“See you there,” Tate said. “Later.”
“Later, brother,” Deke replied, lowered the phone and felt Jussy’s vibe that was a response to Deke’s vibe.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Krys went into labor, baby. We gotta drop these tanks and get to the hospital.”
“Shit,” she whispered.
“It’s gonna be good,” he assured her.
“She’s not even in her eighth month.”
“It’s gonna be good, Jussy.”
She shut up.
Deke drove.
But he did it reaching for her hand, clasping it firm in his and holding both to his thigh.
He’d had women in his life, some with minimal staying power.
But since he was a lot younger, he’d not once held one of their hands.
Jussy’s little hand in his felt made to be there too.
That wasn’t lost on Deke either.
And he didn’t mind it at all.
*
Deke didn’t walk into the hospital room.
Jussy didn’t either.
They stood arms around each other at the door to give Bubba the knowledge they were there with the intent to leave and hit the waiting room.
Lauren was also there, in the room with Bub and Krys. They’d seen Tate out in the waiting room, phone to his ear, making the calls.
Krys didn’t look good, hair wet from sweat, makeup-free face red and pinched with pain or worry.
What she did do was take one look at Jussy and snap, “Get over here.”
Jussy didn’t take her eyes off Krys as she let Deke go and got over there.
The second she got close on the opposite side of the bed from where Bubba was standing like he was a guard, not an expectant husband, Krys grabbed Justice’s hand in a grip that even from his distance, Deke could see was fierce.
She reached up with her other hand, and as Jussy bent toward her, she clapped it at the back of Jussy’s head and pulled her straight in Krys’s face.
Deke tensed and through it, moved into the room.
Lauren gave him a look that said be cool. Bubba didn’t look at him at all, his full attention was on his woman in that bed.
Deke stopped close behind Jussy, seeing her head go up and down in Krys’s hold, an indication of an affirmative to something Krys was saying, her hand gripping Krystal’s just as tight as Krys had hers.
“Yes.” He heard Jussy say. “Nothing’s changed from our time in the Camaro, sister. You got this, Krys. You got it, beautiful.”
“I got it,” Krys replied, her voice weaker than Deke had ever heard.
“You got it,” Jussy said, her voice stronger than he’d ever heard.
Nothing came after that for some time before Jussy told her, “We’re not going anywhere. We’ll be right outside with Tate. You got this. Give your man a pretty baby.”
This gave Krys her cue to let Jussy go, something she did.
When she did, Deke moved in to claim her, wrapping an arm around her belly and pulling her back into him, but not taking her from Krys’s space.
Krys looked to him, to Jussy, to him and then to Bubba.
“We are not havin’ another kid,” Bubba said before she could open her mouth.
His anxiety was clear in voice, expression and posture.
“Need an ice chip, baby,” Krys said quietly, some, not all of the weak out of her tone.
Bubba reached to a bowl of ice.
“See you soon,” Jussy said softly.
Krys looked to her and nodded.
Deke moved Jussy out while Lauren moved to the side of the bed they vacated.
They nearly crashed into Jim-Billy who was running into the room as they left.
Deke took Jussy to Tate, left her with him, went out and bought a shit ton of donuts and coffees. He came back to Ty and Lexie there with their girls, Jim-Billy having been kicked out when the contractions kicked up, and Tate and Jussy on phone duty giving updates to Twyla and the crew at Bubba’s, Chace and Faye, and the great number of folk that loved Krys no matter how skilled she was at throwing attitude.
As they waited, Deke didn’t bother putting in the effort not to watch Justice goofing with Lella and Vivie. He also didn’t bury how it made him feel, seeing she was just as good with kids, maybe even better, than she was with adults.
And he didn’t bury the fact that she’d been in Carnal just over a month and she was one of the crew like she’d been there years.
Last, he didn’t hit her up about what that was with her and Krys and the Camaro.
Something else he’d learned, women had shit with their sisters and if they wanted to share it, they did. If they didn’t, you didn’t push it.
Two hours later, Bubba came out looking a lot fucking happier when he told them Breanne Lauren Briggs had made it into the world, breathing good, all ten fingers, all ten toes, and looking like her momma.
And Krys had done it. Unintentionally, but she’d still excelled at what she’d done.
On a day her friend needed her mind off what might be to come, she gave her a helluva something to keep her mind on.