"Would you sit down before you wear a hole in the carpet please!" Abi growled at Rae, but she laughed as she said it, watching her stepdaughter pace in front of the window, glaring at the elevator and knowing she was willing it to open and have the Hughes boy she was in love with, step out of it.. "He may go home and shower first Sweetheart. We don't know when he'll be..."
"HUNTER!" Rae yelled and shot out of the room, down the hall and jumped into his arms. He caught her easily and held onto her tighter than he knew he could.
"I'm ok ReRe."
"Bullshit!" She mumbled into his neck. "I saw your face."
Hunter reluctantly put her onto her feet and took hold of her face to force her to look at him. She cringed taking in the dark bruises.
"I hate her!" She growled.
"ReRe shut up and listen would you!" Ty laughed as he walked past them, giving a wave to everyone in the room and getting back into the elevator. He had to go back to the station and file the report on what happened today. Rae frowned at Hunter, but a small grin pulled at the edges of her mouth. "Thank you." She poked her tongue at him and he growled. "I've warned you about that girl." He gave her a wink and watched as she blushed. "My injuries are only skin deep. I was checked over downstairs. Abi had someone waiting for me when I got here. They wouldn't let me up until I had x-rays on my ribs and was checked for concussion. I'm ok. I promise."
"Ok good." Rae replied softly. "You've been here that long and I didn't know?"
"I didn't want to be down there. Trust me! I wanted to be up here, with you guys." He rubbed the ball of his thumb over her cheek and kissed her forehead. "Can I go see Milly now?" At the sound of her name, Rae beamed and nodded.
"Of course!"
Hunter smiled at her, but as soon as she turned and lead him towards the NICU room, his face dropped. She was smitten with that baby girl and from what Ty had told him on the drive back here, neither her parents nor Hunters had changed their minds on taking the baby in until Rae turned eighteen. This whole situation was a ticking time bomb and if Amelia got better before April twelfth, in seven weeks, that bomb was going to explode and that thought alone had a brick lodging itself in Hunter's stomach.
* * * * *
"Hello my tiny princess." Hunter crooned as he took Amelia from Abi, after giving his mother, Nash and Abi hugs and assuring them all that he was alright. "How's she doing?" He asked Abi, not taking his eyes off the tiny bundle.
"She's actually doing amazingly well! Usually the addict babies take a while to wean off the meds, but Milly is improving daily and the withdrawal shakes are all but gone now. She's responding really well to the medications we have her on. We're still struggling to get her weight up and her lungs aren't as strong as they need to be, but I honestly don't think she'll be here longer than a month." Hunter lifted his eyes from Milly then and looked at Rae. She tried to hide the sadness, but he didn't miss the single tear slide down her face.
That bomb just ticked down a little more and the timer didn't have nearly long enough on it for Rae...
"That's my strong little Milly. Strong like your big sister." Rae looked at him and gave him a weak smile, before moving to sit on the bed that the staff had obviously put in here for her so she could continue to heal herself, but also stay near Milly. Hunter was glad they were letting them stay together.
"You're very pale Rae. You ok?" Nash asked, walking to sit with her.
"I'm ok. Stop fussing. It's just been a long few days."
YOU ARE READING
The Baby Between Them
RomantikGrowing up with an abusive mother, teenage Raegan's escape had always been the Hughes home. With the younger brother, Nash, as her best friend in the whole world and the oblivious County Deputy, Hunter, making her heart sing whenever he's around. Sh...