Chapter 12 #2
Lucky shook his head and split his attention between the road and her.
“Personally, I think this is good. Grover’s not an idiot.
If Spencer pulls anything, he’s gonna know.
And it’ll take the burden off your shoulders about whether or not to tell him about Spencer’s gambling habit.
But again, nothing your brother does is on you, understand? ”
“That’s easy to say, but not as easy to truly believe,” Devyn said.
“I know. But you aren’t alone in this anymore,” Lucky told her. “If you want me there when you talk to Grover, I’ll be there.”
“Thanks. Lucky?”
“Yeah, love?”
“I’m in this for the long haul.”
He blinked in surprise. “That’s good, because I am too.”
“I just wanted you to know. I know it took me a while to give you a shot, but I don’t think I’ve ever met a better man than you.”
He smiled, and it almost took her breath away.
“I’m not letting you go,” he said reverently.
“I mean, if you decide you hate me and you really don’t want to be with me anymore, I’m not going to be one of those guys who says if I can’t have you, no one can…
but it’ll kill me, and I don’t know if I’d be able to date anyone again for a very long time.
But as long as you want to be with me, I’m not gonna fuck it up. I’m yours, Dev. For always.”
She smiled at him. “When did we get to be so damn sappy?” she asked.
“Must be Angel and Whiskers. I swear I wasn’t so mushy before I adopted them,” Lucky told her with a grin.
“Yeah, sure, blame the dog and cat who can’t defend themselves,” she teased.
It was hard to believe, but Devyn felt ten times better than she did even a few minutes ago.
Somehow Lucky had a way of making her see what was most important.
She was still worried about Spencer showing up out of the blue, especially after he’d told her he needed fifty thousand dollars or someone would hurt him, but with Lucky by her side, they’d figure something out.
She was done keeping Spencer’s secret. The only way he was going to get better was if his problem was brought out into the light. And the first step was telling Fred. Then their parents. Then their sisters. If everyone knew and put pressure on Spence, he’d get help.
He had to. He couldn’t continue on this way.
Lucky pulled into the emergency room parking lot and just like that, Devyn’s thoughts turned to Aspen. She hoped her baby was all right. She and Brain had been looking forward to their son’s birth for months. She couldn’t imagine how scared they were right now.
Lucky parked and she jogged around the back of his truck to meet him. He grabbed hold of her hand and they headed for the waiting room. There was no discussion about whether they would wait to hear something, or how long. They’d be there for their friend and his teammate, no matter what.
Lucky paced the waiting room. They’d all been led to a separate, smaller room while they waited to hear how Aspen and her baby were doing.
He wasn’t alone in his anxiety. Gillian, Kinley, Riley, and Devyn sat huddled together in the corner, talking in low voices and doing their best to keep their spirits up.
He, Oz, and Doc were all pacing, while Trigger, Lefty, and Grover sat off to the side, hyper alert, their gazes glued to the door.
They’d been there for two hours, and while Lucky was worried about his friends, he was also pissed off that Spencer was in Texas.
He hadn’t come to the hospital with Grover, but just knowing he was there, and that Devyn was probably stressed out about his sudden appearance, had Lucky on edge.
He wanted to take Grover aside and tell him everything.
To warn him. To tell him to keep Spencer way the fuck away from Devyn. But he’d made a promise.
He hated keeping secrets from Grover. It went against everything he knew. Everything their team stood for. But for Devyn, he’d break every fucking rule he’d ever known. She was that important to him.
The last week had been one of the best in his life.
He seemed to have everything now. His work, which he loved.
And when he came home at night, he got to relax and laugh with a woman who just made him feel so damn good.
Not to mention the nights, when he got to make love to her and sleep with her in his arms.
And today had started out just as great.
Lucky loved hanging out with the guys on the team in a relaxed atmosphere.
They worked well together, both on the battlefield and in their downtime.
And looking over at the front porch of Grover’s house and seeing the women there, laughing and enjoying spending time together, had made something within him…
settle. There wasn’t a word for how he’d felt seeing Devyn smiling and laughing with some of the best women he knew.
But the second they’d heard Gillian’s whistle, they’d all instinctively known something was wrong.
They’d all taken off for the house the second they’d heard it.
Seeing the blood coating Aspen’s pants wasn’t something they’d been prepared for.
But the former combat medic had kept it together, and the team had done what they always did… worked in tandem to get shit done.
Then Spencer rode up in the midst of the chaos…
He hadn’t been expected or welcome.
As if reading his mind, Grover got up and approached Lucky.
“When Spence called this morning and said he was on his way down, and would be here in just a few hours, he caught me off guard,” he said urgently.
“If he’d answered any of my previous calls, I would’ve told him it wasn’t a good idea to visit right now, and done what I could to make him tell me what the hell’s going on between him and Devyn.
The second I agreed he could stay with me when he got here, he thanked me and hung up. ”
“You should’ve given her a head’s up,” Lucky told his friend.
Grover sighed. “I realize that. I just forgot when everyone arrived. I can’t get the look on her face when she saw him out of my mind.”
Lucky nodded. He’d seen it too. Shock. Betrayal.
And fear. It was the fear that he hated most. He’d heard all the stories about her wild days in her early twenties.
All the daredevil things she’d done. His Dev wasn’t scared of anything.
But the second she’d seen her brother get out of his car, she’d been terrified.
“I’m thinking you need to have a heart-to-heart talk with your brother,” Lucky said as diplomatically as possible.
“Yeah, that’s on my agenda,” Grover said.
“How long is he staying?” Lucky asked.
“I don’t know. He didn’t say.”
“I promised Devyn I wouldn’t butt in, that I would keep things between us, but if your brother says or does anything to hurt her…things are gonna get ugly,” Lucky warned.
Instead of getting upset, Grover replied calmly, “I said it before and I’ll say it again, I love that you and my sister are together. I know you better than just about anyone, and I know that you’ll do whatever’s necessary to protect her…even from her own family, myself included.”
Then he clapped Lucky’s shoulder and headed over to sit down once again.
Lucky was surprised, but then again…he wasn’t.
Grover was a good man. And while he loved his family, he wouldn’t let that stand in the way of doing what was right.
Which was another reason he needed to get Devyn to talk to him.
Grover would understand and would make sure Spencer stopped harassing their sister.
Dev needed him in her corner, and Lucky needed to convince her to share her burdens.
“It’s a boy!” Brain exclaimed as he burst into the room. He was wearing a set of scrubs and he had an ear-to-ear grin on his face.
Everyone surged to their feet and began talking at once.
“Guys, hush!” Gillian exclaimed. “Let him talk!”
“Thanks, Gillian,” Brain said, still smiling.
“They took Aspen right up to do a C-section, and Chance Kane Temple was born without too many issues. He’s underweight, since he decided he was ready to come into the world a month early, but his lungs sound good.
He’ll be in NICU for a while, but the doctors say they don’t expect any long-term issues. ”
Everyone sighed in relief and extended their congratulations.
“What about Aspen?” Devyn asked. “How’s she doing?”
“She’s okay,” Brain said. “The doctor said the bleeding was a result of the placenta covering the cervix. I’m not exactly sure of all the details, but the bottom line is that she’s gonna be fine.”
“When can we see her?” Riley asked.
“I don’t know yet. But I know she’ll be excited to show Chance off,” Brain said.
“She’ll be excited to show him off?” Doc asked.
Everyone laughed. The mood in the room had lightened immediately after they’d heard both mother and child were all right.
Lucky made his way over to where Devyn was standing and put his arm around her waist. She immediately leaned into him, and he loved that she didn’t mind touching him and making it clear how much they were into each other in front of their friends.
“You okay?” he asked quietly as he bent down to kiss her lightly.
She nodded, but said, “No,” softly.
“You want to stay or head back to my place?” he asked.
She looked up at him. “I’m sure you want to be here for Brain.”
“Not what I asked, love.”
She stared at him for a long moment before saying, “I love that you’ll leave if that’s what I want, but I don’t want to steal this moment from you. Brain’s the first in your group to have a baby. I know you want to share that with him.”
“There will be more babies. And I’m sure we’ll all be sick of hearing how smart Chance is within a week,” Lucky said with a smile to let her know he was teasing. “I’m more concerned about you right now. I know Spencer showing up threw you for a loop, and I want to make sure you’re okay.”
Devyn sighed. “There’s nothing I can do about Spence right now.
And I think if we went back to your place, I’d probably stress about him, wondering what he’s up to now.
I have no doubt this isn’t a casual, ‘maybe I’ll go to Texas to see my brother and sister’ trip.
He needs money—lots of it—and he’s probably got something planned to get it.
But for now, I want to celebrate the birth of my friends’ baby. Is that okay?”
“Of course it is,” Lucky told her. “But anytime you want to go, just say the word.”
“I will. Lucky?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me for looking after you, Dev. It’s my pleasure,” Lucky told her gruffly. He kissed her forehead and gave her a little push toward the other women. “Go do your thing. There will be time later for worrying.”
“Love you,” she said softly after taking a step away and looking back.
“Love you back,” he returned. And he also loved the small smile that crossed her face before she turned to rejoin the other women.