by Anthology
Jake could visualize the snake and his never-ending comb-over reclined in his high budget office chair with his feet propped up on his ultra-modern desk, ankles crossed. Most days, he made Jake want to gag. Nevertheless, today, the guy had what he needed. He seethed inwardly as he said hello and made nice with the small talk.
After several minutes of digesting Todd’s egocentric posturing, Jake’s patience hit its expiration. He didn’t care if he got his blueprints stamped sometime after Easter, no matter how far behind that put construction.
"Look, Todd, you know my problem. We had a little delivery snafu, and I’m scrambling to get another package to you for approval so we can break ground. My partner is out of town, and my wife has been ill, and—"
"So . . . I hear that lovely wife of yours is expecting. About ready to pop, is she?" Jake had never heard a slimy reptile snicker until just now. "Yeah, had to hear that from the secretary here. Can’t tell you how disappointed I was. Jake . . . Jakester . . . I thought we were friends."
That’s because you’re a moron. "Todd, you and I both know I have a hundred extra sets of prints, but the"—he paused to take a breath when the word prick nearly slipped out—"guy ramrodding this wants the engineer’s stamp dated no earlier than a week prior. Now, do you have someone who can help me or not? Yes or no, that’s all I need to hear." Jake’s breathing slowed; the verdict could go either way.
The springs from Todd’s chair squeaked in Jake’s ear. "Fine. We’ve got someone new. She can help you tomorrow."
Todd finally let him off the phone and the rocks that had settled heavy in his stomach began bouncing around again. Allie! He hadn’t spoken to her in hours! If this job wasn’t vital to the company, he could blow the whole thing off and spend the entire long weekend relaxing with his family. He gave her a quick call and left a short message when the machine picked up. He’d call her again as soon as he got done checking in with Ryan.
Chapter Four
Jake strode down the corridor to Ryan’s office. "Dude, did Kim get the blueprints for the condos to you so you can sign off?"
Without looking up, Ryan pointed to a large mailing tube laying on the conference table at the far end of the room. "Sure, right over there. Everything’s ready to go." He continued to work on his computer as Jake stepped over to check them out.
He picked up the package and slid out the bound roll. He had time for little more than to unfurl the assortment of blueprints and detail drawings before his cell buzzed with an incoming text. It was his wife.
Allie: Are you coming home soon?
Jake: We’ll share that little fantasy.
From his seat behind the desk, Ryan raised an eyebrow. "You bust into my office to check your social media?" He got up and moved toward the table.
"It’s your sister. Fuck off."
And now the word fantasy was echoing in his brain. His imagination had been piling them up, and becoming quite creative, over the past few weeks.
"Allie? She okay?"
Okay? Seemed everyone had a code. "Sure. She’s fine. Tired of being pregnant. Excited for the holiday and everyone being together again." He set the phone down and started flipping through the oversized drawings.
Ryan yanked them out of his hands. "Jake, I’ve got this. They’re done. Packed. Ready to go. Leave them alone."
Jake’s gaze wouldn’t veer from the mound of pages. The stack that meant so much to his company. "Ryan, if we miss one signature . . ." He couldn’t even consider the consequences. They had so much riding on this project. Jake’s phone vibrated against the table with an incoming call. He held up a waiting finger to Ryan. "It’s Trey. Can you give me a minute?"
"No problem." Ryan went back to work at his desk.
Jake clicked the call on and held the phone to his ear. "Hey, kid, I heard you’re getting some weather out there."
"Jake, you should see this snow! It’s totally whiting out the city!" A predictable combination of excitement and anxiety made Trey’s voice high and fast, and the heavy mass that had settled in Jake’s chest earlier in the day grew even larger.
"But, Trey—" He interrupted the young man’s description of blowing gusts and heaping snowbanks. They must be traveling in an automobile. "Are you in a taxi? Are you on your way to the airport?"
"Airport. Yeah. But I don’t know if they’ll let us on our plane. They’re talking about shutting down the airport. Gramps says we’ll try to get on an earlier plane if we can, before they ground all the flights."
His heart lodged in his throat at the thought of his godson…his heartson…his stepson, stranded thousands of miles from home. And of having to break Allie’s heart and spoil her holiday with the news. At least Bentley had a level head on his shoulders. He’d always been someone they could count on.
"Okay, son. Keep in touch; make sure you let us know your flight information." He kept his voice upbeat; he had to stay positive. Because if they got socked in and didn’t make a flight out tonight, there was no way they’d be home for Allie’s family Thanksgiving. And that was inconceivable.
As if his thoughts conjured her, his phone buzzed as soon as he disconnected with Trey. He opened the text message from home.
Allie: Are you coming home yet?
He glanced at his watch. Shit! Where had the time gone?
Jake: I’ll be there by the time Sarah leaves.
Allie: She left already.
The fuck? Allie was alone with the babies again?
Jake: Why didn’t you call me???
Allie: Hmm. Busy.
He bet she was. Probably running her ass off when she should be planted on it.
Jake: I’ll be there ASAP
Allie: Thank you
He stowed his phone in his belt holster and stood beside the chair fronting Ryan’s desk; he only had a minute. Not a lot of people actually considered their family members as friends, but he counted Ryan as someone he trusted and cared about. It was important to Allie that the entire family was in attendance on Thursday. And it was important to him that no blood was shed.
"I hear your boys will be down for Thanksgiving this year. You’ve got to be excited about that."
Ryan finished with whatever he had open on the computer screen and powered down. He leaned forward on his elbows and his grin overtook his face. "Jesus, yes. I haven’t seen those rascals for a couple of months. Skyping just isn’t the same as having a chance to play ball or roll around in the grass with them. I’ve been trying really hard to cut back on my hours at the office, but with this project gearing to take off, it’s been impossible. I should have more time with them now."
Jake slipped into the chair and looked him straight in the eye. "I don’t think it’s the boys you need to worry about."
Ryan went still. "You mean Tess."
Jake dipped his chin one time. "Tess."
"She’s still pissed."
"She’s been gone almost a year. She’s had a chance to do what she wanted to do. You’ve had a chance to get your shit together. Don’t you think it’s time to kiss and make up?"
Ryan’s shoulders slumped, then arched back as he straightened in his chair. His chin took on that stubborn tilt he saw in Allie way too often. "I tried that, Jake. But no matter what I do for her, it’s not good enough." He let out a frustrated growl. "Look, I loved my wife. I think I may still love her. But it’s damn hard to know for sure when the only side to her I see is the ice queen bitch who’s sure to rub it in every time I fuck something up."
Jake gave the edge of Ryan’s desk a tap. If he didn’t find his way home soon, there’d be a doghouse with his name on it, too. "I can’t tell you what to do, but as your friend and your brother-in-law I want you to remember that we care about you. Both of you. You’re family."
"Thanks, Jake." Ryan’s gaze went hard and pensive, and he gave a short nod. "One way or another we’ve got to end this whatever it is we’ve got going on. She either wants me or she doesn’t, but I’m tired of her bullshit."
Jake
let the corners of his mouth tug up in a grin. "’Bout time you got your fangs back. Now use them. Thanksgiving ought to be interesting."
He stood, and just as he took a step toward Ryan’s door, his phone dinged. He unfastened it to find another text from Allie. Damn, how long had he been here?
Allie: ARE YOU COMING HOME???
His brow lowered. What the hell?
Ryan had joined him in the hallway. "Everything all right?"
Jake had already tapped his phone to call Allie. "Don’t know. Allie’s upset about something. She’s been trying to get me home since I came in here. Probably has that nesting thing going on and made a four-course dinner. I’ll have to tie her to the couch for the rest of the night."
Enticing visions of silk ties and soft music flitted through his brain in the short moment it took for Allie to answer the phone. "Hey, sweetheart, what’s with the bombing run on my phone? Everything all right?"
Allie’s choppy breath blew in his ear. "The baby. I need help."
He pulled the phone away from his ear and glared at it. She knew she couldn’t handle those twins on her own. "Sweetheart, you should have had Sarah stay until I got home. The babies wearing you out? Give me five more minutes and I’ll be on my way."
A second later Allie made a sound he’d never heard before, something between a squeal and a roar that made his blood run cold. "God damn it, Jake Taylor! Get your ass home! I’m having a baby today, and I could use some assistance!"
Holy fuck! He yelled to Ryan over his shoulder as he ran through the building. "Call your mom to meet me at our house! Allie’s in labor!"
Ryan slapped his office lights off and took off after him. "Her house is thirty minutes away. I’ll follow you."
Jake paused at the door leading to the parking lot. "You okay with that?"
Ryan scowled. "What, I can’t watch two little kids for a few hours? Allie’s my sister. Now, shit or get off the pot. If you make her wait any longer, I’ll kick your ass. There’s a baby trying to get born."
Chapter Five
Heart thumping, Jake zigzagged through the heavy freeway traffic. What kind of jerk did it make him that he hadn’t left work right away, especially when he knew Allie shouldn’t be left alone with the twins? And she’d been feeling so badly the night before—had her labor really been starting?
Damn it! He slammed his fist on the steering wheel and gave his truck more gas.
At his exit, his headlights blazed a path until he reached the well-lit streets of his neighborhood. Ryan had somehow managed to stay glued to his ass and squealed to a stop at the curb just as he roared into the driveway. They met at the front door, and Jake flung it open.
The sight that met him was reminiscent of the havoc he walked in on the night before—a kaleidoscope of scattered blocks, a tribe of naked doll babies—but tonight Allie was on the sofa rather than seated in her overstuffed chair. And rather than calmly perched on her butt surrounded by her lists and plans, his wife crouched on all fours, ass in the air, alternately arching and then flexing her back. He rushed to her side while Ryan took off down the hallway.
"Allie, I’m here." He slid a couple of decorative pillows under her belly. "Here, move these around until you’re comfortable." He clamped his mouth shut and pretended not to notice the stink eye she leveled at him. He couldn’t blame her. That was a stupid thing to say. She could shift and shimmy all night long, but she wouldn’t be comfortable again for a while.
He planted kisses on her face: her forehead, her cheeks, her chin, everywhere he could reach. "Sweetheart, why didn’t you tell me the baby was on its way?"
She shoved one of the little pillows further under her. "You were so worried about your project, and you had to take care of those blueprints, and I hoped the pain would stop, and . . . and . . . it won’t stop!" The last came out on a wail, and he fell to his knees.
Her hair was wild so he glanced around until he spotted one of her hair clips; he reached for it and used it to hold her curls off her face. "Allie, did your water break already?"
She glared at him and snarled, "Am I rushing you to get me to the hospital, Jake? Believe me, you’ll know when my water breaks."
All right, then. Looked like this might be a long night for all of them. "What do you need me to do, sweetheart?" He was already a father; he’d been through labor with Allie before. But at the sight of his wife writhing, all memory of his responsibilities fled. The only thing he wanted was to ease her pain.
And find the twins. He should probably make sure Ryan hadn’t changed his mind and snuck back out the door. Just then Allie’s brother appeared with one kid propped on each hip, a pint-sized cowboy hat crammed on his head.
"Me and the young’uns here are gonna rustle up some grub." He shoved each one of them close enough that Jake could land a kiss somewhere on their head and make them giggle.
The welcome sound of their laughter was contagious. Jake chuckled. "Carry on, pardners."
Her phone lay on the cushion by her face, the numbers on the stopwatch app spinning. Her face was drawn and pale. "How close are your contractions?" Please say twenty minutes. Please say twenty minutes
"This one was only five minutes."
"Five minutes!"
She glared at him.
"Did she just say five minutes?" Ryan shrieked from the kitchen. "Should we call an ambulance?"
"Shut up, Ryan! You sound like a scared little girl."
"I not scared!" Addison yelled from the kitchen.
Seemed she was the only one. Jake stood and pulled on Allie’s arm to haul her up from the sofa. "Seriously, baby, have you been in labor since last night?"
Allie’s chin quivered and her eyes filled. Damn it! He gathered her into his arms. "You’re fine. Everything’s fine." He tugged at her chin until she met his unwavering gaze. "This is not like last time. Nothing’s wrong. But I wish you would have called me."
"The contractions didn’t bother me at all while I was sleeping, and I thought they stopped. But then this afternoon they started up again."
Ryan seemed to have the twins under control, so Jake reached for the nearby bottle of lotion and squirted some into his palm. Maybe a back rub would help Allie. At the very least, it would give him something to do and help take his mind off her ferocious breathing. He worked his hand under the hem of her top and started with her lower back just as she seized in place and her breathing escalated.
"Don’t touch me!" Allie snapped the words out, and he yanked his hands back.
His phone dinged from the holster on his belt. He resisted the urge to pull the device from its holder and check. He’d reconciled to not getting the engineer’s stamps for today, but maybe Kim had a message from their office. There was too much going on right now, too much in limbo. The lost blueprints, his missing business partner, the family members who were hopefully somewhere en route. Now, the baby. And all in the midst of holiday planning. They’d planned this pregnancy, eagerly awaited the blessed event. But did this all have to go down at once?
"C’mon, baby, let’s get you walking." Instructions were trickling back into the fuzzy gray matter of his brain.
He needed to help Allie move around. He steered her in a slow path around the room. The ringing of his cell phone interrupted their quiet murmurings as they finished their second circuit. Allie halted and leaned into him, and he ignored the call; he had more important things going on right now.
She seemed to be doing okay with the walking so he got them moving again, this time into the dining room. Ryan babbled at the kids in the kitchen as he peeled bananas. Addison mutilated the theme song from her favorite animated movie at full voice.
"You doing okay in there, Ryan?" No answer. The phone started up again and he yanked it off his belt. "Ryan!"
Ryan paused in breaking a banana into chunks for the toddlers to eat and Aiden screamed. Ryan got back to business. "Little busy here. What’s up?"
With his arms full of an unwieldy Allie, Jake took advantage o
f a pause for a contraction. He couldn’t manage an accurate throw, but he was able to toss the cell phone in the general direction of his brother-in-law. He’d be testing that construction-grade cover he had on it if Ryan didn’t catch the device. "See who keeps calling and get rid of them. I’m a little busy here myself."
Ryan caught the phone in one hand while he shoved fruit into Aiden’s mouth with the other. Good catch. The man could multitask; what did Tess have to complain about? Addison had stopped singing, but seemed to be amusing herself in her nearby high chair. He should probably remind Ryan that the time to worry about that one was when she went quiet.
Ryan peered at the display as Jake redirected Allie down the hallway. "First call was Trey. The next one was Bentley. Neither left a message."
Allie cast a curious gaze at Jake. He countered with a nonchalant shrug as he shuffled her along beside him. If she’d been preoccupied all day, chances were good she hadn’t seen the news . . . or the weather. No use worrying her now.
"I spoke with Trey earlier. They were going to try to catch an earlier plane. He must be calling with their flight information."
Allie offered a dubious grin and then blew out a couple of rapid breaths—a sure indicator of another contraction. They seemed to be coming closer and closer. It was time to move this party somewhere with trained professionals. He turned to face her and brushed a few wisps of hair off her face. Her face was strained and slightly damp with sweat, and she’d never looked more beautiful. God, he loved this woman.
He lowered his lips to hers and let them rest there for a long moment in a kiss that was soft and comforting. Did she realize he took as much as he gave in moments like this? He stretched his arms to hold her, and then couldn’t stop the laugh when his hands didn’t reach all the way around.
"Don’t you dare make fun of me right now!