Page 6 of Wistful in Wyoming
A gray bundle of fur sashayed from around the back of the house, then flopped down in front of them. Willow’s cat, Ethel, was now fully grown and the queen of the castle, in her own opinion of course. Chuckling at the feline’s antics, Jeremiah was just about to ask Nathan a question when a loud crash from inside the house caused both men to jump to their feet and rush to find the source.
They found Willow standing in the kitchen, broken glass and a puddle of lemonade all around her. She’d dropped the pitcher she’d been bringing out to them and was hunched over, breathing heavily.
“Willow, stay there, I’ll lift you out of the glass,” Nathan ordered while striding closer to his wife, who was still wide-eyed and silent amid the mess. “Jeremiah, get the mop and broom, will ya?”
“Nathan ... that’s not all lemonade,” Willow gasped between breaths as she stood in place. She pointed to the wet spot on the lower half of her loose-fitting maternity dress—an ugly muumuu she’d called it in disgust on more than one occasion, but she’d run out of clothes that fit her comfortably, and she’d refused to buy more that late in her pregnancy. “My water broke, and I’m having a contraction—damn that fucking hurts!” She moaned, grasping her belly and bending forward.
Nathan immediately paled, and Jeremiah could swear the man swayed, about to faint, before gathering himself together and rushing forward to sweep Willow off her feet, away from the broken pitcher.
“Jeremiah! Get the car!” he yelled, not putting Willow down, instead carrying her right out of the kitchen and to the front door.
“Nathan, honey, we need the hospital bag.” Her voice sounded calmer after the worst of the contraction had passed.
“Take her out to the truck,” Jeremiah ordered. “I’ll get the bag for you.” A few weeks ago, Willow had told him it was next to her dresser in their bedroom, just in case, God forbid, Nathan was out on an errand or something when she went into labor. Clasping his friend on the shoulder, Jeremiah kissed Willow’s forehead. “Hang in there, Willow-girl, you’re about to be a mama.”
“About damn time. Oh, call Dale for me and let him know we’re on our way to the hospital, please. He’s in Butterfield picking up some stuff.”
“Got it.”Wonderful.
He strode down the hall to retrieve the bag, chuckling at Willow who was insisting to her husband she could walk. Of course, the father-to-be wasn’t listening to her. Once she’d been all settled in Nathan’s truck, Jeremiah followed them to the hospital in his own vehicle, commanding the Bluetooth feature to dial a phone number as he drove.
A gruff voice filled the cab. “Yeah?”
Dale.
Just hearing the man’s voice sent a lance of pain and desire through Jeremiah, but he managed to push it aside and keep his voice steady and unaffected. “Willow’s water broke. We’re on our way to the hospital—looks like you’ll be handling the chores on your own for a bit.”
“Fuckin’ awesome.” The sarcastic words were said with genuine joy. Dale had grown fond of his new employers and vice versa. “Nathan freaking out?”
Laughing softly, he replied, “Yeah, the man is usually cool under pressure, but I thought I’d be driving them in—he went white as a sheet before recovering. I think his combat training kicked in.”
“That’ll do it. Keep me updated if you don’t mind.”
“No problem.”
A click told Jeremiah the call had been disconnected before he could say anything more. Apparently, Dale had been done talking to him. Bastard. That phone call was probably the most they’d spoken to each other since Dale had kicked Jeremiah in the gut with his ultimatum.
Forcing the man and their issues from his mind, he called his own foreman, Anthony Garner, to let him know he was heading to the hospital and didn’t know when he’d be back. The man whooped loudly over the phone when he heard the baby was coming. Many of the JP ranch hands loved Willow as if she were their own sister. They’d all been counting the days until she went into labor. Of course, there was a money pool going for the weight and length of the baby—$500 was riding on the results.
Butterfield General Hospital was small compared to the medical center on the other side of the county, and Jeremiah knew the head nurse who was working in the Labor & Delivery ward. Since it’d been a slow night there, she hadn’t banished him to the waiting room. After six hours of pacing outside her room, with a few short breaks here and there, the angry squall of an infant broke the silence of the hallway Jeremiah had traversed while anticipating his goddaughter’s arrival. Falling back against the wall, he sighed, glad it was finally over. If he was that relieved over it, he couldn't imagine how Nathan and Willow felt.
Smiling, he scrubbed a hand down his face and settled in to wait some more. Hopefully, she had ten fingers, ten toes, and all her mama’s gumption and maybe a bit of her daddy’s sweetness.
His vigil was interrupted a short time later, when Nathan poked his head out of the room, waving him inside. “Come on, Willow wants to see you and show off our baby girl.” Nathan’s grin was bigger and brighter than Jeremiah had ever seen it.
Taking off his hat and running the brim through his fingers, he stepped nervously into the delivery room. A team of nurses and a doctor were throwing things into bins with red plastic bio-hazard bags—it was controlled chaos which he ignored. His gaze landed on an exhausted-looking Willow, covered with a clean, white blanket and propped up on pillows with a tiny bundle cradled in her arms.
He tiptoed closer, not sure why he was walking so carefully.
“Come here, Uncle Jeremiah—it’s okay,” Willow said, not taking her eyes off her brand-new baby girl. “She’s so beautiful.”
Leaning over the duo, he gently pulled the blanket off the baby’s fuzz covered head. Her eyes were closed, and her mouth was open slightly as she slept in her mother’s arms. Her skin was a little red but smooth and flawless. She had her daddy’s dark hair and her mother’s nose.
“She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” His voice was hushed, his eyes filled with joyous tears, and he felt his heart crack open for this perfect little girl. “Congratulations, you two.”
“Do you want to hold her?” Willow finally dragged her eyes from her daughter and met his gaze. She had heavy, dark rings under her eyes, and sweat had stuck her brown hair to the side of her head, but she was as gorgeous as he’d ever seen her, glowing with motherhood.
“No. Not yet. You guys need time together. I’m going to head out now that she’s here and you’re both doing fine. Between Dale and my guys, we’ll keep Skyview running. You take all the time you need to be a family.” He kissed her forehead before softly stroking his finger down the baby’s soft-as-silk, apple cheek. “I’m so damn happy for you guys I could bust.”
