Page 45 of A Burning Rage

“He knew it would be positive.” Her hot tears seep into my shirt as she wraps her arms around my waist and holds onto me for dear life. “This was supposed to be a time of joy and celebration, but I can’t even think about being pregnant right now. I can’t think about anything but Shane.”

I hold her without saying anything more. What can I say? I can’t give her any guarantees. None of us truly knows what’s going to happen.

“Please don’t tell anyone,” she says.

I pull back and gaze down at her, seeing the pain and conflict warring in her blue-green eyes.

“He can’t know,” she explains. “When he wakes up, he’ll need to concentrate on getting well. If he knew I was pregnant, he’d focus his energies on me, and not on himself. I don’t want him to know until he’s safely out of the woods.”

“Okay, but I can’t keep this from Sam.”

She nods. “Sam can know, but no one else. Please, promise me.”

“I won’t say a word to anyone else. But you have to promise me something in return.”

“What?”

“Promise me you’ll start eating. You have to. You know what Shane would say if he knew.”

“I promise I’ll try,” she says. “The queasiness comes and goes without warning.”

I pull out my phone and start typing out a text message. “Sam’s here in the waiting room. I’m going to ask him to take you down to the cafeteria to get breakfast.”

“Do you know who’s with our kids right now?”

“Bridget and Calum took over for Sam early this morning. I think Annie’s coming around lunch time, and Sophie’s going to take over this evening. Everybody’s taking shifts, and we’ve got this covered.”

She makes a pained face. “I’ve never been away from them this long before. It’s been almost twenty-four hours now. I’m sure they’re wondering where we are.”

“Don’t worry about them. They’re in great hands, and they’ll be fine. Right now, you need to focus on Shane, and I’ll take care of you.”

While she’s waiting for Sam to arrive, Beth goes into the bathroom to pump and discard her milk.

When I hear a quiet knock on the door, I open it to find my husband, Sam, standing there. He’s a sight for sore eyes, looking like a million bucks dressed in ripped blue jeans, a gray Henley, and a pair of hiking boots. His red hair is up in a topknot, and he’s grinning at me.

My heart thumps at the sight of him. Last night was the first night since we got married that we slept apart.

I motion for him to come inside. After I close the door, I pull him into my arms and kiss him soundly. “God, I’ve missed you.”

Sam wraps his arms around my waist and holds me tight for a moment. “Sleeping without you sucks,” he says. “In case you were wondering.”

I chuckle as I pull back to gaze into his beautiful brown eyes, my hands threading through his hair. “For your information, I was miserable without you last night. I missed my little spoon.”

I kiss him again, drinking in his quiet moans, until I hear the toilet flush in the bathroom. Beth’s done pumping.

“How’s he doing?” Sam asks, glancing across the room to look at Shane.

“No more alarms have gone off, so I’d say that’s progress.”

“He’s still out?”

“Yeah. They’ve got him sedated to keep him still.”

“And Beth? How’s she holding up?”

“Speaking of Beth, she’s, uh—”

“Pregnant?”