Cherished (Wanted #4)(75)
Author: Kelly Elliott

That caused everyone else to start laughing, including me.

Then, another contraction hit, and I started to panic. Shit, they’re not that far apart.

“Come on, I’ll drive,” Josh said. He turned back to Heather and said, “Babe, can you get the twins on your own?”

Elizabeth was standing next to Heather. “I’ll help her with Libby and Will. Just get Scott and Jessie to the hospital,” Elizabeth said as she picked up Will before giving him a big kiss.

I turned and looked at Scott. Panic had taken over in his eyes. My heart was breaking because I knew how he’d wanted everything to go so smoothly.

I smiled and walked up to him. I put my hands on his face and reached up to kiss him. “You ready, baby?” I asked in a whispered voice.

He smiled, and his eyes lit up, causing me to smile bigger.

“Never been more ready, but, um…Jessie?”

“Yeah, Scott?”

“I think I might have broken my ankle.”

After Josh pulled up to the emergency room doors, I hopped out of the backseat and attempted to help Jessie out of the truck. Her contractions were not getting any closer together, and I was thanking God because I was almost a hundred percent sure I’d broken my ankle. Josh ran inside, and the next thing I knew, there were two wheelchairs.

The nurse walking up to us giggled. “Well, we haven’t seen this in a while.”

“Seen what?” Jessie asked as I helped her sit down in the wheelchair.

“The pregnant wife with the husband who broke something while frantically trying to get the wife to the hospital.” The nurse winked at me.

She started to push Jessie in as Josh pushed me in while he was laughing. Just the nurse referring to Jessie as my wife caused my heart to beat faster.

“I wasn’t frantic. I was jumping over a stupid lounge chair, and Ari’s damn dog ran in front of me,” I said, folding my arms. I was pretty sure if I could see myself, my face would be pouting.

Josh stopped at the nurses’ station and slapped me on the back. “Dude, I’ve got to park your truck. Jessie, I’ll bring your suitcase in.” He looked at me and shook his head. Then, he turned and walked off, still laughing.

Bastard. I’m sure he panicked even more when Heather went into labor.

The nurse mentioned something to Jessie about how we had preregistered, so we had to sign only a few things. Then, she turned to me and asked for my insurance card.

“What?” I asked, confused. “Don’t worry about me. My fiancée is in labor!”

The nurse smiled sweetly. “Mr. Reynolds, we need to get you down to X-ray, so we can see if your ankle is broken. Then, we will take care of it from there.”

I went to stand up and felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned and saw my father standing there.

“Scott, just let them do this, so you can get it done and get back to Jessie. Your mother and I are here.”

“Who called you?” I asked, confused as hell.

“Garrett. Now, go on. Just let them get you fixed up, son. I promise, you won’t miss anything.”

I turned and looked at Jessie, who was holding my mother’s hand. I smiled when I looked at the two most important women in my life. They had both grown to love each other so much, and I loved that Jessie called her mom. She was the mother that Jessie had never had, and my mother adored Jessie so much. I felt tears building in my eyes as I looked up at my mother. She nodded her head, and I knew they were right.

I reached out my hand for Jessie’s. “I’m so, so sorry I did this.”

She let out a giggle. “I love you, Scott. I’ll hold the baby off for as long as I can.”

As the nurse began taking me down to get an X-ray, I turned around and saw Jessie staring at me. She lifted her hand and waved, and I blew her a kiss. I watched as the smile spread across her beautiful face.

I turned back around and cursed all lounge chairs and dogs.

We are never getting a pool. Ever!

I was impressed that the doctor in the emergency room had worked so fast to get me fixed up. The X-ray had shown a small fracture, so the doctor put a cast on and gave me crutches. He told me to follow-up in a few days with my doctor.

I swore Jeff was having a grand ole time, pushing me in the wheelchair as fast as he could, as I held on to my crutches while telling him to hurry the hell up.

By the time we got up to the labor and delivery area, my heart was pounding so hard that I was beginning to have a hard time breathing. I saw our family and friends in the waiting room and smiled. I have the best group of friends ever.

“Where are all the kids?” I asked, looking at Heather, Ari, Ellie, Gunner, and Josh all sitting around, drinking coffee.

Ari laughed. “That’s the best part of having the grandparents over for a party. If we all need to leave, we’ve got built-in babysitters!”

“Ellie, you left Colt?” I asked, knowing Ellie had yet to leave Colt with anyone.

She smiled and nodded her head. “Well, I figured five grandparents could take care of him and Alex.”

“Mr. Reynolds? Your fiancée is getting closer,” the nurse said.

I jumped up and out of the wheelchair with my crutches. “Shit! Shit, this it!”

Everyone let out a laugh. Jeff, Josh, and Gunner walked me to the door.

Before I went in, I turned and looked at them. “I don’t know what to say, but thank you. Thank you for being more than just a friend. Y’all are like my brothers, and I…I…”

Gunner put his hand on my shoulder and smiled. “We know what you’re saying, dude. Go welcome your baby into the world, and don’t forget to tell Jessie what a great job she did.”

“And tell her she looks beautiful,” Jeff said with a wink.

I looked at Josh, and he smiled. “Oh man, dude…take it all in because it will be one of the most amazing moments in your life. Just make sure she knows how happy you are, Scott.”

I nodded as I looked at all three of them. I opened the door and heard Jessie cry out in pain. I quickly shut it and turned back around to them.

“Holy fuck, I can’t do it.” I started to hobble away.

Gunner grabbed me and opened the door. He turned me around and gently guided me into the room.

The moment her eyes caught mine, I didn’t need any help. I needed to get to her. She looked down at my ankle in a cast, and she started crying.

“No…no, baby, don’t cry.” I tried my best to make my way to her side.

My mother was standing on the other side of Jessie, and she smiled at me when I finally made it to Jessie’s side.