His Tattooed Virgin(Divine Creek Ranch 12)(97)

“You’d be giving me the chance to pay forward a kindness that was done to me, when I needed someone to watch after and protect my little Benny. He’s my little boy. They took care of him when I couldn’t. I have plenty of experience with boys, and you needn’t worry about any gossip. Everyone knows me here. This is my aunt Maggie’s bed-and-breakfast, and I’m married to the sheriff and he knows I’m here too.”

“Well, I wanted to stay on Toby’s routine as much as possible…”

Ginny’s smile was openhearted as she pointed to Toby. “Seems to me like he’s already adhering to his routine. He’s conked out.” Toby let out a light, whiffling snore as if to verify Ginny’s statement.

Seth took in a shaky breath and gave in. “I would love to see her, just for a few minutes, if you wouldn’t mind?”

“Not at all.” She pulled back the covers on the bed and Seth eased Toby down onto the mattress. Toby shuddered when his head made contact with the cool cotton of the sheets but settled quickly. Seth tucked the sheets and covers in around his son, and noticed Ginny’s smile as she gazed at Toby. She stroked her protruding abdomen.

“They are a wonder, aren’t they?” A mist of tears came into her eyes and she sniffled lightly and chuckled. “Pardon my hormones.”

“You’re sure about this?”

“Of course. The sooner you leave the sooner you get to see her. We’ll be safe and sound right here.”

Seth took her hand and said, “Thank you.”

Eternally grateful, but still just a tad uncomfortable about leaving Toby after such a traumatic day, Seth made the quick journey to the Lusty Clinic in Dr. Robert Jessop’s Jeep, which he’d loaned to him, telling him he wouldn’t need it for the night. He’d even had the loan of a car seat for Toby. When he arrived, he was shown by Dr. Jessop to the private room where Jayne would be spending the night.

“She’s been given pain meds, Mr. Carter, so she may be a little out of it. Otherwise she’s doing just fine and you’ll most likely be able to take her home tomorrow, barring any complications.”

Seth shook his hand gratefully. “Thank you for taking such good care of her.”

“Glad I could help.”

Seth eased into the chair positioned beside the bed, and lifted her pale hand into his much bigger hand. Her thick, dark eyelashes flickered and then her eyes opened. Her voice wavered as she spoke. “Hey there.”

“How do you feel?”

“Pretty loopy. I was hurting earlier and they gave me something so I’d be able to sleep.” Her eyes came open wider. “Where’s Toby?”

“Ginny Kendall, the sheriff’s wife, is watching over him. She came by to check on us and told me she’d stay with Toby for a few minutes while I came to see you.”

“Nice people here,” she said as she squeezed his hand. “You doing okay?”

Seth nodded, and lowered his gaze to her hand. He kissed her delicate skin and traced her knuckles with a fingertip until his vision wavered and he blinked. Tears splashed onto her hand and she made a small distressed sound. He had difficulty swallowing over the lump in his throat. “We are in such good hands.”

Jayne nodded. “Dr. Jessop told me that my rib would be healed in no time. They told me they’d make sure you and Toby had everything you needed.”

Seth smiled at her, knowing she’d misunderstood. “I mean Toby and me.”

“Huh?”

“You fought like a wildcat, even though you had a gunshot wound, when you thought they were taking Toby away from you. I felt like I was seeing inside your heart, and how much you treasure him…and me. Toby and I are in good hands. You own both of our hearts, baby. Thank you for doing what you had to do to keep him safe. I love you.”

Tears trickled out of the corners of her lovely blue-green eyes and she sniffled. “Getting on the jet was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. And that’s saying a lot because I had some hard times when I was sick. I knew what would happen if we got off the ground, and once I was inside, I no longer had anything to lose and everything to gain by fighting. I hope I didn’t hurt Toby, holding on to him so tight.”

“He’s fine. They checked him out. He had a little lump on his noggin from being knocked into the seat but that was my fault for tackling you, not yours. He was sound asleep when I left a few minutes ago.” Seth felt a tugging in his heart and the need to return to the bed-and-breakfast to check on his son. It felt like being on a seesaw, wanting to be two places at once.

Jayne reached out and smoothed a tear track on his cheek with the back of her fingers and sighed softly. Her eyes became a little unfocused. “I want to go home tomorrow.”