Page 59 of Snowed In with the Bosses

The world came back in snatches. A bright light pierced my eyes. I tried to raise an arm to block it, a sound of distress on my lips. The light dimmed, then faded to black. A heaviness assaulted my limbs next. I kicked at the blanket pinning me down but nothing moved. Voices infiltrated my dreams, Alexander’s low grumble and the velvet softness of Ethan drifting in and out, along with Liam’s quick wit that seemed subdued.

“What happened?” My own voice came out in a croak. My lips stuck together, my tongue three times too big for my mouth. I peeled one eyelid open and squinted. Low light struck the sides of all three men’s faces. Relief cascaded over their expressions, which tightened my stomach. The babies! I grabbed my belly, a whoosh of air leaving me when one of them flipped around, causing my stomach to undulate.

Liam took my hand and stroked his thumb around the IV line. “It’s okay, Clara. You’re okay, and so are the babies.”

I tried to raise my head, but everything felt so heavy and off-balance. My vision swam, and right before I closed my eyes, I caught the flash of uncertainty on Alexander and Ethan’s faces.“What else?” My free hand braced against the bed, I tried again to scoot into a sitting position.

“Lay still. I’ll raise the bed.” Liam patted my hand, then the bed jerked.

I stiffened as it creaked slowly upward but there was no pain, only a slight swimming sensation in my head. Once that settled, I forced my eyes open again and held them wide. “You’re all worried. Tell me why.”

“You fainted.” Alexander stood at the foot of my bed, his hands in his pockets, his forearms pushing his jacket aside in that pose I loved. His words sank in and dredged up a hint of a memory. “At the office party.”

“Everyone saw.” I shuddered and gripped the sheets.

A look passed between Ethan and Alexander.

“Oh for fuck’s sake. Tell me all of it.” I motioned at them with a flick of my fingers. “You’re looking at each other like the sky’s falling. How bad is it?”

“Bad.” Ethan sank into a chair upholstered in an obscene green color. “Alexander might lose his position as CEO. Everyone knows we’ve been together, that you’re pregnant, and that the babies are ours. We’ve been called in for a board meeting.”

“How?” I shook my head. The how could wait. Alexander’s role as CEO was the most powerful in the company. The board meant business if his job was at stake.

Ethan’s hand covered mine, the heat of his skin pushing back the chill blanketing me. “Allan recorded me and Alexander talking. He sent the video to everyone. There’s no going back, and there’s nothing we can do to him in light of the scrutiny we’re facing.”

“Damn it.” My head burrowed into the pillow. Thoughts whirled too fast for me to capture. We were sunk for good thistime. Nothing would convince the board to let them keep their jobs. We’d broken too many rules.

The door opened and a short man entered. “Well, now that’s good to see.” He stopped beside Alexander. “Clara, I’m Dr. Branson. I’ve been monitoring you since you arrived.”

“How am I?” Other than a hint of a headache and some heaviness in my limbs, I felt perfectly normal.

“I’d say you’re overworked and that is not a good thing for a woman this late in a high-risk pregnancy. You should have been at home resting a month ago.” A sharp look from the doctor pinned each of my men in place. “I understand you knew about your situation and chose to continue working.” Disapproval colored his voice. “While I can’t make you rest, I do highly encourage it.”

Home. Rest. Both sounded wonderful, but Harrington needed me. The company…the company was prepared to toss all four of us out on the streets without a job. No one had said as much, but I read it in the harshness in Alexander’s face, the tight lines narrowing Ethan’s eyes, and the fact that Liam had not smiled once this whole time.

“When can I go home?” I picked at the blanket to keep from looking at anyone.

Dr. Branson squeezed my foot beneath the covers. “Now that you’re awake, I need to get one more set of vitals. You’re stable now, so I’ll let you leave if you promise me youwillgo home and rest.”

“I promise.” I sounded as certain as a toddler at naptime, but it appeased the doctor enough to turn and leave the room.

After a flurry of nurses paraded through the room, I was allowed to change back into my dress and take a wheelchair ride out to the parking lot, where Alexander’s car sat with him waiting behind the wheel.

Ethan pushed my wheelchair, and Liam fixed the footrests when Ethan stopped at the car’s open passenger side door. They helped me into the car despite my protests that I could manage by myself. Their concern and care silenced me long enough to get buckled in and for Alexander to pull out onto the road.

“Take me to Mom’s.” I needed her. I’d hidden all of this from her, and it was time to come clean, then ask for advice.

We rode in absolute silence, the men no doubt lost in their thoughts. I certainly was. We pulled into Mom’s drive, and Ethan and Liam once again came around to help me out of the car. Alexander joined them, and they enclosed me in a protective circle. “Do you want us to come in with you?” Alexander asked.

I shook my head, the movement slow but certain. “This is something I have to do alone.”

Whether they agreed or not, they walked me to the side door, waited for Mom to answer my knock when I found the door locked, and walked back to the car once I stepped into the kitchen.

Mom took one look at me and pulled me into a hug. “Come on. Have a seat. We’ll drink some tea, and you can tell me all about it.”

It was easy to sink into the worn chair, breathe in the cinnamon scent from the nearby candle, sip tea Mom poured for us, and tell her everything. Once I started, it came out of me in a torrent. I held nothing back, and even though I kept my gaze locked on my teacup to avoid seeing her shock and worry, I felt it in the heavy air that tightened around us.

By the time I’d finished talking, we’d drank the whole pot of tea and worked through a layer of cookies from the tin I’d brought her a few weeks ago.

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