Page 53 of Until Delilah

“Good, now is she breathing? Does she have a pulse?”

“Yes, but she won’t wake up.”

“That’s okay. I’ve got an ambulance en route to you as we speak. They should be there in two minutes. Is there anything else you can tell me?”

“Um… she’s eight, almost nine months pregnant.” Placing my hand over her stomach, I wait to see if I can feel the baby move. She’s normally active this time of night, but as I wait, I don’t feel any movement. “Is the baby okay?”

“I can’t say, but the hospital will check both of them out.”

“I can’t lose her. I only just got her,” I plead with the unknown man on the other end of the line.

“I understand and the EMTs will do everything in their power to help both of them. Is there someone there for you?”

“At the game, but not with me,” I answer, smoothing my hand over Delilah’s dark hair.

“I think you should have someone drive you to the hospital.”

“Why?”

“You seem a little shaken up,” he says.

“No shit, I’m shaken up. I can’t wake her up and there might be something wrong with my baby,” I growl, pulling the phone away and looking down at it before I hang up.

I see the lights at the same moment I hear my dad call out my name. I look around, but don’t see him at first. He’s weaving in and out of the cars, his gaze set on us.

The ambulance pulls up as close as the parking lot will allow before they hop out.

Everything after that happens in a blur. One moment I have Delilah in my arms, and the next she’s being placed on a gurney and wheeled into the back of the ambulance.

My dad is talking, but I can’t hear him. I don’t hear anything. My entire focus is on Delilah’s battered frame. The second the doors close, everything comes rushing back in. The sounds from the game, my dad talking with my mom, and November standing off to the side crying.

I’m rooted to my spot until I can no longer see the flashing lights.

Heading to my truck, I’m fumbling with my keys when I’m stopped by two hands gripping my shoulders. I swing around, ready to fight, needing to get to Delilah to make sure she’s going to be okay. I stop when I see my dad standing there with worry creased across his face.

“Max, let me drive you. Asher and November are going to take Beckham to their house for the night. They’ve already said he can stay as long as you need. November’s calling Ryder and Lexie to let them know what’s happening and will keep me updated on them.”

“Yeah, okay. Whatever, but I need to get to the hospital.” I hit the key fob and wait for the doors to unlock, but nothing happens. “What’s wrong with this fucking thing?” I growl and hit the button over and over again, expecting a different result. “Goddammit,” I shout, kicking the tire.

It’s then I see a set of keys on the ground with a big letter D on it by her purse. Bending down, I pick up Delilah’s set of keys. “She was here. Trying to get into the truck.” I hit the unlock button, but it doesn’t work. “She couldn’t get in.”

“Max, forget about the truck for now. We can take mine. I’ll have someone come get your truck later. It’s not worth the worry.” He starts to guide me in the opposite direction of the stadium.

Gripping my hair, I nearly tear it from the roots. “But it is. If my damn truck would’ve unlocked maybe she could have gotten away.”

He nods, walking me around his truck, and waits until I’m inside before he speaks. “I know things look bleak right now, but trust me, God did not bring that woman into your life to have her taken away. You have to believe everything will be okay.”

“I don’t know what I’ll do if something happens to her or the baby. If she makes it through but loses the baby, she’ll…” I choke on the words, unable to say them out loud. “I should have asked her to marry me. What was I waiting for?”

“The perfect moment, Son, and you’ll get that moment. But right now, let’s get to the hospital. What do you say?”

I nod, feeling numb.

Peeling out of the parking lot, my dad breaks every traffic law trying to get us to the hospital as quickly as possible. I stare out the windshield as I watch our town pass by. “Does Beck know?”

“Nothing yet, but Asher and November won’t let him worry. He thinks he’s having a sleepover with some of his cousins.”

Cousins.

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