London Falling (Falling #2)(71)
Slipping away from the British Invasion, I made it over to where my sister sat primly, beautifully put together even after two days of crazy. As I sat next to her, she held my hand and I cuddled into her side. No matter who she was in the business world, no matter how much money poured into her bank accounts, she was first and foremost my big sister. She could make me feel better when I was hurting.
“How you holdin’ up?”
“Holdin’? Did you just drop the “g” on that word?”
Her blue eyes twinkled as she smiled. “Hank’s rubbing off on me. I’ll try to put it in check. Must be the country environment.”
“It’s okay. I think it’s cute. How’s my baby doing?” I leaned over and put my ear to her belly bump. All I could hear was the swish-swish of her body, but it made me feel better knowing I was so near to new life. Aspen tunneled her fingers through my hair, massaging my scalp as the events of the last couple days sank in.
“I’m officially at seventeen weeks.” I heard the rumble of her voice against her stomach and tilted my head so that I could hear her but continued to appreciate her soft touch against my hair.
“Does that mean we get to find out what it is?” God, I love my sister so much right now. She was purposely talking about the one and only subject that could take my mind off the fear of what was going on with the two men I loved and adored in a sterile room not far from where I sat. “Three more weeks.”
I pinched my lips together. “I have a friend who went to a place called Peek-a-boo Baby where she got to see a whole month earlier than that.”
Aspen’s fingers scratched along the crown of my head, soothing and lovingly. “London, if God meant for us to see our children, he would have covered our bellies in glass instead of skin and tissue. No, Hank is also adamant about not doing that.” She laughed. “He actually said, and I quote, ’Ain’t no way in hell some fruit-loop is going to wave a wand over my baby and give her radiation or some shit. Nut uh.’”
A giggle eased the tension and it felt good. “I can totally see him saying something like that. He’s the fruit-loop.”
Aspen nodded and looked over at her husband. My sister was sitting next to me, comforting me instead of Fiji bound for her honeymoon.
“Thank you for staying,” I whispered and tried not to cry again. I was so tired of crying.
“There’s no place I’d rather be than here with you, making sure our extended family is okay.” She kissed my forehead and I lifted up.
“You mean Tripp?”
“Yes, and Collier too. I can see how much he means to you. A blind man could. It’s written across your face and sealed into your essence. I could feel it at the wedding when he showed up. I just knew then that you were finally going to be okay. You have found your mate…for the second time.”
Traitorous tears built again but I pushed them back. “Yeah, but I never got to tell him. I’m so afraid I’ll never get to.”
Aspen grabbed my hand and put her other one on my cheek. “It’s not going to happen twice, London. I know it. I feel it in every bone in my body. Have faith. Just have faith.”
I closed my eyes and sent a silent prayer to the big guy upstairs once more.
Aspen hugged me and settled back into her chair. We watched as Ella, Collier and Nate’s other sister handed her baby over to a willing Hank. The boy was screaming bloody murder but Hank put out his big hands and clasped the baby to his large chest. Immediately he snuggled the baby into his embrace and rocked him from side to side. The mother gave him the pacifier the baby wouldn’t take previously and Hank wiggled it into the baby’s mouth. Instant quiet fell over the room. It was heavenly.
I nudged Aspen in the shoulder. “Looks like your husband has the magic touch.”
“Yes he does.” She grinned and had the stunning look of a woman in love shining behind her blue eyes.
After what seemed like days, Dr. Nicholls entered the waiting room. The entire room went completely quiet as the good doctor smiled. “Okay, the Dean tells me I can blow through the medical privacy and just spill the details.” He winked at Aspen and she grinned proudly, obviously having made another donation to another hospital to get her way, besides sending her jet to fly the man from New York to Texas to do the transplant. Man, I owed my sister big. “First and foremost I want to say both patients are doing well. There were a few dropped heart rate moments in Mr. Stone, but he’s healthy and strong. We suspect most of that had to do with his body’s trauma leading up to needing the new kidney. Mr. Devereux flew through the surgery with flying colors and will be awake soon. Mr. Stone, we’re keeping sedated to allow additional time for his body to mate with the new organ. I’m sorry to say, only one of you can see him at a time.”
Aspen cleared her throat and lifted two fingers making her expectation clear. The little woman standing behind Dr. Nicholls with the ugly suit and hair pulled tightly in a bun must be the Dean of Medicine. She nodded her acceptance of Aspen’s silent request. Money talks.
“I mean two will be allowed in at once. Just remember folks, they have both been through a lot. Especially, Mr. Stone. He’ll likely be in the hospital a solid ten days. Mr. Devereux will be able to leave in three or four, provided everything goes well post-surgery. This is good news, everybody. They’re both going to live long and healthy lives.”