Good Boy (WAGs #1)(69)

Brenna shakes her head. “It’s just…I got upset. I’m so…stressed.” She puts a hand to her chest.

Mama Riley disappears anyway.

I’m watching Brenna, and for some reason I’m terrified for her. Something is just off.

“Brenna,” I say softly. “Where does it hurt?”

“My head. And I’m dizzy.”

Anyone can get a migraine. But my Spidey sense is tingling like crazy. She’s sitting with her feet straight out, giving me a view of her swollen ankles. I touch one gently, and when I pull my finger away the indent is still visible. “Brenna, do you know what preeclampsia is?”

“High blood pressure, right?”

“Yeah. When my sister was on bed rest in the spring, they were worried about it for her. That’s what your symptoms remind me of. Maybe I’m just a Nervous Nelly, but…” I swallow hard. “Will you have your blood pressure checked just to make me feel better? Pretty please?”

She groans. “I’m not having this baby today. I’m only thirty-eight weeks.”

That’s not even dangerous, and I’ll bet Brenna knows it. “Are you afraid?” I ask gently.

“Hell yes.”

I let out a shaky laugh just as her husband appears in the doorway. I know I’m just a first-year nursing student, and not even a very good one, but I tell Charlie my concerns anyway, because I can’t help myself.

“Let’s not waste time waiting for the doctor to call back on a Sunday,” I suggest. “She should go to the ER for a blood pressure check, just to be safe.”

“Let’s go,” Charlie says immediately, while Brenna starts to cry.



I spend the next hour worrying that I’ve sequestered the entire Riley family at a suburban hospital for no good reason.

At the ER, Brenna is whisked into an exam room while the rest of the Rileys pace. Blake looks distraught. I can’t stand the sight of his worried face, so I plant him in a chair and rub his shoulders until my hands give out.

When a young doctor comes out to tell us that Brenna will be transferred to the obstetrical ward for an emergency C-section, Blake hangs his head. “This is my fault,” he mumbles. “If I hadn’t lost my shit, this wouldn’t be happening.”

I dig my hands into his messy hair and tug until he’s forced to lift his head up to look at me. “That’s a lot of bullshit, Blake Riley. Brenna’s had this problem all week. The weight gain. The swollen hands and feet. This doesn’t have anything to do with you or Molly.”

“That’s right,” the doctor agrees. “Nobody knows what causes preeclampsia. There was nothing you could have done except drive here on the double.”

We all relocate to a different waiting room, where the Rileys commence pacing again. They are big people, and more than one hospital patron leaves the room to stay clear of their paths.

I make a vending machine run for sodas, just to have some way to help. And when I hand Mama Riley one, she grabs my elbow with a hand that’s almost the size of Blake’s. “I’m sorry about all that unpleasantness earlier,” she tells me, her voice eerily subdued.

“Oh! It’s fine,” I say, embarrassed. “Blake, uh, he already told me what happened between them.”

His mother nods like a sage. “I had my suspicions.”

“Me too.” I blush. “I mean, I had my suspicions that you had your suspicions.” My tone grows awkward again. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“To him, or to everyone?”

“Both.”

She sighs. “I kept my mouth shut because it was obvious my boy didn’t want anyone to know. I thought maybe he was trying to spare his sister’s feelings.”

“He was,” I confirm. “But he was trying to protect Molly, too.” Not that she deserved it. I don’t hate many people, but Blake’s ex definitely tops the list.

“I figured that, too.” She nods sadly. “That’s Blakey’s best trait, you know. His need to protect. To make everyone happy…”

Even if it means sacrificing his own happiness, is the unfinished sentiment. And my heart clenches painfully, because I know it’s true. As over the top as Blake is, he lives his entire life for other people. Look at the way he took Wes under his wing last season, the way he dropped everything to help take care of Jamie when he was sick.

Blake Riley is a better man than anyone gives him credit for. And I’m ashamed of myself. I’m so fucking ashamed for ever believing that he was just a stupid jock who was incapable of being serious.

“Anyway, you’re a trooper, Jess,” Mama Riley says, while I continue to beat myself up for being such a jackass. “Just want you to know I appreciate it.”

Then she gives me another oxygen-depriving hug, which I try to reciprocate. Maybe in time I’ll learn to get a full breath of air before she does that.

It’s only an hour later when Charlie reappears in the waiting room wearing a surgical smock and a smile. “It’s a girl!” he announces. “Six pounds even. No name yet, but we’re working on it. Brenna’s all woozy, so I think my choice will prevail.”

Mama Riley gallops over and places both hands on his shoulders. “Is Brenna okay?”

“Of course. She just yelled at me to take more pictures, so I’m thinking that’s a good sign.”