One Night ~ Complete ~ Sample

Book 2~Sneak Peek

From The Other Side~Finding Love~Book 2

Olivia watched from the shadows of the other side as Jackson took, yet another, woman into a hotel room. Something he'd been doing for years now. She stayed out in the hall, ghosting around as people jostled up and down the narrow passageway. It hurt her heart to watch him do this to himself. It didn't hurt that he found women to find a release with. That was natural, normal. What hurt her was how much he was hurting. She hated that the Steel men couldn't find their happy endings for fear of losing them to a stupid curse. The curse that took her life before she'd really had one.

At least she'd been able to know and love Jackson. Though sometimes she wished she never had because then he wouldn't be hurting the way he was. The thought of the curse sent her mind to Samantha Hudson. She was pregnant with Levi Steel's child and closer to her due date. Olivia closed her eyes and dematerialized, only to take shape in Sam's small living room. The woman in question was laying on the couch, the T.V on and crying silent tears as she rubbed her round belly.

Another life being affected by the stupid curse and two lives that were going to be lost. Sam was carrying a girl. Olivia had seen the sonogram photos, the ones that pointed out the fact that the child was a girl. The thought broke Olivia's heart. Knowing that she would have another woman on this side with her, that they would be the ones watching over the Steel men as they wove their way through life, fighting against a curse that had nothing to do with them. Both women would be watching with broken hearts as even more broken men navigate their hell on earth.

It wasn't fair.

Sam let out a small groan, causing Olivia to really focus on her. She looked different today. Her hair was in disarray and sweaty, sticking to her brow and neck. Her eyebrows were pinched together and her jaw clenched shut. Her breathing labored. Just then the front door opened and Vee, Sam's best friend, rushed in.

"Okay! I'm here. How far apart are your contractions now?" She asked, kneeling to her knees in front of Sam.

"Two minutes." Sam grunted through her teeth.

"Are you having one now?" Vee asked, pulling out her phone. Sam nodded her head. Vee put her phone to her ear and only a moment past before she was talking. "Hi, this is Veronica Westman. My friend, Samantha Hudson is a patient there and she's having contractions that are two minutes apart." She paused to listen to the other person as she stroked Sam's arm. Olivia's heart was ripping in two. This was it, either today or tomorrow, Sam would be joining her on this side.

Everything seemed to move fast after Vee got off the phone. She made sure they had everything and then basically carried Sam to her car. Olivia sat in the back as Sam started yelling from the passenger seat. Tears streamed down her face as she yelled about something being wrong. Olivia closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Of course something was wrong, this was the curse at work. When they made it to the hospital, they did an ultrasound and then rushed Sam for an emergency C-section.

She followed them down the hall, leaving Vee in the room. The doctors were talking and saying things she didn't understand. As they were setting Sam up, Vee came pushing in the door, dressed in scrubs, a mask and gloves, yelling that she was going to be there for her best friend and they'd have to call security to get her out. Olivia smiled at the fact that Sam had someone that loved her so much but the pang in her heart reminded her that Vee was someone else that was going to be hurt by this stupid curse.

She wished there was some way to stop it, to break it. The thought hit her like a ton of bricks. What if she could break it? They could? If she could push Sam to fight through and save the baby, would it break the curse? They had to try. Olivia stood as close to the OR table as she could and the moment the doctors cut a long line down the middle of Sam's stomach alarms started going off.

Looking over the makeshift curtain, she could see Sam already fading. Olivia placed a hand on Sam's arm and gave her as much energy as she could. "Fight, Sam. You have to fight, for you, for your baby, for Levi. Fight." She yelled. Sam jolted back awake but Olivia wasn't sure if it was because she'd pushed her or it was Sam by herself. Her head was falling side to side as she mumbled something and then the alarms would go off again. Blood spilled over the side of the bed and Olivia started to get scared.

Before she could push Sam again, the woman jerked back awake. Sam was fighting on her own, she didn't need Olivia. The doctors handed the baby off to the awaiting arms of a nurse. She rushed her over to a corner with a small set up and Olivia followed. As soon as she was close enough she placed a hand on the baby's chest, filling her with energy. The lights in the room flickered. Her heart started back up but the baby wasn't making any noise or moving. The nurse did what she needed to, working through Olivia's ghostly form.

She looked back over at Sam, who was still going in and out as the doctors worked on her. "Sam!" She yelled. "My name's Olivia and I'm going to help you." Sam's head rolled to the side and looked right at her. Could she see her? "Stay alive, Sam, don't die. I'll keep her alive but you have to fight for yourself. You have to break the curse."

Sam's eyes closed and the alarms went haywire. Olivia glanced down at the baby. Her heartbeat was faint but she wondered if she could go to Sam for a moment. She looked back up and her heart dropped. There were two Sam's, one on the table and the other standing beside it.

"No, Sam! Fight! You have to fight. Save yourself for your baby. Break this curse. I'll save her but fight, damn it! Fight!" They locked eyes as Olivia pushed another surge of energy into the baby. The lights went out and snapped back on. A wailing cry split the air as the baby's heart picked up and she grew stronger. She smiled at Sam, who was looking down at the baby before she looked up at Olivia and gave her one quick nod. Sam closed her eyes and in the blink of an eye she was gone. The Sam on the table jolted and lifted her head, reaching towards the baby.

"My baby. Give me my baby." She cried. Olivia let out a breath, relief washing through her at the realization that they were both alive and strong. They weren't out of the woods yet but they'd both died and came back. Maybe that was all they needed. Maybe everything would be better now. They'd have to wait and see if the curse was broken but it would be worth the wait. However long that would take.