Page 113 of Waiting For A Girl Like You
The nurses shooed the group away, and Annabeth returned to his side as they headed toward the waiting room. “Doing okay?”
She shrugged lightly. “Just nervous, like everyone else.”
They reached the waiting room, and the group spread out. Ben guided Josie and Simone to the rear corner so the three of them could entertain the girls with Abe. Carter positioned himself at the door, nearly filling the frame. His presence relaxed Rowan enough that he thought he might be able to focus on hacking into the hospital’s security cameras.
Grabbing seats near the door, he pulled out his laptop. “Let’s keep an eye on them,” he said as Annabeth sat beside him. “And here they are.”
On the screen, Evie was being wheeled into the OR with Samuel at her side, holding her hand tightly.
“My mom had a c-section with Cait, and it didn’t take long.” Rowan clicked through to check the OR entry points. Holden guarded one, Izzy the other. “Let’s find Liam.”
“What about Liam?” Jamison came and sat on the other side of him to peek at the laptop. “Hacked into the security system already?”
“Yeah, just snooping around.”
He clicked through each section under surveillance until he found Liam talking with some federal agents. Bernie appeared to be heading to the waiting room while Will stayed with Liam.
“Nothing looks out of sorts. Maybe we’re okay.” Annabeth placed a hand on his thigh, the spot instantly warming under her touch. “That phone call was awful.”
It had been more than awful, and Rowan was doing his best to remain calm when, really, he wanted to be back at the house with Anderson and Klausen as they coordinated efforts to track down Sinclair.
And there was something about that call. Sinclair had left himself wide open as if to say, come and find me. It had been easy to track his origins in Arkansas and even easier to zero in on the state's northern section.
Yet, there hadn’t been enough time for him to pinpoint exact coordinates before the call was disconnected. The data would be there when they returned to the house, and maybe one of the various federal teams would utilize the information and make some progress while theywere at the hospital. Maybe by the time they returned, there would be a fresh lead established.
A lead Liam would want to personally chase.
It was no secret between the two of them that he was dying to get out there, and staying trapped in the house was driving him insane. He needed to be in the thick of it, and Rowan understood. Working on the ground during the raids had been a hella good time, and he wouldn’t mind getting out there with Liam again.
“Hey there, pretty lady,” Carter rumbled as Bernie approached. “Good to see you.”
Bernie kissed Carter’s cheek. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to say hello earlier. Things have been crazy.”
Carter glanced back over his shoulder at all of them. “I kind of noticed.”
“He’s cute,” Annabeth whispered to Jamison. “In a follow-the-rules kind of way.”
Most men would have been jealous, but Rowan kept scanning the hospital’s camera feed as he tried not to grin. He wasn’t worried about losing Annabeth, and her comment only solidified her comfort level with him.
“I’m not going to say he’s hot because, apparently, we’re related.” To get a better look, Jamison dipped her head lower so Carter wouldn’t catch her staring. “But I will say he’s attractive.”
On the screen, Taylor hustled down a hallway with Evie’s hospital bag. “Taylor’s here,” Rowan told them. “She’s got Evie’s bag.”
“Taylor?” Jamison’s eyes lit up with mischief. “Perfect.”
Annabeth seemed concerned, and quite frankly, so was Rowan. They both knew you should hold on tight if a Fairweather ever appeared to be up to something.
“Hey, Carter. There’s a pretty woman headed our way with a suitcase,” Jamison called out. “Her name is Taylor, and she’s my dad’s assistant. You can let her pass.”
“I see her.” Carter raised a hand, signaling Taylor. “She’s coming.”
An evil smirk stretched across Jamison’s mouth, and Annabeth smacked her arm. “Stop.”
“What?” Jamison feigned innocence as Taylor approached the waiting room door. “I didn't even describe her. I just said she was pretty.”
Annabeth pinched the bridge of her nose. “So?”
“So, he thinks she’s pretty, and my job is halfway done.” Jamison shrugged. “If Taylor is still on a crusade to land a Fairweather, maybe we can throw her a watered-down version.”
