Part 2 (1/2)

Sage sensed the wood-carver's gaze upon her and stifled the urge to turn her head and stick out her tongue at him. She'd never said so much as h.e.l.lo to him, and he still managed to push her b.u.t.tons. ”Fool,” she murmured.

”What?” Sarah asked.

”I was thinking about the hot springs pools,” she improvised. ”Gabe's design has made them so inviting.”

”I totally agree,” Sarah said. ”I think that-oh, Anna is waving at me. She's watching Mom today for me, so I'd better go see what she wants. Save a place for me in the barbecue line, would you?”

”Sure,” Ali told her. As Sarah hurried off, Ali brought the conversation back to Gabe's landscape design. ”I especially like the rock work around the pool that's off by itself.”

”I haven't seen it yet,” Nic said. ”I learned early on that the smell of sulfur and pregnancy don't mix for me.”

A note in Nic's voice had Sage giving her a close look. She spied lines of tension on her friend's brow and around her mouth. Something was up. Softly she asked, ”Nic?”

Nic pasted on a bright but not quite genuine smile. ”In fact, even though the prevailing breeze shoots the sulfur fumes away from the estate, I'm catching a few whiffs now, so I think I'll change my venue for a bit.” Nic linked her arm through Ali's. ”I haven't seen the wedding gown quilt our Patchwork Angels bee completed. Ali, could I talk you into showing it to me?”

Sage thought Ali might have picked up on something in Nic's demeanor, too, because she looked hard at Nic for a moment before brightly saying, ”I'd love to show you. It's in the Aspenglow suite, and it's one of my very favorite rooms at Angel's Rest.”

Nic glanced at Sage. ”You'll come with us?”

”Absolutely.”

Nic called out to Gabe, ”Honey? I'm going up to the house with Ali and Sage to see our completed wedding gown quilt.”

”Okay.”

The three friends made their way toward the old Victorian mansion, others slowing their progress with greetings, comments, and questions. Once, Nic stopped beside a cottonwood tree and rested her weight against it, her eyes closed, breathing deeply.

Sage checked her watch, and Ali mouthed the words, ”Oh no.” By the time they reached the house and entered through the kitchen door, Nic's expression had tightened. The moment they were alone, Sage stated, ”You're in labor, aren't you?”

Nic chewed her lower lip and grabbed the handle of the refrigerator for support. ”Yes, I think I am. Will you check me?”

Ali's eyes widened with concern. ”Um, don't you think we should call the doctor?”

Nic and Sage shared a look, then Sage said, ”Actually, I am a doctor. I trained as a pediatric surgeon, but I've delivered my fair share of babies. I'll ask you to keep that to yourself, Ali. Now, let's get you upstairs, Nic.”

Ali held back any comment until they'd entered the Aspenglow suite and she shut the door behind them. Then as Sage ducked into the attached bathroom to wash her hands, she said, ”I admit I'm surprised, Sage. Rea.s.sured for Nic, but surprised.”

Her voice tight with pain, Nic said, ”It's her deep, dark secret.”

Ali stripped the beautiful wedding gown quilt off the bed and helped Nic onto it, asking, ”Why is that?”

”I don't know.”

”I don't talk about it,” Sage told them when she reentered the bedroom. ”Especially not now. We have bigger fish to fry.”

Ali started to leave the room, but Nic said, ”No, Ali. Stay. Sage might have delivered babies, but you've had them. I'd appreciate your input on this.”

Moments later, Sage scowled. ”For crying out loud, Nicole. You must have been having contractions at the church this morning. You're in active labor. We need to call for the helicopter.”

”It's that close?” Nic asked as Sage offered her a hand to pull herself up to a seated position.

”Only if you don't want your babies' birthplace to be the top of Sinner's Prayer Pa.s.s. You are too far along to risk going in the car.”

”Oh, dear. I really didn't think this was it. I've had so many aches and pains and pressure that I kept thinking it would stop like all the other times.”

”This time it will stop with two babies being born,” Sage told her. ”Not before then.”

”So, okay. Let's call for the helicopter.” Nic grimaced as another pain hit her, then said, ”Gabe probably won't be happy.”

”No, he probably won't,” Ali agreed.

”I don't have my camera, either.” Nic pursed her lips in a pout. ”Do you think Celeste has one around here that we could borrow?”

”I have one in my purse downstairs,” Ali said. ”I'll get it for you on our way out.”

As Sage phoned for the medical helicopter, Ali walked with Nic toward the staircase. Halfway there, Nic stopped abruptly and said, ”Oh my.”

She glanced downward as fluid gushed from between her legs.

Ali took one look and called, ”Sage? Her water broke.”

At that point, Nic gasped and bent over, her pain obvious. ”Oh ... Ali. I can feel ... oh. Oh, whoa. Whoa. Whoa. They're coming. They're coming now!”

Sage took one look at Nic, and her stomach rolled. No, no, no. She didn't want this. She couldn't do this. For a few long seconds that lasted like hours, she was back in the stifling heat on a rutted dirt path, supporting the weight of a laboring mother walking to a.s.sist nature's work.

The sound of her name was a gunshot. ”Sage!”

She jerked back to the present. Nic. Her friend. I have to do this. I promised her. I can do this. I will do this.

Sage reached down deep inside of her, past the fear and the ugliness and the grief, to find Dr. Anderson. ”Okay, I guess we're doing this here,” the physician said. ”Ali? You want to go get Gabe?”

”I'm on my way.”

Gabe Callahan was talking with Henry Moorland, owner of the Double R Ranch, repeating the story about the time he and his brothers had had the bright idea to ride a local rancher's bull. ”Two of my brothers are identical twins,” he said, grinning at the memory. ”Mark and Luke peeled off their s.h.i.+rts and went into the pasture and-”

He broke off abruptly when he heard Ali Timberlake call, ”Gabe!”

He whipped his head around at the note of urgency in her voice. The moment he met her concerned gaze, he started moving toward her. ”Is it Nic?”

”She's in labor. The babies are coming. Now.”

Gabe took it like a punch to the gut. She's in labor. The babies are coming. ”Okay, I'll go get the car.”

”No, Gabe. The babies are coming now. There's no time. Don't worry, though. Sage is with her.” Lowering her voice, Ali added, ”She's a doctor.”

Don't worry? Don't worry? Grimly he asked, ”Where is she?”

”Up at the house.”