Page 84 of Mister Cowboy
Martin paced the waiting room, rubbing a hand over the back of his head. “How long has it been? They said fifteen minutes, right?” He looked at his watch and continued to wear a path between the waiting room doors and the small semi-circle of colorful chairs pushed against the wall.
January watched the father-to-be with a smile. “They said fifteen to twenty minutes. It’s only been eight.”
“I don’t understand why I can’t be in there. I’m her husband.”
“I’m not sure. Something about eighty percent of men passing out when they see the needle for the epidural.”
He stopped pacing and looked up, his face going pale.
“She’s going to be fine. Sylvie’s a trooper. You should have seen her on the drive over. Cool as a cucumber.”
Martin sat in a purple chair beside her, resting both hands on the metal armrests. “Yeah, you’re right. But I want to be there for her. It’s such a helpless feeling being a man sometimes.”
“Ha! I would feel bad for you if that weren’t the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”
Martin met her eyes and gave her a sad smile, making the light-hearted comment sit heavy between them.
“He’s going through some shit right now. Give him some time to figure it out.”
Embarrassed that she’d turned the conversation to her pathetic life when the man beside her was about to watch his wife bring a child into the world, her face warmed.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”
Holding up a hand, Martin shook his head. “Just let me say this. I’ve known Brecken for a while, and I’ve never seen him happier than when you were with him.”
“How’s he doing?” she asked, clasping her hands and staring down at her chipped red fingernail polish.
“I don’t know. I stopped into the office this morning, but he wasn’t there. Tina said he’s been MIA.
January worried her bottom lip before saying, “That doesn’t sound like him.”
Martin nodded. “Exactly. That’s my point. He isn’t himself at the moment.”
A creak of the maternity ward doors drew their attention to a smiling nurse in blue scrubs. “You can come back now,” she said, looking to Martin.
Standing, Martin smiled and clapped his hands together. “Thank you.”
January forced a smile, happy for Martin and Sylvie but feeling a lot like an outsider. She gathered her purse in her lap and contemplated leaving. Was it weird for her to wait? She’d never had a friend with a baby. She wasn’t prepared, unsure what the social protocol was for bringing your pregnant friend to the hospital.
The doors started to close behind Martin, but he slapped his hand against the metal door and looked over his shoulder. “You’ll stay, won’t you?” he asked, sincerity and a hint of worry in his voice.
“Of course I will.”
47
Brecken
“Ineedto fly back to D.C. this afternoon, but I’ll be back next week.” Bob, the man Martin had set up the meeting with, stood and buttoned his sports jacket. “I look forward to working with the both of you.”
He and Tina stood, each shaking Bob’s hand in turn before they walked toward the front of the empty restaurant. The lunch crowd had long since come and gone, and other than a few stragglers and the wait staff, the place was empty.
Bob, paused at the front door with his phone in hand. “I’m sorry, I completely forgot to ask about Martin and Sylvie.”
Brecken looked from Martin to Tina, unsure what Bob was referring to.
“The emergency. I assumed it had something to do with Sylvie going into labor this morning.”
His face must have said it all because Bob chuckled, holding the door open for them. “Martin and I were playing racquetball at the YMCA when he got the call.”
