Hotshot (43 page)

Her eyes flare, growing with more rage. I continue before I lose my nerve.

“You think you’re perfect for each other? That’s because you are the social climbing bitch, looking for a man like Ren to take PITY on you. Too bad you picked the wrong man. He loves me and has proven over and over again how much. He also loves your son, and we both know he’s going to be an incredible and loving father. He’s come to terms with the situation, and he’ll fight ‘til his dying breath if you try to keep him from this baby.

“But you know what, that’s not going to reflect on him. That’s going to reflect on you because you can’t get over your petty and immature grudges and ridiculous war you’ve waged on me. I’m not going anywhere, Sasha, ever. This may be cold, but you need to hear it. Shaw doesn’t like you, his parents are skeptical, Mathis and Nick can’t stand you, and I hate you with a passion. However, I’ve decided to put my feelings aside to help Shaw raise this child. It’s time you do the same. You don’t even call him by the right name!”

There’s an avalanche of emotions that run over her face at my words. Any other time, I’d revel in the fact that this evil bitch is finally realizing she’s not going to win this battle. I’m not running anymore. I’m standing up for myself and the man I love with all my heart. She’s going to use my words against me. I know it, and I’ll have a lot of explaining to do for Caldwell to clean up this mess, but it was time.

My sense of accomplishment is short-lived as she grabs her stomach and bends at the waist, letting out a howl filled with pain. I don’t dare step forward, waiting to see if this is a trick. When her face starts to twist and she stumbles into the car behind her, I start to get concerned. She yells out, her cry splintering through the air.

“Sasha?” I ask cautiously. “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know!” her answer comes out ragged. “Something’s wrong.”

“Jesus Christ, what is it?”

“Shooting, sharp pains, abdominal cramps, my legs are going weak,” she forces out through gritted teeth, grabbing the car for support.

Then I see it; a trickle of fluid drips down her leg, followed by another and another.

Fuck, this can’t be happening. She can’t go into labor right here in Shaw’s parking garage. What the hell am I supposed to do? My mind races until all my years of nursing finally kick.

“Sasha, we need to sit you down.”

I drop my bag and go to her slowly, reaching my hand to her back. “I’m going to help get you to the passenger seat of my car. We really need to get you settled. Remember, I’m a nurse.”

She snarls when I slide my hand from her back to her waist, trying to lean her weight on me. Her head snaps up, and she shoves me with all her force. I’m too unsteady to brace and fly back, hitting my head on my side mirror. Pain cracks through the back of my skull, but I shake my head to regain focus. She’s dropping fast.

It doesn’t even register to call an ambulance as I leap up and catch her fall. She groans as I practically drag her to the other side of my car, throw the door open, and get her in the seat. She’s not fighting me. Instead, she’s sweating profusely, and her eyes are now dilated and unfocused.

“FUCK!” I scream. “Sasha, try to stay awake. Talk to me, yell at me… Whatever you do, don’t close your eyes. I’m going to get us to the hospital!”

I buckle her in, my hand brushing against her protruding belly. She finds the strength to bat my hand away. Thank God, it’s something.

I race to the driver’s side and grip the handle as dizziness washes over me, and I feel something warm running down the back of my neck. Shit, just what I need. I get in, ignoring the pounding in my head.

She whimpers as I reverse and take off, speeding out of the garage toward the hospital. I reach in my pocket and find my phone, calling nine-one-one.

The dispatcher answers, and I interrupt her greeting, my own panic starting to kick in.

“This is Lizbeth Hastings. I have a thirty-three week pregnant woman in my passenger seat who possibly is going into early labor. She’s also going into shock. I’m a nurse and see signs of watery discharge, as well as heavy sweating and confusion.”

I give the dispatcher my location, and she tells me she’ll dispatch an ambulance to try and intercept me, but she’ll also alert the emergency room. I drop my phone and grip the wheel with both hands, trying to concentrate. I glance at Sasha about the time her head jerks up, and she looks around blankly.

Her eyes land on me, and full-blown terror sets in. She has a murderous look on her face. In a swift move, she lurches at me, grabbing the wheel.

“Fuck no! Stop this car now!”

“Sasha, stop!” I scream. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”

“You don’t get to be the hero here. You’ve stolen enough from me. You don’t get to steal this, too. It’s for Ren and me only.”

I can’t fight her strength, and she turns the wheel so hard ,we go flying in a circle. I feel the first impact as my door crushes under pressure, and I’m pinned, my arm stuck. The only thing I can do is slam on the brakes as we lose all control. I lose count of all the spins and hits we take until we finally stop. I look at Sasha, who’s conscious and bracing on the dashboard. I think I see a flash of sorrow in her eyes right before I let out a ragged scream and feel the pain take over.

Then I hear the sirens.

Shaw

Nicky owns the crowd as Mathis and I stand to the side, watching the adoring fans shoving items in his face for autographs. The whole team files through the roped off area and soaks up the attention.

Mathis and my phones both ring at the same time, and we walk past the group.

“Bennett,” I shout over the noise.

“S-s-s-hhhhhawwww,” Claire’s broken voice cuts through the line.

“Claire? What’s wrong?”

At the same time, Mathis starts barking into his phone and takes off running to the waiting limos. My heart skips a beat as I take off after him.

“It’s Bizzy.”

I stop, my knees going weak.

“What’s Bizzy?”

She starts sobbing through the line, and I can’t understand what she’s sputtering.

“Claire, calm down! What’s happening?”

“Shaw! Move your ass and get in this fucking car right now!” Mathis screams at me, waving frantically.

Suddenly, I know whatever has him so tweaked is the same thing that has Claire so upset.

“What the fuck is happening?” Nick is at my side in an instant, taking the phone from my hand.

“Who is this?”

He goes still beside me, and I watch the color drain from his face. He leans into me, grabbing for support, and I try to hold us both up, my mind mingled with possibilities.

“God, no, please no,” he pleads as tears form in his eyes. “We’re on our way. Pull your shit together, Claire. Prepare them for us. I’m not going to like it if I arrive and have no information. Mathis can only do so much. You do what you have to do. I don’t care if you break every fucking rule and protocol in that goddamned hospital. You hear me?”

He hangs up and yanks on me, both of us jumping in the waiting car. The driver takes off, and my head starts to clear.

“What the fuck is going on?”

“Shaw, there’s been an accident. Bizzy is unconscious. She was rushed into trauma, but then immediately cleared for emergency surgery,” Mathis explains, his own voice shaking.

My heart stops beating as I absorb the words. “What kind of accident?”

“Car accident. Multiple collisions. Her car hit a median, a barrier, and another car.”

“How the fuck?”

Both Mathis and Nick turn into me, caging me between them tightly. I brace for more. “Shaw, listen to me and hold tight. She wasn’t alone. Sasha was in the car. They’re prepping Sasha for a c-section. The baby is showing signs of distress.”

For the second time in a matter of minutes, my world stops. I drop my head to my chest and breathe deeply, trying not to hyperventilate. This can’t be happening.

“How the fuck?” I repeat.

“There are no answers, but the EMTs are still at the hospital. The police are there, too, and it seems there is a nine-one-one recording. We’ll know more soon.” Mathis goes into doctor mode, and I grind my teeth.

“Who was that on the phone?” I ask.

“Evie called me. She just got off the phone with Rory and Tom. They are on their way.”

I nod and remain silent the rest of the way to the hospital.

Once we drive up, the car isn’t even at a stop before Nick throws open the door and leaps out, me right behind him.

“I’m going to check in and get changed. I’ll find you as soon as I can,” Mathis yells, racing in a different direction.

Claire is waiting for us at the emergency entrance, and she collapses in my arms, hysterical. I pick her up easily and stomp through the hospital, looking for anyone who can give me answers.

I must look like a madman, because once I get to the registration desk, the woman flinches at me. “I need to talk to someone on the status of both Lizbeth Hastings and Sasha Crane.”

Claire scuttles out of my arms and lays a hand on my shoulder, suddenly much calmer as she pulls herself together. Her face is still splotchy, but she now has complete control and speaks to the woman in an authoritative voice.

“We need a private waiting room, and an update on both women immediately.”

The poor woman’s eyes pass over my shoulder and grow with recognition. I forgot about Nick. She nods and tells Claire where to go.

We trail Claire to a small waiting room, and then she disappears. Nick and I don’t talk, both of us lost in our own worlds. I pick up my phone to call Sasha’s parents, when Claire, Mathis, a police officer, and another doctor enter.

“Shaw, we need to make this quick. Sasha was alert, conscious, and mostly unscathed when she arrived. The attempts at calming the baby down have worked, and he is no longer is distress. However, they are prepping Sasha for the c-section because her water has broken. They have NICU ready, too,” Mathis tells me. “This doctor is here to take you to Sasha.” He gestures to the other doctor with the group.

“What about Bizzy?”

“Listen to me.” Mathis gets in front of me, Nick taking his cue and standing at my shoulder. “Go be there for the delivery of your son. This is a moment you can’t miss. We’ll be here for Bizzy and have an update as soon as you come back. She’s under the best care possible right now. She’s stable. She’s not in danger of dying. I think the original prognosis was a little exaggerated.”

“I need to see her.”

“No, you need to be there for your son. She’ll kill you if you miss his birth.” Rory’s strained voice comes from behind.

“Can anyone tell me why they were even together? How did this happen?” Each word burns in my dry throat.

“We’ll get all the details and have them ready for you. Mom and Dad are on their way. Go now,” Mathis urges me.

I give a small nod and follow the doctor out of the room with a sinking feeling in my stomach. Even the reassuring words that both my son and fiancée are not in grave danger does nothing to calm the nerves.

The whole ride up the elevator and walk to the maternity ward is a blur. Claude and Anne are waiting outside of a room and straighten when they see me coming.

“Crenshaw,” Claude says curtly.

“How are they?”

“The baby seems fine. Sasha is freaked.”

“Do you know what happened?”

“Barely,” Anne speaks up. Something in her tone is suspicious.

“Sir, you need to change into these.” A nurse hands me a pair of scrubs and points to an empty room.

I don’t give them another glance and go to change. When I’m done, she leads me to the operating room and to Sasha’s side.

Sasha looks incredible for a woman recently in a car accident. There’s a small cut on her cheek and some bruising on her neck, I assume from the seatbelt, but otherwise, she looks fine.

“Ren.” She touches my hand, and I shake her off.

“Give me this, please. Give me this, and I’ll never ask anything again. I’ve been so scared out of my mind.”

This time when she links her fingers through mine, I don’t move, but stand with my heart in my throat listening to the doctor explain the procedure. He has a conversation with Sasha about her being ready that barely registers with me. My anxiety is about to blow up, waiting to hear and see my baby.

It takes about four minutes until a tiny wail fills the room. Relief floods through me as I watch his arms and legs flail. He’s so tiny, but he’s breathing and fighting. In a rush, he’s placed in a machine as they do whatever in the hell they need to do. Sasha squeezes my hand, distracting my attention back to her.

“What are you seeing?”

I explain what’s happening and look back at her to see the tears start running from her eyes. I recognize the relief, but the rest is new to me. There’s regret, shame, and sorrow. In this moment, I know she’s responsible for what has happened.

“What did you do?” I barely whisper, the acid clear in my tone.

“It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”

I wrench my hand out of hers and stumble back, just as a nurse approaches with a tiny bundle in her arms.

“Do you want to hold him for a brief moment before we take him to the NICU?”

I ignore Sasha’s plea and reach for him. He’s so damn small, too small. My heart starts to break.

“He weighed in at four point eight pounds and almost eighteen inches. That’s really good for such a preemie. We’ll get him in an incubator and have a full update for you very soon. But his eyes are more focused than I’ve seen before. These are all positive things. His lungs seem to be clear and working properly,” she tells us as I stare in awe at him.

She may say four point eight pounds, but to me, he feels like a feather. I want him in the incubator now and with the best pediatrician in this hospital. Mathis better have his ass outside the door waiting.

I lean down and brush my lips over his little forehead and whisper, “Welcome to the world, little guy. Daddy loves you.”

I hand him gently back to the nurse. “I’ll be around this hospital. Dr. Mathis Bennett is my brother. We’ll want updates every half hour, sooner if possible. Let me know as soon as I can visit him in the NICU. It goes without saying, I want the best care and resources. Also, we want privacy.”