Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 46461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 232(@200wpm)___ 186(@250wpm)___ 155(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 232(@200wpm)___ 186(@250wpm)___ 155(@300wpm)
“Because this is an emergency, Ripper. Can you honestly sit there and tell me you’d be able to stand there with her and not lose your shit? Besides, they’ll put her under general anesthesia. No time for an epidural or any kind of spinal block.” Doc stood and paced, himself, his nervousness showing as much as mine. “Try to calm down a little.”
“I am calm! Who said I wasn’t fuckin’ calm?”
Doc just raised an eyebrow at me.
It was an hour and a half before Dr. Redding found us. He had a smile on his face, and I stood abruptly.
“Everyone’s good. Emmanuell is waking up nicely, and the babies all appear to be healthy. We’ve got them in isolettes in the NICU for now. They’ll have to stay a few days, but I think everything is going to be fine.”
“Good,” I said, nodding. “That’s good.” My ears roared more and more with every beat of my heart. “They’re fine. They’re gonna be fine.” My vision tunneled, and everything sounded like it was echoing around me. Then everything went black.
Chapter Nine
Emmanuell
Ripper gave me a grouchy look over his shoulder as he finished changing one of our daughters. They were identical, so we’d taken to dressing them in different colors to keep them straight. Gabrielle was dressed in green, Ava in yellow, and Sophia in purple. I was already finding other ways to tell them apart, but it was hit and miss at best. Gideon did better but pretended not to. I think he pretended to get them mixed up to make me laugh. I was sure as the girls got older he’d do the same thing.
“Three girls,” he muttered. “Three girls.”
It had been two months since they’d been born. Two months since I woke up with blood everywhere. Two months since Gideon had passed out at Dr. Redding’s feet after he’d told Gideon we were all OK. Doc had quickly snapped a pic with his phone and sent it to everyone in the club, including me. I hadn’t seen it until later, but I’d seen it. He was still getting ribbed about it. Of course, Doc had told everyone it was at the sight of blood and not from relief.
“Could’a been four, Ripper,” I said, using his road name. I didn’t use it much, but since Doc had sent that pic to everyone, I used it to remind him he wasn’t as tough as he wanted me to believe. “Could’a been four.”
“No,” he snapped. “It couldn’t’a been four because I’d never survive four. Gonna be touch and go as it is.” He lifted Ava into his arms and brought her to me where I sat on the couch. Then he returned with Gabrielle and Sophia in each arm and sat beside me.
I was recovering nicely. There was no pain, and I’d been given the all clear by Dr. Redding to resume all activities. Including sex. I was looking forward to that part, though with three babies, it was hard to find a time when I wasn’t dead on my feet. I’d never have been able to do this without Gideon and his friends.
Ava and Sophia cooed while Gabrielle slept peacefully. They’d been fed and changed. Now it was time for a nap.
“Girls are gonna be the death of me,” Gideon muttered, trying to look put out, but I saw the adoration in his eyes. He loved those girls like they were his own. Hell, as far as I was concerned, they were his. He’d been in my life far longer than Devan had, and he was actually taking the role of father very seriously.
“For a man who never thought about having a family, you’re taking to this daddy business like a duck to water.” He just scowled and grumbled. Until Sophia squealed and kicked in delight. Gideon turned his attention back to her and made baby noises back at her. One thing I’d never get tired of seeing was the big, gruff, scarred biker doing baby talk to his daughters.
“Is Daddy’s girl happy? She sure is. Yes, she is.” I giggled right along with Sophia’s cooing, and he turned his head to scowl at me. Which just made me giggle more.
“Got a sitter for tonight, woman. Then you’re gonna pay for all the making fun of me you’ve done over the last two months and three days.”
“Sitter?”
“Yep. Vicious and Lucy are coming over with Thorn and Marianna.”
“Has Marianna healed from her surgery, then?”
“Honey, it’s been three months since she broke her ankle. Thorn still scowls at her when she wants to go out, and she’s been dying to spend some quality time with the babies. She hates that she wasn’t able to help more when you were pregnant. Now that she’s better, she’s going to use her position as president’s ol’ lady to bully you into letting her cuddle the babies.”