“Derrick, the baby? Is it okay?”
“The doctor will be in soon,” he reassured her. “They’re going to do an ultrasound and check on the baby.”
“Okay, okay, that’s good. Derrick,” she grabbed his hand, staring up at him urgently. “There are things I need to tell you, things I should have told you before, but I thought I was protecting you. He’s found me. He’s coming after me.”
“Jacey, shh, I know we need to talk and we will.” He gave her a stern look. “But I want you to remain calm right now. Once the doctor’s been in, I’m going to go and check in with the others. I’ve arranged for security, they’ll be here within the hour. I don’t want you worrying, understand?”
“Holly, Ava, are they okay? Holly’s baby?”
“They’re fine. In fact, they’re probably going home today. Ava had a bit of a concussion and they wanted to keep an eye on Holly’s baby, but everything looks to be okay.”
“Thank God.” She relaxed back onto the bed, some of the tension leaving her face. “I would never forgive myself if something happened to them. It was my worst nightmare. I was so scared something would happen to you, that I never considered anyone else. Now I realize I should have told you. We all could have died.” Tears welled in her eyes.
Derrick cupped her cheeks between his palms. “Baby, it’s going to be all right. I promise. I’ll make sure of it.”
***
Derrick knocked on Holly’s hospital room door before opening it and stepping inside. Brax glanced up, his face tired and lined with stress.
“Derrick,” Holly said with a smile. She was pale, but her eyes lit up when she saw him.
“Hey, love, how are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.”
She attempted to sit up and Brax immediately jumped to his feet, holding her shoulders down.
“Lie down, Holly.”
“Brax, I’m tired of lying down. I need to move around. The doctor said I’m fine, now let me up.”
Brax growled under his breath, but relented and handed her the controls for the bed.
“What exactly did the doctor say?” Derrick asked, sitting on a chair and grabbing hold of her hand.
Holly shrugged. “Nothing much.”
“She’s bruised and she needs to take it easy for a while. Lots of bed rest and nothing stressful,” Brax told him.
“The baby?” Derrick asked.
“We saw him or her on the ultrasound,” Holly said excitedly. “It was amazing. I was shocked by how clear it was.”
Derrick grinned. “It is pretty amazing, isn’t it? They just did another ultrasound on Jacey and it’s something I’ll never get tired of seeing.” It had been a great relief to see the baby dancing around inside her.
“Oh, how is Jacey? And Ava? Brax won’t let me get up and visit them.”
“The doctor said you’re to rest,” Brax told her.
“The doctor also said I could go home,” Holly told him sternly. “Stop being such a fussy old man.”
“Honey, you’re just racking up the punishments.”
Holly waved him away. “You won’t punish me while I’m recovering from an accident and pregnant.”
“No, but I’m keeping a little notebook with all your transgressions. Once this baby is born and you’re fully recovered, you and I are going to have a day of reckoning.”
“Just a day?” Derrick asked dryly as Holly gulped.