Seb unlocked his phone, swiping to the messages.
“Oh, shit.” He jumped up. He swung his round eyes to mine.
“What? What happened?”
“Scarlett’s in labor. They’re heading to the hospital now.”
“Oh my God. That’s so exciting. I’m going to get dressed.” I hopped up, my breakfast forgotten in my rush to be there for my brother and Scarlett. I wasn’t here to meet Jane when she first came into Wyatt’s life. I’d missed the birth of Veda, too wrapped up in a mess of my own making to come down and be here for her arrival. I wasn’t about to miss Baby Boy Wilder’s entrance too.
I changed quickly and brushed my teeth, pulling my sneakers on as I hobbled down the hallway, half hopping my way through the house. Seb had cleared our plates and left the pans in the sink to worry about later. He waited for me by the door, keys in hand.
“Are you ready?”
“Yup. Let’s do this.” I clapped my hands like I was pumping myself up. Seb chuckled.
“It’s less exciting than you think, at least until the baby comes.”
I grabbed my bag and headed out the door that Seb held open for me. “That’s what you think, but I’m here for all of it.”
The drive to the hospital was easy. Most of the tourists didn’t get started with their day until later, and there weren’t enough locals in our small town to cause any traffic on their own.
Seb parked in the lot across the street from the hospital. Our fingers intertwined as we crossed the road and entered through the main entrance. The woman at the front desk directed us to the maternity ward on the third floor.
Dad, Reid, and Claire had arrived before us and were already in the waiting room when we walked in.
“Morning. Has anyone heard anything from Luke yet?” Iasked, taking a seat next to my dad.
“Not yet, but these things can take a while sometimes,” my dad said. He reached over and squeezed my shoulders, bringing me in for a side hug. “How are you doing, Lydi-bug? I heard there was some excitement last night.”
I leaned my head on his shoulder, letting him comfort me, even though I was perfectly fine. “I’m good, Dad. He’s gone now. And after yesterday, when a wall of Wilders showed up to deal with him, I have a feeling he’s gone for good.”
“Good. I’m glad they were there for you. Makes me think I did something right along the way.”
“You did, Dad.” I kissed his cheek and pulled out of his embrace. My dad had done a lot more than “something” right. Somehow along the way, the heathens that were my brothers grew up and became good men, good husbands and fathers. Sebastian and Wes too. That crew of unruly kids, drinking by the bonfire on the beach, smoking weed because they were bored and thought it looked cool, breaking hearts because they could… they’d turned into the best people I knew.
“You too, Sebastian. Thank you for being there for my girl when she needed you.”
“Nowhere else I’d be, Charlie. Our girl’s got more muscle behind her than a heavyweight champion boxer.” Seb sent me a quick wink.
“Okay, enough about me. This is Scarlett’s day,” I said, changing the subject.
Wes showed up a few minutes later. He carried with him a blue gift bag, his large hands dwarfing the bag into a comically small proportion. He took the seat next to Reid and Claire, dropping the bag between his legs.
“What’d you bring?” I asked.
A sparkle glinted in Wes’s eyes, his expression otherwise stoic and neutral. He reached down and pulled out a stuffed tiger with a police uniform and cap sewn on. “I think it’s more for Luke than the baby,” he said.
“Luke’s going to die,” I laughed.
“You’ll have to keep on eye on it, make sure he doesn’t try to steal it,” Claire added with a chuckle.
Wes put the tiger back in the bag, and Wyatt and Maeve came through the doors. The waiting room was small, with only six seats, all occupied by Dad, Seb, Reid, Claire, Wes, and me.
“Sorry. I had to wait for my mom to get to the house to watch the girls,” Maeve huffed, looking like she had just run up two flights of stairs. Seb immediately got up, offering his chair to her. “Oh, no. Don’t worry. I’m fine.” She waved him away.
Seb moved to stand against the wall behind me. “I’m not sitting there while you stand. Don’t sit if you don’t want to, but neither am I.”
“Take the seat, doll,” Wyatt encouraged her, placing a kiss to her temple.
