Page 80 of Waiting for Devon
“What is it, sweetheart?” He drew up short when he saw the blood flowing down her legs.
“Call Jack! Tell him I’m hemorrhaging while I call 911!”
Within seven minutes EMTs arrived at Devon’s house, assessed her, and rolled her outside on a gurney to a fire rescue truck waiting to transport her to SFGH. Reed rode with her. She squeezed his hand and cried, “I’m losing our baby! Oh, God, Reed! It’s happening all over again!”
Though fear seized his heart, Reed kept calm for his wife’s sake. “Shh! Jack is waiting for us at the hospital. He’s not going to let anything happen to our baby.”
“Listen to me, Reed! If I’m not conscious, tell Jack to save our baby before me. Do you understand? Do you?” Her eyes begged him to put their baby’s life before hers.
“Yes, my love. I understand.”
By the time she arrived at the hospital, Devon had lost a substantial amount of blood and fell unconscious. Reed relayed her wishes to Jack who rushed her into surgery for an emergency C-section. Though he’d called Dr. Warren, she couldn’t get to the hospital in time. Besides, Jack insisted on delivering the baby himself. Reed ran alongside the gurney, and when they reached an operating room, Jill was there to help him into a paper gown and mask so he could be with Devon.
Before he could blink, it seemed, Jack handed Reed a healthy, squalling baby boy, then turned his attention to Devon. He needed to stop her hemorrhaging. Jill escorted Reed and the baby out of the operating room. She saw the worried expression on Jack’s face and didn’t want Reed to be there if something happened to Devon.
Other nurses took baby boy Barrington from his father and brought him to the nursery on the maternity ward. Torn between his love for his newborn son and his wife, Reed stayed with the baby because he knew that’s what Devon would want him to do. The nurses cleaned up the infant, swaddled him, and handed him back to Reed who sat in a rocking chair. Looking at him, he saw the baby had a head full of dark hair which he inherited from his mother and brilliant sapphire eyes like his. He smiled. A future lady-killer.
A couple of hours passed. Jack found Reed in the nursery and delivered upsetting news. “I’m sorry, Reed. Devon lost a lot of blood, and she’s slipped into a coma.”
His heart lurched and he almost dropped his son. “Is she…will she be okay?”
“We have every reason to believe so. She’s had two transfusions, and her color is already better. Her heart rate is steady and so is her pulse. We just have to wait.”
Waiting for Devon to regain consciousness proved excruciating for both Reed and Jack. They alternated sitting by her side and tending to the baby. The infant needed a name, but Reed didn’t want to make that decision without his wife. Every day they prayed for her recovery and bonded even more over their mutual concern for the woman they both loved, though Jack no longer loved Devon with romantic passion. His heart now belonged to Jill.
After three long days, Devon stirred awake. When she saw Reed sitting next to her, panic rose in her. “The baby! Oh, God, please don’t tell me I lost our baby!”
Reed leaned forward and brushed hair out of her eyes. “Thank God, you’re awake. Jack and I have been so worried about you. Rest, my love. We have a beautiful baby boy.”
“A boy? A son?” A beatific smile crossed her face. “Please, I have to see him.”
“I’ll let Jack know you’re awake, and we’ll bring him to you.” Reed squeezed her shoulder and pressed a gentle kiss on her lips.
Pure, unadulterated joy swelled in Devon when her husband placed their son in her waiting arms. She pulled back the baby blanket and examined every inch of his tiny body as tears slid down her cheeks. “He’s perfect,” she murmured. “Absolutely perfect.”
The expression of maternal pride on her face caused a heavy lump to form in Reed’s throat and made it difficult for him to speak. “He needs a name, sweetheart,” he reminded her after he swallowed the emotion choking him.
“I think we should name him after Jack, if you don’t mind. Maybe Taylor?” she suggested.
“I love it. How about Taylor James? We can call him TJ for short.”
“It’s perfect. Just like him.” She met Reed’s brilliant eyes glowing with sweet love. “Thank you. Thank you for giving me this most precious gift. And thank you for naming him after my dad. You have no idea how much that means to me.”
Reed leaned down and wrapped his arms around his wife and his son. “I think I have a pretty good idea, my love.”
His mouth found hers in a perfect kiss. A kiss of love. A kiss of hope. A kiss for eternity.
Epilogue
An excerpt fromKller’s Choice
Book 5 Choice Series
Jackson was gonefor several hours, so he was surprised to find his frail grandmother waiting for him at the stable. He dismounted and asked anxiously, “What are you doing here, Grammy? Did you walk alone all the way from the house?”
Devon pierced him with her deep brown eyes that reminded him vividly of Eden. “Yes, I did, Jackson. I want you to take me to the cabin.Ourcabin.” She referred to her husband Reed’s cabin that was once his private refuge away from his stubborn, overbearing father, his sister’s alcoholism, and his brother’s selfish concerns.
“Of course. I’ll get the golf cart.”
