“Ooph!” she gasped, wincing as the pain disappeared as quickly as it came on.
“Did he kick?” Mae asked, her head tipping as she moved her hand.
“No… I,” Jessie tried to catch her breath as the phantom pain returned. “I have this… pain…”
She closed her eyes, trying to shift how she was sitting. It was probably her back acting up again. A pinched nerve that made her?—
“Ow. God. Ow,” she whimpered, her fingers rubbing a circle over her tight skin.
“Shit. Okay, um… let me think…” Mae’s voice wobbled and Jessie forced her eyes back open at the sound of pure panic in her words. Jessie’s hand reached out and landed on Mae’s arm. She could feel Mae starting to shake.
“I-I’m sure it’s nothing. Something new stretching, or a pinched nerve. It just took me by surprise.”
Mae bit down on her bottom lip as she looked up the street over Jessie’s shoulder. “No. We can’t risk it. We need to get you to your doctor’s.”
“I’m seeing Birdie, and she only has office hours a few times a week.”
“Okay, then we go to the hospital if she’s not free to see you. You shouldn’t ignore it. You’re looking pale.”
Jessie squeezed her fingers again, hoping the pressure would ground Mae. “It’s already fading away.”
“I’m not ignoring this,” she snapped. “You almost fainted a few minutes ago. I shouldn’t have let you brush it off. Now you’re doing the same with this pain. You’re not going to do what I did. You’re not going to downplay something and lose… everything.”
“Should we call Stone? Do you need him right now?” Jessie asked, more worried for her sweet friend than for herself.
“No.” Mae’s eyes clouded with tears. “You need him though.”
Twenty-One
“Never seen you nervous to fly before.”
Hawk looked up from his phone and took the cup of coffee Sebastian was holding out in front of him.
“Not nervous to fly. Nervous to be leaving Jessie.”
Seb nodded. “Now that, I completely get. You want to stay back?”
“No.” Hawk took a sip from the cup. “We’ve been working on this presentation for months. It feels like we’re just getting everything back on track after all that news article bullshit from last year. And Jessie would kick my ass if I stayed now. She’s so fucking proud of me, I thought she might smile herself to death as she sent me on my way this morning.”
Seb smiled as he sat down in the empty chair to Hawk’s right. “How’s she been feeling?”
“Better. Thank God. I was about to lose my mind. That band she wears on her wrist has made a huge difference.” His hand came up to rub at the back of his neck. “And as hard as it’s been for her not being around her family since the break-in and dinner from Hell, I think it’s been good for her to stepback from the diner. But there are good days and bad. Nothing seems to make her feel all the way better.”
“I’ll make sure Em stops by to check on her.” Sebastian sipped on his coffee, a thought clouding his eyes.
Hawk nodded. “She’d love that. Stepping away from the diner, from her family, it’s hurting her.”
“Is she still working at her brother’s place?”
“Yep. Twice a week. Sometimes on the weekend too for a few hours if she’s felt up to it. She’s at least on speaking terms with Colt, too. Beau and Hayes haven’t reached out to her in the last few weeks, as far as I know.”
“That’s rough. You know, Lachlan applied for one of the town restoration grants I have up through Montgomery Equities.”
Hawk nodded. “Jessie and Lacy helped him put the proposal together. I’ve heard all about it.”
“Nash brought that to my attention,” Sebastian laughed. “Apparently, Lacy was feeling very emotional about it when they finally submitted it. I got a desperate call from Wings one night when he was doing a late night run for something Lacy was craving. Nothing like my godfather-ship being on the line to make sure the proposal went through.”
Hawk laughed. “I would normally love that information to use as blackmail, but I think I’m just as whipped for Jessie.”
