Should’ve Known It’s You (Not You Again #7)

Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

KENNEDY

I saw the concern in Austin as I left the maternity ward. Pressing the button to buzz myself out, I opened the door and walked straight to him, leaning into his hug when he opened his arms for me.

Strong and steady, he held me tight, the scent of him so comforting and familiar that I almost burst into tears. I hadn’t realized how much I needed him until right that minute, and I didn’t know why he’d stayed, but I was immensely grateful that he had.

“Is everything okay?” he asked quietly. “How’s Winrey? And the baby?”

I drew in a shuddering breath and lifted my head to look up at him, but I didn’t let go of him just yet. With my arms around his waist, I clung to him for comfort and strength as I conveyed what the doctors had said.

“Everything is fine, but her blood pressure spiked and now they have her classified as a high-risk pregnancy.”

Austin slid his palms along the lengths of my arms and wrapped his fingers around mine. Taking a step back to look into my eyes, he gave my hands a reassuring squeeze. “That’s really scary. Thank God she got here soon enough, but she’s in the best place she can possibly be right now, Kenny. They’ll take good care of her.”

As I stared into the dark pools of his eyes, I tried to feel as confident as he seemed to be, but I felt like I could barely keep myself together. I had been so stressed and so scared in that room, but I hadn’t wanted to let it show in front of Winrey and Benji, who had both needed someone level-headed and strong to advocate for them with the doctors and nurses.

Everything had been going great until my parents had stormed in, demanding answers. They disrupted the peaceful environment the nurses and I had worked hard to achieve in order to keep Winrey as calm as possible.

“I know they’ll take care of her medically,” I said. Sighing, I let go of his hands to run both of mine through my hair. “I need to be here to take care of her emotionally, though. If you were waiting for me to be ready to leave, I’m afraid I can’t do that yet. My parents got here a while ago and they’re insisting on staying. Winrey needs me to back her up with them, but you can leave. I don’t want you feeling like you need to hang around here all day.”

“I’d like to stay,” he said, surprising me when he reached into his pocket to silence his phone as it rang, his full attention on me. “Only if it’s not a burden on you or your family, though. I may not be able to help get her better, but I want to be here for you in case you need anything.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, bringing my hands to his chest and curling my fingers into his shirt, stepping closer and clinging to him like a life raft again.

I desperately wanted him to stay, but he was under no obligation to, and the crisis at his office was probably ongoing. To me, it felt like a lifetime ago that he’d climbed out of his car back at the venue, but I knew it had only been a few hours.

It was a workday and I knew full well how packed his schedule was, but he made me feel grounded and like I had support, too. Wanting him to stay was selfish, but thankfully, he didn’t take the out I’d given him.

“I’m sure,” he said, covering my hands on his chest with his own. “I know how much it sucks to have someone you love in the hospital. We had a scare with my mom earlier this year and it was terrible. I don’t want you to have to go through that alone.”

My eyebrows tugged together. “Is she okay now? Your mom, I mean. Jess didn’t mention that she was in the hospital.”

“She’s fine,” he said calmly, a hint of a smile appearing at the corners of his lips. “She’s a tough old farm girl. It’s going to take more than a faulty vein to slow her down. All she needed was a stent in her coronary artery, and she was all patched up.”

“That sounds really awful.” I lowered my forehead to our joined hands and inhaled deeply through my nostrils, trying to calm my nerves as I wondered if there would be a fix like that available for Winrey. “I’m sorry you went through that alone.”

“I wasn’t alone,” he murmured against the top of my head. “I had Jess, and Slate, and my dad with me. I was okay. Now we’re going to make sure you are, too.”

He didn’t know my parents, but it sounded like he somehow understood that having them here didn’t mean I had support. Glancing up at him again, I managed a small, grateful smile. “Thank you.”

“Do you have a minute?” he asked. “We never got around to lunch. You must be starving. Do you know if your sister and her boyfriend have eaten?”

I shook my head. “I doubt it. They offered Winrey a meal in the room earlier, but she turned them down. We were still waiting on the doctor and she was too nervous to eat.”

“Let’s go get some drinks and sandwiches to bring back to the room,” he said, taking my hand, then leading me down the corridor and a flight of stairs to the cafeteria.

Once we got there, he chose a selection of the different sandwich options available and paid for them, waving me away when I offered. I was grateful for that too, though. When we’d first arrived here, Winrey had been sharing a room with three other women and I’d been able to see that she was overwhelmed and terrified, so I’d paid for her to be upgraded to a private room.

At this point, even not having to pay for lunch helped. I smiled at him, grateful but already owing him so much that I wasn’t sure I could just let this go. “Are you sure?”

He chuckled. “Why do you keep asking me that?”

“Because bringing me here and waiting for news is already so much more than I could’ve expected from you. Staying and then buying us lunch is going above and beyond.”

“Maybe I’m just an above and beyond kind of life coach,” he joked, nudging me with his elbow. We carried the trays of food and drinks out of the cafeteria. “That’s what I am now, right? Your life coach?”

I pursed my lips. “I’ll think about it.”

He winked. “Too late. You already took me up on my offer to help, which means I’m a life coach and not just an investment banker right now.”

“In my experience, life coaches talk a lot of crap and think they know everything, so maybe you are a life coach.”

He laughed. “Ouch. Okay, how about I just be your friend?”

“Nah. Life coach works better now that we’ve established what they do.” For the first time in hours, I grinned, even pumping my eyebrows at him.

We got back to the maternity ward, and as soon as that door came into view, my grin faded again and the reprieve I’d had with him was over. He glanced at me as we got to the door. “I’ll wait here with this tray. Take that one and come back to get this one when you’re ready?”

“She’s in a private room now,” I said, striding over to the nurses’ station and arranging for Austin to come in with me. When I got back to him, the head nurse buzzed us in and I opened the door, balancing the tray in one hand as I waved for him to go ahead of me. “They’re not as strict with the family-only rule when the patient isn’t in a shared room. I told her you were my boyfriend and we were bringing the family something to eat, so we’re all clear now.”

“Your boyfriend, huh?” he mused as he walked past me, then held the door so I could walk in without it shutting on me. “That’s an upgrade from friend and life coach. When did this happen? Are we happy?”

“The happiest,” I said, glancing at his strong profile and wondering if that ghost of a smile on his lips was because of the boyfriend thing.

The mere thought that he might like pretending that he was made my heart flutter, but then we got to my sister’s door and I heard my mother’s voice filtering through it. “Oh no, honey. Not like that. The pillow needs to support your lower back. Here, Benji. Just let me do it.”

I sighed. “Welcome to my personal hell.”

“I’m right here with you,” he said, following me into the room. I could tell he felt a bit out of place as we walked in and I wished I could reach for his hand, but we were both carrying trays, and moreover, I didn’t want to explain to my parents or even my sister why I’d been holding his hand.

Frankly, I didn’t have any explanation that would make sense.

“Mom, Dad, this is Austin Merrick. Austin, meet Lori and Jeff Sweet, and that’s Winrey and Benji.” I pointed to each person in turn after setting the tray down on the table stretching across Winrey’s bed.

My mother had been fussing over her, fluffing the pillow and trying to smooth her hair while Dad was staring out the window, seemingly unbothered by everything that was going on around him. Poor Benji looked paralyzed and Winrey was red-faced, looking like she was about to explode.

At least everyone muttered a “hello” to Austin.

I sighed as I looked around the room, knowing I had to smooth all this over somehow. I just didn’t know where to start.

Austin made the first move, bringing the pregnant woman the sandwich he’d selected for her. “It’s whole wheat, lean turkey, and no mayo.” He smiled as he handed it over. “It’s probably God awful, but there’s no sugar in it and I imagine you and the little bean are hungry.”

Winrey took the wrapped sandwich from him, suddenly looking like she might cry over the simple act of kindness. “Thank you, Austin.”

He nodded, then strode over to Benji, who still had that deer in the headlights look as Austin introduced himself and handed over his sandwich too. “It’s really nice to meet you, man. I just wish it was under better circumstances.”

Benji took his hand and shook it, gratefully accepting the sandwich but not able to manage much more than a soft, “It’s nice to meet you, too. Thanks for the food.”

Austin moved on to my mom and dad. I went to sit on the edge of Winrey’s bed, squeezing her foot over the blankets and forcing a smile. “Everything is going to be okay. Once the doctors run more tests, they’re going to send all the numbers and results to your OBGYN, and we’ll go from there, alright? I know this isn’t what you saw for yourself, but now isn’t the time to freak out or jump to conclusions.”

She blinked back tears, sliding her hands over her swollen belly. Her thumbs stroked across it as she stared at me like she needed answers. I looked right into her eyes. “Hey, listen to me. This doesn’t mean that you have pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes. Let’s just take it one minute at a time, okay?”

After inhaling a deep breath, she wiped away her tears and nodded. “Yeah, I know. Thanks, Kenny. I just needed to hear it again.”

She managed a smile as she discreetly inclined her head toward Austin. “So, is this just about the hotel and restaurant? Or…”

“Hush,” I said, ducking my head to hide my smile and blushing cheeks.

Winrey giggled as she took a bite of her sandwich, but the moment was ruined by our mother, who marched over and grabbed the food right out of her hands. “You shouldn’t be eating carbs when you’re in a hospital. This isn’t how you take care of yourself.”

She tutted, storming over to drop the sandwich in the trash before she turned on Austin and started scolding him. “How dare you bring her such an unhealthy meal? She’s pregnant, for God’s sake. She needs nutrients, not junk.”

Before I had a chance to jump to his defense, Austin just smiled and held up both his hands. “Sorry, Mrs. Sweet. I’m just here to help. There are extra sandwiches.” He nodded to the ones he’d put on the counter by the sink in the room. “You’re on edge. Maybe you need some food? Low blood sugar can get pretty dangerous even if you’re not pregnant.”

I watched in horror, prepared for my mother to implode—but then Winrey burst out laughing and couldn’t stop, and I joined in, just so freaking relieved that he’d decided to stay after all.