoulder, fisting his tiny hand in Jake’s hair and tugging on it firmly.
Jake looked at Claire’s belly in shock, seeing how she was rubbing it soothingly. He also saw how her beautiful brown eyes were filled with tears and knew without a doubt that she could sense their baby talking to him.
“Love you,” he said quietly, speaking to both Claire and their baby.
“We love you, too,” Claire whispered back.
Chapter 44
“Bryce, this is the third time that same intersection has hurt my family,” Deuce said angrily, taking off his tan cowboy hat and slapping it against his thigh. “When are the selectmen of this town going to take their heads out of their asses and do something about the danger there? How many people have to be killed or hurt before they put in a stop light?”
“I know, Deuce,” Officer Bryce Fletcher said, tipping his hat back on his head and placing his hands on his hips. “Sheriff Sturgess and I have petitioned the board twice already to have that light put in. I’m sorry that this happened to your family again, Deuce, but maybe this will be what we need to get this thing finally pushed through. I think if the town knew they were in danger of being sued, the selectmen might actually do something.”
“If that’s what it will take, my family and I will do it,” Deuce said angrily. “We lost our parents, we nearly lost Jake, and now we may lose Jake, Claire, and their baby.”
Bryce reached out and settled his large hand on Deuce’s left shoulder, squeezing it lightly. He hope that he could convey his support and caring to the man that he had always thought of as a fair, honest, and caring patriarch of the McKade family.
“Do you know what happened, Bryce?” Deuce asked finally, his blue eyes begging for an explanation that would help him to understand.
Bryce nodded, sighing with disgust. “The driver of the SUV said she was on the phone trying to call her kids,” he said softly. “She said she took her eyes off the road for just one second. When she looked up, she saw Jake’s truck. She tried to swerve, but she was going too fast to avoid him. She sideswiped his truck. The force of the impact drove both vehicles against the guardrail.”
“She was on the damned phone?” Deuce’s question came out on a growl. “When are people going to learn that you can’t give your full attention to your driving if you’re talking on the phone?”
“You’re right, Deuce,” Bryce agreed. “It’s really sad that it will take something like this for people to stop their reckless and dangerous behavior.”
“Deuce,” Brody called out as he walked into the waiting room. “I’m getting tired of our family getting hurt and having to tell you about it.”
Deuce turned to face him, embracing him tightly and hanging on. Deuce was always the one that everyone leaned on. Right then, all he could think about was that he wasn’t doing a good job of protecting his family.
“Jake’s good,” Brody told him softly, patting Deuce’s back in reassurance. “I had to stitch up his left arm.”
“What about Claire?” Deuce stepped back and looked at his cousin, his face filled with worry.
“She banged up her right leg in the impact but nothing is broken,” Brody assured him quickly. “Both of them are up in Obstetrics right now. Claire has gone into labor.”
“Oh, my God,” Deuce whispered, taking the nearest seat and resting his head in his hands. He wiped at his face before looking up to face Brody once again. “Is it bad, Brody?”
“Claire’s obstetrician seems to think that everything is okay,” he said quietly. “She’s only two weeks early so he doesn’t think the baby will be in danger because of the early delivery.”
Deuce nodded. He knew there was nothing more that Brody could tell him. They would just have to wait.
“Do you want me to call the family?” Brody asked.
“No. I’ve already called Spence. He’s getting everyone together. They should be here soon.”
Brody squeezed Deuce’s shoulder one last time then walked away. He couldn’t help but think about how proud he was to be a part of the McKade family.
“Jake, hold my legs for me. I need to push.”
Claire fell back against Jake as he sat behind her in the birthing bed. She was covered in perspiration. She was so exhausted. She just couldn’t grip her legs anymore.
Jake immediately placed his large hands behind Claire’s thighs and pulled them up so that her legs were spread wide and pulled up as far as he could comfortably pull them against her stomach. Doctor Andrews looked up and caught Jake’s eyes, nodding to him in encouragement.
“Claire, you’re one hundred percent dilated and fully effaced. I can feel the baby’s head,” he told her calmly. “You have to listen to your body. When it tells you that you should push, push. If there’s a problem and I need you to stop pushing, I’ll tell you.”
“Is there a problem?” Claire asked, panting as another pain took hold.
“Not even a little one,” Doctor Andrews assured her.
“I have to push!”
“Go ahead, Claire. Push.”
The obstetrician’s voice was firm as he encouraged her to do what she had to do. Claire couldn’t help but feel fear that she didn’t have it in her to do what she had to do in order to bring their baby into the world.
“Jake!” Claire yelled out as her body screamed in pain. She felt as if she was being torn apart. “I can’t.”
“Angel, you can,” Jake whispered against her neck.
“No. I’m not strong enough,” she told him, tears streaming down her face as she feared for her baby because she wasn’t strong enough to birth him.
“Claire, you’re the strongest person I’ve ever met,” Jake told her gently. “You’re stronger than Deuce.”
A burst of laughter escaped her before another pain took hold and she moaned as she did her best to bear down and push. When she ran out of energy, she panted as she tried desperately to take in more oxygen and push once again.
“You really are stronger than Deuce, angel,” he told her, holding her up so that she could push once again. “Deuce would be the first one to tell you that.”
“He would?” Claire asked, taking another deep breath, holding it, and bearing down once again.
“He would. He’s said it over and over
again that helping Gracie when she gave birth to Gia showed him that women are so strong. Look at what you’re doing, angel. You’ve kept our baby safe and warm inside of you for thirty-eight weeks. Now, you’re pushing with all of your strength to bring this tiny, new life into the world.”
He kissed her shoulder lightly as he gripped her legs tighter and pulled back so she could bear down once again. Her hands covered his and she squeezed with all her strength, her nails digging in to the back of his hands.
“The head is crowning, Claire,” Doctor Andrews said calmly. “Push as hard as you can. Let’s get this little one born.”
Claire took another deep breath and bore down, grunting with the effort. Jake felt the power in her surge as she fought to birth their child. There was a tingling in his body as her soul connected with his, bringing with it a rush of warmth that settled deep within him. He concentrated to give her his strength. If she could send him her love through the psychic link that she had with him, he reasoned that he could send her his strength.
It worked. Claire surged forward and bore down, screaming out Jake’s name as his power filled her and she pushed their child’s head from her body. Another two strong pushes produced the baby’s shoulders and body.
“Stop pushing, Claire,” Doctor Andrews said firmly as he carefully placed their baby on top of her stomach and covered both the baby and Claire with a warm, blue blanket. “Congratulations! You have a son!”
Claire touched the top of their son’s head as he lay against her chest. “He’s so beautiful,” she whispered as her son struggled to open his eyes and the brilliant blue of them looked at her with such intelligence, it was staggering.
Jake settled his right hand on their son’s back and caressed him tenderly. “He is,” he agreed, tears filling his eyes at the miraculous sight before him. “Thank you, angel.”
Claire turned her face to look up at Jake and smiled through her own tears. “Thank you for our son, Jake,” she told him.
She turned and looked down at the miniature Jake in her arms. He looked exactly like his father from the black hair to the blue eyes. She could sense the kindness and the goodness in their baby, her empathic gift continuing the connection she had with him when he was growing inside of her. He buffered her from the world the same way Jake did.
Jake's Angel [Cowboy Mates, Psychic Connections 4] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 43