by Cari Quinn
When Chloe saw Michael, she finally settled down. She held her hand out. “Don’t listen to them. I can have this baby on my own. I swear it.”
Michael went from looking worried and harassed to calm. “We have a perfect baby girl cooking in there. It doesn’t matter how she comes out, just that you both are all right.”
Her huge brown eyes roved around the room, then back to Michael. “Figures our girl would give me trouble,” she said on a sobbing laugh.
“My girls always give me trouble.” Michael locked his hand around hers. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
West backed against the wall. The love was so clear and strong in the room. Michael would do anything for his wife, even swallow down an ocean of fear. He’d seen it in his eyes in the waiting room, but now there wasn’t a trace of it. Because he loved her.
Because his strength was what she needed.
The exact opposite of what he’d done for Lauren. West had let her see every ounce of fear and anger in him. And he’d let her walk away without knowing what she meant to him.
“Mr. Shawcross, we need to prep your wife for surgery.” The two nurses came around the bed and unlocked the wheels.
Michael didn’t even look at the doctor. “I’m not leaving her.”
“You can come in the room with her, but you need to let us do our jobs first. I’ll come and get you in a few minutes.”
Chloe huffed out a breath and held on to her distended belly. “I can do this. If you’re with me, I can do this.”
“They’d have to pry me away from you.” Michael’s voice never wavered. West saw his best friend’s hand shaking by his side, but the one in Chloe’s grip was rock steady.
The two nurses pushed the hospital bed toward the door. Michael wouldn’t let go of her hand until she went through the door.
West stepped behind him and squeezed his shoulder. “She’s going to be fine. They’re just being careful.”
“Besides, the C-section incisions aren’t even noticeable on the bikini line these days,” Jules chimed in.
Michael snorted. “Oh, yeah. That’s Chloe—worried about the bikini.”
“She rocks a bikini,” Juliet said with a wobbly smile. She launched herself into Michael’s arms and he hugged her tight.
The three of them left the room. Elle and Molly were in the waiting room playing a game of Go Fish. Mal was sitting on the edge of a chair white-knuckling his drumsticks as he watched a baseball game on the large screen TV.
Everyone stood as they came into the room. West glanced around the corner where the vending machines were, but didn’t see Ryan. Just a sign for a nondenominational chapel.
Molly flew at Michael and hugged him. “Is she okay?”
Surprised, Michael patted her shoulder. “She’s holding steady. They’ve decided to do a C-section.”
“Oh, wow. Well, they do wonders for the incision site.”
Michael and Juliet laughed.
“What?” Molly frowned. “Why is that funny?”
Jules shooed her back. “I just said the same thing. I think it’s time I trounce you at Rummy.”
“No. I like Go Fish.” Molly pouted.
“Because there is no need to use strategy.” Jules went over to Tristan and Sparks and hugged them both, then the five of them hunkered down around the small end table.
Mal glanced at Michael, but didn’t make a move to go to him. The two of them were so damn stubborn.
Not that West had any idea what that was like himself.
Michael started prowling, looking at his phone every three minutes. Finally, West couldn’t take it anymore. “Let’s go.”
Michael looked up, then shook his head. “I’m good.”
“Obviously not. Let’s go.” West gestured toward the door. “There’s somewhere a little more quiet around the corner.”
“The doctor is coming here to find me.”
West cracked his knuckles. “Guys?”
Jules looked up from her hand. “Yeah?”
“We’ll be in the chapel down the hall when the doc comes, huh?”
She nodded. “Will do.”
West patted his best friend’s shoulder. “Just for a minute.” He knew Michael would never freak out in front of people. That he’d need a little slice of privacy. He knew it as surely as he knew what a fuck up he was.
Michael sighed and let him lead him out and down the side hallway. When he saw the sign, he gave West an eyebrow quirk.
“It’s quiet.”
Michael shrugged and pushed through the door. Instead of crosses and the typical religious themes, there was a wide stained glass panel with water and a tree in deep emeralds and soothing blues.
Michael’s head bowed immediately. “I don’t know if I can do this, man.”
“You can. I promise you.” West knew it was his job to soothe and to lie, but it wasn’t a lie. Everyone thought Michael was crazy to walk into a ready-made family and then add another baby so quickly. But in West’s heart of hearts, he knew it was the perfect place for his best friend. He’d created a family from love and just made it stronger.
He’d manned up where West never had.
West envied what he had in every way.
“I’m sorry I was all psycho on you with the texts.”
West shook his head. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here. I had some stuff. I wasn’t paying attention.”
“You’re here now. And you kept it all together today with the people here. I’m pretty sure I was going to lose it in that waiting room.”
“I know,” West said quietly.
“Because you’re one of the best men I know.”
“Unlikely, but I’m glad I could help.”
Michael turned with knitted brows. “What do you mean unlikely? You’re the most solid guy I know.”
“A solid fuck up, sure.” West stuffed his hands into his pockets.
“No. You’re the only one I’m trusting to take over if something happens. I was going to ask you after all this, but now’s as good as any.”
West frowned. “Ask what?”
“I know we aren’t all that religious and shit.” Michael winced and looked around. “No cross to say sorry to in here, I guess.”
West laughed. “Just you, me, and the tree of life.”
“Well, it’s kinda more of a formality thing. Because when you have kids, you just know shit is bigger than you. I know you know that more than anything.”
West curled his hands into fists in his pockets. “I’m well aware.”
Michael crossed to him. “You did what was right for your kid. It may not have been the most ideal situation, but a lesser man would take the selfish route. You didn’t.”
“What are you talking about? I did the most selfish thing in the world.”
“No. Not at all, actually. I know this time of year sucks for you. I know the memories eat at you, but that little girl of yours has a healthy, happy life. I see the picture every year.”
West looked at his feet. The flash of his Chloe beaming up at her step-father came into sharp focus. The only father that little girl knew because he’d been a worthless piece of shit that no one wanted in her life. And he’d agreed with them.
“But that’s what makes you all the more qualified for the job I’m asking you to do. You know how to make the hard choices, and how to take care of people.” Michael laughed. “You do it for all of us. And that new girl of yours. I thought it was a mistake to bring Lauren into the inner circle, but she makes you strong, man. She makes us all a little lighter and happier as well. Even my shithead of a brother.”
West swallowed hard. His gut twisted and his eyes burned.
“So, I’d really like you to be our little girl’s godfather.”
“What?” West asked on a hoarse whisper.
“Don’t look so shocked. I plan on living a damn long life, but if anything happens, I want to know my little girl is taken care of.”
“You’ve got it all wrong.” Wes
t backed up a step.
“No, I don’t. You’d cut off an arm for me, man. I know you’d do the same for my daughter. That’s the man I want as my backup.”
“I’m not that guy.” West shook his head. No one had ever said anything like that about him in his life.
Except Lauren.
She’d said it.
He didn’t believe it. His chest felt like it was cracking open.
“Sorry, son. You are. All that and more.” Michael clamped his hand on West’s shoulder. “The only one I’d trust. Chloe agrees with me. Say yes, man.”
West pinched the bridge of his nose. He was going to fucking bawl like a baby. There was no lie in the eyes of his best friend—of the brother he’d known for years now. Just a sureness that gutted him as much as it strengthened him. “I’d be honored, brother.” He winced. “You have a brother. Don’t you want to—”
“Fuck, no.” Michael’s nostrils flared. “I love him because we’re family. I know Mal would do right by my girl. I know he’d do right by Chloe and Axl. But he wouldn’t take care of them like you would. That’s what I trust.”
This time, West’s lower lip quivered and he sucked back a breath. “I would. I promise I would.”
“Mr. Shawcross?”
Michael sniffed and turned toward the door. A nurse stood there in pink scrubs decorated with little baby rattles. “Chloe?”
She smiled. “Ready to have a baby?”
“Fuck, yes.” Michael laughed. “I mean, yes, ma’am.”
The nurse laughed. “They’re ready for you.”
Michael turned back to West. He hauled him into a hug. “Now that we got that bit of business taken care of, I’m going to go stand next to my brave, perfect wife.” He rushed after the nurse.
At the door, he stopped and turned back. “I know I’ve been wrapped up in my own shit, but don’t let Lauren go. She’s your match. Sometimes they come in a flurry of crazy, sometimes they drop into your lap in Vegas.”
And with that, he was gone.
West dropped into the pew. His knees wouldn’t hold him up any longer. Everything Lauren had said to him, everything he’d denied, all the self-loathing he’d carried with him—it all seemed so clear now.
His life felt empty without her. He just had to hope all that love in her eyes was sterling truth.
He stood up and followed his friend out the door and down the hallway.
It felt like days, but it was only another hour before Michael showed up at the doorway to the waiting room with a bundle of pink perfection in his arms.
“Are you sure she was three weeks early? She looks plenty cooked,” Mal said gruffly. He crossed his arms, his face a little less stoic for once.
Michael laughed. “She was more than ready to come out. Just like her mama, she likes to do everything on her own timetable.”
Molly and Elle stood and crossed the room, and Jules and her guys crowded in. “What’s her name?” Molly asked.
“Hope Elizabeth Shawcross.”
Molly stroked the baby’s downy red hair back with her thumb. “Beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”
West felt the last of the apprehension dissolve in his chest. He was truly happy for his friend and the weight of being a godfather didn’t crush him. It made him feel freer than he had in a damn long time.
He dug his phone out of his pocket and backed out of the room. He knew what he had to do.
With shaking fingers, he called the number he’d looked up earlier and tucked away. He just hoped he wasn’t too late.
The voice at the other end of the line was hesitant. “Hello?”
“Ethan?”
“Yes. Who’s this?”
He swallowed down the fear that had been choking him. “This is West. I need your help.”
Twenty
“Fill this out and submit it when you’re finished. You’ll need to do a new typing test too.”
Lauren sighed and tugged on the end of her braid. Today had been a banner day already. She’d told her folks once and for all that she appreciated them getting her back into the university, but she couldn’t go back. It wasn’t right.
She was forging her own path, as crazy as it was. She was pretty sure she was going to write that book about the female orgasm. And probably one about loving a rockstar, and everything that came with it.
How being with a guy like that changed a person. How love changed a person.
Though she had to say, being back at the A-Ok temporary agency had to be her version of hell. She was surprised she didn’t smell smoke. Just the faint smell of burning plastic from someone’s lunch down the hall.
Eh, close enough.
“Seriously? I’ve done like twenty of them.”
“Right, but they aren’t current. It’s been months since the last time you were unfortunately released from your duties.”
“Look, I suck at typing. Whether I hit forty words or forty-two, it’s all crap. Just give me some other kind of job. You don’t just have office jobs here. I read the poster. I can read.”
The receptionist gave her a baleful look. “Ma’am, we have a procedure. Please submit your form when you’re finished and then we’ll have you do a new typing test.”
“For fuck’s sake, I don’t want to do a goddamn—”
“What Miss Bryant means,” Ethan said smoothly, coming up beside her, “is that she’d be happy to take a typing test, though she’s certain that isn’t the best representation of her skills.”
The receptionist brightened, taking in Ethan’s impeccably styled dark hair and long designer coat. “Oh, and who are you?”
“Just a friend.” He gave Lauren a quick smile that let her know that he’d be getting receptionist chick’s number later.
Good for him. Someone should be getting laid, even if it wasn’t her.
In all fairness, it had only been a few days. Not a lifetime by any stretch. But after a girl went without for oh, forever, she rapidly developed certain needs.
Many needs.
So, yes, she’d done some scouring online for a vibrator. Just to take the edge off now and then. She wasn’t turning into a fiend or anything.
Perhaps she was.
Next, she’d probably start looking for blow-up dolls. Whether it was one designed with flowing blond locks or with cropped close hair, she wasn’t choosy.
The vibrant green eyes, however, were a deal breaker.
“I’ll fill out your damn form,” she muttered, snatching the clipboard and taking the only empty seat next to the receptionist’s circular desk.
“Not there,” Ethan said, immediately pulling her up by the elbow. “Miss, do you mind?” he asked an elderly woman seated near the window that looked out into the mall. “We need this seat.”
“Ethan,” Lauren gasped, aghast. “What was wrong with that other seat?”
“It needs to be here. Right here. Trust me.” Ethan opened up his wallet and pulled out a hundred, pressing it into the shocked grandmother’s hand. “Here you go. Sorry for the trouble. You’ve done your part for the course of true love today.”
“What? What true love?” The woman shuffled away and Ethan pressed Lauren down into the seat, making her sigh. “Ethan, I thought we’d finally reached an understanding. We’re great as friends, and I want—no, I need—you in my life, but not like that. I understand you’re a little infatuated with me, but it’ll pass. Really, I’m not even that hot.”
When she finally stopped talking, she realized Ethan was grinning down at her. “Confidence looks good on you, Bryant.”
She blinked, confused. “I don’t think I understand what’s happening.”
“No. That much is clear. But you will.”
“You’re being really weird—” A thud at the window behind her had her whipping her head around to look.
She had to be seeing things.
An apparition.
An oasis in the desert, not unlike the image of water seeming to appear for those who were dying of thi
rst.
The most beautiful, wonderful man she’d ever seen, pressing himself against the glass with a handful of wildflowers in one fist and a picture in the other.
His daughter? Someone else? She didn’t know. Didn’t care.
Letting out a screech, she shoved the clipboard off her lap and ran to the window, pressing her hand against his on the glass like a complete moron.
Behind her, at least half the room started to say “aww” and clap.
Clearly, she’d decided to star in her own Hallmark moment. And damn, it felt good, even if she didn’t have the foggiest clue what was happening.
“You know, there’s a door,” Ethan said drily. “As lovely as this display is, he can come in or you can go out.”
“Good point.” They must’ve gotten the same idea at the same time, because she charged to the door at the same instant West tucked away the picture in his jeans pocket and sprinted for it on his side. She yanked it open and he stared at her for all of ten seconds before threading his hand through her professional braid and wrecking it all to hell. “I can’t see the pink,” he whispered, pulling it apart.
“We’re in public. I have to wear clothes,” she whispered back a second before her mouth met his.
He was already laughing. “Not that pink,” he said between kisses. “Although fuck. Now I can’t concentrate.”
“Oh.” She flushed and touched the side of her head. “You mean my hair.”
“I’m more focused on the other right now, but yeah. Your hair. I like it down. I’m used to seeing it all wild and crazy over your shoulders.” He touched it, rubbing it between his fingers. “God, I’ve missed feeling it. And the smell. Christ.” He leaned in and took a long sniff. “I can’t even go grocery shopping anymore without getting a boner in the produce section. Damn pineapples.”
She tipped back her head and laughed. It felt so good to laugh again. To have him against her, her flowers crushed between them.
Her flowers. Oh, no.
She let out a yelp and stepped back, softly stroking their purple and white petals. “For me?” she asked. “They’re so beautiful. West, I didn’t need flowers.”
“Yes, you do. You absolutely need flowers. I need to take you on dates. And I need to do everything slow and right. I can’t screw this up, Lo, any more than I have already. You’re worth so much more.” He brushed his fingertips against her cheek as her eyes filled. “I’m worth it too. We deserve the fucking storybook romance, don’t you think?”