CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
Ava
G riffin goes insanely feral seeing the blood on my fingers, next, we’re racing to the teaching hospital where Cormac started in August as a professor. He’s waiting at the school’s emergency entrance with a gurney surrounded by what looks like a team of students.
Great, on-the-job training. One of them helps me onto the gurney and they wheel me into a treatment room.
Griffin pulls Cormac aside. “She’s pregnant. But she’s bleeding.”
Medical students take over, and I’m subjected to all kinds of X-rays with a leaded apron that smells funny. Cormac confirms I have three broken ribs.
A woman comes in with more results. “She ruptured her spleen.” She shows Cormac the X-ray. “I think that’s where the blood is coming from.”
Cormac stands obscenely close to this student, who I notice is very pretty. And very young. When he catches me staring, I give him a little wink.
He smirks back.
“Cormac!” Griffin huffs, holding my hand, sounding frantic. “What...what do we do for that?”
“Surgery,” Cormac says, deadpan. “Scarlett, order a transport to Mercy. I’ll call a renal surgeon I know.”
Ooooo. Scarlett. That’s a sexy name. And right there, I see the energy between her and Cormac. But he’s her professor.
Hmmm.
“I haven’t been to a doctor yet.” I clear my throat. “For that.”
“Tell them that, too, Scarlett,” Cormac orders this student around in a velvety, husky tone.
She is eating it up. Even without an accent.
Cormac comes around to my gurney and starts an IV.
“Make sure that’s the right meds, doc,” Griffin says.
“Saline and Tylenol, Quinlan.” Cormac smiles. “Remember, we’re officially family now.”
“Right,” I say to Cormac. “Did you know I was at your cousin’s wedding?”
He cinches his eyebrows. “I didn’t.”
“I was in this guy’s trunk. But I still consider myself being there.”
“Okay.” Scarlett, the med student clears her throat. “You guys seem like a fun bunch.”
“Yes, we are, Scarlett,” Cormac’s silky tone even wakes me up a little. He is breathtaking.
I look at her name tag. “Shouldn’t you be calling her Dr. Ford?”
“I haven’t passed my boards,” she says.
“Ford?” Griffin says with wide eyes. “Is your father Bradley Ford?”
Cormac and Scarlett freeze.
“Yeah,” she answers. “You know my father?”
“I’ve met him.” Griffin leans on the side of my gurney. “Cormac, you’ve known her father forever.”
“Yeah. And he’s the...dean here,” Cormac adds, deepening the trouble he’s going to be in.
Griffin and I exchange looks and try not to laugh. Mostly me because breathing hurts like a motherfucker.
Scarlett is turning all shades of scarlet now. Her phone buzzes, and she says, “Dr. Fredricks is prepping the OR at Mercy. He wants a pelvic ultrasound.”
“Copy that.” Cormac’s affirmation stirs my old military blood.
“ She does the pelvic,” Griffin says, pointing to Scarlett. “Not you.”
Cormac is a doctor... But yeah, if I’ll be seeing him at more weddings, this will get awkward.
I’m wheeled into another room, the pain edging away from the IV full of meds. Within a few minutes, I’m being poked with a wand where only my husband goes.
“Clear. The amniotic sac hasn’t ruptured,” Scarlett announces.
Griffin dips his head against my chest. “Thank God.”
With a different wand and heated with gel, Scarlett carefully scans my belly. “How far along are you?”
“I’m thinking three months.”
Something makes Scarlett stop and take off her glasses to look at the monitor closer. “Excuse me.” She rushes out of the room, and my heart drops.
“Oh no.” Tears flood my eyes, quickly spilling down my cheek. “Griffin, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” He sounds choked up, too. “It’ll be fine. I’m right here.”
Cormac comes back into the room, and if I wasn’t lying down, I would probably collapse. Med students don’t tell you, you’ve lost your baby. A doctor does that. Especially a lifelong friend.
“Are you sure, Scarlett?” he asks his student.
“Right here.” She points to the monitor.
“Cormac, what’s going on?” Griffin bites out again harshly. “Is the baby...”
He whips his head toward us. “Oh, you’re fine.” His touch on my shoulder is so comforting.
Griffin curls up next to me since this just got a lot more real. Taking my hand, he presses a kiss to my forehead. “I love you.”
“I love you,” I say back.
Cormac and Scarlett just look at each other, a smile ghosting their lips.
“Do you want to know the sex?” Scarlett asks.
“Sex?” I say. “You can tell the sex?”
“Hell yeah,” Cormac boasts.
Griffin looks at me. “Do we want to know?”
I bite my lip. “Sure. I guess.”
“Okay, which one?” Cormac says with a wide grin.
“Which one what?” Griffin asks.
“Which baby do you want to know the sex for?”
“There’s more than one?” I say, sitting up, but a rush of pain has me easing back down.
“How... How many babies are in there?” Griffin asks the doctor, sounding a wee bit terrified.
“Two.”
“That’s impossible,” I bark a laugh.
Cormac covers Scarlett’s ears while she adorably rolls her eyes. “It’s not if you’ve been fucking a lot. Aye, Griffin?”
That probably had something to do with it. And oh my God , I’m having twins.
Cormac’s phone beeps. “Transport is here. Shoot those sonogram photos to my Dropbox, Scarlett. I’ll access them when we get to Mercy.”
“Yes, Dr. O’Rourke,” Scarlett purrs, and Cormac’s face flushes.
Before I’m wheeled away, I look up and my heart drops to my stomach.
Shane stands there, his hands wrapped in bloody gauze. Everything tilts, and I’m ready to detonate, thinking the cult got to him.
“Shane...” I push through a tight chest. “What happened?”
Smiling, he lifts one hand. “I found the necklace.”
“But your hands?” I cry out.
“Your lawn is filled with glass. But it was Norah’s. I couldn’t let the clean-up crew just suck it into their vacuums and grind it to dust,” he chokes up.
“It’s Ava’s now.” Griffin takes it from him.
“Exactly. It needs to go on,” Shane says, ignoring what must be tremendous pain in his hands. And the sacrifice. All the man does is type and scroll to keep us safe.
Griffin hugs his brother and fists the necklace. “The clasp is broken, I’ll hold on to it.”
Especially since I’m going into surgery.
“I couldn’t find the ring and by now, I’m sure that’s gone,” Shane says.
“I don’t care about the ring. My wedding band is more important.”
“I’ll still get you a new rock,” Griffin says immediately. “One you’ll pick out.”
Before I can react to that, a nurse comes to look at Shane’s hands, and off he goes.
A few minutes later, I’m cleaned up and wheeled to a medical transport van. Cormac rides with us and Griffin doesn’t let go of my hand.
“No self-defense classes for a while,” he says to me.
“I know.” I bring him closer. “Are you happy about the babies?”
“Of course.”
“Two at once is a lot.”
“I can handle it.” He kisses my lips. “ We’ll handle it.” Then he breaks into a giggle. “Oh shite, Cor. You never told us the sex!”
I cough a laugh. I guess with two that’s the least of our worries.
Cormac smiles. “You didn’t tell me which one.”
“Both, you bleedin’ quack!”
All eyes in the transport turn to them.
“They’re...family,” I explain, leaving out that we’re mafia, too.
Laughing, Cormac teases, “I’ll tell you on one condition.”
“Aw, bloody hell. I’ll find someone to take that student you’re clearly banging away from you,” Griffin threatens.
I gasp. “Griffin!”
“No comment,” Cormac says, all proud that he’s got some kind of upper hand.
“What’s the condition?” Griffin repeats.
“That you let me be there when you tell Ewan.”
“ Ewan? Why?”
“I heard through the grapevine that Darcy is having another girl.”
“What does that have to do with—” Griffin stops and covers his mouth. “Are you saying on my maiden voyage I scored two sons ?”
I shake my head, listening to them talk about my pregnancy like it’s a competition.
“Congratulations.” Cormac leans forward and fist bumps Griffin.
I clear my throat. “Babies are inside me . I’m the one who dropped more than one egg. I’d call that an accomplishment.”
“You’re my overachiever,” Griffin says, kissing my forehead.
“Hurry up,” Cormac barks to the driver.
“Now, please, I want you to rest.” Griffin pushes his face into mine. “We did it. It’s all going to work out.”
Streetlights shine into the transport as we pick up speed. I can’t believe this is really my life. This dangerous, unpredictable life with Griffin is exactly where I was meant to be.
Even if it means fighting more battles, I’ll face them with Griffin head-on.
And knife anyone in the heart who tries to take him away from me .