Page 236 of Mad As Hell

I turned with a laugh. “Definitely.” I eyed the petite woman behind me. She was a good eight inches shorter and majorly pregnant.

She rolled her eyes, swaying on her feet as she rested her hands atop her extended belly. “It would be nice if this one wasn’t playing kickball with my bladder every fifteen minutes.”

“Ouch,” I murmured, shaking my head. “How far along are you?”

“Eight and a half months,” she replied. “And I’m ready to issue an evacuation order.”

I laughed softly, watching as she winced and rubbed her lower back. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she replied, grimacing. “I just—Shit.” She sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes going wide.

“Whoa,” I said, my hands fluttering up like I wanted to touch her, but I’d just met her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She pressed her lips together. “I don’t… Ow, dammit.”

“Do you need me to get someone?” I asked, looking around like a friend or baby daddy might magically appear. “I can grab security—”

Her eyes were wide with panic. “I think I need to sit down. Can you help me? I think I just need a second.”

“Of course,” I quickly agreed, taking her arm and leading her from the line.

The inside of the stadium was packed with people darting in and out of shops and waiting in lines for the concessions. The sounds echoed off the cavernous ceiling, and I felt the woman tremble as we made our way through the crowd.

I spotted a security guard a few yards away. “Let me ask him for help.”

Her hand squeezed my arm. “Please, don’t.”

I shot her a confused look.

“They’ll call an ambulance, and I’d rather not pay the fee they charge,” she admitted.

I understood that. “Okay, but—”

She was already pulling her phone out of her purse. “I’m going to text my boyfriend. I think I need to go to the hospital. Something’s not right.”

I waited as she shot off a text message, scanning the crowd in case I saw one of my friends, but there were people everywhere.

She smiled at me as she waited for her boyfriend to text back. When he answered back with a phone call within seconds, I mentally applauded the guy in question for not ignoring his phone. She quickly told him she wasn’t feeling good and where she was.

“He’s getting the car,” she told me with a thin smile as she tucked the phone back into her purse. “He wants to take me to the hospital himself.” She pointed to the nearest exit only sign. “We actually parked in that lot. Do you mind waiting with me until he shows up? I mean, unless you need to go.”

“Of course I can wait with you,” I assured her, walking beside her as she waddled through the security stanchions toward the parking lot.

It was quieter out here. Someone was smoking a few feet away, but he put out his cigarette and walked around the side of the building so he could get back inside.

“What’s your name?” I asked, wanting to keep her mind off whatever was going on.

“Uh, Kasey,” she answered.

I smiled, hoping I looked reassuring and not as freaked out as I felt inside. “I’m Maddie.”

“Thanks for helping me, Maddie,” she murmured. She gave me an odd look. “That was very kind of you.”

I shrugged. “Just doing what I can. Shit, let me text my friends and let them know I’m out here so they don’t worry.” I dug my phone out of my back pocket and unlocked it to text Bex.

Kasey cried out suddenly, her hands shooting forward to grab me and knocking the phone from my hands. “Oh, God.”

Icy cold panic flashed through me, and I looked around to see if anyone could help. All I saw was an older SUV pulling alongside the curb.

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