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seat. But the baby s not& she s not due for a few months, right?
Betty didn t answer. She was already halfway to the door.
Chapter Twenty-five
BETTY JO HATED HOSPITALS. The smell. The sterile colors. The hushed tones.
The life and death.
Years ago she d been on a photo shoot in Belize and had cut her foot on coral. It had become
infected and she d ended up feverish and sick. Even then, she d refused to go to the hospital
insisting a doctor could come to her. She was Betty Jo Barker, after all.
It hadn t been her ego talking though that s what everyone assumed hell, the story had made the
papers in the US. Her therapist had told her it was because she associated hospitals with the death of
her mother.
She d been five when Chantal Barker had succumbed to the cancer that had slowly taken her
away from the girls. And their father had brought them to the hospital to say their goodbyes.
It was something she still remembered, though the pictures had long faded. It was the smells. The
sensations that stayed with her. The feelings of fear and utter hopelessness.
It was ironic, really, that a place that saw so much death and suffering, also celebrated life.
New Waterford wasn t big enough to support its own hospital so Billie had been admitted to
The General located in the next county over. By the time Betty got there, it was nearly ten in the
morning, the sun was high in the sky, and Michigan was well on its way to another scorching summer
day.
Beau pulled the Harley up to the front entrance and let her off. She slid off the bike unsure how
to proceed and offered him a small wave, like she was the Queen of England or something.
A stupid wave.
But what else was she supposed to do? Shove her tongue down his throat? She wasn t used to
this& this situation. In the past when she had sex with someone, she left before they woke up. It had
always been her rule. Never sleep over.
The only guy she ever slept with was Matt and that was because all they did was cuddle. It was
about comfort not sex.
I ll& I ll call you later, she said slowly as she slipped off her helmet and handed it to him.
I can come in with you. If you want.
No, Betty said quickly. This is family shit and you d only get in the way. She gestured to the
folks near the hospital entrance who were already gawking.
Okay, Beau replied. His large aviators covered his eyes and with his long blond hair poking
out from under his helmet, the substantial stubble on his chin, he looked incredibly hot in a dangerous
bad boy biker kind of way. Keep me in the loop. I hope everyone stays healthy.
She nodded and then ran up the steps, ignoring the gasps from a few of the people milling around
out front. One man near the entrance had his phone out and turned it toward her, as she moved past
him and through the doors. No doubt pictures of her would hit the Internet before she d even managed
to find her sister.
Betty caught a glimpse of herself in the glass door and winced. She looked as if she d spent the
night in Sin City and was doing the ultimate walk of shame. Her hair was a mess, her mouth swollen
from all the sexin she d had not to mention the whisker burns on her face and most likely her thighs.
Her clothes looked as if she was coming down from a twenty-four hour bender. Which, she supposed,
in a way she was.
Whatever, she muttered as she approached reception.
The lady behind the computer glanced up and she caught the exact moment when she recognized
Betty. She was older than Betty, say in her mid to late forties, with hair scraped off her head in a tight
ponytail. She wore no makeup or accessories, wore puke green scrubs which was ridiculous, the
woman was in reception, she wasn t a nurse and the judgmental gleam in her eye told Betty
everything.
A slight sneer touched the corner of the woman s mouth and her big brown eyes took their time
moving over Betty from head to foot.
Betty didn t have time for this woman s sanctimonious glare but there was something about her
that pissed Betty off.
She reached over the counter and grabbed a piece of paper from the woman s stationary.
Your pen would be nice, Betty said. When the woman handed it over, Betty quickly scribbled
onto the paper and handed it back to the lady. She waited for the woman to read it and then smiled as
if she was the proverbial cat who d just caught the mouse.
I had eight orgasms last night with Beau Simon. How was your night?
Xoxo Betty Jo.
You want my picture too? She asked sweetly.
The woman s eyes narrowed and her cheeks blushed a nice shade of red. It was called
embarrassment, and if Betty had more time she d be all over it, sticking the knife in and twisting it as
far as she could.
What floor is maternity? Betty asked, dropping any pretense of niceties.
The woman flinched and cleared her throat. Fifth.
Betty headed for the elevator. She hadn t bothered to text her sister and by the time she reached
the fifth floor she was in battle mode because that s what she did when she was cornered. And right
now, Betty Jo felt as if she was stuck in the corner with no way out. She wasn t sure how to feel or
how to react.
She was bitter. Angry. Hurt.
And so fucking scared for her sister and the baby. She thought back to the night of the reception
and how Billie had kept rubbing her stomach while Betty let go of everything all the ugliness and
pain inside her.
Had she somehow triggered this?
The elevator doors slid open and she strode out, spotting Shane within seconds, talking to anther
man, Connor Forest, Logan s brother. They stood in the lounge and Shane nodded at whatever Connor
said, a cup of coffee in his hand. The set of Shane s shoulders was tense and his clothes looked as
rumpled and dirty as hers.
He turned just as she took a step forward and Betty froze at the look on his face.
Is she& is the baby&
But she couldn t get the words out maybe because she didn t want to hear the answer.
Shane didn t answer at first and when he did his voice was subdued. Billie went into labor last
night. They re trying to stop it with injections and they re giving the baby something to make his lungs
stronger in case& . He sighed. In case the drugs don t work and Billie goes into labor.
Betty s eyes widened. It s a boy?
Shane nodded, with a tired smile. Yes.
Okay, Connor interrupted. I have to run and fill the folks in. They re up at their cottage so I ll
give them a call. Connor glanced at Betty, his eyes lingering on the state of her clothes, hair, and
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