Page 4 of Tight End

But it’s nothing compared to the one in my heart when I see my brother.

Chapter 2

Brixton

Igrip Allie’s hand tight. “You can do this. You’re so fucking strong. She’s gonna be here so soon.”

Allie screams, tears streaming down her face, remnants of eye makeup streaking her cheeks. “I can’t do this without him.”

My own tears lodge in the back of my throat, choking me slowly and tormentingly. “You can. I’m here for you. We’re gonna get through this.”

When we got to the hospital, I went to the Emergency Room with Davis while the EMTs took Allie straight up to Labor and Delivery.

I scrub a hand down the front of my face. The memory of my brother’s bloody body crushed by the metal door will haunt me forever. That sonofabitch Uber driver. I wanted to tear him apart with my bare hands for taking his goddamn eyes off the road like he did. All because he was so worried about Allie giving birth in the back of his damn car.

Davis was in really bad shape. After finally getting him out of the car and into the ambulance, he crashed in the back of theambulance. When we got to the Emergency Room and he was stable, the doctors did a CT scan and detected trauma to his liver and kidney. They took him right into an operating room because he was bleeding internally.

I’d like to think positively, that no news is good news. But no news is just fucking no news.

“Okay, Allie,” the doctor says. “She’s crowning. I need you to give me one more good push when I say.”

“I can’t do it,” Allie wails. “It hurts too much. Fuck!”

My chest tightens. Goddammit, this isn’t fair. Davis should be here right now, holding his fiancée’s hand while they welcome their baby into the world. I shouldn’t be here. It should be me lying on that fucking operating table.

“Push,” the doctor yells. “Now.”

Her screams pierce the tense air and then, seconds later, a tiny screech rings out.

She’s here. And her dad isn’t.

The doctor sits back and smiles when the baby cries out again, this time even louder than the first time. “She’s got a good set of pipes, that’s for sure.”

Allie sobs. “Just like her Uncle Rock Star.”

I hug her and she clings to me, her whole body quaking with grief.

“Do you want to meet your daughter?” One of the nurses walks over to Allie and holds out a freshly cleaned baby wrapped in a blue and pink striped blanket.

“She’s beautiful,” I whisper.

“I know. Davis needs to see her.” She looks up at me. “Has anyone called or texted you? Is he out of surgery?”

I shake my head. I’ve only checked my phone about a million times since I rushed to Labor and Delivery and I haven’t heard dick from them.

As Allie cuddles the baby a while later, I pace back andforth in front of the hospital bed, fisting the sides of my hair. “When the fuck are they gonna tell us something? It’s been hours.”

“Just go to him. I’ll be fine.” She struggles to smile at me. “But you’d better call me as soon as you hear anything.”

I drop a kiss on the top of her head and smile at my niece before taking a quick picture of them both with my phone. “What are you gonna call her?”

“We hadn’t decided for sure.” Allie’s voice cracks again. “I don’t want to decide by myself. I can’t.”

I nod. “Got it. So Gorgeous Girl it is until Dad’s out of surgery.”

My heart clenches with those words.

He has to be okay. He needs to meet his daughter, to be the amazing dad he was meant to be.

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