Page 74 of The Model

“Lars Mikkelsen’s phone,” a squeaky voice answered.

“Hi, yes, this is Lexie Keene, and I need you to take the phone to Lars right now,” I demanded.

“I’m sorry, but he’s working right now, and he doesn’t allow for any interruptions.”

“If you tell him I’m on the phone, he’ll answer. I promise you.” I tried to keep my voice light and not like I wanted to put my hand through the phone and rip her throat out.

“If I get fired for this—”

“You won’t,” I interrupted her. “I’ll make sure of it.”

“You better,” she snapped. Her voice had gone from nice and squeaky to harsh. I could hear Lars talking in the background as she moved closer. His accent was so distinctive, and any other time I would have loved to listen to it, but not today. “I’m sorry, Lars, but there’s a Lexie Keene on the phone for you. She said you wouldn’t mind taking it.” Her voice sounded like a small child’s as she said the last words.

“Of course, I’ll take her call.” There was some rustling and then his booming voice. “Hallo, Lexie. What can I do for you? Your husband is—”

“Please don’t alarm him, Lars.”

“Okay,” he drew out the word. “Is everything okay?” he asked quietly.

“No, it’s not. I need you to be done with Ryder. My place was broken into, and I fell. The fall has sent me into labor, and I need Ryder on the next plane out here. My assistant is looking up flights for him now. Please say you’ll let him leave.”

“What kind of a man do you take me for? Of course, I will do this for you. I…”

“Is that my Lexie on the phone?”

“Do you want to talk to him, or should I send him on his way?” Lars asked quietly.

“Is that my wife?” Ryder demanded. His voice was closer now.

“It is, and she wants to talk to you. When you get off the phone, you can grab your things and leave. If you leave your key to your hotel room, I’ll make sure you get the rest of your things.”

“What the hell is going on?” I could hear the worry in his tone.

I had calmed down some, but after hearing his voice and how distressed he was, I started to sob.

“Lexie? Why is Lars telling me to leave?”

“Can you FaceTime me from your phone? I need to see you,” I managed to get out, but I wasn’t sure if he understood what I said.

“Whatever you want. Can you tell me one thing first, are you okay?”

No, I wasn’t. “I think so,” I sobbed.

“Give me a minute, okay?”

The line went dead, and I started to hiccup-cry. Raine rushed over and wrapped her arms around me. “It’s okay. I found a flight and already sent Ryder the information.”

“Thank you. Do you know what’s going on here? Have they called for an ambulance? If not, I need you to drive me.”

“I don’t know,” she chewed on her bottom lip. “I can check.”

“Please do, I need to get checked out.” When she continued to gnaw on her lip, I knew there was something else. Something that wasn’t good. “What is it you aren’t telling me?”

Her eyes darted around the room before they came back to me. “The thing is, Ryder’s flight’s not for two more hours, and the flight’s a little over six and a half hours. I don’t know if he’ll make it in time.”

Normally labor took hours. Many hours, but with the trauma to my body, I wasn’t sure how long I had. That’s why I needed to get to the hospital so I could get answers.

“Let’s go. Ryder’s supposed to call me, and I want to be on my way.” Raine jumped up and held out a hand for me to take. “Can you run upstairs and grab my bag?”

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