“I don’t think it would take long enough for you to get tired. By the time you made it to the middle of the yard, we’d have to carry you to the truck to take you the hospital.”
“Shut it, Pretty Boy,” she growled, throwing a piece of toast at him.
“Mark, has she been this grouchy for long?” Luke asked, still grinning.
“The only time she’s not is while we’re... Ow,” Mark exclaimed when Jenny stomped on his foot. “Sorry, but it’s true.”
“You don’t need to tell them that,” Jenny said, glaring at her husband.
“It’s okay, Jenny. We understand,” Lisa said, looking over at Mindi, who was nodding her head.
“Well, I’m not feeling as enthusiastic as I was there for a while. The farther along I get, the harder it gets to find the energy,” she said on a loud sigh.
“We understand that, as well,” Lisa said with a grin, trying not to laugh.
******
“Jenny, please slow down with the hot sauce. You’re not going into labor, and it’s going to give you heartburn,” Mark said, genuinely feeling concerned as he watched her pour a healthy amount on her taco salad she had asked for, for lunch.
“Baby, everything gives me heartburn. Not just hot sauce. So, I might as well keep trying,” she said, rubbing her hand over her belly. “Mindi, do you want more Tabasco sauce?”
“No, I’ve already got heartburn. I shouldn’t have tried that. I think we need to have Luke take us for a ride in the tow truck on the back roads,” she said with a frown, rubbing her own belly, wishing now she had listened to him. “If he goes fast enough with all those bumps, and the suspension as bad as it, it might actually work.”
“The suspensions bad on the tow truck? Aren’t you a mechanic?” Zane asked, giving Luke a smirk.
“Yeah,” he chuckled. “But haven’t you ever heard, a mechanic’s car is never fixed? There’s some truth to that saying. Trust me, I’m doing pretty good. I just need to find the time to work on it. But with Mindi as close to her due date as she is, I’m nervous about being away from her more than I absolutely have to be.”
“Well, let’s see if we can do something about that. Let’s try that truck ride,” Jenny said, sounding so serious, Zane actually took a step back from her.
“I don’t know, you two. I kind of agree with Mark. The babies will come when they’re ready,” Luke said, still feeling certain Mindi would go into labor before the day was out. He was almost convinced Jenny would too, but he wasn’t sure enough to say that out loud.
“Luke, what part of induce labor do you not understand? Dr. Kobby is going to put me in the hospital in two days and make me have this baby one way or another. With the stories I’ve heard about being induced, I don’t want to do it that way,” Jenny said, all of the sudden looking like a pit bull.
“Okay, okay. I’ll take you for a truck ride. Both of you,” Luke said, feeling certain, arguing with them was likely to cause more harm than humoring them with a ride in the truck would.
******
“Dang, that didn’t work either. It looks like I’m going to have to do this the hard way no matter what,” Jenny said, just sounding exhausted.
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Mindi said, patting her on the hand.
They were outside in the backyard. It was actually cooler out there in the shade than in the house. Their mom and dad’s air conditioner had been acting up, and they were going to have to wait till Monday for someone to come and look at it.
“Well, at least Dr. Kobby’s not ready to induce you yet. You still have a chance to go into labor on your own.” Jenny sounded like she was wanting to cry.
“Well, it’s just Saturday. You still have a little time left.”
Just then, Tonya came running through the back yard with Gabe, Nathan and Tony right behind her with water guns. The back of her shirt was already soaked.
When they started back the other way, they passed back behind Jenny and Mindi’s chairs close enough, both of them had to jump up to keep from getting knocked over.
“You four need to watch what you’re doing,” Jenny said with a sour look. When she finally looked over at Mindi, she could tell something was going on with her. “Mindi, what’s wrong?”
“My water just broke,” she gasped as a really hard contraction hit her.
“Seriously?” she asked, her eyes growing huge.
“Yes,” her sister hissed through her teeth, somehow managing to look sorry at the same time.
“Hang on. I’ll go get Luke,” Jenny said, her concern for her sister and her unborn child taking over.
Jenny done the best she could to jog to the back door to get her brother in-law, ending up taking that short run he had suggested earlier. When she stepped through the door to holler his name, it came out much higher than normal just as a really strong contraction hit her. “Luke, Mindi’s water just broke,” she pushed through her teeth, grabbing her husband’s arm. “And Mark, now, I think I’m in labor.”
Luke didn’t wait around to see what Mark was going to do. He just jumped up and headed out the back door. Lisa spun around and headed for the game room where her mom and dad both were. She and Luke had been working on supper, with Mark and James doing their best to help. They had wanted to give their mom a break for the night.
When she entered the game room, she could tell by the look on her mom’s face she already knew something was going on. “What is it, Lisa?”
“I think you’re about to get two new grandchildren at the same time. Mindi’s water just broke and Jenny said she thought she was in labor as well.”
Jamie had barely let Lisa finish before she was up and running out the door. Carl just looked at Lisa, his eyes growing huge. She gave him a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, Dad. No one’s going to expect you to deliver any babies today.”
“I know. It was just hard enough dealing with you being in labor. Now we’ve got Jenny and Mindi in labor at the same time,” he whispered, rubbing the center of his chest. “I don’t know if I can take that much stress at once.”
“Come on. It’ll be okay,” Lisa said, taking her dad’s hand, and pulling him through the door. “Let’s go see what’s going on.”
When Lisa and Carl made it to the front room, Luke was just sticking his head in the door. “Mindi is already in the truck. We’re heading to the hospital now. I’ll see you when you get there.” That was all he said before he darted back out the door, not waiting on anyone to answer.
“He seems more nervous than I thought he would be,” Mark said with a surprised look on his face.
“He’ll be fine once she’s at the hospital,” James said. “You know how he is about Mindi. He just doesn’t want anything to go wrong.”
“That sounds like you. Not Luke,” Mark said, grinning at the big guy.
“Really?” James said, giving him a knowing look. “How are you feeling right about now?”
Mark just shook his head. “Yeah, I get your point.”
Just then, Jenny must have squeezed down on Mark’s hand, because he looked down at her with a look of concern. When he looked at his watch, he jumped up. “Yeah. Time to go. That was less than five minutes.”
******
When Mark and Jenny made it to the hospital, it was to find that Mindi was already in a labor and delivery room. Carla, the lady at the reception desk had looked up when she saw them come in the door. “Luke called and told us while they were on the way. He also warned us you might be on your way here, as well. I’ve already got her file pulled up. This won’t take long.”
Mark breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks. Her contractions are less than five minutes apart already.”
“Okay, Sweetheart. Don’t sit down. Lean on that big strong husband of yours. I’m going to get you a wheelchair and get you up to labor and delivery.” She disappeared through the doors behind her and came back two seconds later with the wheelchair she had mentioned. Mark helped Jenny sit down in it, then looked back at Ca
rla.
“Go on up. They already know she’s coming,” she said holding the doors open for him. Mark just breathed a sigh of relief and done as she said.
When they got upstairs to labor and delivery, Marie put Jenny in the room next to Mindi. “This way you two will be close. It’ll make it easier on the rest of the family. It will probably make it easier on Dr. Kobby, as well.”
“Do you know how far along Mindi is?” Jenny asked once she had caught her breath after a contraction.
“I can’t technically tell you that, but Luke wanted to know when you guys got here. Mark could step over there and talk to him.”
He gave the nurse a stern look, shaking his head. “I’m not leaving her.”
“Yeah, Luke said something like that as well,” Marie said, hiding a grin. “I’ll see if the rest of the family has shown up yet. They would probably be happy to relay messages for you all.”
“Mark, speaking of family, have you called your mom and dad yet?” Jenny asked, grabbing his hand, wanting to get her question out before another contraction started.
“No. I’ll go do that now. I’ll just be outside in the hall,” he said, leaning down to kiss her on the forehead. “I’ll leave the door cracked just enough to hear you if you need me, okay?” She just nodded her head in answer. He squeezed her hand, giving her another kiss before turning to leave the room.
When he stepped back out in the hall, it was to find Jamie and Lisa standing there talking.
“How far along is she?” Jamie asked, looking as calm as she ever did.
“I don’t know yet. I was just getting ready to call mom and dad.”
“We already did that. They’ll be here in a few minutes,” Jamie said, reaching out and rubbing Mark on his back in an attempt to calm him a little. “You look nervous. Are you going to be okay?”
“Yeah, I’ll just be glad when the baby is here, and this is over with.”
“You still want those six kids?” Lisa asked, grinning at him.
“Yeah, I’ll manage,” he nodded. “If your dad can make it through sixteen deliveries with the way he freaked out, I can make it through six. Surely?”
She just shook her head, squeezing his hand. “Just hang in there. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“They said Mindi was already at a seven. She must have been having real contractions all morning,” Jamie added. “She was just convinced they were Braxton-Hicks. She didn’t think they were strong enough for real labor, and they weren’t getting any closer together. It’s sounds like her labor is going to go a lot like mine was with her.”
He took a deep breath and hugged his mother-in-law, more for himself than her. “Okay, I’m going back in. I think you can go in as long as she’s not ready to push.”
“Yeah, Hannah and Teresa are with Luke and Mindi. Everybody else is in there,” she said pointing behind her at the waiting room door. “Carl, of course, said he’d just wait in there until everything is over.”
“From everything I’ve heard, I’m sure that’s for the best,” Mark answered, managing a small grin.
When they reentered the room, they found Marie going back out the other door. “She said I was at a five,” Jenny managed to get out just as another contraction started.
“Here, take my hand,” Mark said, stepping forward, reaching for her. “Don’t forget to breathe.”
Once her contraction had passed, she asked mom, “Do you know how Mindi’s doing?”
“She was at a seven. But I’m going to check on her and let everyone know where you are. I’ll be right back,” Jamie said, stepping out the door.
“Well, something you two were trying worked to start your labor. The question is what,” Mark said, grinning at her.
“I think it was the truck ride. The suspension in that thing is awful. She wasn’t kidding. I told Luke he should be ashamed of himself.”
“Yeah? What did he say to that?”
“He just laughed. Of course.”
Just then Marie walked back in. “Hey, Jenny. Dr. Kobby said he wanted me to break your water. It’ll help speed things up.”
“That sounds like it could be good,” Jenny said in a dry tone. “And bad.”
“It’ll be alright. You could still have an epidural if you change your mind,” Marie said, moving the sheet out of her way so she could break her water.
Jenny just shook her head and looked at Mark. “Just so you know, I really hate pain.”
“Are you still sure you want six kids?” Mark asked, grinning at her, knowing her answer before he asked.
“Yes, we’re still having six,” she grumbled.
“Six? By the third one, she’ll be asking for the epidural,” Marie said, grinning.
“No, I won’t. I said I don’t like pain. I didn’t say I couldn’t handle it when it was worth it,” Jenny said, getting a stubborn look on her face.
******
Two hours later, Mark stepped out in the hall with the baby in his arms to find Luke already standing there with little Sam in his.
“Well, I don’t think they could have had them any closer together,” Mark said with a grin.
“Can I hold him?” Martha Harris asked, stepping up to her son.
“Yeah, Mom. Meet your grandson. Gavin Lee Harris,” Mark said, handing her, her first grandchild.
If you enjoyed reading this book, please make sure to leave a review at the end. Thanks for reading.
Please, keep reading for a sneak peak of the next book in the Townsend series.
Excerpt from Amanda’s Choice:
Monday, July 7
Three days later, knowing full well, Zane would show up if she didn’t go and see him, Amanda walked into the police station around nine in the morning. There was a young officer sitting at a nearby desk. He looked vaguely familiar to her. He must have been at Mark and Jenny’s wedding or something. Maybe one of the Townsend’s barbecues. She walked over so she could read the name on his uniform. “Officer Campbell, I’m here to speak to Zane Townsend. Is he here right now?”
“No, but he said to call when you come in. You are Amanda Carter, right?” Jeff asked with a grin. So, this was the mysterious Amanda everyone kept telling him about.
“Yes,” she said, glowing red. The fact that he had discussed her with this guy kind of embarrassed her.
“I’m Jeff Campbell, his partner,” he just chuckled. “Don’t worry. He wasn’t spreading it around the station. Normally I’m riding with him. I’m just filling in for Jackie this morning. She had some family business to attend to. Being the low man on the totem pole, I got elected.”
“Oh,” she whispered, still looking embarrassed. “He’s not too busy, is he?”
“No,” he answered, giving her a reassuring smile. She really was quite beautiful. Despite the number of Townsend family events he had been at, this was the first time he had really seen her up this close. If he wasn’t already so in love with Hannah Townsend he couldn’t see straight, he’d be in danger of falling for this one. She had dark curly brown hair that probably reached her waist when it wasn’t piled on top of her head with light green eyes framed by thick eyelashes so long, he would almost swear they were an inch. She was so curvy she would be literally dangerous in a bikini. And from what he had heard of her personality, it was no wonder Zane had fallen in love with her.
Amanda watched as officer Campbell made a call over the radio. This made her embarrassment grow. Despite what he had said, now the other patrol cars would know as well. Feeling at loose ends for what to do while she waited, she signaled to Officer Campbell that she was going to take a seat over by the door.
She hadn’t been sitting there ten minutes, when Zane came strolling in. Her heart skipped a beat, just like it did every time she saw him. The man was absolutely gorgeous. He was six feet four inches in his bare feet with hair so dark a brown it was almost black. His blue eyes could one minute be warm and welcoming, and the next so icy you wanted to run. Thankfully, he wasn’t in the habit of
turning that icy stare on her. She had never been afraid of him, and she’d like to keep it that way.
“How are you enjoying your job as dispatch this morning?” he smirked at the other officer.
Jeff gave him a dirty look, then went back to what he was doing. “Let’s just say, I’ll be glad when Jackie gets here at noon. I don’t know how she can stand sitting here all day.”
“You’ve been here three hours,” he chuckled. “Surely you’re not in that bad of shape yet.”
“You want to trade for the next three,” the other man asked in a dry tone. “I’d be happy to patrol by myself.”
“Oh no,” he smirked back. “Not happening. You’d have to chain me to that desk.”
“That’s what I thought you’d say.”
Zane just chuckled, finally turning in Amanda’s direction and did nothing more than motion for her to proceed him out the door.
When they got back outside, he opened the passenger door to a patrol car sitting in front of the police station, and waited for her to crawl in. She didn’t figure arguing with him would get her anywhere, so she climbed in without saying a word, and watched him walk around the front end of the car, struck once again by the size of him. He wasn’t the biggest man she had ever saw. Mark and James both, were bigger. But he certainly wasn’t small. He was thick enough through his shoulders and arms, his uniform shirt strained against the muscles. He was so sexy, she had to swallow when her mouth went dry form watching him.
He crawled in behind the wheel, and she felt the space in the car swell with electricity and become smaller all at the same time. He started the car and pulled back onto the road, staying silent for a little while longer, just driving down. He was quiet long enough, she was starting to wonder if he was going to say anything after all.
When he finally broke the silence, his strong, deep voice made her jump. “I wasn’t sure you were going to show up. I thought I might have to come after you.”
Married in Vegas (The Townsends Book 3) Page 25
