Jesse took a tentative step toward the swung-open door, his gaze wandering from the barn, where the party was still vibrating from, to Garth’s steely look of determination, to me, who was just focusing on not crying out each time my body was rocked by that vise-like sensation that was attempting to flatten my insides into crepe-sized pieces.
“Your party . . .” Jesse bowed his head but kept moving toward Garth’s truck.
“This isn’t about me or the party or any of that right now.” Garth stepped aside when Jesse came around the passenger door. “This is about Rowen and your baby and getting them as safely and quickly to the hospital as we can.”
Jesse nodded as he lifted me into the cushy backseat that was, thank God, a big bench seat. I dragged myself to the end of it and curled my legs to my stomach to make room for Jesse, who had already leapt in the back with me and was crawling across the truck floor toward my head.
“Hang in there. We’re on our way. Garth will get us to the hospital in fifteen minutes flat with the way he drives.” Jesse’s anxious whispers kept beat to his hand running down the length of my hair.
He was trying to soothe me, to comfort me and tell me everything would be okay. I wanted to return the favor, but this was one of the few times I couldn’t pretend things would be okay. Nothing felt okay with the way my body was raging some kind of internal war.
Garth leapt into the driver’s seat and had just punched the gas when the truck rolled to a stop. I heard the whir of a window going down, filling the cab with cool, fresh air. That, combined with pressing my cheek into the cool leather seat, helped calm the inferno blazing through my body. I felt like something had found a dozen dusty old furnaces inside me and fired them up, notching the dial to its upper range.
“Thatta girl! Kick off those boots and run!” Garth shouted, revving the engine a couple of times.
From the end of his last rev to when I heard the passenger door groaning open before someone threw themselves inside, a mere half second had passed, if that.
“Colt and Lily told me they’d seen you three leaving the party like the devil was chasing you.” Josie was breathing hard, practically panting. “I wasn’t sure if it was because you’d changed your mind and were fleeing for Mexico, or if something else had happened . . .” After landing a soft smack into Garth’s arm, Josie’s head appeared above me. Her eyes went wide when she saw the scene in the backseat. “Fuck me,” she said in a long exhale. She threw another slug into Garth’s arm. “Drive. Fast.”
Climbing over the back of her seat, Josie landed on top of Jesse with a thud, but that didn’t slow her down. She managed to wedge herself into a small space beside my head. Worry lines stitched into Josie’s face as she ran her hand down my forehead. “What’s going on?”
The truck was hauling ass, and the one great thing about Garth’s fancy new truck was that the ride was smooth in comparison to Old Bessie. The gentle vibration of potholes as we sped down Garth and Josie’s driveway would have felt like being spin-cycled in Old Bessie.
“Come on, Rowen. Talk to me.” Josie got in my face and stroked my forehead. Beside her, I saw Jesse’s chest rising and falling hard.
“I feel like I’ve got a boa constrictor wrapping around me, doing its thing—that’s what’s the matter.” Getting that out took far too much effort. I was feeling light-headed too . . . which meant I wasn’t getting enough oxygen . . . which meant my heart was struggling . . . which meant . . .
“Faster, Garth. Please,” I squeaked, but I wasn’t sure if Josie heard, let alone Garth in the front seat barreling down the street.
Twisting around, Josie stuck her head next to Garth’s. “Baby, you know I love you, but I swear to god, if you don’t take the lead out and move this thing, I will have to insist on taking the wheel.”
The engine fired louder as the truck picked up speed. Jesse had to grab onto the back of the front seat to brace himself, but he still managed to get a seat belt fastened around me with one hand.
“Hey, Mama Bear. You hang in there, okay?” Garth glanced back like he was afraid he would find blood and guts splattered around the backseat.
“Eyes on the road, babe. Not going to be helpful if we wind up in a ditch and all clog up the emergency room tonight.” Josie spun his head back around before crouching beside me. She had to shoulder Jesse out of the way to fit.
“Hanging,” I answered Garth.
Jesse threw off his hat and shoved his hair back. His hands slowly moved toward me—one covered my heart, the other formed around my stomach. “It’s going to be okay. I’m here. You’ll be fine. The baby will be fine.” His voice was even, calm, spoken like he was reciting a mantra. His eyes gave him away though. They always did. “I won’t let anything happen. Nothing.”
Lifting my hand to his face felt like I was bench pressing an elephant, but I managed it. “I know, Jesse. I know.” I held his gaze for a moment, trying to impress my feigned confidence on him, then I had to close them. I felt like the elephant was now pushing down on my eyelids.
A few silent minutes passed after that. That sharp, tightening sensation increased in frequency to the point it felt like I’d only just managed to catch my breath before another one pressed down upon me.
Jesse’s hands stayed in their spots while Josie never stopped stroking my face. Her mouth lowered to just outside of my ear, and she whispered so softly, I barely made it out. “Is it the baby or your heart?”