One Night with a Cowboy - Sara Richardson Page 0,4
concerned frown. “You’re having pain? Can you tell me more?”
“She’s been having contractions every five to eight minutes for the last hour.” Wes butted in.
“This is my brother. Wes,” his sister said with a quick nod in his direction.
The doctor gave him a terse smile but didn’t greet him. He didn’t like the serious expression on the woman’s face.
She opened a drawer and pulled out one of those useless paper gowns. “I’ll need you to get undressed so we can check things out right away.”
“Of course.” Jane took the gown and raised her eyebrows at Wes, nodding toward the door.
Oh. Right. This would be a good time for him to take a walk. “Um…I’ll wait outside.”
Jane laughed, the sound a welcome relief in comparison to the gasps of pain. “That’s probably best.”
Wes led the way out of the room and the doctor skirted past him. She was definitely moving fast.
He paced up and down the hallway a few times and pulled out his phone. Should he call Toby? Their mother? Mara was currently on a monthlong cruise in Europe with some friends, so she wouldn’t be able to offer much help…
A nurse rushed past him, pushing a small cart with a computer. Maybe an ultrasound machine? The doctor followed behind, and they both disappeared into Jane’s room.
Shit. Things definitely didn’t look good. What was he supposed to do? Not knowing the answer, he clicked on Toby’s phone number, but the call went right to voice mail. “Hey. Uh…this is Wes.” As if he wouldn’t already know that. “You should give me a call when you can. I brought Jane to the clinic—”
The door opened and the doctor hurried out.
“What is it?” Wes hung up the phone. “Is everything okay?”
He could see the answer in her eyes. No. Everything was not okay.
“She’s in active labor,” the woman reported. “She’s already dilated. I’m having the nurse start an IV of terbutaline and I’m calling for an immediate ambulance transfer to Denver.”
Ambulance. The floor seemed to shift under Wes’s boots. “What does that mean? Will Jane be okay? Is the baby okay?” He’d promised her…
“She needs to be at a full-service hospital with a level four NICU,” the doctor said instead of answering his question directly.
“She’s having the baby? Now?” Every breath he took seemed to sear his lungs. This couldn’t be happening.
“We’re trying to stop the labor.” The doctor started down the hall. “Hopefully we can hold her off for a few more weeks at least. But she’ll likely be on bed rest while she’s monitored at the hospital.”
A few weeks? Jane would have to stay in the hospital for a few weeks? He plowed into the exam room, everything around him seeming to blur. Jane was on the phone.
“They’re bringing me to Denver,” she said. She was lying on the table still dressed in that gown, but they’d also given her a blanket. Wes surveyed the IV line a nurse was setting up. How could Jane sound so calm?
“Yes. I’m fine, honey. Please don’t worry. Just get to the hospital whenever you can.” She must’ve gotten hold of Toby. “I will. I promise. I’ll see you soon.” She hung up the phone and directed an earnest stare at Wes. “I need you to go back to the ranch ASAP.”
“No.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Hell no. I’m staying with you.” He’d ride in the ambulance with her. “You can’t be alone.” His dad had been alone the day he’d died. Because of him…
Determination tightened his sister’s frown. “I need you to go back to the ranch. Please. I have that Project Sanctuary group coming to stay in two days.”
Right. The group of veterans and their families the ranch hosted for a week every summer. “You have to go back to the ranch and get things ready,” Jane went on. “I can’t let Thea down.”
His confused expression must’ve spoken for him.
“Thea is my friend from college,” his sister said with exasperation. “Don’t you remember her? She visited the ranch a few times. You met her way back in college. And you probably saw her at the wedding too.”
“Well, I’m sorry if I can’t think clearly right now.” Keeping Jane safe. And the baby. That was his focus. How was he supposed to protect his sister if he went back to the ranch?
“Thea lost her husband in Afghanistan three years ago,” Jane reminded him. “She’s the group leader. They’re coming for a ten-day retreat, and I refuse to let them down.