Chapter 18
Covey
When Cord and Macy come out of their room, everything erupts in chaos. Macy’s groaning in pain, Cord’s trying to keep her standing, and Wheeler looks like he’s going to be sick.
“Get in the car and I’ll drive you guys to the hospital.” Jamie plucks the keys out of Cord’s hand and motions for them to leave first.
“Cici! You better be in that delivery room!” Macy yells over the chaos.
“I’ll make sure she gets there!” I call back, trying to relieve some of Macy’s stress. I can only imagine what it will be like when it’s time to push.
“Why don’t you just come with us?” Cord looks at Cici like he’s begging her to help. Like he needs her there to get through this.
Cici turns to me. She opens and closes her mouth. I can tell she doesn’t know what to do and I hate that.
“Go with them, sweetheart. I’ll grab you something for dinner and then meet you at the hospital.”
“Thank you,” she says softly. She squeezes my hand before disappearing out the door with her family.
Silence descends on us as the door shuts and I blow out a long breath.
“Does anyone know if Cord and Macy ate dinner?” I glance over at Charlie, Wyatt, Leo, Smithy, Liliana, Holden, McLaren, Wheeler, Winnie, and Tali.
“Macy ate when we first got here… I'm not sure if Cord did though. I think he was waiting for Cici,” Winnie says softly as she rocks back and forth, trying to keep Tali asleep.
“Ok. I'm going to get them some dinner, then head to the hospital. Is anyone else going?”
“Nah, we need to take the baby home,” Wyatt presses a soft kiss to his daughter’s head. She’s sound asleep on his shoulder, looking so tiny in his arms.
“I think I'm taking Tali home too. It’s been a long day for us.” Winnie glances down at her.
“I’ll drive you home so Schmidt can grab his car from here. I have no interest in sitting at the hospital for who knows how long. We have a game tomorrow night. Without Cord, we need to make sure we’re all rested so we can win this game.” Wheeler grabs Tali’s diaper bag and Winnie’s purse.
Things have been so much calmer between them since Winnie and Schmidt got married. Wheeler’s stepped up to help them whenever he can. It’s nice to see them get along so well after everything that’s happened.
Once I know no one else is coming to the hospital, I climb inside Cici’s car and drive towards the city.
I could’ve gotten my car, but I'm thinking of leaving Cici’s car at the hospital so she can come home whenever she wants to.
I can just order a ride. I’d rather do that than let her order a ride and be alone in a car with a stranger.
I stop at the Mexican restaurant where I was supposed to meet Cici last night.
I order a few different options since I wasn’t able to ask her and Cord what they like.
I think my girl will be happy with a chimichanga.
I figure with five different entrees, everyone will hopefully like at least one of them and if not, I’ll go get something else.
I'm sure Cord will want to eat and I haven’t eaten yet either.
After placing my order, I take a seat at the bar and wait for my food to be ready.
“You don’t get it, man, she was perfect. Gorgeous, smart, funny, and rich,” the bartender groans.
“Well, I'm not the idiot that screwed it up.” The other bartender rolls his eyes.
“I just… every time I opened my mouth, something stupid came out. It was like someone else was controlling my body. I didn’t mean to offend all of them, but can you imagine having that much money? Like the jewelry she wears on a normal day costs more than I make in a year.”
“Who cares? It’s not her fault you’re a bartender and can’t afford nicer things.”
I glare at the man who’s complaining. I'm fairly certain this is the Adam I’ve heard so much about. He seems like a complete idiot and he’s not even close to the type of man Cici deserves. Honestly, Cici deserves better than me, but I’ll treat her so much better than this guy could.
“I think I'm going to text her and beg her to give me another chance.” He pulls his phone out of his pocket and stares down at the screen.
“I wouldn’t do that,” I growl.
His eyes snap to me and they widen. I should’ve kept my mouth shut. Cici’s an adult and she knows how to handle idiots like Adam. There’s no reason for me to get involved.
“Holy crap! You’re Ron Covey.” The other bartender stares at me with his mouth hanging open.
“Yeah, I am. And that gorgeous, smart, and funny woman he’s talking about is no longer available.”
“What are you talking about? I was with her a few hours ago.” Adam scowls.
“Yeah, and we got to talk after you left. She’s taken now and I wouldn’t be happy if you were texting my girlfriend.” I fold my arms over my chest and glare at him.
“Man, you can’t compete with Covey! No woman in their right mind would choose you over him.” He motions wildly from Adam to me.
“What’s he got that I don’t have?” Adam glares at me.
“You’re kidding, right? For starters, he makes millions of dollars a year.
He’s best friends with her brother. I’m sure they spend a lot of time together.
Cici hangs out with the team all the time.
Her picture is constantly splashed in the tabloids with them.
And I'm sure her dad loves Covey because if he didn’t, he’d just fire him!
After how things went with Papa Powell today, I don’t think you have a shot with her. ”
“He’s right.” I nod towards the other bartender. “You need to stay away from her.”
A waitress appears at my side with my order and hands it over with a smile that’s a little too bright and fake.
“Here you go, Mr. Covey,” she practically purrs as she bats her eyelashes at me.
“Thanks.” I climb off the stool and turn to leave.
“Hey, wait! Will you sign something for me?” The other bartender rushes to get closer to me.
“I’ll sign whatever you want if you keep him from texting my girl.” I motion in Adam’s direction.
“Deal!” He grabs a napkin and a pen, handing them over to me.
“You really want a napkin signed?” I arch a brow.
“Well, I don’t have much on me.” He frowns like he’s just realizing how stupid a napkin is.
I sigh as I take my Pit Bulls baseball hat off and pull a marker out of my back pocket. I quickly scribble my signature on the brim and hand it over to him.
“Delete her number from his phone,” I growl.
“Definitely! I’ll make sure he can’t contact her ever again! Thank you for this!” He’s practically bouncing with excitement over the hat.
My hair is going to be a crazy mess the rest of the night.
I put my hat on when my hair was still wet and I know it probably looks awful, but it’s worth it if Adam leaves Cici alone.
If he doesn’t, I’ll contact Charlie’s uncle and have him handle the idiot.
I hear Mason’s a force to reckon with and I think Adam would happily back down if faced with him.
I grab the bag of food and make my way to the hospital. As soon as I'm parked in the parking garage, I head inside while I'm texting Cici to see where I need to go.
Covey: I'm here. Where should I go?
Beautiful: Head to the maternity floor. They’ll have to buzz you in. Just say you’re here to see Macy Powell and your name is Covey. They know you’re coming.
I tuck my phone back into my pocket and try to figure out how to get to the maternity floor. It takes me almost twenty minutes to figure it out, but they quickly let me in and point me in the direction of Macy’s room.
I knock and when I'm told to come in, I hesitate. There’s no way she’s had the baby yet and I don’t want to walk in on anything I shouldn’t see.
“Are you sure it’s safe for me to come in?” I ask as I push open the door a few inches.
“You’re good, man.” Cord chuckles, tugging the door open the rest of the way.
I move further into the room and I'm not prepared for what I find. Cici’s sitting in a chair with a little baby cradled in her arms. She’s staring down at the baby with so much love. She’s more beautiful than ever. She’s too focused on the baby to even glance up at me.
I quickly take out my phone and snap a few photos of her. Cord arches a brow at me, amusement filling his gaze.
“Do you make it a habit of taking photos of my sister?”
“No, but it’s a cute photo and I'm sure she’ll love to have it.”
“She wants a family so badly,” Cord says softly. “I wish she could find someone to spend the rest of her life with. It seems like there are too many guys like Adam who go after her though.”
“I handled Adam,” I growl. “He won't be an issue.”
“How?”
“She’s been craving Mexican food. I picked it up since neither one of us got to eat and ran into Adam. I made it clear his presence wasn’t appreciated and he should stay away.”
“Thanks, man.” Cord blows out a long breath. “That’s a huge weight off my shoulders.”
“Covey, are you going to come in and say hi to me or are you scared?” Macy glances my way with her arms folded over her chest.
“I'm coming.” I chuckle and shake my head. “How are you doing, mama?” I wrap her in a hug the best I can with her laying on the hospital bed and press a soft kiss to her head.
“Well, I pushed a baby out of me within ten minutes of getting to the hospital. Apparently, I’ve been in labor all day and I just thought it was Braxton Hicks.” She shrugs.
“They said it was the quickest delivery they’ve ever seen and she’s lucky she didn’t give birth in the car.” Cord rolls his eyes.
“Well, I brought food. I wasn’t sure if you’d be able to eat or not. I got five different entrees. Cici hasn’t eaten and really needs to.” I turn my attention to my girl and find her watching me with a smirk.
“But then I have to give him back.” She sticks out her bottom lip in a pout, looking far too adorable.
“How about you give me back my baby while you eat, then I’ll give Emmett back to you?” Macy motions for her to hand over the baby.
“Fine, but only because you’ve let me hold him so much since he was born.”