I can see how one could lie here and become depressed. Maybe that’s what’s happening to me now, but I’ll keep doing what I have to for this baby and pray the membranes have retreated.

I wait on pins and needles, lying on a bed of nails upside down, as I hold my breath for the verdict. “I don’t see hourglassing, Laurelyn. I think we can put you on the surgery schedule and place the cerclage today.”

Hallelujah! I want to jump out of bed and turn cartwheels down the hall.

Jack Henry squeezes my hand and leans up to kiss me. “I knew you’d do it. I never doubted you for a second.”

Things move rapidly, prepping me for surgery, and I’m nervous. No … more like petrified. There are still risks involved with this procedure, so we aren’t out of the woods yet. But the prognosis is much improved from what it was four days ago.

My surgical nurse and anesthetist come into the room to move me to the OR. Jack Henry looks as terrified as I feel. “You’re going to do perfect and Dr. Sommersby is going to take good care of you. I’ll be right here waiting.” He leans down and kisses my mouth. “I love you, L.”

“Love you too.”

I’m wheeled down the hall backward, the fluorescent lights flashing as we move beneath them. It’s disorienting moving in the wrong direction and the flickering doesn’t help. It’s nauseating. “I don’t feel well.”

The bed is stopped and a washcloth is placed over my face. “Close your eyes and don’t watch the overhead lights.” I remember the nurses telling me to notify them immediately if I felt nauseated. Vomiting could cause my membranes to balloon out further or possibly even rupture. “Concentrate on your breathing and take slow, deep breaths. We’re almost there.” I feel something being placed in my hand. “This is an alcohol pad. Sniff it. It’ll help the nausea pass.”

I bring it to my nose and inhale deeply. Miraculously, it helps. I sure wish I’d known about that little trick a couple months ago.

The freezing cold air of the operating room hits me the second I’m taken inside and my body involuntarily shakes before it’s really even had a chance to cool. My teeth are clenched tightly and a rigor causes me to jerk. “I have some warm blankets for you once we get you moved over.”

I’m slid with sheets and a backboard to a table in the middle of the room. Bright lights shine directly on my crotch. Stirrups await, and I’m pretty sure I know what’s next. I’ll be spread-eagle for everyone in this room to see. How humiliating. I hope they put me to sleep first.

I look up and see the upside down face of the nurse anesthetist placing an oxygen mask over my mouth and nose. “Just a little fresh air for you, Mrs. McLachlan.” A moment later the woman standing over me says, “I’m going to give you something through your IV to make you really sleepy.”

“Okay.”

And everything goes black.

24

I can’t sit. I’m restless, pacing L’s room from the door to look down the hall and back to the ignored chair.

“The doctor said Laurelyn would be in surgery almost an hour if there were no complications and then she’d go to the recovery room for an hour, so park your ass in that chair before you give me motion sickness.” Mum doesn’t look up from where she’s reading, her glasses low on her nose.

I take the chair next to her. “Sorry. I can’t help myself.” My heart pounds and bats flutter in my gut.

“You always were a nervous one, watching over Chloe like she was a delicate flower. You could never see that your baby sister was as tough as nails but it was good practice for you. You’ve transitioned from the sheltering big brother into the protective husband and father.”

“I’m still the sheltering big brother.” And I don’t like Chloe being with that fucker.

“Ben is good for Chloe. He treats her well.”

Because he knows I’ll kick his ass if he steps out of line. “He’s a bastard, Mum. He’s using Chloe and he’s only going to hurt her in the end. You don’t know him the way I do.” It’s only a matter of time and I’ll be there to take him down when he does.

She looks skeptical. “And how well do you know him?”

“Well enough.”

“Ben is the brother of Laurelyn’s best friend and he pursued her when she came to Australia.”

My mum knows Ben went after L? “That’s right.”

“You were both chasing after her at the same time so he was your opponent in the duel to win Laurelyn’s heart.”

“But she was mine and he knew that,” I argue.

“Listen to me, son. Ben went after his sister’s best friend, knowing there would be hell to pay if he screwed it up. He proposed an authentic relationship with her from the beginning, one that might have prospered into something real. Now, think back on what you offered—a fling lasting a few months with no connection afterward. You never even asked her last name while she was living with you and sharing your bed. So, tell me who behaved worse.”

Okay. Mum has a point. I was probably more of a bastard than Ben but that doesn’t mean I should stop looking out for Chloe. “I’ll lighten up a little on him.”

“No, son. You’ll lighten up a lot. Chloe’s in love with Ben and you don’t have the right to ruin it because you refuse to let go of a rivalry that ended when you won Laurelyn’s heart.”

Oh hell. Why’d my sister have to go and fall in love with Ben Donavon, of all fucking people? The earth is populated by billions and she had to choose him. “I can do it but it’s going to take some time. I can’t cut it off like a switch.”

“If it helps, think of it as a favor to your mum.”

No. It doesn’t help one bit but I don’t have time to answer because L’s phone is ringing in the cabinet where her things are stored. I’m sure it’s her mum. I really don’t have the patience or desire to talk to her right now, but she has the right to an update on her daughter and grandchild—if that’s the reason behind her call. She could be calling to discuss wedding plans. I wouldn’t put that past her. Selfish bitch.

I don’t recognize the number and then remember it wasn’t her ringtone I heard. “Hello?”

“Good morning, this is Grayson Drake, assistant to the prosecuting attorney in the case against Blake Phillips. I’m trying to locate Miss Laurelyn Prescott.”