Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 74882 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74882 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
I want to promise him more.
“One night to blow my mind and make me fall in love with you, huh? Sounds like a challenge.”
He smiles against my lips. “No one said anything about love, but I do love a challenge.”
My heart flutters. Why does it flutter so much around Camilo? It excites me and saddens me all at once. I wish Momma were still alive. It’d be nice to work through all these messy feelings with my mom.
I don’t even realize silent tears are falling until Camilo kisses one away. He stops tweaking my nipple to caress my stomach and nuzzle his nose against my hair. It feels good being held together. I’ve had to be strong my entire life. What a relief to let someone else be strong for me, even if only for the night.
“FUUUUCK!”
I jolt upright from a dead sleep, but something hot and heavy pins me. Camilo is passed out despite the fact someone is screaming.
“Camilo!” I cry out, swatting at him. “Someone’s hurt.”
Like his ass is on fire, he jumps up, nearly sending me toppling off the cot in the process. Several people start lighting candles and turning on flashlights. They all point toward the sound.
It’s The Exorcist.
Breathing heavily, hair dripping in sweat, pale, and the face of the devil.
Araceli.
“She’s in labor,” I choke out. “Oh God.”
“Shit,” Camilo curses. “How close?”
She growls at him, her face turning purple. Then, she screams at him. “Real fucking close! You swore if you were here and this happened, you could do it!”
Do what?
Oh God.
He’s going to try and deliver her baby?
“I can,” he assures her. “Let me grab some supplies.”
I scramble off the cot and start smacking the legs of my friends to spur them into action. “Camilo, go to her. We’ve got this.”
It’s a mad dash as everyone rushes around grabbing towels and water. Camilo has recruited Carson and they’ve hurried off to wash up. Araceli is pacing, only to stop and double over in pain, every so often.
Doris keeps babbling about something and Dale tries to shush her. Damian’s high-pitched voice grows higher and higher as he panics.
“Get yourself together, honey,” I snap, grabbing him by the bicep. “Take a walk.”
He whines but bounds off. Estefania rushes over to me, a worried look on her face. Camilo has pulled up a stool and is trying to coax Araceli to lie down on the cot in front of him. She’s growling and pacing, making no moves to obey.
“Come on,” I tell Estefania. “They need help corralling the bull.”
We approach slowly. Araceli shoots us a withering glare that makes Estefania flinch, but I ignore it.
“Time to lie down. Baby is coming,” I tell her in my firm, no nonsense tone.
“Bitch, don’t touch me,” she hisses.
I grab her arm. “You have to lie down and deliver that baby. Man up, woman!”
She shoots me a brief, terrified look and my heart clenches. Poor girl. I’d be terrified too if I had to deliver my baby in the middle of a hurricane with no medical attention and Camilo as the stand-in doctor.
“I’ll be right here,” I assure her. “If Camilo messes up, I’ll kill him for you. That’s a promise.”
She flashes me a quick smile before another contraction hits. I use the distraction to guide her down onto the cot. As we begin pulling off her pants, Damian peeks his head back into the room.
“Ew! I can’t watch! I don’t even like va-jay-jays on a good day!” He shrieks in horror. “And today is an awful day!”
“Henry!” Doris calls out. “Come sit with your mother so your father can see to his patient.”
I shoot Camilo a confused look and he frowns. When Dale starts over to us, Camilo shakes his head.
“I got this, man,” Camilo assures him. “You can’t pretend for her. Not for this.”
Dale grumbles. “I’m a retired obstetrician, boy. Move.”
Relief flashes over Camilo’s features as he stands up and backs away from the stool. Dale sits down and pats Araceli’s thigh.
“How you feeling, hon?” he asks.
She starts to cry. Araceli is fierce, not afraid. I can relate to this girl so hard. Seeing her break is gutting. “I’m scared my baby will die.”
The entire room grows silent with the same worry.
“Not on my watch. You’re going to do exactly as I say and we’ll deliver this baby within the hour,” Dale promises. He coaches her how to breathe and what to do on her next contraction.
She screams and turns purple before panting again. “He’s not due for another two weeks,” she whines. “Why is he coming early?”
“In my thirty plus years of delivering babies, I delivered more during hurricane season when we lived in Florida for a few years than I ever did in my entire career. The barometric pressure does strange things to the human body.”
Well, that certainly explains my lack of ability to stay away from Camilo.