Runaway: The Sequel to Secrets, a sexy and dramatic western romance (Finding Love ~ THE OUTSIDER SERIES)

by Lorhainne Eckhart

“Why don’t you lie down?” Andy said.

  “Could you raise the head of the bed up? I can’t breathe when lying flat.” Laura swung her legs up as Andy adjusted the bed until her head was high enough that she was almost sitting.

  “I don’t understand why you’d go to a free clinic and see some doctor who probably got his license from a Cracker Jack box.” Andy leaned on the bed, watching Laura with an odd look. She remembered all too well how he hid a part of himself well away from her, a part she couldn’t access. She wondered if anyone could.

  “I had no money, Andy. It’s where poor people go,” she said. Of course he’d have a hard time understanding; he’d never struggled a day in his life, a spoiled rich boy who could have anything he wanted at any time.

  “I sent you money through Aida, even sent you a check that you never cashed. Why? Why wouldn’t you have come to me for money? I don’t understand, Laura.” Andy crossed his arms and stepped back. She really couldn’t believe how he didn’t get it.

  “That’s your money, Andy, not mine. I’m no gold digger. I didn’t feel entitled to it. You made me feel like a nobody, and I swore I would never rely on you again. Did you know it took everything for me to hold my head up, bite my tongue when you treated me like a servant and an incapable twit? What would it make me if I took your money, Andy?”

  He shook his head and ran his hand roughly up the back of his head, messing up his short, dark hair even more. “Well, not anymore. My child is going to have the best care. Now that I’ve found you, you’re going to stop this nonsense and come home.”

  Laura felt a powerful fury sizzle to life inside her. She wanted nothing more than to pop Andy in the mouth with her fist. She was tired of his bullying. No, she was done and so past it that this was not going to happen. “Unless you plan on taking me by force and tying me up, which I believe is called kidnapping, you will not and cannot force me to go with you. You have tried to run my life, tried to tell me how to think, how to dress, where to go, what to do. I’m not a puppet, and—”

  The curtain slid open, interrupting Laura.

  “Hi, I’m Doctor Richardson,” said the new arrival. “I just got an emergency page. I was in the hospital with one of my patients. Are you Laura Friessen?”

  “Yes, she is.” Andy spoke up before Laura could correct one more person.

  “Doctor Richardson, where is Doctor Avery?” Laura asked.

  The woman was stunning, with hair so dark it appeared mahogany. Her eyes were an unusual shade of blue that appeared almost green. “I was paged and asked to take over as your OB. Your husband here—”

  “We’re getting divorced, and I appreciate you coming down, but I have a doctor already, Doctor Hays,” Laura snapped. She was so tired of Andy’s high-handed behavior that any good sense she had had long since taken a hike. She wanted to yell and scream and get him to stop.

  Another sharp pain ripped through her, and she curled on her side and yelled. She felt the doctor’s hand on her arm, then her wrist, and heard someone calling out. A nurse appeared on the other side of her and fastened a blood pressure cuff to her arm.

  “Let me know when it passes, Laura,” the doctor said, still there beside her. “Let’s get an ultrasound in here now, and let’s monitor her for any further contractions.” Dr. Richardson was giving orders.

  Laura took a breath and wanted to close her eyes. She was so tired. “It’s gone. Am I in labor? It’s too early.”

  “Laura, I want to do an ultrasound and examine you. There seems to be a lot of stress here, and I wonder if it would be best, Mister Friessen, if you step out for now. I’ll come and speak with you after,” Dr. Richardson said.

  Andy rested his hand on Laura. When she glanced up, she expected to see defiance and maybe outright refusal, but what she saw was neither. She saw worry and something else that resembled caring. But it couldn’t be. “I’ll be right outside if you need me,” he said.

  Laura said nothing as he brushed aside the curtain and stepped out.

  “Laura, you have every right to choose your own healthcare provider. No one, not even your husband, can choose that for you. If you’d like to continue using your current GP, you’re entitled. What I’m concerned with is your blood pressure, which is high, and your stress level, which is the major contributing factor.” The doctor accepted the chart from the nurse, who gracefully stepped out.

  “I can’t afford you,” Laura said matter-of-factly.

  “Ah, I see. Well then, let me ease your mind. Your medical costs are being covered by your husband,” the doctor said. Laura started to set her straight again, but she gently touched her arm. “I mean your soon-to-be ex-husband. Just so you know, it doesn’t matter who covers my costs; there is still patient-doctor confidentiality.”

  “So what you’re saying is that you can’t tell Andy anything unless I say it’s okay?” Laura considered that and studied the striking woman who had such a warm demeanor.

  “Yes.”

  “Okay. You can be my doctor.”

  “Great. Now that we have that out of the way, I’m going to get you to slide over on your back while I examine you. I know it’s uncomfortable, so I’ll try to be quick.” The doctor lowered the bed and lifted Laura’s shirt, pulling down the front of her pants and exposing her large belly. “You said you’re thirty weeks?”

  “Yes, why?”

  The doctor shook her head and measured Laura’s abdomen. “Oh yeah, you’re way larger than you should be for thirty weeks. You could be further along. Let’s get the ultrasound on you and take a look at this baby. That will give us a better idea of what’s going on.” She poked her head outside of the curtain and asked, “Is the ultrasound here?”

  A nurse pushed the machine in as the doctor held open the curtain for her. “Your husband is getting mighty impatient out there. He asked if he can come in and see the ultrasound.”

  The doctor glanced at Laura. “It’s your decision, Laura. If you don’t want him in here, then we’ll keep him out.”

  Laura’s first response was to say no. Actually, hell no. But the fact that she’d hidden her pregnancy from Andy and had every intention of never telling him was starting to chip away at her conscience, and she couldn’t get that picture of Gabriel clinging to him from her mind.

  “Go tell Mister Friessen that I’d prefer he not be here,” the doctor said to the nurse.

  “No, wait.” Laura spoke up. “Let him come in.”

  “Are you sure?” Dr. Richardson asked in a way that made Laura truly believe she had her best interests at heart.

  “Yes.”

  “Okay, but if you start to feel stressed or anxious, let me know, and I’ll ask him to leave.” The doctor slid open the curtain and popped her head out, and a few seconds later Andy strode in. He immediately went to Laura’s side and stared at her exposed belly.

  Laura couldn’t help the flush that stole to her cheeks. She was flat out on a gurney like a beached whale and was feeling a gigantic pressure pushing into her.

  “This may be a little cold.” The doctor slid up a stool and squeezed a lump of jelly onto Laura’s abdomen. Cold was an understatement; the initial shock had her shuddering. “Sorry. Are you ready to see this baby?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  The doctor pressed the wand of the ultrasound onto her belly and moved it.

  “I can’t see the screen,” Laura said.

  “I’m just going to have a look first and see… Oh my, this is interesting.”

  “What is it?” Laura glanced at the doctor and then over at a grinning Andy as he peeked around behind the doctor at the screen.

  “Is that…?” He pointed at the screen.

  The doctor slid the screen so Laura could see. “Yes, Andy, that would be two babies.”

  Chapter 5

  Laura found herself settled into a private room in the hospital with a large window overlooking the parking lot. A strap was wrapped around the lower part of her abdomen, monitoring for any further signs of con
tractions—a stress test, as the doctor referred to it. She had been told to relax, which was without a doubt impossible, as Gabriel’s face kept appearing in her mind. She was desperate to get back to him. Andy was lounging in the chair beside her, watching the monitor.

  “Andy, can you call Jed and Diana and make sure Gabriel is okay? I need to get out of here and back to him. He’s going to start to worry.” She pounded her fist on the edge of the bed.

  Andy slid beside her on the bed. He was so strong that he could handle anything, and she found herself wanting to slip into that. But that would be a mistake. He frowned as if reading her mind.

  “You’re overthinking, Laura. Stop it and relax. I’ll call and talk to Jed. Gabriel will be fine; I’ll make sure of it. Laura, you have to relax. Remember what the doctor said: When you get worked up, it will bring on early contractions.”

  “I know. I’m trying, Andy, just…you didn’t make it easy,” she shot back at him.

  He looked up and took a deep breath. She could read him so well, but not this time. “I know, and I’m sorry, but you have to know I wouldn’t let anything happen to Gabriel, Laura.”

  “I know that,” she said, and she did. That was one thing about Andy: He took care of things. “I just don’t want him hurt, Andy. I didn’t realize he cared for you so much, and I didn’t think you cared for him.”

  He gave her a cutting glance. “Excuse me?”

  “No, that’s not what I meant. I knew you cared for him from everything you did, but I didn’t believe you had feelings for him. I thought it was obligation. I didn’t think…”

  “Okay, look, let’s just stop there.” He cut her off sharply, letting her know he wasn’t about to have this conversation. “Let me call Jed, and I’ll be back.”

  This time, he touched her hand for what felt like an eternity. That touch was enough to set off all kinds of fireworks inside her. Her body had obviously disconnected from her brain as she watched that sexy man with the greatest ass she’d ever seen walk out that door.

  Chapter 6

  “Andy, I told you I don’t want to go back to your mansion. I have my own place at Diana and Jed’s. I’ll be comfortable there,” Laura said to him again.

  Dr. Richardson had been perfectly clear to him when she pulled him aside after the stress test. She told him that Laura was refusing to stay and there was no reason to admit her, and she instructed him to do whatever it took to not antagonize her. “Keep the peace, whatever it takes” was what she’d said. “Keep her happy, because thirty weeks is far too early for twins to be born.” She would monitor Laura over the next week, but Laura was to take it easy and stay in bed for the next few days, rules that would be damn difficult to enforce as long as she wasn’t living under Andy’s roof. Short of tying her to the bed, what options did he have?

  Yes, he was worried, damn worried, and he still seesawed back and forth between being furious at having the carpet yanked out from under him and ashamed over how he’d treated her. She should have told him she was pregnant, and he didn’t know how to get past the fact that she’d hidden something he deserved to know. To him, that was the same as lying.

  “Laura, you heard the doctor. You need bed rest, no getting up and chasing Gabriel around. You need to be waited on and looked after right now. It’s too early for the babies to be born.” A lump jammed his throat, because it had only begun to sink in, the fact that he was going to be a father, and to twins, too. He glanced over, but what he saw had him swerving before he righted the wheel. Tears were sliding down her cheeks.

  “Laura, what’s wrong? Is it the babies?” He could take most things, but not her tears. Despite being a young woman and having gone through hell, she wasn’t prone to tears or hysterics at the drop of a hat. He knew all too well that she hid her feelings. Hell, he was ashamed to admit he liked the fact that she made herself blend in, never causing him any trouble at all. She shook her head, but when she finally turned to face him, what he saw was misery.

  “What is it you’re planning, Andy? I need to know. I can’t live or wait holding my breath, wondering when you’re going to yank the rug out from under me. You have money, power, and connections, and I know you’re not above using them. You come from a family that abuses power. Hell, you could make sure I disappeared. I know that with one phone call, you could take my babies from me and never allow me to see them again. I’d fight you to the death, I would. I want to know now, Andy.”

  “Laura, honey, stop. I’m not planning anything right now. I’m still dealing with the fact that you hid that you’re pregnant with my babies, that you wanted to keep my babies from me and I never would have known. You wouldn’t have told me, Laura, so let’s just stop right now…”

  “But you said you were going to take my babies away,” she snapped, cutting him off.

  He tightened his mouth and wanted to slam his fist against the wheel, but what the doctor had said was a better reminder than a smack upside the back of the head. He couldn’t upset her, and it really stuck in his craw that she’d bring his stupid remark up now. He’d done a lot of idiotic things he regretted later. Flying off the handle and snapping threats in anger were right up there with just about every dumbass thing he’d ever done.

  He pulled over to the shoulder and parked, taking a minute to pull it together. He slid around and faced Laura, tossing his arm over her seat back. He was tempted to slide his hand over her shoulder, but the last thing he wanted was to upset her more, and his touch right now would most likely set her off. “Okay, let’s just take a breath. I lost it. I’m sorry, Laura. I said what I did, and I could kick myself for reacting that way. I’m not a monster. I hope you know that.”

  She fidgeted with her fingers and locked them together. He wanted to run his hands over them to smooth away the tenseness, but he wondered again what she would do if he touched her now. He had no idea, so he didn’t touch her.

  “Laura?” he prompted her gently.

  “No, I don’t think you’re a monster.” She spoke so softly, and it stung because he recognized that beaten-down, withering voice from when she’d lost everything and had lived in her car. He never wanted her to suffer that horror again. “Are you going to try to take my babies away? I need to know, Andy.” She sucked it up, looking at him with tears streaming down her cheeks, and not once did she try to hide her shame from him.

  Boy, did he ever admire her courage. If he was the devil, she was facing him head on. “Laura, I won’t do that, but I won’t walk away, either. I want my children in my life, in my home, so we’re going to have to work something out.”

  She frowned as she stared out the window. From her expression, he could tell she was thinking some pretty dark thoughts.

  “Laura, I promise I’ll be reasonable. Can you do the same?”

  She didn’t answer, but she did nod as she touched her mouth as if fighting back more tears.

  Andy didn’t linger anymore because he knew she was tired, which was probably making her unreasonable and stubborn, so he started the truck. A few minutes later, they pulled into Jed’s, parking beside the barn.

  “Well, thanks for the ride. I guess I’ll be talking to you.” Laura started to open her door, but Andy slid out and walked around, reaching her before she managed to step down. He shut the door behind her, and she glanced sharply at him.

  “Well, let’s get you to bed.” Andy held out his hand, and she blinked. She opened her mouth to say something but shut it when Jed strode from the barn, with Gabriel racing toward Andy at the same time that Diana stepped from the house.

  “What did the doctor say?” Diana shouted.

  “Hey, you.” Andy lifted Gabriel. “I told you I’d be back.”

  “Andy, stay,” Gabriel said.

  “You bet I’m staying, bud. Your mom’s going to bed to get some sleep, and you and I are going to hang out.”

  “What do you mean you’re staying?” Laura sputtered, and Diana appeared to stumble as she approached Jed.

  Jed loo
ped his arm around Diana’s shoulder and turned her the other way. “Andy, can I talk to you when you’re done with Laura?”

  Andy didn’t put Gabriel down as he faced Jed. “When I’m done getting my wife to bed, I’ll come and talk to you.” He was irritated, and Jed must have understood, as he simply inclined his head and steered Diana back into the house.

  “Laura” was all Andy said before she let out an annoyed huff of air and walked as gracefully as a pregnant woman with twins could walk around him and up the stairs to the loft.

  “In bed, Laura,” he said.

  She sat on the edge of the lovely double bed. “Ouch.” She leaned over and pulled at her waistband.

  “What happened?” Andy set Gabriel down on the bed beside her.

  “That safety pin jabbed me,” she muttered.

  “Well, take them off. I’ll get your pajamas.” He strode around the room. “Where are your pajamas, anyway?”

  “Over there in that duffle bag. I haven’t unpacked anything yet, as we just moved in.” Laura pointed to a plain wooden kitchen chair, where a worn green duffle bag sat.

  Andy didn’t say a word as he rummaged in the bag and pulled out a worn cotton nightgown with blue flowers on it. He heard a squeak on the bed as Laura started toward him. “Sit down, Laura. I’ll bring it over.”

  “I still need to get changed.”

  Andy handed her the nightgown, and she started toward the bathroom. “Laura, change right here, honey. Gabriel and I’ll give you some privacy. Or do you need some help?”

  She blushed and shook her head, and he smiled to himself, as he’d forgotten how shy she was. She’d never walked around naked. She always pulled on her housecoat after a shower or bath, and she always wore a nightgown to bed. Even though he removed it, she always pulled it on before getting out of bed.

  Andy carried Gabriel down the stairs and out the open door into the barn. The horses were out in the pasture, and this was the first time in months that he had a chance to see all the updates that Neil, Jed’s brother, had started in the barn and that Jed had finished. Six stalls for six horses, with the fresh smell of wood, manure, and hay. He loved the smell, always had. But you had to love horses and this way of life, as he’d heard from city people who wrinkled their noses and nearly gagged from the pungent odor.