“You’re speaking another language to me,” I said. I hurried to her side and helped her back up onto the bed. “I don’t know what that means. What can I do? Where’s Lily?”
“Nothing. Just—oh God!” she said, clenching up again. “Just stay here a minute. Lily is playing in her room.”
“Okay. Should I check on her? Should I just stand here?”
“Em, really not the time. Just hold my”—she viciously squeezed down on my hand—“hand.”
“Got it. Hand-holding.”
“Braxton Hicks contractions are prep for actual labor. They usually go away all on their own, but if they don’t, then I’ll have to go to the hospital.”
“Should I call Noah?” I asked.
She nodded her head. “You’d better, just in case. I know he’d want to be here.”
I dialed Noah’s number and filled him in on what was going on. He promised he’d be on his way in a matter of minutes. When I hung up, Kimber was in the middle of another contraction. I didn’t know anything about Braxton Hicks contractions, but she looked like she was in a lot of pain. Even if she wasn’t going into labor, I wanted her to be seen by a doctor. Noah should be able to tell if something was wrong, but I’d be happier if we got her to the hospital.
Noah arrived from the medical center in record time. He took a quick look at his wife. “Looks like things are progressing quickly. Better safe than sorry, my love.”
“Get the bag,” Kimber said with a sigh. “I hoped that she’d wait until after Christmas. This is early.”
“She’s as stubborn as her mother. Comes and goes whenever she wants without consulting anyone at all,” I joked.
Kimber gave me a grim smile. “Can you watch Lilyanne for us? I hate to ask. I know that you have a date tonight.”
“Of course I can watch Lily. Don’t even think twice about it. Just make sure everything is all right with you and know that I have things under control here.”
Kimber kissed my cheek. “You’re a lifesaver.”
“Text me if you need me!” I called as I watched them go.
I traipsed back into my room and dialed Jensen’s number. I knew he’d been planning our official date for a few days. He’d had a lot of business to catch up on, and I hadn’t seen him, except at church on Sunday morning. But we’d talked every night, and I thought it was progress, on our way to something normal.
“Hey, Emery,” he said when he answered the phone. “I was just about to leave my house.”
“Actually…”
“Oh no, are you canceling?”
“Not on purpose,” I assured him. “My sister went into labor, or maybe pseudo labor, and they’re heading to the hospital. I promised her I’d watch my niece. So, I guess we’ll have to cancel.”
“Hmm,” he said. “How about I come over there and help you babysit?”
“You…what? You want to help watch Lily?” I asked, confused.
“I’d still like to see you, and I like kids.”
“But it’s not our fancy dinner date…”
“Yes. But I haven’t seen you in days, and I’m not giving up the opportunity. Unless you don’t want me to be around your niece?”
“No, it’s not that. I’d love for you to come over. I bet Lilyanne would, too.”
“Great. Then, it’s a date.”
I pocketed my cell phone and hurried to Lily’s room. She was still playing peacefully when I entered. Kimber didn’t want Lily to know anything was wrong until they were sure she was in labor. She was certain that it would keep Lily up all night. So, it was up to me to entertain the munchkin until I had more substantial news.
“Hey, Lily Bug,” I said. “What are you up to?”
“Playing with Barbies.” She had a collection of them in various stages of dress on the floor.
“Well, I wanted to let you know that your mommy and daddy went to the doctor for a checkup, and I get to watch you tonight.”
“Is my new baby sister coming?” she asked with big excited eyes.
“Not yet. Just a checkup, but that means you get to hang out with Auntie Em tonight. You know what that means?”
Lily jumped up to her feet. “Ice cream and sprinkles and Disney movies!”
“That’s right, missy!”
I lifted her into my arms and carried her downstairs. We raided the freezer. I knew where Noah tried to hide all the good flavors of ice cream, and we took out every last carton to decide on what we wanted. I liked to make her a bowl of ice cream about the size of the one in Home Alone and then hand her off to my sister. Tonight, I’d have to deal with putting her to sleep, so I knew that a mountain of ice cream might not be the best bet.
I placed a couple of scoops of chocolate ice cream in her bowl and a mix of strawberry, vanilla, and strawberry cheesecake into mine. We fished through the toppings, drizzling chocolate fudge and sprinkles on our desserts, and then we carried our bowls out to the living room.