“It’s all right, Miss Thompson. Just take some deep breaths for me,” an unfamiliar voice instructs me. “Your heartbeat is steady. We need to keep it that way.”
“Listen to the doctor, Ivy. You don’t have to say anything. Just breathe, okay?” Eric smiles down at me, his eyes moist with the tears that are threatening to fall.
I nod slightly and try to swallow. My mouth is so dry. I move my other arm, but it’s connected to some kind of wire. It tugs uncomfortably against my skin, so I stop what I’m doing and just lie still, concentrating on my breathing. Our baby is still here with me. I didn’t lose it. That alone fills me with a relief I can’t express.
“She’s doing good, Mr. Young. You can stay in here with her, but keep the talking to a minimum. I need her to rest for the sake of the baby. We’re not out of the woods yet.” The doctor rustles through a chart before reading the screen that’s monitoring my vitals.
“I won’t disturb her. I promise.” Eric’s voice is gruff as he tries not to give in to his emotions in front of her.
“She’s already doing better, knowing you’re here. Her heart rate is where I’d like it to be, and it seems like she’s responding well to the oxygen. Just keep her comfortable and I’ll be back to check on her in an hour.” The doctor gives Eric a quick nod before exiting the room.
We’re finally alone.
“Oh, Ivy…” he murmurs, pressing his lips against my temple. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”
I want to respond, but I already feel the tug of sleep pulling me under. I can’t keep my eyes open as the image of his face drifts out of my vision. The beeping of my heart is lulling me to sleep. I can’t resist its call.
I’m in the void until I hear Eric’s voice again.
“You’re telling me you had no idea she was behind this? C’mon, what kind of idiot do you take me for?”
He sounds mad. I don’t know how long I’ve been out, but I don’t want to wake up to him like this, even though he has every right to be angry.
“I’m telling you, I didn’t know it was her. No one did.”
It’s Will. Eric’s fighting with Will. I have to stop them from arguing. We need to stick together. Now is not the time to turn on each other. But it feels like lead weights are holding my eyes shut. I’m starting to drift again. No, I have to hold on. They can’t keep fighting like this.
“So basically she threatened Ivy in front of a restaurant full of witnesses and then simply waltzed out the door before anyone could stop her? I find that hard to believe.” Eric’s voice is low but deadly.
“I got scared when I saw the blood. My sole focus was on Ivy. I didn’t think she’d bolt. I mean, who does shit like that?” Will whispers back.
“But if you had detained her, we could have pressed charges for endangering the life of the baby.” Eric seems frazzled, like he’s grasping at straws. He begins to get more agitated. “She’s all about maintaining her image.”
“Lower your voice, man. Do you really want that nurse coming back in here, telling us to keep it down?” Will warns, jiggling the blinds as he peers out the window. “I don’t do hospital rooms. You’re lucky I’m even here. I’m already starting to feel claustrophobic.”
“This isn’t about you, asshole, in case you haven’t noticed.” Eric gets closer to the bed and his hand finds my cheek. I move my mouth, but my lips are chapped and nothing comes out.
“Oh, I think it is,” Will says then changes his tune when Eric shoves his chair, getting to his feet. “Listen, I’m sorry about what happened to Ivy. I really am, but this whole thing isn’t just about the two of you. There are other people involved too. We have to think this through and decide what we’re going to do as a team.”
“But how could you just sit there and let Lauren goad her like that? I mean, you had to have noticed that Ivy was in distress. Why couldn’t you be a man and get Lauren to stop?” Eric’s voice is heated, but he retakes his seat.
“I was overwhelmed.” Will paces in front of the bed. “Lauren was coming at us from every direction. It was like being pinned against a wall while facing a firing squad. My head was spinning. I didn’t even realize Ivy was in trouble until—”
“Until it was almost too late,” Eric cuts him off.
“But the baby’s fine. Nothing happened,” Will responds a little too cheerfully.
“You know that’s not true. Ivy is going to have to be closely observed for the remainder of her pregnancy in order to ensure the health of the baby. They’re even recommending bed rest from this point forward. So don’t even think she’s going to be working on some damn screenplay in order to save your ass.” Eric sounds tough, but I know he’s scared out of his mind. The thought of losing another baby must be eating him up inside.
“It’s not just my ass and you know it,” Will counters, braving his wrath. “We can limit her hours. I can do the typing. All she has to do is lie there. Just as long as we get the pages to Lauren, we’ll be okay.”
“So you’ve been in contact with her?” Eric grunts. “Why am I not surprised?”
“She called me back after I left her a message about Ivy,” Will protests, turning around as his shoe squeaks loudly on the tiled floor. “I had to know what was going on and how she was going to play this.”
“And?” Eric asks dryly.
“She gave me the whole false sincerity bullshit, but she expects us to get back on schedule once Ivy is released from the hospital.” Even Will sounds defeated as he pats my leg beneath the blanket. “There’s no getting out of it. She’s not going to let us walk away. She thinks that if Ivy can breathe then she can write.”
“I can’t fucking believe this,” Eric mumbles, his voice muffled as he holds his head in his hands.
“Tell me about it,” Will groans. “It took us months to come up with the first draft and she’s only giving us until Christmas, basically a little over eight weeks to turn it around. It’s going to be virtually impossible in Ivy’s fragile condition, but try telling her that. As soon as Ivy gets back on her feet, she’s going to want to do it. She’ll think she can swoop in and save the both of us.”
“And what’s gnawing at me is that we might not have a choice. If Lauren starts calling in my loans, I can’t repay them. Everything’s going to collapse like a house of cards. I can’t bring this baby into the world without any means of supporting it. She has us, plain and simple.” Eric says, sounding confused and out of options.
“You really think she has that much sway over the bank manager?” Will asks, filling a glass from a pitcher of water positioned somewhere near my head.
“Sway? Her stepdad sits on the board of directors. You might as well say he owns the bank. If I default, it’ll hurt my credit rating across the board. I might not be able to purchase new inventory next spring. I’ll be dead in the water. I’m barely hanging on as it is. One ripple like that and it’s all over.” Eric shifts in the chair, rustling the cushion beneath him.
“Ivy knew her stepdad long before Lauren did. She even mentioned to me once how much he liked her when she was still friends with Ryan. Do you really think he’d ruin her like that?” Will questions before nervously gulping down the water.
“That’s the thing. He wouldn’t be ruining her. He’d be ruining me—the guy who created a public spectacle kissing his stepdaughter, the guy who stole Ivy then beat up his son. Yeah, I don’t think he’d have any problem burying me,” Eric admits, sitting back in the chair with a sigh.
“But it’d be affecting her too, wouldn’t it?” Will presses. “I mean, she is pregnant with your child and the two of you live together. If you lose your house and your business, then she’s homeless and broke too.”