Little Bird (The Tangled Series) (34 page)

“I’m fucking hot. Leave me the fuck alone.” Lee batted her hands away.

Losing her patience, Savannah snapped at him, “Stop it! Cara’s here. For fuck’s sake, Levon.”

Lee narrowed his eyes, unconcerned as he mumbled, “It’s nothing she hasn’t seen before.”

Cara laughed but Savannah was not going to back down. “While that’s true, I’m sure Paul and these other nice gentleman, who I am pretty sure are FBI or something, would appreciate it if you’d have the manners to cover the fucking family jewels.”

Lee rolled his head on the pillow to look at the four people standing in his living room. Shifting his eyes back to Savannah he grunted, “They’re guys. Men stand shoulder to shoulder and piss in a urinal when they need to take a leak in public. If they got squeamish every time they saw some other guy’s dick they’d never be able to leave the house.”

“He sort of has a point.”

Savannah glared at the two federal agents smirking by the door.

“Fine, what the fuck ever. But you’ll be embarrassed when I tell you about this later.” Savannah stormed across the room and sat down in the recliner before jumping up again, flustered. “Shit. Where are my manners? Cara, you sit here. I’ll get more chairs from the kitchen. Does anyone want a drink?”

Cara smiled and waved her hand at Savannah. “No, no. Don’t worry about that. Sit down, Little Bird. We only have a minute anyway.” As Savannah sank back down in the chair, Cara continued, “I just wanted to stop by before we left and let you both know how things turned out.”

“Before you left? Where are you going?” Savannah drew her brows together in concentration.

Cara looked at Lee, who snored softly on the couch, before turning back to Savannah. “There isn’t going to be any story. My career is over. Hartwell agreed to cooperate and turn on all of his associates. I don’t know all the details of course,” she glanced over her shoulder at the agents, “but he implicated dozens of other people. In exchange for that, he gets to live out his life in the witness protection program. The government faked his death to preserve the integrity of the government, or some bullshit like that.”

Savannah gasped and her body trembled with horror. “He’s going to be free?”

Cara shook her head. “No. He and his wife get new names, new identities. Turned out she was involved, too. But the only place they’ll ever get to use them is in a federal prison where they will spend the rest of their lives as someone else. So given all that, I obviously can’t write a story about what really happened.”

Savannah furrowed her brow with confusion, relieved Hartwell would be behind bars but uncertain what all this meant for Cara. “But your career?”

Cara smiled sadly. “It’s off to the witness protection program for me, too. I know too much, found too much in Hartwell’s papers at the lodge. George, Harry, and any number of other scumbags would spend their lives hunting me down if I stuck around. Which is really why I came by. To say goodbye to you…” she paused to glance at Lee, her expression bittersweet, “…and him.”

Savannah glanced at Paul, frowning. “What about you?”

He smiled cheerfully. “I’m going, too.”

Cara laughed softly. “I had to marry him or they wouldn’t take him in the program with me. But I guess it was worth it to keep him.”

Savannah grinned from ear to ear, happy for them both. “Well, it sucks to have to leave your life behind, but at least you’ll still be together.”

Cara nodded and stepped around the coffee table to sit on its edge, gently shaking Lee’s shoulder. “Wake up, Lee, just for a minute, honey.”

Lee opened his eyes and blinked at her. “Sorry, didn’t mean to fall asleep. What’s going on?”

Cara smiled and patted his shoulder. “Savannah can fill you in later. I just wanted to say goodbye.”

“Oh, okay.” Lee tried to focus his eyes on her face as he scowled. “I got shot three times because of that fucking mess you dragged me in to.”

“I know and I’m sorry about that. I’m sorry for a lot of things, you know.” Cara gave him a meaningful look before smiling playfully as she continued, “But you’ve known me almost twenty years. Getting shot three times in twenty years isn’t all that bad when you consider all the times I thought about shooting you.”

Lee laughed and cocked a brow at her, his voice dry. “Well, that’s reassuring.” After a long pause, he added more soberly, “And I’m sorry, too.”

Cara sighed and shook her head, her hand on Lee’s cheek. “I need to go. I just…thanks for everything, Levon. You didn’t have to help me and it means a lot to me that you did.” Cara paused for a moment, grabbing Lee’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. “Anyway, be good to Little Bird and take care of yourself, okay?”

Lee frowned again as he looked up at her. “Okay. But I don’t…”

Cara interrupted him with a shake of her head and a soft kiss on the cheek. “Don’t worry about it. Savannah will explain later. But I had to say goodbye. You’re a good man, Levon Jackson, and I’ve been lucky to know you.”

Epilogue

One year later

L
ee woke up as Savannah gently nudged his shoulder. He’d fallen asleep on the couch watching a west coast baseball game after she’d gone to bed. Glancing at the clock, he rolled over with a yawn. He hadn’t been out long. He’d get up, follow her back to bed, and be sound asleep again in no time.

“Levon—” Savannah shook his shoulder a little harder “—wake up. You have to get up. I think it’s time. The baby…”

Lee sat up suddenly, his heart thudding in his chest as he looked at her. The nervous sound of her voice, the anxious set of her face, she wasn’t playing. “Have you called the midwife?”

Savannah nodded and took a deep breath. She wore a long nightshirt, both hands resting apprehensively on her swollen belly. “Yes, she’s on her way.”

At some point during her pregnancy, Savannah had suddenly become some kind of hippy earth mother and decided she was determined to have the baby at home. Lee hadn’t been in favor of the idea, naturally frightened something could go wrong, but she’d scoffed at him, informing him women had been having babies at home for thousands of years, as if he were so stupid he hadn’t already known that. He’d angrily reminded her women had also been dying for thousands of years having babies at home, but she was immovable. Lee had even tried ordering her to have the baby in a hospital but Savannah dug her heels in stubbornly, calling him an overbearing bastard.

Now Savannah was four days overdue, five in just another hour, and Lee had spent the last week lobbying that this alone should be reason enough to have the baby in a hospital. What if the baby was too big? What if she needed to be induced or needed a C-section? He’d argued it from every angle he could think of but Savannah refused to listen. She’d committed to having the baby at home and as far as she was concerned, that was that.

Lee stood, one hand on Savannah’s stomach as he gently rubbed her lower back in slow, soothing circles with the palm of his other hand. “Are you okay? Do you want to lie down? When did it start? Has your water broken yet? Do you need me to get you anything?”

Savannah’s eyes widened as he peppered her with a barrage of questions and she shook her head. “Too much. I can’t think. One question at a time, please.”

The nervous excitement in her voice made Lee smile as he started over, still rubbing her back. “Are you okay?”

She nodded then, giving him a brave smile. “Yes, I’m fine. So far.”

“Good. Do you want to lie down? Or sit down?”

“No. I want to stand for a while. But don’t stop rubbing my back please. That feels good.” Savannah sighed and leaned her shoulder against his chest.

“No problem, sweetheart. I can do this all night if you want.” Lee kissed the top of her head softly. “When did it start? Has your water broken yet?”

“It started this morning, just before lunch.” Lee’s eyes widened with alarm and Savannah laughed. “Oh stop it. If I’d told you then, you’d be freaking out by now. But it was nothing, just a contraction every now and then. I wasn’t even sure it was the real deal, so I waited. When I went to bed, I thought probably nothing was going to even happen until tomorrow. But now…” Her voice trailed off as she closed her eyes again, gritting her teeth.

Lee felt powerless, wanting to help her but at a loss for how he could do that.

After a moment, Savannah took a deep breath and continued, “…now they’re coming a lot closer together and it hurts a lot more. It changed really fast and I don’t think it’s going to be very long, Lee. My water hasn’t broken yet but…Oh!” She paused again, briefly glancing down with a surprised gasp before looking up with frightened eyes and pink cheeks. “Never mind.”

Lee chuckled and gave her a tight hug. “Okay, sweetheart. Do you need me to do anything? Do you want anything?”

Savannah shook her head and started for the bathroom. “I’m going to get cleaned up a little and you should put some pants on before the midwife gets here. Hopefully she’ll be here soon.”

Lee wandered into their bedroom and found a pair of jeans, pulling them on over his boxer shorts before heading to the kitchen. He was pouring a cup of coffee when Savannah came in.

“You sure you don’t want some water or juice or something, Little Bird?”

“No.” Savannah glowered at him and paced around the kitchen. It didn’t look to him like she was feeling so fine now.

“Why don’t you sit down? Or go get in bed. I’ll come sit with you.”

“No, I want to walk.”

Savannah’s pacing made Lee anxious, especially when the contractions came and she’d stop, grabbing hold of the counter to steady herself while she waited for them to pass. But there was nothing he could do to help her. Every offer or suggestion he made was flatly rejected and she grew more hostile every time he asked. So instead he just watched nervously, drinking his coffee and hoping like hell the midwife wouldn’t be long.

Savannah had one hand on her back and the other on her stomach when she stopped her pacing in front of Lee. Her voice was subdued as she asked, “Will you rub my back again?”

Lee nodded and turned her around in front of him, tenderly massaging her aching back with both hands. When he heard her soft sigh of contentment, he smiled. He knew there wasn’t much he could do for her now, but if this helped he was happy to oblige. While he rubbed her back, Savannah had another contraction and she gasped, her breath shuddering. This one had lasted a little longer and, from what Lee could tell, was definitely harder.

Savannah’s voice was ragged and she panted when she asked, “How long ago did I wake you?”

Lee glanced at his watch. “About forty-five minutes ago.”

Before Savannah could respond again, they heard a knock on the front door. Perfect timing.

As Lee went to the door, Savannah heaved a sigh of relief, her voice strained. “Oh, thank God.”

The midwife asked Savannah several questions and she answered them waspishly between contractions as Lee continued to massage her lower back. The midwife commented they had lots of time, reassuring them that first babies always take forever as she led them into the bedroom.

Lee was standing at the edge of the bed uncertainly when the midwife asked, “Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?”

Lee shook his head. That was another thing they’d argued about. He’d wanted to find out the sex of the baby but she’d refused, saying she wanted to be surprised. Savannah had won that battle, too, and Lee was quickly learning in most other things she might be content to let him play king of the castle, but when it came to having babies she didn’t much give a damn what he thought.

“Well, then I guess we’ll all find out together. Baby might be late, but he or she isn’t wasting any time now.”

Savannah wanted Lee to keep rubbing her back, so she sat up in bed as he sat behind her, his legs on either side of hers, his fingers gently circling her lower back. Lee was excited and scared about the impending birth of his first child, and it was a relief to have something to do besides worry and wait.

Savannah, impatient as always, grumpily told the midwife she was going to have the baby right now.

The midwife just laughed, giving her a comforting pat on the knee, and told her it would be a while yet and she should try to relax.

“I don’t want to fucking relax. I want to have this baby. Right fucking now.”

Lee bit back an amused grin when Savannah snapped at the midwife. On one hand, he felt bad the poor woman had to deal with Savannah’s surly mood, but on the other hand, he was more than happy to have his wife snarling at her instead of him. Savannah continued to bicker with her and Lee was surprised at how well the midwife handled it. She never seemed to get upset or lose her patience, instead maintaining a calm and reassuring demeanor Lee found comforting even if Savannah didn’t.

It was just after midnight when the baby finally decided to join them with a loud, outraged squall that made Lee laugh, despite his nervous anxiety. Savannah wept and gasped for breath when the midwife placed the newborn in her arms. Lee’s own throat grew tight as he looked over her shoulder at their son.

Choking back tears, his voice rasping, he whispered against her ear, “Thank you, Little Bird. He’s beautiful.”

Lee could hear the wonder in Savannah’s voice as she smiled through her tears, “He is perfect, isn’t he?”

“Yes.” Smiling Lee nuzzled her neck and held them both against his chest. “Now that you’ve seen his face any ideas for a name?”

They had talked about names before, as all expectant parents do, but in her charmingly intractable way, Savannah had insisted she wouldn’t be able to make any decisions until she’d seen the baby’s face.

Savannah nodded, looking over her shoulder at him with watery eyes. “He should be named after his daddy.”

Lee balked, blindsided. He’d always hated his name and he hated the idea of saddling his son with it. Savannah had never even suggested naming the baby after him before, but he realized now that had been calculated manipulation on her part. She’d known Lee would resist naming the baby Levon. She was counting on his defenses being weak in these first moments after their son’s birth. The worst of it was, even though he knew the game she was playing, she was right.

He nodded reluctantly. “All right, but he gets a middle name. Nicholas, after my Dad. And we’ll call him Nick. That way there won’t be any confusion.”

Savannah smiled, apparently satisfied. “Nick is good.”

They were both so enchanted with the new baby neither of them spoke for a long while. Levon held his wife and son in his arms, completely overwhelmed by the fierce love he felt for them both. His life had changed a lot in the last year, in many ways he’d never expected. He’d once told Savannah that until she showed up on his doorstep he’d never even realized what had been missing. Much to his delight, his wife was still showing him, every day, exactly how hollow his life had been without her. Now, as he cuddled his new family on the bed, he could barely remember the emptiness before Savannah. In fact, Lee couldn’t imagine his life without his Little Bird.