Conception (The Wellingtons #4) - Tessa Teevan Page 0,135

Mom rushing to his side. Andi scrambling to get Cohen. My baby bro rushing in and taking action when all I can do is watch on the sidelines. It doesn’t make sense. I’m trained to run in, provide aid no matter the injury, no matter the problem. But I can’t. I am rooted in my spot, a helpless spectator. McAllister and Montgomery would give me so much shit if they could see me now.

My only saving grace is my wife’s arms sliding around me and holding me tight.

Charlie anchors me. Keeps me afloat. Just like she always has. Just like she always will.

We haven’t had enough time, me and Dad.

I can’t lose my old man. Not like this.

When I decided to go into medicine, it was because I wanted to help people. Save lives. I can’t count how many times I’ve had to call family members into a secluded room to give them the news that their loved one hadn’t made it. No matter how often it happens, it never gets easier.

But I never thought it’d be my family that would be sitting in that intensive care unit waiting room, desperate for news. I never thought it’d be my father on that table, and as much as it’s killing me that I’m not performing the operation, I understand it. I am too close.

With my family in the waiting room, and watching my dad’s surgery from the gallery, I’ve never felt so damn helpless. I’m being pulled in two different directions. I want to be with my family, to comfort Mom, and find my own solace with those I love the most.

But it something happens to Dad on that operating table, I want to be the one to break the news.

I just pray to God it doesn’t come to that. We’ve only just become a family again. We can’t fall apart now.

My arm instinctively wraps around Mom’s shoulders as she lowers herself into the uncomfortable seat beside me. She spent the first few hours pacing up and down the halls, waiting for any news about Dad. Eventually, Ariana brought her a cup of coffee and persuaded her to take a seat.

“I’m so glad you boys are all here. That Cohen’s back there with his dad. I couldn’t do this without you.” She glances at her daughters-in-law, from Andi to Charlie, then to my wife, Ari. “Any of you.”

“Mom, there’s no place we’d rather be,” I tell her.

She uses a tissue to wipe the corners of her red-rimmed, exhaustion-filled eyes. “I know. What about the children? If any of you need to get back, I understand.”

Charlie gives Mom’s hand a squeeze. “Dad and Olivia are watching the whole brood at our place. Trust me, they’re enjoying their time with the little ones.”

Mom laughs at the idea of Charlie’s boisterous father and strong-willed stepmother watching their twins as well as my own three little hellions.

“For the longest time, this is how I imagined my life turning out. My three boys growing up to raise families of their own. And then everything got ripped apart. I wasn’t sure we’d ever get back to this place. Yet here we are.”

“Ma, it’s in the past. Let it stay there,” Knox says from where he’s holding up the wall across from us.

The faintest smile crosses Mom’s lips. “You’re right, honey. But the past wasn’t all bad, you know. If there wasn’t a past, none of you would be here.” She rests her back against the wall, letting out a sigh. “Your dad and I never told you the story of how we met.”

“You met at the lake,” I remind her.

Amused, green eyes meet mine. “That’s true. But we kept most of that to ourselves. If we hadn’t, you two wouldn’t have had this silly rivalry. So I’ll spare some of the details, but I want you to know that, even though your father wasn’t there through my pregnancy, we both loved each other very much. We were just too stubborn to admit it.”

Charlie and Ariana burst into laughter. Mom’s knowing smile is equally irritating.

“Not sure what’s so fucking funny,” Knox mutters.

“Language, dear,” Mom admonishes.

“I’m thirty-fucking-four, Ma. If I haven’t learned to censor myself by now, I’m never going to.”

Charlie laughs even harder, bending over and holding her stomach when her husband glares at her. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It’s just… It’s so obvious where the two of you get your stubborn streaks. Not just your dad, but your mom, too.” She lifts up, pushing her hair back