Beth Cornelison – Protecting Her Royal Baby (страница 3)

Hunter kept his frustration with her curious lack of identification to himself, not wanting to upset her further. Another contraction gripped her, and he shifted his attention to her again. She was bearing down, her teeth gritted, her forehead creased with effort.

“Oh, hey, no!” Hearing his panic in his tone, he paused a moment and forced a smile. “Try not to push...yet. The ambulance is bound to be here soon. Just...hold on a little longer.” He dabbed again at the bleeding cut on her head and the perspiration rolling into her eyes. “Why don’t we focus on something else?”

“Like wh-what?”

He glanced around for an object that might hold some interest or personal meaning to her. Darby had called it a “focal point” when she’d had her daughter four years ago. Hunter had been charged with making sure the picture of his brother Connor, the baby’s father, whom they’d believed at the time was dead, made it to the hospital.

He saw nothing but broken glass and crumpled metal—neither were images she needed to fix in her head. Then he spotted her keys, still dangling from the steering column. He slid the keys out of the ignition and found them hooked to a ring with two decorative additions—one was a metal crab that read I ♥ Cape Cod, and the other was a small wooden piece carved to spell out Brianna.

“Brianna?” He jerked his gaze to her and held up the key chain. “Does that ring a bell? Is your name Brianna?”

She stared at the key chain, a knit in her brow and a desperate look in her eyes that wrenched his heart. “I don’t know. Maybe? Why else would I have that on my keys?”

“If they’re your keys,” he said, and the despondent look that crossed her face made him immediately regret voicing his doubt. “Forget I said that. I’m sure they are.” He forced a grin to his mouth. “So...Brianna. That’s a pretty name. For a pretty lady.”

Her cheek twitched in a weak smile of acknowledgment. Clearly she wasn’t in the mood for compliments, no matter how well intended.

Another contraction seized her, and he held the keys in front of her. “Focus on the keys. Think about tranquil walks on Cape Cod. The soothing sound of the ocean.”

She gave him a dubious, uncertain look as she struggled to breathe deeply.

“Well, the key ring says you love Cape Cod. I figured it was worth a shot.” He rubbed her arm and crooned, “That’s it, Brianna. You’re doing great. Deep breath in, and blow it out through your mouth.”

She followed his coaching like a champion, and pride tugged in Hunter’s chest.

The distant wail of a siren filtered through the autumn air, and relief loosened anxiety’s grip on his gut. “Hey, hear that? The cavalry is coming.”

Rather than happiness, concern darkened her eyes, and she gripped his hand tighter. “Don’t go. You said you’d stay with me. Please?”

Her plea tangled in the deepest part of him, and warmth filled his veins. “I won’t leave. I just have to make way for the EMTs to help you. They’ll take you to the hospital, where the doctors and nurses can give you and your baby the care you need.”

A tear dripped onto her cheek, and her sweaty grip tightened on his hand again. “I don’t want to be alone. I’m scared, Hunter. I know it sounds crazy, but I have this feeling...someone wants to hurt me. Hurt my baby.”

“That’s probably just part of the disorientation because of your amnesia.”

She glanced away, hurt dimming her eyes. “Maybe. But...with you here, I...feel safe.”

Well, damn. What could he say to that? All he had on his schedule for the rest of the day was a postjog shower and watching the Saints game with his brother Grant.

“Be right back.” He flashed her a reassuring smile as he shimmied out of the car to flag down the EMTs and tell the 911 operator the ambulance had arrived. As the emergency techs approached the flipped car, Hunter gave them a quick rundown of Brianna’s condition.

After placing a neck brace on her, the EMTs eased her out of the jimmied door. Despite her protests that it was unnecessary, they strapped her on a backboard until they could confirm at the hospital whether she had any spinal injuries. Hunter clutched her hand and murmured soothing words while one EMT checked the progress of her labor.

“The baby’s head has crowned. We need to hurry. Lights and sirens,” he told the driver as they pushed Hunter aside and slid the stretcher into the back of the ambulance.

Hunter stepped back, giving the men room to work, and turned his attention back to the overturned sedan. All in all, Brianna was lucky not to have been hurt far worse. Why hadn’t she been wearing a seat belt? Why was she on this rural road outside the city limits? Why—

His gaze snagged on the trunk of the sedan. Were those...bullet holes? He moved closer for a better look, a tingle of apprehension scraping his nape. He rubbed his finger across the bullet-size holes and bit out a curse. Someone had shot at the back of Brianna’s car. But how recently? She’d said she had a feeling someone was trying to hurt her.

Maybe she’d been right.

Chapter 2

A chill totally incongruous with the warm autumn afternoon slithered through Hunter. The bullet holes could be old. But based on the way Brianna had been driving, the fear that gripped her even after losing her memory, his guess was someone had been shooting at her today. Minutes ago. And whatever danger had sent her speeding down this highway was still out there, still a threat.

“Hunter!”

Her cry pulled his attention back to the open patient bay of the ambulance. Her hand stretched toward him, and fear flashed in her eyes. “Don’t go!”

He set his jaw. He had promised to stay with her, and he was a man of his word. Not only was she frightened and alone, she was in labor. In pain. In danger. Her amnesia made her even more vulnerable to the person trying to hurt her.

He hurried back to the ambulance, but when he tried to climb in, one of the EMTs stopped him. “No passengers.”

Hunter scowled at the medic, in no mood for rules. “She needs me. Can’t you see how scared she is?”

“Sorry. You can meet us at the hospital.” The EMT tried again to push Hunter aside, and he pushed back.

“Meet you? With what? Look at her car!” He waved a hand at the overturned sedan. “Am I supposed to walk?”

The medic twisted his mouth, wavering. “Are you family?”

Hunter opened his mouth and caught the truth before it slipped out. He swallowed hard and silently begged his mother and God to forgive him for the lie that rose to his tongue. “I’m her husband. That’s my baby she’s having!”

The EMT eyed him suspiciously, clearly having picked up on his earlier hesitation.

Going with the story he’d presented, Hunter squared his shoulders. “You said the baby could come any minute. Don’t make me miss the birth of my first child!”

Brianna wailed in pain at that moment, as if to punctuate his plea. The medic relented and stepped out of Hunter’s way.

* * *

Brianna squeezed her eyes shut, gripped the edges of the stretcher and waited out the excruciating contraction. In addition to the wrenching pain in her belly, her head throbbed. She’d hit it on something when the car flipped, Hunter said. But everything prior to blinking Hunter’s face into focus as he peered through the broken window was a frightening blur. A blank canvas, really. How could she have forgotten everything, even her own name?

She tried again to recall where she’d been going, who she was, why she’d been on that road—and got nowhere. Panic fluttered in her chest, speeding her heart rate and her breathing.

The EMTs were at work, taking her vital signs, checking the baby’s heart rate, starting an IV in her arm.

Hunter moved into view, smiling down at her and wrapping her hand in his. “You’re okay, sweetie. Hang on. Deep breaths, remember?”

Remember deep breaths? Heck, she couldn’t remember what she had for breakfast, but she nodded at him just the same. Struggled to slow her breathing. Truth was, when Hunter stroked her hand and smiled at her like that, breathing at all was difficult. The man was gorgeous, even rumpled and sweaty as he was. He had piercing blue eyes, thick black hair that curled against his neck and the sort of strong, rugged face you saw in outdoor-adventure magazines. His sleeveless T-shirt showed off impressive muscles in his arms, but it was his smile that held her attention. His broad, gentle smile had the power to calm and excite her at the same time. Her pulse did a happy jig when he grinned, while a peace filled her, despite her scary circumstances. Hunter’s presence made her feel safe.

Impossible as it seemed, considering she didn’t know him, didn’t know anyone or anything at the moment, Hunter kept her from flying apart. He reassured her and soothed her. His eyes, his smile, spoke softly to her soul. As if—

Another blinding pain ripped through her torso, obliterating the crazy poetic thoughts. “Oooh!”

Again Hunter stroked her hair, patted her hand, coached her through the contraction. “That’s it, Brianna. You’re a champion. Keep breathing.”

She gobbled up the inane words as if they were manna from heaven. Hunter and his encouragement were all she had at that moment, and she clung to his hand, clung to the support he gave her like a lifeline.