“I’m going to check your cervix,” she said, lifting the blanket at the end of the bed. I scooted lower, and had to resist the urge to kick her in the face when she abruptly parted my legs.

I squeezed my eyes closed when her man-hands poked around, wincing because she was a little on the rough side.

“Are you trying to make me give birth?” I snapped.

She ignored me, and when she was satisfied, I felt her hand disappear. She snapped her gloves off, and disposed of them before making another note on my chart.

“No dilation,” she commented. “That’s very good. Your heart rate is normal, save for the excitement,” - she glared at Reid – “and your baby’s heart rate is strong. Also good. I should remind you that once you’re back home, and on bed rest, you are to abstain from all sexual activity until your baby is born.” She looked at us pointedly, and then added, “Dr. Burke will be here shortly to check on you. I’ll have another nurse bring you some breakfast.”

I sagged against the bed, and Reid covered my legs as the nurse left.

“No sex?” I repeated, my brows knitted. “How am I going to manage that?”

“That’s my line,” laughed Reid. He sat back down on the chair, still in yesterday’s clothes, and brought his face to my belly. “Hi baby girl, it’s your Daddy. We want you to know how happy we are that you’re okay. Just a few more weeks and you’ll be here, so try not to drive Mommy too crazy, okay?” He kissed the bump over my hospital gown – nasty fucking thing – and smiled wide when he felt her kick in response.

“She knows your voice,” I remarked. “She moves almost every time you talk.”

He stared at my stomach in awe, and I swore I would never tire of that look.

“You should go home, and take a shower,” I said. “Maybe even catch a few hours’ sleep?”

Reid made a show of sniffing his shirt, and then asked, “Do I stink?”

“No,” I giggled. “It might just make you feel better.”

“I’ll leave when your parents get here,” he replied. “I don’t want to leave you alone.”

His expression turned impassive, and I knew what he was referring to. He was worried that Stella would show up to finish what she’d started yesterday, and so was I, but I doubted she would be that brazen.

“Did you guys find her?” I asked, referring to the Hobbit bitch. Although after yesterday, she became Psycho Hobbit. With a hashtag.

Reid shook his head. “No, but my Dad’s taking care of it. You won’t have to worry about her again. I promise.”

His eyes, filled with guilt and sincerity, flashed with anger and resoluteness.

“It’s not your fault,” I told him gently, making sure he knew I didn’t blame him. “She’s crazy, and I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“She shouldn’t have gone near you,” he said angrily. I took both his hands in mine, and placed them over our baby.

“We’re fine, Reid. It’s not like we knew she was a damn psycho. And I don’t want you blaming yourself, okay?”

He stared at me for a moment, and soon his face softened. “God, I was so scared, Jade.”

“I know,” I whispered. “Me too.”

Dr. Burke interrupted us, and a small part of me was grateful. The last thing I wanted to do was to rehash everything that had happened yesterday when I needed to stay calm and rested, at least until I was past the forty-eight hour danger mark.

“How are my two favorite patients this morning?” Asked Dr. Burke. It was the first time I’d seen her dressed casually, and idly wondered if she’d come in just to check on me.

“We’re good,” I replied with a smile. “The grumpy nurse was in here about fifteen minutes ago to check my vitals.”

Reid snorted beside me, and realized what I’d said.

“Grumpy nurse?” Dr. Burke raised a brow.

My cheeks heated. “Sorry, that was rude... but she was grumpy, and I thought she was trying to make me give birth when she checked to see if I’m dilated. If she’d pushed any harder this kid would have slid right out.”

“Oh you mean Alba,” laughed Dr. Burke. “Yes, she’s not the nicest lady, but I put her on your case because she’s one of the best maternity nurses on staff.”

I nodded, and Dr. Burke proceeded to check my charts again, and then checked the fetal monitor.

“Everything looks really great, Jade. You’re not in the clear yet, but so far, I like what I see. Do you have any questions and concerns?”

I looked between Reid, and Dr. Burke, and blushed a little more. “Nurse Alba said we can’t...uhh...have sex until the baby is born. Is that true?”

“I’m afraid so,” replied Dr. Burke. She looked amused, and I wanted to crawl into a hole. I wasn’t sure why though. I wasn’t exactly shy about the fact that I was hornier than usual while pregnant. “Because of your fall yesterday, having sex isn’t advisable until after your baby is born. It increases your chances of going into labor sooner than we planned.”

“Fine,” I sighed, earning another round of quiet chuckles from Reid.

Laugh it up, jackass. We’ll see if you’re still laughing when you have blue balls.

“If there’s nothing else,” continued Dr. Burke, “I’ll be back later tonight to check on you again. Once the forty-eight hour period is over, I won’t have to check on you quite as much.”

“Thanks Doc,” said Reid. “We appreciate it.”

And we did.

Dr. Burke left, and I convinced Reid to go home and take a shower, even though my parents had yet to arrive. He bent down, and brought his lips close to mine.

“Te amo,” he whispered. “Mi Amor.”

“I love you too.” I grinned stupidly. “Now go shower. You stink.”

He kissed me quickly, and I heard his laughter drift down the hallway.

Silly man.

But he was my silly man.

REID GAVE ME a worried a look, his beautiful face etched into a frown. I had a room full of people, and they all seemed to be trading concerned glances. It made me uncomfortable.

“Reid, what’s going on?” I asked, aware that everyone turned their eyes towards him. He stepped away from where he’d been talking with our fathers, and Dane, and came to stand at my bedside.

My mother’s eyes bounced nervously between my father, and me, while Reid’s mother vacated her chair to stand next to her husband. Kennedy looked ready to pass out, and Grady looked ready to slap someone.

Reid looked at his father, who gave him a cursory nod, and then turned his eyes back to me.

“Tell me what’s going on,” – I sat upright – “Everyone is making me nervous.”

Reid sighed, and leaned closer, pressing both palms on the bed. He’d been on edge all afternoon, but it wasn’t until after everyone else had started acting so weird that I knew something was going on. Something I clearly wasn’t privy to.

“They found Stella,” said Reid. His green eyes were troubled, his brows knitted, and his mouth pulled tight. I stared at him, feeling a ball of tension take root in my gut. Instinctively, I touched my stomach, moving my hands in slow soothing circles.

“And?” I pressed.

“She’s been arrested.”

I let out an audible breath, but when no one else looked as relieved as I was, I had a feeling of dread wash over me.

“Reid, I swear to God...”

“They went into her room at her sorority house, and found pictures of you, me, and us together plastered all over the room.”

My eyes widened. “What?”

“Some of them had been taken as early as last week, when you were at home alone,” said Reid. His jaw ticked, and I knew it wasn’t the worst part.

“What else?” I asked.

“She’d scratched out your face in all those pictures, and replaced it with cut-outs of hers.”

What.

The.

Fuck.

“There’s more,” added Reid. “They found out her parents are dead, and she suffered a psychotic break at the end of last year. Her friends said that after I broke up with her she became obsessed with  - ”

“You?” I finished.

Reid shook his head. “No, Jade. She became obsessed with you.”