Chapter 28
HAILEY
Over the next few days, I slowly felt as if I was seeing life through a colorful lens, not just black and white.
It might have to do with a certain stubborn hotel owner who popped up at Starbucks every morning. Guess who’d also kept his word and invited himself to my place for dinner every evening? The very same stubborn hotel owner.
He wasn’t pressuring me in any way, but the simple fact that he was there was pressure enough. This fine Thursday morning, he decided to switch things up and showed up on my doorstep with Starbucks coffee, insisting he could make us breakfast.
He looked absolutely delectable standing at the stove and cooking pancakes for us both. I took advantage of the fact that he was focusing on the pan to drink him in, inch by inch.
“Hailey….”
“What?” I asked a little too innocently. He’d caught me in the act.
“You’re not allowed to look at me like that unless you want me to kiss you. And I won’t kiss you unless you tell me that you’re mine to kiss forever.”
Oh, God. What was I supposed to say to that?
I lowered my gaze to my hands, twiddling my thumbs. I wasn’t trying to be difficult or to punish him. I was just afraid to take the next step. But I also couldn’t resist my feelings for him forever.
So, since I wasn’t allowed to drink him in, I decided to set the table. I was so aware that Reid was around, as if every cell craved his nearness. My entire body hummed. My heart was beating faster, telling me it was okay to want him, to need him. My mind still was on the fence.
Sitting at the table, I watched him put two pancakes on each of our plates. I was just about to go to the kitchen to bring our coffee cups when my phone chimed with a text from Jace.
“Holy shit,” I exclaimed.
“What?”
My hands were trembling slightly. “Val just went into labor. She’s not due for another two weeks.”
My voice was shaking too.
“Okay. We’ll get you to LA right away,” Reid said calmly.
How had he known that this was exactly what I was thinking? Exactly what I wanted?
“Yes…. I have to….” I came up blank. “My niece is on the way. I can’t think. At all.” I leaped to my feet, pacing the room. Reid was hot on my heels, then stepped in front of me.
He gripped my shoulders, looking me straight in the eyes. “One: pack whatever you need for a few days. Two: email Cameron and Annalise to tell them you’re having a family emergency. I’ll take care of everything else.”
My face split into a huge grin. My heart rate was out of control. And my fears just vanished into thin air, replaced by utmost clarity: I was not going to lose this beautiful, perfect man.
“Yes, sir.”
He moved around me to pinch my right ass cheek. “Off you go. Come on.”
“Reid?”
“Yes?”
“You can kiss me now.”
He mirrored my grin, right before he brought his mouth down on mine.
Oh, heavens. This kiss. My entire body responded to it.
My pulse was lightning quick. His fingers pressed on my arms, his hips against me as he moved me through the room and then pinned me against the wall, kissing down my neck.
He stopped when he reached my shoulder. His hot breath against my bare skin was the sweetest torture.
“Come on, pretty girl. Let’s stick to the plan. I’ll kiss you later all you want.”
“Easy there, or you’ll drop your phone,” Reid said on a chuckle when the plane touched down at LAX. I’d spent the entire flight trying to connect to the internet, to no avail. Why did airlines brag about offering internet if it didn’t work?
Now I was staring at the screen, willing it to connect to a service provider, holding my breath.
When the first connecting line appeared, my screen lit up with a notification and a picture of Val and a tiny, tiny baby. Oh my God. How could she be so tiny?
Jace: The newest member of the Connor clan. Both Carla and Val are healthy.
“Congratulations. You’re an aunt again,” Reid whispered.
“She’s adorable.” My voice was throaty. I was honestly not quite able to think clearly, and I was one hundred percent certain Reid knew this because he took my hand and didn’t let go.
If it weren’t for him, I wasn’t sure I would have made it to the hospital in one piece.
Jace and Will were in front of Val’s room when we arrived. Both in a frenzy, but that didn’t stop them from giving Reid murderous stares.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Jace demanded. Will stood next to him, quiet but sending off equally overprotective vibes.
I narrowed my eyes. “Want to rein in those brotherly instincts until after I meet my niece?”
“No, I don’t think I will,” Jace replied.
“He was with me in Houston.”
“I’m not following.”
“That’s because it’s none of your business,” I said, very sweetly.
Will winced. “Jace, she’s using her PR tone. I’d lay off it if I were you.”
“Hailey, why don’t you go in to see Val, and I’ll talk to these two?” Reid said.
I grinned. “I like you more by the minute.”
Once inside, I took a look around the room. Brooke and Paige were fussing around Val and the baby. Lori was whispering with Carter in a corner.
“Hi, everyone,” I said loudly.
“You’re here,” Lori exclaimed.
“Where is everyone else?” I asked her.
“My dear husband took all the kids to get something to eat, along with Landon and Maddie. It was getting a bit crowded in here.”
I caught Val’s eye in that exact moment. Oooh, I knew what that glance meant. My PR skills were needed.
“Why don’t you all go eat something? I’ll keep Val company.”
“Good idea,” Lori said. “Carter, come on. You need some caffeine. And food.”
There was a general rumble of agreement, and everyone left. When Lori passed me, I whispered to her, “Save Reid.”
It was a testament to the power of our sisterly communication that Lori didn’t even bat an eye or ask for further clarification. Then again, I suspected that Lori had been on a saving mission all day; to be precise, she’d been saving Carter from himself.
I’d been here when Willow and then Evelyn were born. Landon and Graham, Lori’s husband had both been out of control, asking questions, making lists, hovering; you name it. What was it about becoming fathers that turned grown men into terrifying yet somehow adorable creatures?
“Oh, thanks for getting everyone out,” Val said. “They were sweet, but a little overwhelming.”
Val was lying on the hospital bed with little Carla on her chest, who appeared to be sleeping.
Carla was adorable, but I couldn’t take my eyes off my sister.
In the blue hospital gown, she looked tougher somehow.
A thin sheen of sweat dotted her face and neck, and she had dark circles under her eyes. And yet, I’d never seen Val so happy.
“How are you feeling?” I asked.
“I am not sure how to describe it.”
“Carla looks even tinier in person. How is that possible?”
“I don’t know,” Val whispered. I’d never wanted to hug my sister more.
“You think Carla’s too small for a Connor sandwich hug?” I was dying to touch the little nugget.
“I think that she is, yes. We might squash her.” Val laughed but saw right through me. “Want to hold her?”
“Yes, yes, yes.” I rubbed my hands in excitement, then held out my arms. “But wait… won’t she wake up?”
“She’ll just fall back asleep, don’t worry. Here—take care with her head.”
“Oh, I know. I’ve been an aunt for ten years, remember?”
Oh my God. She was the cutest thing. She instantly snuggled up to me, seeking skin contact, so I shifted her until her head was right under my collarbone. Val was right. She barely woke up, then fell back asleep.
Val looked at me with warm eyes, then fiddled with the bedcover, looking at the door.
“So, you’re alone?”
I chuckled. “You deserve precisely zero details. Don’t think I don’t know what you did.”
“Did it work?” Val asked eagerly. “Is he here with you?”
“Yep.”
“Where?”
“Facing Will and Jace just outside the door.”
“Oh, sweet baby Jesus,” Val exclaimed. “Should we save him?”
“Already got Lori on it.”
“Good thinking.” Val batted her eyelashes. “At least one detail? Pretty please?”
“Nope.”
“I’ve had a rough seven hours. And you weren’t here to calm everyone down. I deserve some juicy details.”
“I can’t believe you’re guilting me into this. Have you no shame?”
“I’ve had half the hospital staff look at my lady bits and give their opinion. I have literally lost all my shame.”
Laughing, I settled on the edge of the bed, with Carla still sleeping safely on me, and spoke in a low voice.
“Why are you whispering?”
“Because there are two pairs of brotherly ears in front of that door.”
“Oh, right. Great thinking.”
I didn’t get a chance to finish the story because Reid himself entered the room.
“Val, congratulations,” he said.
“Thank you. And congrats to you too. Heard you made it to Houston after all.”
“As if Bianca didn’t keep you informed.”
“You’re a fast learner. And Bianca is an excellent partner in crime. But I didn’t get any actual details until now.”
Reid looked from Val to me, and when I got to my feet, fully turning to him, he noticed Carla. His gaze softened, and I felt warm all over. I held the little nugget even tighter, not really wanting to let her go but knowing I had to clear the room because Val was yawning. My sister needed to rest.
As carefully as possible, I laid Carla in the small bassinet next to Val’s bed.
Val yawned again. “What are you doing? No, don’t go. We were just getting to the good part.”
“Go to sleep.”
“Bossy,” Val murmured. “But I am sleepy.”
“I’ll tell everyone you’re resting, okay?”
Val nodded, arranging the pillow under her head. I drew the covers up to her chin. Poor Val fell asleep almost instantly.
Reid and I tiptoed out of the room. The corridor was Connor-free.
“Where are Jace and Will?” I asked.
“Lori declared everyone should go grab a bite.”
“And saved your ass in the process.”
I smiled. “What are you talking about? I’d completely won over your brothers.”
“In the two minutes I left you alone with them?”
“Yes.”
“What did you tell them?” I asked suspiciously.