Chapter 14
14
“T hank you for waiting.” Kade’s words gave Bree the courage to consider moving to the next step. Deciding the right time to tell the world he was the father.
But right now, she needed to wrap her mind around leaving her newborn in the hospital. She caught Kade’s gaze. “You’re welcome. It seemed like the right thing to do.” Could she walk out without the baby in her arms? “How do I leave her here?”
“You have no choice, Bree. The baby needs you. She needs you to stay alive and watch her grow up, be there for her in the ways our mothers couldn’t be for us.”
Those words struck a chord. He was right. This wasn’t a choice.
“Okay,” she said, still unsure she could force her legs to walk out of this building when the time came.
“We’ll wrap up something in a blue blanket in case the hospital is being watched,” he said. His idea would throw the Reaper off the trail of the baby staying in the NICU. She could see where that would help keep her under the radar.
She nodded. Choice or not, she’d be walking out of this hospital on rubbery legs.
It was late. Hours had passed. How many?
A nurse entered the room, holding a food tray. “Thought you might be hungry.”
Whatever was on that tray didn’t smell horrible. Or was she that hungry?
After setting down the tray, the nurse wheeled the cart over and positioned it so Bree could eat comfortably.
“How do you feel?” the nurse asked.
“Surprisingly good,” Bree stated.
“There’s talk of your being released tonight,” the nurse said.
“Is that too fast?” Kade asked.
“Not when the mother is healthy,” the nurse stated. “You usually get a better night of rest at home anyway.”
“And the baby?” he continued. “How is she?”
“In good hands,” the nurse said. “Sometimes, we keep them a couple of days just to be one hundred percent certain everything is working the way it should. Some babies just need a little extra time.”
Bree couldn’t help but wonder if all the stress had caused her to go into labor before the baby had been ready to come out.
They needed to name her because the generic label ‘the baby’ didn’t fit after Bree had held the little angel in her arms, not to mention needing to put something besides Baby X on her birth certificate or however these situations were handled.
“How soon can we see her?” Kade asked.
“NICU is open for parents during regular visiting hours.” The nurse eyed him up and down. Recognition dawned. Was it a bad sign she’d caught on? “They’re over for today, but you can come back first thing in the morning.”
Kade nodded. If he was disappointed, he hid it well. Or was he being strong for Bree? It wouldn’t surprise her if he were. He was also used to stuffing his feelings down deep in order to go on a mission. Zeke had explained compartmentalizing to her. Said he did it just like everyone else in the unit. Kade would be no exception.
The nurse checked Bree’s vitals. After being satisfied, she said, “Eat while it’s warm if you can. Someone will be here before you know it to bring release papers to sign.”
Tears pricked the backs of Bree’s eyes at the thought of walking out of the hospital tonight.
“Sleep will be good for her,” Kade cut in. “What about an early morning release after we visit the baby?”
The nurse pursed her lips. What was she holding back? Did the insurance company want to kick Bree out? Or was it something else? Was the hospital concerned about the Reaper coming around? Were they rushing her release out of fear?
“I’ll make a call and see if I can get her release pushed back a few hours,” the nurse conceded. Then again, the stubborn set to Kade’s jaw would be enough to persuade anyone the man wasn’t going anywhere until he damn well pleased.
Bree made a mental note to thank him later. For this. For being here. For everything.
The door barely closed behind the nurse when Kade urged her to eat.
“When’s the last meal you had?” she asked after taking a bite of lasagna that wasn’t half bad.
“I’m good.”
“Kade, you have to eat,” she said. “And what happened to the boot you were wearing?”
“I patched it up myself.”
“Do I want to know what that means?” she asked, offering a bite of food.
Kade laughed. The sound shouldn’t be sexy. But that low rumble in his chest, along with a smile that had been so good at seducing her, caused an ache to form in her chest. Sex was out of the question for many obvious reasons, and especially one big one. Even if it was physically possible, it would complicate matters.
“At least take my Texas toast and dip it in the sauce,” she said.
He studied her with a smirk. “You won’t give up until I do, will you?”
“Nope.”
“Fine, then I better take it,” he said as she handed over the offering. Their fingers grazed, causing electricity to course through her. She pulled her hand back and reminded herself this was temporary. Allowing herself to be pulled into the vortex that was the sexiest, most decent, and most dangerous man in the world would be a mistake. Kade had the power to shatter her in ways she’d never known possible.
Reminding herself of the fact would help put up a wall. Right?
Surprisingly, a couple of hours of sleep was all Bree needed to feel awake. A cup of coffee with actual caffeine kicked her brain into gear and was pretty much heaven on earth. A walk down the hallway to see her baby with Kade was enough to refill the well and remind her just how important it was to protect that little one at all costs. For the same reason, she wouldn’t call her father to let him know the baby had arrived. He’d want to come visit. He would have questions. It was safer to hold off on the news.
“What do you think of the name Harper?” Kade asked as they stood side-by-side next to their sleeping angel.
“I like it,” she said pensively.
“Something’s wrong with it, though,” he said, echoing her thoughts. “It’s a beautiful name but doesn’t quite fit her, does it?”
A name popped into her thoughts. “A name just came to me.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“What do you think about Aurora?” she asked.
“Like the northern lights,” he said as he seemed to contemplate the idea. Then, he nodded and smiled. “Perfect.”
A nurse who’d been hovering in the background stepped forward. “Is that official?”
Bree looked to Kade, who confirmed with the kind of warm smile that caused all her defenses to melt.
“Yes, it is,” she said.
“Aurora Bee, with two ‘e’s,” he said. “Does that work?”
“It’s different, but I actually love it,” she confirmed. “Baby Bee.”
The nurse wrote it down and then moved to the background, where she entered notes into a computer.
“Leaving you is one of the most difficult things I’ll ever do,” Kade whispered. “I hope you know how much you are loved, Aurora. You are the light, sweet girl.”
Didn’t those words bring tears to the backs of Bree’s eyes? She swallowed the emotion knotting in her throat.
“And the light of my life,” he said before turning to Bree. “I’ll wait in the hallway for you.”
She appreciated the space he was giving her. “Okay.”
Two days passed. Two trips a day to the hospital, early and late. And too many hours of missing Aurora went by while Bree tried to rest.
The body was a miracle. She’d been in the best shape of her life going into the pregnancy and had maintained a workout routine until the days leading up to Aurora’s birth. Her efforts were paying off now.
After walking into the kitchen and giving Rinty a good head scratch, she grabbed a piece of fruit, poured a cup of coffee, and joined Kade at the table where he sat brooding. More than forty-eight hours had passed since leaving the hospital. He’d slept on the couch instead of the bed. That was fine. He’d been inside his head. Giving him space seemed like the right thing to do.
But she couldn’t take much more of the brooding.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked. Okay, wait. Maybe that wasn’t the right question to ask because his gaze flew to her.
He picked up his cell phone and showed the screen to her. An invitation for a celebration of life for Zeke was plastered on the screen.
“I’m sorry, Kade,” she said.
He set the phone down, the screen facing the table. “It’s not that. I keep wondering what the hell is wrong with Zeke’s parents. They haven’t visited Aurora once or checked in with you to see if you need anything. As far as they know, Aurora is their granddaughter and—”
“Zeke swore them to secrecy about Aurora’s real father.”
“Zeke knew?” The look of betrayal on Kade’s face had her wishing she’d found a better way to deliver the news.
And then anger slammed into her at the implication she would have deceived another human being about being the father of her child. “Of course, he knew.” She crossed her arms over her sore chest—sore from pumping breastmilk to drop off at the hospital. “Do you really think I would lie to Zeke? What kind of a person do you think I am?” Tears blurred her vision. How could he think that of her? “In fact, he was the one who convinced me not to tell you even though I never made that promise because I always intended to find a way to tell you. Zeke was my best friend, but I didn’t agree with everything he said.”
Kade’s gaze narrowed as he processed the news. “Why were the two of you planning to get married?”
It was her turn to be shocked. “I never agreed to marry Zeke. I didn’t love him that way.”
Kade pushed to standing. His expression gave the impression much of his world had just imploded inside his brain. “I need a minute.” He called for Rinty and headed out the back door without another word.
The marriage had never made sense to Kade. Nor had the fact Bree had moved on so quickly after their fling. But to think his best friend had outright lied to him and deceived him hurt the most.
Kade walked. Walking cleared his head. Rinty needed the exercise anyway. The three of them had been cooped up in the fishing cabin for two days now. The only times they left were to check on Aurora.
Aurora.
The little girl already had Kade wrapped around her pinky finger. He could have sworn she’d smiled at him last night even though the nurse said it was probably gas.
His thoughts shifted back to Zeke. How proud he’d seemed of becoming a father. How certain he’d been of there being a wedding.
Zeke would have known that Kade would leave Bree alone if he believed her to be in love with his best friend. What the hell, man? We were best friends. Brothers. Why would you lie to me?
And then it dawned on Kade. Zeke had been in love with Bree. Kade should have picked up on the fact a long time ago. The man’s demeanor changed when Bree walked into a room. How had Kade been so blind?
And how had he been such a jerk to Bree?
Would she ever forgive him?
Hell, would he ever forgive himself?