Race the Storm

Chapter 1

With Bake From Scratch magazine open in her lap as she sat by a saltwater infinity pool, Willa Richardson sipped from a glass of pineapple-infused aloe chunk water and tried not to think about how much everything around her cost. The blanket-sized towel she was lounging on was cashmere while the lounge chair she reclined on was brand new and made of completely recycled material according to the stamp on the side.

At one end of the pool was a gentle fake waterfall, the saltwater flowing by as a couple other women sat on the rocks. One of them was splashing her swollen feet in the water, holding her round belly. Over toward the far end of the infinity pool, another woman was finishing a lap around the pool and walking up the ramp. The towel the nurse held out to her was almost too small to go around her waist, so the nurse grabbed the next size up to switch out for her.

Willa touched her own small, barely there two-month bump. Ooof. She wasn't looking forward to the Blimp Stage, as some of the women called it.

After three months here at the facility, she should've been used to the Estate's fanciness. In any case, all the expenses were paid for and she didn't need to worry about it. But it was hard to not see dollar signs over everything after twenty four years of checking under vending machines for spare change and counting out pennies to pay for parking tickets.

"Hey, Willa, it's time for dinner. And it's getting cold, so let's go inside, okay?"

She looked up at Cristopher, one of the many medical personnel that staffed Bell Rock Estate. A nurse by trade, Cris was popular around the Estate because he was sweet, patient, and never got short with anyone when they were extra hormonal. Around here, that was a big deal. Willa and a couple of other women were on his personal daily caseload, which meant he checked in with them throughout the day.

She grinned up at him. "Well, hey, stranger. Where've you been all day?"

He held out a hand to take her glass, his tousled blond locks falling in his eyes. "Off doing extremely important things. Like paperwork. And keeping Katie from eating all the gummy worms."

"Ooo, nice," Willa said. Closing the magazine and handing him her glass, Willa looked out at the view beyond the pool. The sun was setting over the dramatic red rock formations, casting everything in a crimson and gold light. Personally, while she appreciated the clean, sleek, and expensive surroundings, she thought the landscape around the Estate was even more impressive.

Tucked away in the desert outside of Sedona, Arizona, Bell Rock Estate had once been a private residence for some super incredibly rich people, but it had been bought by Rising Hopes Fertility Enterprises. They had built a couple more buildings on the grounds, so now there were five buildings, each one designed to meld somewhat into the surroundings. From here, there was a beautiful view of the rock formation that gave the estate its name.

Standing up, Willa dropped the magazine on the chair and then stretched her arms over her head for a second. Her back ached from sitting for an hour.

Cris glanced over at her. "Need me to book you a massage?"

Willa wasn't sure why she hesitated. A massage sounded wonderful. Massages were free here, on the daily if you wanted them. And they were the best kind--not only did you get the massage, but the masseuse helped you stretch, taught you ways to relax your muscles, spoke to you about helpful posture--if you wanted it. Or you could sleep. Of course, it was different from a normal massage because they had to be aware of the babies, but still. These were the best of the best.

And it just felt so wrong.

Willa had never gotten a massage in her life, and now...they were mundane.