I sighed and watched him leave, thinking about how nice his ass looked in those jeans.
“Okay, as nice of an ass that he has, we’ve got too many things to do to have you leering at your man,” Amy declared, dragging me inside.
So commenced the night of pampering, with face masks and cheese boards—although I was banned from soft cheese. Most of the women were drinking Harriet’s margaritas, and I surmised that they were powerful witches since every single one of them was still standing by the end of the night.
The women I didn’t know well, I got to know.
Mia was crazy. Like batshit crazy. And funny, hilarious. Her daughter, Lexie, also known as the lead singer to one of the most famous bands on the planet, was sweet. We’d met at various Hollywood gatherings and played the game. But it was so much better to do it without the mask. And me. And I actually knew who I was now.
Bex swore like a trucker—though most of the women did and I fucking loved it. She had sadness in her eyes, a hardness to her that was a mask for the soft, and a pregnant belly only slightly larger than mine.
Lily was soft-spoken, shy, drop-dead gorgeous, and had a beautiful calming presence.
Lauren, as it turned out, was the artist of the painting from the infamous night at the B&B in Amber. I’d pulled her aside to tell her how much her paintings meant to me and how I’d tried to buy as many as I could, but it turned out even a movie star had to wait.
Then, she’d informed me with a smile that there was a surprise for me, which was when she unveiled the painting. But it was more than a painting. There were no words to describe what was on the canvas. It was the ranch, at night time, under a thousand stars. It made no sense, but looking at that painting, I could hear them. Those stars. I could feel Duke’s arms around me on that cold night when I realized I’d fallen in love with him.
Duke had had the painting commissioned—the fucking night of the stars—before he’d known what was going to happen with us, before the job was over.
“I’ve got to go,” I said, wiping my eyes after I’d hugged Lauren.
Each woman looked at me with understanding.
“But come back,” Mia demanded. “I’ve got so many questions about what movie stars are real assholes behind the scenes.”
I grinned at her. “Honey, I’m the real asshole.”
Then I ran.
To him.
He had plenty of things to say about me running. But I shut him up with a kiss.
The next day, underneath a wedding arch that Tanner had made for us, we kissed again. This one was supposed to be more official, but who was I kidding? I was his from the moment I got in that car.
Arms went around my ever-growing midsection. Duke’s palms settled right below my belly button, where they mostly landed since I told him about the baby.
“It’s too cold for you to be standin’ out here, babe,” he murmured against my neck.
I rolled my eyes. “Are you ever going to stop being over-the-top protective?”
His hands tightened ever so slightly on my stomach. “No, baby. I’m not. Got the whole world in my hands right now. No such thing as overprotecting that.”
Well. I couldn’t argue with the man.
“What are you doin’ out here, anyway?” Duke asked after a beat.
“Listening to the stars,” I replied.
He kissed my neck again.
“I’m just taking one last moment to get used to the silence,” I said, stepping out of his embrace and turning around. The movement hurt—a lot. But I managed to hide my wince. “I think we’ve only got about thirty minutes, if that, before my screaming starts.”
Duke went still. “You better not be saying what I think you’re saying.”
I smiled. “Oh, relax. My water only broke like ten minutes ago. I knew you were on your way back since you texted me, and I also knew that telling you wouldn’t make you go any faster since you already break land speed records making it home to me. I’m not about to make this dramatic. We’ve had enough drama, don’t you think?”
It turned out we had not had enough drama.
“Pull over,” I gritted out. My hair was sticking to the thick sheen of sweat covering my forehead.
I was wrong. The screaming started much earlier than I thought, like as soon as we all got into the car.
Harriet had just happened to stop by.
I was certain that woman was psychic. She never “popped by” in the evenings without giving us a “thirty-minute warning to finish up and get your clothes on.” But this particular night, she’d apparently been walking under the light of the full moon and thought it was time for a visit.
“I can’t pull over,” Duke said calmly. “We’re in the middle of nowhere and we’ve still got ten minutes until we’re in town.”
Right then, I hated Duke. I hated his calm fucking tone. I hated him for being a man and not ever having to feel this. I hated him for breathing easily. I especially hated him for putting this demon inside me.
“This isn’t like a full fucking bladder, I can’t just hold it,” I said, just as calmly. Well, I thought my tone had a slight hint of mania to it, but that was understandable since a tiny human was currently trying to claw its way out of my uterus. “Pull. Over.”
There was a second when I thought he wasn’t going to listen to me, when I thought I might very well have to reach forward and strangle my husband while simultaneously delivering his child.
But he pulled over. Lucky for us all.
“I’ll call for a medivac, a helicopter, something so you’re not delivering a baby on the side of a fucking road,” he hissed as the car came to a stop.
“Oh stop with the hysteria,” Harriet chastised, glaring at her grandchild before looking to me. For once, there was no chaos in the woman’s eyes, only calm. She grabbed my hand. “You got this, girl. Womankind have been delivering babies in all sorts of situations all over the world for thousands of years. I’m not gonna lie to you, the fact you don’t get the drugs is a big old bugger because it hurts like hell. But I also have faith in you. You’re strong enough.” She squeezed my hand.
“Now, Duke, deliver my great-grandchild,” she requested.
Sariah Harriet Hammond was born on the side of the road under the Montana stars. She screamed loud and true, drowning out even the loudest of those stars.
She came into this world in a hurry, for she had things to do. She had a family to meet.
She had a beautiful life to live.
She had stars to listen to.
Playlist
Broken Glass - Kygo & Kim Petras
Dancing On My Own - Robyn
Fallingwater - Maggie Rogers
Say You’ll Be There - Campsite Dream
Bette Davis Eyes - AZTX
I’m a Mess - Ed Sheeran
Cmb (Catch My Breath) - Carl Wockner
This is the Place - Tom Grennan
Freedom - Kygo & Zak Abel
Give It All Away - Sydnee Carter
Denver - Lauren Cook
Waking Up - Parachute
exile (feat. Bon Iver) - Taylor Swift
Simple Things - Alexander Cardinale