Thick Love (Thin Love, #2)(104)

“She is,” I agreed.

“Don’t think I don’t know what’s going on,” he whispered, but kept his attention on his daughter as he spoke. Then, Kona smirked. “You come in here looking like you haven’t slept in days, just like Ransom did this morning, and yet you’re both smiling like you have the most wonderful secret. I’m not blind.”

“But you are nosy,” Keira said, pretending to be distracted by the quick click of the television as she pointed the remote at it. “Get over here and let her enjoy the baby.”

He laughed as he obeyed, maneuvering his massive body next to his wife’s. I couldn’t hear what they were saying in those low whispers, and I was pretty sure I didn’t want to know, so I kept my attention on the tiny baby in my arms.

Her skin was precisely the color of Ransom’s and her mouth was Kona’s, thick bottom lip and pronounced dip in the cupid’s bow. But her eyes were not narrow like any of the Hale men. Like Koa’s eyes, Makana’s was rounded and I suspected both she and her older brother would have lighter eyes, eyes more like Keira’s.

“Have you guys brought Koa in to see her?” I asked, adjusting that sleeping bundle to my chest.

“Yeah,” Keira answered, nudging Kona when he stole the remote from her. “Leann brought him in yesterday.” She gave me fake frown. “He wanted to know where you were and was completely disinterested in his little sister.”

“Sorry. I’ll go by and see him today, maybe take him for some ice cream when Ransom gets back.”

“He’d like that.” Keira said, snuggling against Kona’s chest. She didn’t look directly at me, but still smiled like her thoughts were distant. I wondered what she thought seeing me hold her daughter and hoped there wasn’t some weird ideas forming in her head about the future and more babies sleeping against my chest. Me zanmi, non! I was only nineteen.

“Where is Ransom?” Kona asked, his focus supposedly on whatever football game happened to be showing on the hospital TV at the moment. “I figured he wouldn’t let you out of his sight after all that time…ow, Wildcat, easy with the elbows.”

I ignored their bickering and Kona’s prying and rocked the baby when she started to fuss. “He said he had to take care of something on St. Charles and he…” The clatter of the remote on the floor stopped me cold. Kona jumped up from the bed, and stared straight at me. “What?”

I’d seen that fear in Kona’s eyes only once before, and that was three days ago when we had no idea what would happen to Keira. “What did he say exactly?”

“He said there was someone he had to talk to.” I shifted the baby when she started to whine. “I asked who and he said it didn’t matter that it wouldn’t take him long to get to St. Charles and back, then he’d meet me here.”

Keira rested against her bed, frowning as Kona slumped next to her.

“Modi, Kona, what the hell is going on?” The baby was fully awake and I gave her to Keira when the woman stretched out her arms.

“How long ago?” Kona asked.

“Just about fifteen minutes before I got here.”

His jaw tightened, but he nodded and I swore I could almost make out him working through whatever plans ticked around in his head. “Wildcat…” he told Keira, holding her face still to kiss her.

They looked at each other for a few seconds, holding each other’s gazes like they spoke a language with small twitches on their mouth and slow blinks.

“He has to do this,” Keira said, holding Kona’s wrist.

“What if he…” Kona’s voice cracked and he dismissed the slip in his composure with his hands over his face.

“Warren is mean, but he isn’t stupid. No matter how much he hates Ransom, he would never be careless.” When Kona continued to frown, Keira pulled his face back up, holding his chin. “He has to do this,” she repeated, moving her fingers over her husband’s face.

“Okay,” Kona said, but he didn’t sound convinced. He sounded, in fact, a little lost.

“Hey, come on now,” I said, wanting to break the tension in the room. I had no other ideas how to fix this, or what the hell Ransom was up to. “Whatever it is…”

“He’s gone off to see Emily’s father.” Keira’s voice was low and she leaned back against the mattress with her baby on her chest and her eyes closed.

“What?”

She shook her head, like she also wasn’t convinced that Ransom should be left on his own as he sought whatever forgiveness Emily’s father might give him. “He told us, before he went to you that he wanted to apologize. He said it was a bridge that needed to stop burning.” Keira winced when Kona grunted, when the big man gripped the edge of the mattress like it was the only thing keeping him in the room. “Kona didn’t want him going on his own.”

“Maybe it won’t be…” but I didn’t finish that thought. I’d seen that man’s eyes the day we were in Tremé. He’d stared at Ransom like he wanted to rip him limb from limb. There had been a cold, angry hatred flashing in that man’s eyes. “Kona…” I started, suddenly petrified that what I’d finally found might soon be taken from me. “You aren’t going to stop him?”