by Marie Force
Okay. Keep me posted.
Will do.
“Excuse me? Mr. McCarthy? Is that you up there?”
Riley smiled at being called Mr. McCarthy by someone roughly the same age as he was. Moving carefully, he made his way down the incline of the roof and onto the ladder. He descended to find Nikki waiting for him, arms crossed, brows knitted with anxiety. Today she wore a formfitting tank with another pair of denim shorts. Her silky hair was pulled back into a ponytail that put her gorgeous face on full display.
As he landed on the ground a few feet from her, she took a long look at his bare chest, her eyes widening and her mouth falling open for a second before she caught herself, slammed her mouth closed and did that cute thing with her eyebrows again. The girl was a tightly wound ball of stress. “You, um, you forgot your shirt.”
“I left it on the roof.”
“Oh.”
“Did you need something?”
“I need the banging to stop. My sister is in a very fragile condition and requires a lot of rest right now. We can’t have all that noise.”
“Well, I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your roof is about to cave in, and when it’s raining inside the house, your sister will be a lot more disturbed than she is now.”
She hugged herself even tighter as stress rolled off her in waves. “How long will it take to replace it?”
“A couple of weeks at a minimum.”
To his horror, her eyes filled with tears. “This can’t be happening.”
“I’m sorry, but it’s in really bad shape. If even a minor nor’easter comes through here, the roof isn’t going to hold.”
She ran trembling hands up and down her arms. “I… I don’t know what to do. She’s so fragile. The noise… It’s just too much for her.”
“Is there any way you could relocate for a short time? We’ll get it done as fast as possible.”
She shook her head. “It was all I could do to get her here, let alone eat once or twice a day…”
“I’m really sorry. I wish I had better news for you.”
“Me, too.”
Riley had the oddest desire to wrap his arms around her and tell her everything would be okay when he couldn’t possibly know if that was true.
They coexisted in awkward silence for an uncomfortably long moment. He had no idea what to say to her or even if he should say anything at all.
She cleared her throat. “I don’t mean to dump my crap on you. It’s not your fault. We’ll figure out something.”
“I’m sorry you guys are going through such a tough time. I can’t imagine how anyone does what he did to someone they supposedly love.”
She released a harsh laugh. “He didn’t love her. He used her to make a name for himself. Rather successfully, I might add.”
“Surely there must be something she can do, from a legal standpoint.”
“I’m sure there’s a lot that could be done, if I could get her out of bed long enough to take a call from her attorneys. In the meantime, the video gets ten million new views per day.”
Riley recoiled. “Ten million?”
“Yep. So while my sister is bedridden, her sex tape is going viral.” Her words were matter-of-fact, but her rigid posture indicated the toll the stress was taking on her.
“Jesus,” Riley muttered.
“He doesn’t seem inclined to help us. Believe me, I’ve requested his assistance repeatedly since we first found out about the tape.”
“I wish there was something…” Riley faltered when a thought occurred to him. “My cousin Adam…”
“Excuse me?”
“He’s a computer whiz. Maybe he can help contain the damage somehow.”
She bit her thumbnail as she considered that.
“And we know Dan Torrington,” Riley added, not sure why he felt the need to get involved.
Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “You know Dan Torrington?”
Riley nodded. “He’s a friend and an island resident.”
Nikki glanced at the house, and he could almost see her trying to decide what her sister would think of this.
A flash of panic hit him. What the hell was he doing getting involved with people he didn’t know in a situation that was already so far out of control as to be deemed epically disastrous? He swallowed hard, as the words never mind hovered on the tip of his tongue. But watching her panic, which easily outmatched his on a scale of two to one, he couldn’t bring himself to say the words that would put an end to his temporary insanity.
She looked up at him, her big expressive eyes swimming with unshed tears. “I would very much appreciate whatever help you’re able to give me.”
He swallowed his misgivings, hoping he wasn’t going to regret offering his assistance. “Sure, whatever I can do.”
* * *
As the nine o’clock ferry cleared the breakwater leaving Gansett, Joe Cantrell released a deep sigh of relief, the second biggest sigh of relief of his life. The first being the one that followed the birth of his son, P.J., when he’d been told that both his wife and child were going to survive after the chaotic delivery. He still gave thanks every day for the quick action of David Lawrence, who’d saved both their lives.
Joe didn’t like to think about what his life might be like today if David had failed to save them. Standing at the rail with his son in his arms, looking out at the familiar landscape of the island they called home, Joe shuddered at the thought of life without Janey and P.J.
The breeze blew through the baby’s light blond hair, making him laugh from the sensation of the wind in his face. His son laughed at everything. He was the most joyful child Joe had ever known, not that he’d known many kids. But his son was special. His easygoing personality, ready smile and big blue eyes brightened every day for Joe and Janey. He was, quite simply, the best thing to ever happen to them.
If it’d been up to him, they would’ve quit while they were ahead. The thought of another child terrified him after nearly losing Janey and P.J. the first time around. They’d taken steps to avoid getting pregnant again, but something had gone “wrong,” and now their second child was due in two weeks. This one would be born on the mainland, in a hospital equipped for any possible emergency. They were leaving nothing to chance.
And they’d left right in the nick of time. Janey had been feeling “off” the last few days, with a weird backache that had been keeping her awake at night and heartburn that had set his nerves to frazzle. David and the island’s midwife, Victoria Stevens, had been keeping a close eye on her and assured them everything was fine. But Joe had a sixth sense when it came to Janey, and he could tell she was trying hard to hide her discomfort from him, knowing how he worried about her.
He wasn’t the only one who was worried, which was why her parents had insisted on coming with them today to help with P.J. as they got settled at Janey’s uncle Frank’s house in Providence. He and Janey and P.J. would stay there until two days before her delivery date, when she would be admitted as a precaution. Janey’s parents were due to return the night before she was to be admitted so they could care for P.J. while he and Janey were in the hospital.
He had the whole thing planned down to the last contingency. So while he was relieved to finally be leaving the island to get closer to the medical care Janey and the baby would need, he wouldn’t take a full deep breath again until the baby arrived safely and Janey was out of the woods. And then he’d be getting a vasectomy immediately to ensure he’d never have to worry about getting his wife pregnant again. They were out of the baby business. Forever.
He laughed to himself, thinking of the conversation he’d had with Janey when he first realized she was pregnant again—and yes, both times, he’d been the one to put the pieces together.
“Let me tell you this, mister,” she’d said, “if we are pregnant, after this, you’re getting that thing snipped.”
“That thing? Did you just refer to the part of me you love best as a thing?”
Despite the insult to his manhood, he was relieved that she’d stopped sobbing.
“That’s not the part of you I love best.”
“That’s not what you said the other night when you were all like, ‘More, Joe, give me more.’”
Her face turned bright red. “I never said that.”
“Do I need to start recording these encounters?”
“If you do, I’ll kill you.”
P.J. poked at the corners of his mouth, smiling as big as his daddy. “Your mommy is silly.”
The baby replied with baby gibberish that had Joe laughing some more. Someday soon, that gibberish would become actual words, and he couldn’t wait to hear what his son had to say about the world around him. He was looking forward to teaching him everything—from how to throw a football with a perfect spiral to how to captain a one-hundred-foot ferry.
Someday, his children would inherit the ferry business, and he would make sure they were ready. Hopefully, they wouldn’t have as much responsibility on them as he’d had at a young age when his grandfather died and left the business to him when he was still in his early twenties. But he’d made a go of it and would teach his kids everything they needed to know to keep it running into the next generation—if that was what they wanted. It hadn’t been forced on him, and it wouldn’t be forced on them, either.
“What do you think, pal?” he asked P.J. “Can you see yourself at the helm of this ship someday?”
“Joe!”
Later, he would remember that his name had never sounded quite like that coming from Big Mac McCarthy. In the moment, he simply turned toward his father-in-law, still smiling at his son, who continued to “talk” to him. The expression on Big Mac’s face made his entire body go cold with fear and panic and disbelief.
The word “no” echoed through his brain as he ran as fast as he dared with the baby in his arms through the door that Big Mac held for him to find Janey on the floor of the ferry’s cabin, surrounded by people. He couldn’t think or breathe or move, not even to ask what was wrong or what possibly could’ve happened in the ten minutes since he’d left Janey sitting at a table with her parents while he took P.J. outside to get some air.
He forced air into his lungs and shook off the shock to focus on what Janey needed. “What… What happened?”
“Sharp pains in her back that traveled to the front,” Big Mac reported, his expression grim and his eyes full of the same panic Joe was experiencing. “And her water broke.” Big Mac gestured to a puddle on the floor under the table.
Joe glanced outside, saw that they were well past the northern point of the island and wrestled with the decision to press on or turn back. The idea that Janey’s life—and the baby’s life—could hinge on a decision he made had him holding back the need to vomit.
Janey cried out in pain.
Her mother, seated behind her on the floor, held her up as she leaned back. Janey looked up, her gaze frantic as she sought him out.
Joe handed his son to Big Mac and went to his wife. “I’m here, babe,” he said, kneeling next to her and taking her hand. “Tell me what’s going on.”
“The baby,” she said, panting. “It’s coming.”
“Now?”
Her eyes were wild as she nodded. “Right now. Look.”
Joe tore his gaze off her face and looked under the skirt of her dress. When he saw the top of the baby’s head, he nearly passed out.
“Joe!” Janey’s frantic cry centered him and snapped him into action mode.
Looking up at Big Mac, he said, “Go tell Seamus to pour on the coal. Get us to Point Judith as fast as safely possible. Tell him to call 9-1-1 and have an ambulance waiting. Hurry.”
Big Mac handed P.J. to a kindly older woman who held out her arms to him, and then he took off for the bridge.
“I’m going to take him for a little walk,” the lady said.
“Thank you.” Joe hoped he was doing the right thing entrusting his son to a stranger, but what choice did he have at the moment? The ferry was all but deserted, and he didn’t know anyone else on the boat that morning. “Breathe, sweetheart,” he said to Janey. “Just like they taught us in the class. Remember?”
She nodded and started to huff and puff her way through the next contraction.
“I don’t understand,” Linda said, looking to Joe for answers he didn’t have. “How could this have come on so fast?”
“The back pain,” Janey said between huffs. “Might’ve been contractions.”
Jesus, Joe thought. Back labor is a thing? “Wouldn't that show up when Vic monitored you?”
“Didn’t have it while I was there,” she said, continuing to puff.
Someone gave Linda a wet cloth that she used to wipe the sweat from Janey’s face and brow.
“Hurts,” Janey said, taking his hand and squeezing hard.
“She’s not bleeding,” Linda said. “Right?”
“No blood.” Joe felt like he was having a heart attack. This could not be happening.
“That’s a good sign,” Linda said, her face devoid of color and her eyes big with fear that further unnerved him because her composure was legendary.
He wasn’t sure who she was trying to reassure—herself or him. Joe heard—and felt—the moment when Seamus followed his orders to pour on the coal. The boat began to pick up speed that matched Joe’s heart rate. “How’re you doing, honey?”
“Okay,” Janey said, crying out when another contraction hit her. “I need to push.”
“Can you try to wait until we get there?”
“I don’t think I can.”
Joe glanced at Linda. “What should we do?”
“How do you feel about delivering a baby?” she asked.
“Me?”
“Do you have someone else in mind?”
“What if… What if I do it wrong or…”
“Joseph.” One sharp word from his mother-in-law had him blinking and trying to refocus. “She needs you.” To one of the deck hands who’d come in to see what was going on, Linda said, “Go up to the concession stand and get me as many clean towels as you can. We’ll take everything they’ve got. Hurry.”
Janey needs me. Janey needs me. Can’t let her down. “Are we going to do this, babe?” he asked.
She bit her lip and nodded, her eyes bright with tears. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“Not your fault that our baby isn’t interested in waiting two more weeks to make his or her debut.”
“Go wash your hands with hot water, Joe,” Linda said, while continuing to blot the sweat from Janey’s face. “Quickly.”
Joe kissed Janey. “Be right back. We got this, you hear?” He waited until she looked directly at him. “Everything is going to be okay. I promise.”
She seemed to take strength from his promises.
He had to tear himself away from her to run to the men’s room, where he thoroughly washed his hands with soap and the hottest water he could get from the sink. What if she got an infection because he didn’t wash his hands correctly? Or what if the cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck? What if…
“Stop,” he said to his reflection in the mirror. “Just stop and get your ass back out there.” Other than the day P.J. arrived, Joe had never been more terrified in his life than he was right in that moment. “Please, God, if you’re listening, please help me. Help Janey and the baby. Please don’t let anything happen to either of them.” He bolted from the men’s room, moving faster when he heard Janey screaming.
Big Mac had returned from the bridge. “What the hell are we going to do?” he asked.
“We’re going to have a baby,” Joe replied.
“Here?”
“Right here.” To the people who’d gathered around them, Joe said, “Thanks so much for your concern, but if you wouldn’t mind giving us some privacy, we’d appreciate it.”
With mumbled words of good luck and Godspeed, the small group of passengers cleared out of the cabin area, leaving Joe and J
aney and her parents.
“Mac,” Linda said, “go get some air. Right now. We don’t need another emergency when you pass out and smack your head. Go.”
“Princess…” he said, his tone full of agony.
“I’m okay, Dad. Go get your grandson and keep breathing.”
“Love you.”
“Love you, too.” She grabbed Joe’s hand, and the fierce look of concentration on her face filled him with pride. They hadn’t gotten the chance to do this last time, and her determination went a long way toward defusing his panic. “I want to push.”
“Wait for the contraction,” her mother said. “As soon as you feel it starting, push your way through it.”
Joe knelt between her legs, his hands shaking so hard, he feared he would drop the baby. His crewmember had brought stacks of clean linen from the concession stand, as well as a first aid kit. Was there anything in there that could help them now? He doubted it.
Janey… She had found her center. Her eyes were closed, her cheeks rosy, her breathing steady and her lips puckered as if she were about to receive a kiss. She’d never looked more beautiful to him, as he continued to pray for the safety of her and their baby. He made bargains with God, vowing to never again ask for anything for himself in exchange for Janey’s safety and that of the baby.
In the background, he heard P.J. crying, but Big Mac would take care of him.
“Here we go,” Janey said.
One minute she was Zen Janey, the next she was screaming her head off and terrifying her husband.
Linda supported Janey from behind as she pushed as hard as she could.
More of the baby’s head appeared and then disappeared just as quickly when Janey sagged against her mother.
“So close, babe. I could see the top of the baby’s head.”
“Hurts,” Janey said, whimpering.
“You’re so strong,” Joe said. “I know you can do it.”
Before his eyes, she gathered herself again, marshaling the strength and fortitude she needed to finish the job. He’d never been prouder of her.
The contractions came closer together. Janey pushed and screamed through each one, but the baby didn’t come.
