Page 21 of 40 and Flirting (with Disaster)
Michael.
“I need to take this, Iris. Just a sec.”
Her soft smile stuck in his mind as he answered his son’s call.
“Michael?”
“It’s time, Dad.”
Jamie swore his heart skipped a beat. “You’re sure?”
His son chuckled in his ear. “How many times have we gone through this? I know what I’m talking about.”
“Of course you do.” Michael helped him manage the herd; if he said Baby was in labor, she was in labor.
“I’m calling Dr. Everest as soon as I get off the phone with you.”
Since she was still at the pub, she would be right behind him. Except he had Iris to take care of.
“All right. I’ll be there asap.”
Michael hung up without answering. Jamie turned toward Iris. “Baby is in labor.”
Her eyes went wide, a brilliant smile lighting her face. “Finally!”
Yes, finally. Anticipation thrummed in his belly alongside nerves.
Iris was reaching for the door handle. “I can get a ride—”
He didn’t know where the impulse came from, but he gripped her wrist, holding her in the car. “Come with me.”
Iris shook her head. “What?”
Yes, this felt right. “Come with me.” He smiled, letting his excitement free. “Have you ever seen a foal born?”
Iris settled back in her seat. “No, but—”
“Then come with me.” Honestly, he couldn’t think of anyone he wanted to share this moment with more than the woman beside him. “Iris, I can take you home, no worries. We have time. But…come with me. Please.”
The words to convince her were on his lips, but he held them back. She already knew how important Baby was to him. She knew how much he had worried and waited for this moment. And she wanted to come; he could see it in her eyes. All she had to do was overcome her hesitation enough to say yes.
The tension that seemed ever present in her body when she was with him slowly relaxed. “Yes. I’d love to—”
Go with you? See the miracle of life being brought into the world? Spend more time with you? He wasn’t certain how she’d planned to finish that sentence, and he found right now he didn’t care. All that mattered was the word yes. He couldn’t hold himself back—he surged in to kiss her hard on the mouth. Before she could respond, he was back behind the wheel. “Let’s go. I promise I’ll take you home after.”
From the corner of his eye he saw Iris reach up to touch her lips, and satisfaction filled his chest.
“How long does labor normally last?” Iris asked as he pulled away from the curb.
“A few hours, though it varies just like with women. But Baby usually delivers pretty quickly.”
“Lucky girl,” Iris muttered. He gathered that meant her own labors had not been short. Sympathy tugged at him, remembering Michael’s delivery and how long it had taken to bring him into the world, how hard it had been to watch another human being suffer like that, and he grasped her hand where it lay on the console between them. She jerked at his touch, but she didn’t pull away. They traveled in companionable silence, her hand inside his, for several minutes before he reached the turnoff to the interstate.
“How far out of town do you live?” Iris asked.
“About halfway between Black Wolf’s Bluff and Gatlinburg. My place is situated on the northern end of Douglas Lake.” He’d been lucky to discover the land before buying in the area had become too precious to afford.
They absently talked about the lake and the ranch until Jamie reached the gate at the head of his driveway, marked prominently with a wrought-iron carousel horse with the words Flying Horse Ranch encircling it. He reluctantly released Iris’s hand to signal the remote. As he pulled through, a truck moved into the driveway behind his car—Dr. Everest. He waited for her to pass the gate before signaling it to close. The two vehicles reached the house just as Michael jogged up from the path to the barn.
