of surprise and the wetness running down her bare legs. “Jesus, you weren’t kidding when you said you had to pee.”
“Josh,” she huffs, “I didn’t pee. My water broke.”
Panic washes over me and then consumes me as I think about what this means. She’s having a baby. “I need to call an ambulance,” I babble, reaching in my pocket for my phone.
Janny places her hand on my arm. “Josh, calm down. I don’t need an ambulance. I’m going to change into some clean clothes and then I’m going to drive myself to the hospital.”
“Are you sure you have time for that?” I ask, my brow furrowed with concern for her and the baby.
“Yes. I promise, I’m fine. I’ve got a bag with extra clothes in the trunk. If you want to help me you can grab it for me.”
Snapping into action, I do as she asks. She’s on the phone with Kyle filling him in on what’s happening. “Calm down, honey. It’s all under control.” She rolls her eyes at me with a smile. I can hear Kyle’s excited tone from where I stand a few feet away. “No, I’m not even having contractions yet. Let me go change and I’ll meet you at the hospital.” There’s a lull in her side of the conversation, before she replies. “Josh will drive me,” she tells him, but her expression is a question aimed in my direction.
“Damn right, I will.” I step beside her and open the door, ushering her inside out of the heat.
“I love you too,” she tells Kyle and then ends the call. Blowing out a large breath she drops her phone in her purse and follows me up the staircase. “Show me to the nearest bathroom so I can change.” She grimaces and rubs her stomach. “By the way, I totally lied to my husband when I told him I’m not having contractions.”
“What?” I bark over my shoulder. “The bathroom is right here.” I set her bag on the floor inside.
She pats my arm as she passes by. “Calm down Josh. You’re not going to have to deliver a baby today.”
Three hours later and I’m still sitting in the waiting area, with no information of what’s going on. Staring down at my sketchpad, I try to concentrate on the tattoo I’m drawing, but my mind is all over the place. I thought working would help pass the time and keep me from worrying about Janny, but it’s not providing the distraction I’d hoped.
“Josh, what’s going on?” Elle breathlessly questions as she hurries over. My eyes raise, tracing over the pink flush of her cheeks like my detailed pencil strokes on paper.
“Josh, please tell me what’s going on.” She lowers onto one of the uncomfortable blue plastic seats next to me, her hands clenched together in her lap.
Closing my sketchpad, I tuck the pencil inside and place it on the vacant seat to my other side. “I haven’t heard anything for a few hours now. I drove her here and Kyle met us. They took her away immediately, he followed along and I haven’t seen either of them since.”
“So, everything was okay when you brought her here?” she asks her voice laced with panic.
“Yes, her water had broken, but she was doing great.”
“Oh, thank god.” She closes her eyes, taking a few deep breaths. When her gaze reconnects with mine, she appears calmer. “So, what now?”
“Now, we wait for news.” I drum my fingers on my thigh and bounce my knee up and down repeatedly. All this sitting still is making me agitated. I’m worried about Janny, even though I’m positive she’s in great hands. If someone would come out and tell us what’s going on it would go a long way toward easing my mind.
Minutes pass, the silence stretching out until neither of us knows what to say. The longer we avoid speaking the more awkward it feels. Running my hands through my hair, I tug on the disheveled strands frustrated. When did having a simple conversation with Elle become so arduous? Thinking back, there isn’t one moment in time standing out as the catalyst. Feelings I’d never had for her developed slowly over time. Maybe it was because Janny and Kyle found each other. Was she a convenient substitute once I knew Janny and I were through for good - a way to make myself feel less alone?
Turning, I carefully study her as she leans her head back against the dull white wall. Her long dark brown