Lead Me On (23 page)

"I'll take her." Scott deposited his books on the counter and reached for his wallet. "Just give me a moment to check out. Chloe, come on. We're going."

Scott watched Allison from the corner of his eye as he drove. She sat with her hands clasped tightly in her lap, leaning forward, as if willing the car to go faster. "Alli, relax. We'll get there in plenty of time, I promise. These things take somewhere between forever and infinity."

She nodded, but didn't say anything.

"I remember when Chloe was born. My sister was in labor for at least a week."

"She was not," Chloe protested, but Allison paled.

"That was a joke." He reached over and covered her clenched fists, startled by the chill of her skin. "Hey, she'll be okay."

Allison kept her eyes trained straight ahead as she gave instructions on how to get there. When they reached the birthing center, Scott parked between Adrian's motorcycle and Chance's blue BMW. The one-story building looked like a cross between a house and a doctor's office.

"You don't have to come in," Allison assured him.

Scott stared at her, trying not to laugh. "Alli, you're a nervous wreck. Let me get you safely to your brother, then Chloe and I will get out of your hair. Promise." He went around the car to open Allison's door, since she made no effort to get out on her own. "Ready?"

She took the hand he offered, and he helped her from the car.

"I thought men were supposed to be the jittery ones at times like these," he teased, but even that didn't get a reaction from her. Frowning, he squeezed her hand. "Let's go find your brother."

The front room had been set up as a reception area, with a desk and chairs. Since no one was around to greet them, Scott stepped through a door on his left and found what looked like an apartment living room complete with a kitchenette. Adrian sat on a sofa, reading a magazine.

"Looks like we found the place," Scott said, pulling Allison in behind him.

"Hey, sis." Adrian put the magazine aside. "You made it." He gave Scott a surprisingly cordial nod. "Thanks for bringing her."

"Not a problem." Scott nodded back.

"How's Rory?" Allison asked.

"Doing great. You want to see her?"

Allison paled further as she glanced toward a door that stood ajar. "Is it all right?"

"Sure, come on."

She hesitated, gripping Scott's hand. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear. "Why don't Chloe and I wait here while you say hi to your sister?"

She nodded, then released his hand to follow her brother.

"Will it really take hours?" Chloe asked.

" 'Fraid so."

"Do you think we can stay for a bit, just in case it happens faster? It'd be cool to see the baby."

"Let's play it by ear. We don't want to interfere with family."

"What was it like when I was born?"

"Well"—Scott took a seat on the sofa and Chloe sat beside him—"I was your mom's labor coach, so I was there the whole time. Got to see you scream at the world the very first time. And boy, were you loud." He tugged on his ears.

Chloe frowned in thought, and he waited for her to ask why her father wasn't Diane's labor coach. He'd never discussed the details with her, but maybe she'd already learned her father had been in Aruba with his playmate
du jour
at the time. Diane wasn't exactly discreet when complaining about her ex-husbands.

But then a cocky grin replaced Chloe's frown. "I bet I was a great-looking baby."

"The cutest ever in the entire history of babies."

"Yeah, that's what Mom says."

"Too bad you went straight downhill from there."

"Watch it." She punched him, and he obliged her with a grunt.

~ ~ ~

Allison hesitated at the door, afraid she'd find operating room lights glaring off stainless-steel surfaces. Instead, lamps set on end tables lent a homey glow to the room. Two women in scrubs were there, one in a rocking chair near the bed, the other hovering in the background near some medical equipment Allison's eyes darted away from the monitors and landed on Rory. Her sister lay on her side in the bed with Chance sitting on the mattress, rubbing her back. "How's that?" he asked her quietly.

"Better." She lifted her head to smile at him and saw Allison. "Hi. I'm glad Paige found you."

"How do you feel?"

"Like I have a cannonball pressing down on the small of my back." Rory shifted into a half-sitting position while Chance stuffed pillows behind her back.

"Can they give you anything for the pain?" Alli moved to the side of the bed, reminding herself that this day had nothing in common with her experience years ago. Rory was birthing a healthy, living baby who would be welcomed by everyone.

"It's not that bad yet." Rory blew out a breath. "Although someone remind me again why I decided to do this the natural way."

"You're doing great sugar," the midwife assured her. "Just remember what you learned about riding with the pain, rather than fighting it."

"Right." Rory gave a dry laugh, then took Allison's hand and laid it on the protruding mound of her stomach. "Here, want to feel? That's her head."

Allison stiffened in shock. She'd managed to avoid this very thing for months, couldn't bear the thought of feeling the baby squirm with life one day, then go horribly still the next. As Rory pressed her hand down, though, a hard shape nudged her palm. Her breath caught in her throat.

Rory smiled. "She's been wiggling around like crazy for the past hour. Here, feel her little bottom."

Mesmerized, Allison let her sister move her hand to the other side. Rory's gaze lifted, and she smiled. "Can you feel it?"

"No, I can't." As if in answer, the baby kicked hard, making her jump.

"Oh boy." Rory blew out a breath. "Here we go."

"I got you." Chance slipped his arm around her shoulders, supporting her weight as she curled forward between her raised knees. Allison stumbled backward, colliding with Adrian. Memories swelled up from the dark place where she'd buried them: pain, fear, blood. So much blood.

She tried to shake free of the past as the midwife checked her watch. Chance focused all his attention on Rory, encouraging her and soothing her as she panted her way through the contraction. Alli's own stomach cramped in empathy.
Oh God, it hurts
, she thought.
It hurts so much.

When it was over, Rory collapsed back against the mound of pillows, her hair sticking to her damp face. "Wow, they're coming closer together."

"They're supposed to," Chance told her as he wiped her face with a washcloth.

Tears clogged Alli's throat as she thought of all the things that could still go wrong. For the hundredth time, she wished Rory had opted for a hospital.

"You okay?" Adrian squeezed her shoulders.

She nodded, swallowing hard.

"Hey." He turned her slightly, studied her face. "If this is going to be too tough for you, you can wait at home."

"No, I want to be here." She looked back at her little sister. "I need to be."

"You sure?"

She nodded. "I just need a minute."

"Of course." He gave her shoulders another squeeze. "Let me know if I can help."

She fled the room before she could upset Rory by bursting into tears.

Scott came to his feet when he saw her. "You okay?"

She pasted on a smile. "I'm not the one in labor."

"You look a bit pale." He glanced toward the tiny kitchenette. "Can I get you something to drink?" Without waiting for an answer, he moved to the apartment-sized refrigerator and opened it. "Let's see, we have canned orange juice and ... canned orange juice."

"I'm fine."

He pulled out the can, found a Styrofoam cup in the cabinet, and poured her some. "Here. Drink up. It's good for you."

"It's canned." She wrinkled her nose but took a sip.

He cocked his head. "You know, if you want some of the fresh squeezed from the inn, I could take Chloe back, gather up some drinks and eats and bring it all back here. What do you say?"

"That would be nice." Her voice nearly cracked, so she took another sip of juice. "Betsy McMillan, the innkeeper from the Laughing Mermaid, is there. She can help you put together some leftover pastries from breakfast. I imagine Chance's parents are on the way, and Bobby and Paige will probably come later, so we'll need quite a bit."

"Just leave it to me. I'll take care of everything." He turned to Chloe. "You ready?"

"Do we have to go?" Chloe protested.

"Yep. Com'on, you can help me raid the kitchen."

Allison fought the urge to call Scott back as he and his niece headed out the door. He wasn't part of the family, but she wanted him with her. Needed him by her side.

"Well, at the rate things are going, we'll be holding our niece before we know it," Adrian said, joining her.

She tried to smile, but could tell the effort didn't fool her brother.

"Come here." He opened his arms. She slipped into the familiar comfort of his hug. "I know this is hard on you."

"I just hate seeing Rory in pain."

"Hey, it'll be okay. Rory's always been healthy as a horse. The doctor said she was a perfect candidate for natural birth, and if anything goes wrong, there's a hospital right down the street."

"I know. I'll be okay." She pulled herself together enough to straighten. "Did you call Aunt Viv?"

"She said her understudy broke her leg, literally, while skiing in Vermont, so there's no way she can come."

Alli nodded.

"Where'd Scott go?" Adrian asked.

"He went to take Chloe back to the inn, but offered to gather up some food and drinks and come back. I figured we'd have a small crowd before long."

"Now why didn't I think of that?"

"Because you're nervous, too." She smiled at him.

He just laughed. "Caught me."

As they settled on the sofa, a low keening moan came from the other room. Alli chewed her lip, part of her wanting to rush to her sister's side and hold her hand through the next hours. Another part of her wanting to run from the barrage of memories.

"You know, Alli ..." Adrian said, pulling her attention away from the half-opened doorway. "I've been meaning to talk to you about Scott."

She turned to him, startled, then let out a groan of her own. "Not now, Adrian. I'm really not up to one of your big-brother lectures."

"Actually, it was going to be an apology, but if you're not interested ..." He sat back.

"Apology?"

"Yeah." He turned almost sheepish. Well, as sheepish as her six-foot-plus hunk of a brother could get. "I think there's an outside possibility, a slight one, mind you, that I may have been wrong about the guy."

"What do you mean?"

"I thought he was using you—taking advantage of your inexperience."

"I've already told you—"

He raised his hand, silencing her. "I know what you told me. That it was a mutual use."