Chapter 37
Thirty-Seven
“ S ylvie, I need to go out there. He’s not answering his phone. What if he’s hurt?” Evie rubbed the ache in her back as the storm rained down on the house. He should know why she’d be restless. He should have made it back to the house. She needed him. She needed his arms wrapped around her so the pain that every shake of thunder pulsed through her body at the memory of the night her parents died wasn’t overwhelming.
But he wasn’t back. He wasn’t back and there was an underlying sense of dread that just would not leave her alone.
“No, Evie. I can’t have you going out there. What if something happens to you? You have to think about the baby.”
“I have the worst feeling something is wrong. He wouldn’t be somewhere far enough away that he couldn’t answer his phone.” Her belly tightened, and she tried to hide how hard it was to breathe through, but Sylvie saw right through her.
“Sit. I’m going to go put some tea on and try to call him again. If he doesn’t answer, I’ll see if I can get a hold of Zeke or Derrick. Someone has to know where he’s at on this damn ranch. And I’ll grab my tarot cards. We’ll ask for some guidance.”
Sylvie disappeared into the kitchen, and Evie knew what she needed to do. She walked to the door, grabbing the key ring she’d seen Sam use a million times for the ranch trucks.
She opened the front door and froze. Her heartbeat thundered loudly in her ears. She couldn’t do it. Why did it have to be storming? Why didn’t he just make it home before the storm came through?
And then it hit her like lightning. Evie couldn’t avoid the storm any more. The love of her life was somewhere out there, and she knew she needed to get to him. She needed to go out into the heart of the storm and face her past one last time. She had to, in order to save her future.
Her feet carried her forward as rain crashed over her. Get into a truck and start driving. She didn’t want to leave Sylvie, but she couldn’t be in the house without Sam for another minute. By the time she reached the barn, her clothes had become soaked through, and her teeth chattered painfully.
“Evie? What are you doing?” Derrick yelled over the rain, pulling her quickly into the barn.
“I’m trying to find Sam,” she shivered, rubbing her hands up and down her arms.
“Are you okay?” He looked at her belly before meeting her eyes again.
“Yes. I just… I don’t know how to explain it. I can feel that something is wrong?”
“Zeke is still out with him. I’m sure they’re fine. Let’s get you back up to the house.”
“No! I’m not going back until he’s here.”
Headlights flashed into the barn and Evie spun around, letting go of the breath she’d been holding.
Zeke got out of the driver’s seat and her heart sank. She watched as he rushed into the barn with a calf in his arms, but no Sam in sight.
“Evie, you shouldn’t be out here.”
“Where is he?!”
“Finishing up with the fence. There was more damage than we thought. I had to leave him to get this calf to safety.”
God, she was going to murder the man she loved.
“How long ago did you leave him? I feel like something’s wrong. He wouldn’t just be out of cell range when he knows I’m so close to my due date. He promised me.”
“I’m sure he’s right behind me. It’ll just take him a little longer to get back because he’s on Jasper.”
She shook her head. “I’m going to d-drive out to the south fields and see if I can’t f-find him.” Her hand rubbed circles into the tightening muscles of her belly.
Zeke set his hand on her shoulder. “You can’t drive out there right now. The dirt road washes out in places when a storm like this rolls through. You could get stuck out there.”
“Fine. I’ll head back up to the house, but the minute that storm stops and he’s not back, someone needs to be going out to look for him.”
She took off towards the barn door, but stopped when fear washed over her. What was going on? Something inside her was screaming to get to Sam. She felt the ache low in her back starting to roll through the rest of her body, but shoved down the pain into the deepest part of her mind while she made her decision.
Pulling the keys from her pocket, Evie walked through the pouring rain as quickly as she could. Which was not quick at all. She was in full drowned-rat status by the time she sat in the driver’s seat.
Even with the heat turned all the way up, she was still shaking. A pain wrapped around her body and she pressed on the breaks as she stifled a moan. She’d been out to the field Sam was working on once when he’d given her the grand tour after she started working there, but it had been months.
“Shit!” Evie cursed, swerving to miss the rising water as her body fought for her attention.
Not now Jellybean. Please just wait until we get to your daddy. I n-need to know he’s okay .
It was another ten minutes of gripping the steering wheel so tightly that she lost feeling in her fingers, but the near white-out conditions were making it impossible to drive quickly. Finally, in the distance, there was the outline of a small outbuilding. And a light was on inside. She could see it streaming through the small window. It would be the perfect place for Sam to weather out the storm.
Evie barely had the truck in park before she was leaping from the cab, rushing towards the building.
The door swung open, and she could finally breathe. Until she took in the sight of him. Shirtless, his jeans slung low on his hips, blood seeping down his face.
What the hell?
Fuck. Sam rummaged through the boxes Abby left along the wall of the building with emergency supplies looking for a bandage. The cut on his forehead was small, but it was bleeding like a bastard.
He needed to get that under control. And then he needed to find a way to get back to Evie. The rain was coming down so hard it sounded like an engine was bearing down on him.
Lights flashed through the windows. Shit, he actually had heard an engine through the storm. Zeke or Derrick must have made it through to come get him.
Sam walked to the door, opening it to call in one of his buddies when his breath was stolen right out of his lungs by the sight in front of him.
“Evie! What are you doing out here?” He pulled her into the building. She was soaked through, her beautiful sundress clinging to every curve of her body. Sam held her, cursing the way her body shook.
“You were out here by yourself and didn’t come home!”
“So you just took a truck and came out here to get me? What were you thinking?”
He watched her eyes dash up to his hairline and the color drained from her face so fast he was scared she was about to fall over. His hands reached out to steady her, but she didn’t so much as sway.
“You’re hurt! What happened?”
“It’s nothing, Bluebell. I promise. Just looks worse because it’s a head wound. I was just about to use my shirt to clean it up some. Jasper spooked and dropped me, but I really am fine.”
“Oh god. How hard did you hit the ground? Your heart?—“
“Just breathe for a second and listen. I’m fine. I don’t even hurt anywhere, other than maybe my ego. I haven’t been bucked off a horse since I was a kid.”
“You really feel fine?”
“I promise, I’m okay. But I don’t love the fact that you’re soaked through to the bone. Let’s get you back in the truck and we can go home.” He pulled her into his arms, loving how she snuggled into his chest. Then she balled up her fist and slammed it into his shoulder.
“Ouch!”
“Don’t you ever do that to me again! Are you kidding me? Being out here in the middle of a storm when you know I hate them! You promised me, Sam. You promised you’d be home, and instead I had to come out here. I had to come because I knew something was wrong!”
“I’m so sorry, baby.”
“No. I don’t want your apology right now. God, I’m so mad. You need to let me look at your head. I…” Something passed across her face and her hand went to her belly. Jellybean must have given her a swift kick from the way she was rubbing her side.
“We need to get you dried off, sweetheart. It’s not good for you or the baby.”
“You know what’s not good for me or the baby? Having to worry about you being all alone out here in the middle of some insane storm. What if something happened to your heart? You know you don’t come out here by yourself.”
“I didn’t. I had Zeke with me.”
“Sam, I just… I can’t. You were supposed to be back before the storm. You didn’t listen to me, just like they didn’t. And I knew. I knew history was going to repeat itself.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “I know, Evie. I’m sorry. Let’s get back to the apartment.”
She shook her head. “We can’t. I was lucky to even make it out here. I’m certain the road is flooded by now.”
Shit.
Sam took two steps towards Evie, wanting nothing more than to wrap his arms around her, but she shook her head again and started pacing around the small space. He’d been ready to spend the night out there all alone. After his heart stopped, Abby made sure they kept all the small outbuildings stocked with some non-perishable foods, emergency medical supplies, and even a small bed for situations like this, but it was no place for Evie.
A gasp interrupted his thoughts. Worry ripped through his body as he watched Evie fold over, moaning. “Oh shit. Is the baby coming?” His focus zoomed in on the swell of her belly. Nothing else mattered in that moment.
“I was really trying not to pay attention to the pains before because I was so worried about you. But this one really hurts.”
Pains? As in plural? As in, she’s had more than the one she was currently wincing through? Jesus.
“Okay. We’ll just time them from now on. Do you think you want to sit down?” he asked, nodding towards the bed. “Or do you want to just walk around a bit?”
“Why is there a bed out here?” She looked around, wrapping her arms around herself. “Why is it so cold?”
“There’s an AC unit on the wall.” He pointed over her shoulder. Fuck, he was glad he’d started to cool down the building as soon as he got there, but she was fucking shivering and he needed to figure out how to get her warmed up. “We made all of these storage buildings on the property into… Well, Abby insisted we have these stocked because… uh. This is where?—”
Her eyes snapped to him, blinking slowly as her jaw dropped.
“Oh my god. This is where you died? We can’t be here!”
Tears started pouring over her lashes as her hands flew to cover her face. Sam grabbed her arm and walked her over to the mattress, helping her sit before he walked towards the storage bins at the back of the space.
“What are you doing?”
“Abby stocked these bins for all sorts of emergencies. I’m just taking note of what we have. I know there’s got to be… Yes! Okay, good.”
Sam grabbed the quilt and made his way back to Evie.
“Here, let’s put this around your shoulders.”
“Thank yo—” Her body went rigid as she leaned back. Her hands balled the sheet laying over the mattress and she squeezed her eyes closed. Sam touched her belly and a jolt of adrenaline slammed through him.
“Fuck, Evie. Your belly is really hard.” He sat on the bed next to her and felt Evie melt into him. “I’m so sorry I worried you.”
“Don’t ever let it happen again, Sam.” She sniffled and guilt raced through his body. “I waited for you to come back, I watched that storm roll in and knew you’d be on your way home. I ignored the pains I was having, pushed them to the back of my mind because I knew you’d come. And when you didn’t, every bad thing that could have happened to you flooded my mind.”
Fat tears rolled down her cheeks, and Sam gently brushed them away with his fingers.
“I promise, sweetheart, never again. Now, tell me about these pains.”
“It’s nothing,” she whispered, turning her face into his chest. He could feel her holding her breath, every bit of her tense.
He swept the wet hair that had fallen down out of her face before tipping her chin towards him. “Breathe. How long has this nothing been happening?”
“Since this morning.”
“ Evelyn. ” He couldn’t hold back the growl that resonated in his throat. “Why didn’t you tell me when I saw you in the office?”
“ Samuel ,” she said, letting out a large sigh. “I’m fine. This is fine. It’s just some Braxton Hicks ramping up because I was worried about you. They’re erratic.”
“Are you telling me that, or trying to convince yourself that’s the truth?” His question was met with a glare, so he tabled it in favor of getting her more comfortable. “You’re still shivering. Let’s get you laying down and try to warm you up.”
“I’ll only lay down if you promise to join me. ”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time.”
Sam laid on the edge of the mattress, giving Evie as much room as possible to get comfortable. It certainly wasn’t meant for more than one person, and definitely not meant for that one person to be pregnant, but they made it work.
“I’m sorry, Evie.”
“You don’t have to apologize again. I’m just glad you’re okay.”
He laid his hand on her belly. “Yes, I do. Because I should have known how upset you would be during this storm. I should have remembered that it would bring up bad memories for you, and I should have made sure nothing kept me from getting back to the house before it rolled through. That’s a mistake I’ll never make again.”
“Thank you.” She sniffled and Sam reached up, cupping her cheek before turning her face so he could see her. “I never got an apology from them. Do you think they thought about me in those last few moments?”
“Baby, I bet you were the only thing on their mind.”
“Do you think they forgave me?”
“There was nothing to forgive you for, Evie. They left when you were upset. They should have told you why they had to go. They should have made sure things were right before they left. That’s not on you, sweetheart. It never was.”
A pounding on the door jolted Sam awake. Darkness surrounded the small building. Shit. It must be the middle of the night. Sam groaned as he slipped out from his hold on Evie and stretched his sore muscles. Yep, he was officially getting too old to be reckless.
Evie stirred next to him. She had a few random contractions after they first laid down, but he wasn’t even sure she’d felt them in her sleep. He’d kept his hand firmly over Jellybean, even after they finished their nightly game of ‘kick daddy’s hand’.
“Who’s knocking?” she asked.
“Don’t know. I’m going to go see.”
“Help me up before you do. I need to put my dress back on, or did you forget that I’m naked under this blanket?”
“Evie, do you really think I could forget something like that?” he asked as he pulled his jeans up.
She laughed for a second before groaning as she put her feet over the edge of the bed.
“Have you had any more pains?”
“They stopped after I fell asleep.”
“That’s what I thought.”
Her eyebrow quirked up in the cutest way.
“What? You know Jellybean and I play through your belly every night. She was very active after you fell asleep. And I might have left my hand in place after she fell asleep, too.”
Another loud bang came from the door. “Boss Man? Are you guys okay in there?”
Derrick.
Sam checked to make sure Evie’s dress was on before he swung the door open, relief melting into the face staring at him.
“Jesus. You guys had us fucking worried.”
“Sorry. It’s all good here. Neither one of us had a phone.”
“And the south road washed out again,” Derrick said.
“Yeah, Evie mentioned that after she got out here. We figured it was best to just stay put and travel back in the morning.”
“Well, there’s a search party out looking for you guys. I’ll give them all a call and let them know you’re good and on your way back.”
“Thanks. ”
Derrick looked over Sam’s shoulder.
“Evie. Everything okay?”
“I’m good.”
He looked back at Sam. “Your mother and sister were convinced the baby was coming. With the storm and all.”
“I thought that might be the case for a while, too. But it looks like she’s going to behave and stay in there a little longer.”
His eyes shifted between Sam and Evie.
“Is everything okay, Derrick?” Evie asked as she stepped next to Sam. His hand was instantly around her back, keeping her close.
“No. I really hate to do this to you, Sam, especially after the day you both had. But I got a call from my mom and I need to go home for a few days. It’s an emergency. Was hoping you’d understand.”
“Oh, of course we do. Is it one of your sisters?” Evie moved from behind Sam and rested her hand on Derrick’s arm. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
“That’s really kind of you, but it’s just something we all need to be together for.”
“Will you make it back in time for John and Abby’s wedding?” Sam knew both Derrick and Zeke had been invited.
“I’m gonna try real hard to be back by then.”
“Good.” Sam nodded. “Well, you take care of whatever you need to with your family, and we’ll be here when you are ready to come back.”
“I appreciate it. Now, let’s get you both back and call off that search party.”