Just a Kiss in the Moonlight: Georgia Moon Romance Book 2 (3 page)

“What?!” Taylin half-laughed and shouted. “That’s just crazy talk.”

“I’m serious. He’s only been divorced for a little over a year, but they’ve been separated off and on for the past few years. I’ll just bet he finds you attractive and doesn’t know what to do about it.”

“Right.” Taylin held up her sugary treat. “And donuts have zero carbs.” She took a big bite. She usually knew when a guy was interested, and Luke was not interested.

Thankfully, their conversation was interrupted with the arrival of some of the kids. She and Rachel shooed them out of the kitchen, promising them donuts later on.

“Luke likes you,” Rachel whispered as they went into gym.

“Does not,” Taylin shot back.

The mischievous grin on Rachel’s face had Taylin shaking her head. “Newlyweds are so annoying.”

Rachel laughed, but dropped the subject. Taylin enlisted her friend’s help to organize the small group of kids who wanted to play the video dance game. Those who weren’t interested moved to the gaming area and started a foosball game with one of the other volunteers supervising.

Glancing around the room, Taylin spotted a girl standing in the corner by herself. Long, dark hair hung like a curtain around the girl’s face, but Taylin recognized the teenager. Lindsey Rollins was fifteen going on twenty. She’d had a rough childhood and ended up in her grandmother’s custody three months ago while her mother was in rehab. Lindsey hated coming to the center, and judging by the scowl on her face, nothing had changed since the last time the girl had shown up a couple of weeks ago.

Wanting to try and include the girl, Taylin made her way around the edge of the gym. Lindsey’s dark eyes tracked Taylin’s progress and the scowl on her face deepened.

“Hey, Lindsey,” Taylin said. “I’m glad you came tonight.”

“I’m not,” Lindsey snorted. “But Grandma said if I don’t start comin’ then she’s taking my phone for good.”

Taylin stood close enough to pick up the scent of cigarette smoke on the girl’s clothes. Since Mrs. Rollins wasn’t a smoker, Taylin could only guess Lindsey had recently picked up the nasty habit, or she was hanging out with the wrong crowd.

“Well, you chose the perfect night to come. We’re havin’ a dance-off and could use you.”

“I don’t dance.” She shot Taylin a sarcastic glare. “And I don’t play foosball or ping pong either, so don’t ask.”

Taylin had a feeling Lindsey would find fault with any of the activities. Determined not to give up, she whispered, “Do you like donuts?”

Lindsey glowered at her. “Who doesn’t?”

“Miss Rachel brought fresh donuts, and I know where they’re hidden.”

“So?”

“So.” Taylin bumped the girl’s shoulder with her own. “Let’s sneak into the kitchen and we can pick out a donut before the good ones are gone.”

Lindsey licked her lips and glanced toward the kitchen door. “Whatever.”

Taking that as a yes, Taylin motioned for Lindsey to follow her. Skirting the gym, they made their way toward the kitchen. Just before reaching the door, Taylin glanced over her shoulder and discovered Lindsey was no longer behind her. The girl had ditched her, and Taylin watched as she exited out a side door.

Taylin wasn’t sure if she should go after Lindsey or leave her alone. Across the room, she saw Dave talking with his wife. Rachel would probably know what to do. Taylin crossed the gym, stopping once to retrieve a rogue ping pong ball.

As she drew closer to her friend, Taylin slowed her steps when she noticed Rachel and Dave looked like they were having a serious conversation. Dave glanced her way and motioned for her to join them.

“Is everything okay?” Taylin asked.

Dave pressed his lips together. “I just got off the phone with Pastor James. He’s been diagnosed with influenza and needs me to go to the hospital to visit one of the church members.”

“I’m sorry,” Taylin said. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Actually, I’d like you to follow me to the hospital since this is your area of expertise.” Dave’s eyebrows drew together. “Jackson McCall called me right after I finished talking with Pastor James. His wife, Sydney, is pregnant and started bleeding. He said they both wanted you to come by the hospital if you could.”

Taylin’s stomach twisted with worry. Sydney and Jackson had been trying to have a baby for several years. The few times Sydney had gotten pregnant, she’d lost the baby within the first trimester.

“Absolutely. Let me grab my purse and we can go.”

The drive to the hospital seemed to take forever. Taylin waited for Dave to park his car before taking him through an employee entrance to get to the second floor quicker. She glanced at the white board to look for the first three letters of Sydney’s last name as she approached the nurse’s station.

Abbie, a labor nurse Taylin had worked with a few times, looked up and smiled. “Hey, girl. What’re you doin’ here on your night off?”

“I’m here to see a friend. Sydney McCall.” Taylin pointed at the whiteboard. “It looks like she’s in labor room six.”

“Yeah, she’s Caroline’s patient.” Abbie tilted her head to the side. “You and your boyfriend can go on back.”

Taylin laughed as she watched Dave’s face go red. “He’s not my boyfriend, he’s my pastor.”

One of Abbie’s eyebrows lifted up. “Seriously? No offence, but you don’t look like any pastor I’ve ever seen.”

The color in Dave’s face darkened. Before he’d married Rachel, Pastor Dave had been a popular bachelor. At one time both Taylin and her sister, Ashlee, had had a crush on the young minister.

“Hi,” Dave said as he stepped forward and held out his hand. “Dave Matthews.”

“Abbie Duke.” Abbie shook his hand. “Do ministers date?” she asked, keeping a hold of his hand.

Dave lifted his left hand to show off his wedding band. “Not when they’re married.”

This time Abbie was the one to look embarrassed as she quickly withdrew her hand. “Oops. Sorry.”

Dave chuckled. “No problem.”

The phone rang, and Abbie quickly took the call. Taylin moved away from the desk and pointed to a waiting room next to the visitor’s kitchen. “Why don’t you wait here while I go back and check on Sydney.”

“Good idea.”

On the way to Sydney’s room, Taylin passed by the employee bulletin board. She dreaded approaching Luke tomorrow to ask him personal questions. He would probably think she was hitting on him.

Approaching the door to Sydney’s room, Taylin knocked softly. “It’s Taylin Nichols.”

“Come in,” the nurse said.

Taylin pushed the door open and stepped inside. Sydney looked pale and small in the bed. Jackson, who usually wore a mischievous grin, sat next to his wife with a somber look.

“Hey,” Taylin said, walking over to the bed. “Pastor Dave and I came as soon as you called. He’s in the waiting room.”

Sydney smiled. “Thank you so much for coming. My parents are out of the country and Jackson and I just needed a friend.”

Taylin sat on the edge of the bed and took Sydney’s hand in hers, noting how cold and clammy her skin felt. “I’m so glad y’all wanted me here.” She glanced over at Jackson. “Hey, Jacks.”

“Hey, squirt,” he said with a small smile. “Thanks for coming.”

The labor and delivery nurse moved away from her computer. “Dr. Nance is on his way over. He wants to do an ultrasound, which he can do right here in the room.” She offered Sydney a reassuring smile. “I’m gonna go get the portable ultrasound unit ready, but do you need anything before I leave?”

“No, thank you,” Sydney said. Her lower lip quivered. “I’m okay.”

Once Caroline left the room, Sydney squeezed Taylin’s hand. “We want you to be in here with us when he does the ultrasound. Is that okay with you?”

“Absolutely.” A knot of anxiety twisted in Taylin’s stomach. “Do you know how many weeks you are?”

“Fourteen weeks.” Sydney’s eyes filled up with tears. “I thought everything was going to be okay this time since I made it to the second trimester.”

Taylin didn’t want to get all clinical on them, but she did want to get a better idea about what to expect when the doctor did the ultrasound. “Tell me what happened?”

As Sydney relayed her story, Taylin was relieved to note the bleeding wasn’t accompanied by cramping and had subsided since coming to the hospital.

“Do you think we have time for Pastor Dave to pray with us before Dr. Nance gets here?” Jackson asked.

“I think so.” She pulled out her phone and sent him a quick text. But right then Dr. Nance came in, along with Caroline and the ultrasound unit.

While the doctor greeted the couple, Taylin went to the door to meet Dave. “Sorry, the doctor walked in right after I sent you the text. He’s going to do an ultrasound.”

“No problem.” He stuck his hands in his pockets. “I’ll just go back to the waiting room and pray for the best.”

Taylin nodded her head and closed the door, offering a prayer of her own. Both Sydney and Jackson were quiet as the nurse lowered the head of the bed until Sydney lay flat. She had a death grip on her husband’s hand as the doctor lifted her gown to expose her stomach.

“This has been warming but it still might feel cool,” he said, squeezing out a generous amount of gel onto her lower abdomen.

Taylin’s eyes honed in on the display screen as Dr. Nance moved the transducer probe over Sydney’s stomach. The black and white images were a little grainy. Taylin’s breath caught as she watched the doctor search for a heartbeat.

He moved the transducer over one area and then back to another area. He did this several times before staying in one area. He made some adjustments and Taylin felt like shouting for joy when he captured the image of a tiny, fluttering heart. “This baby looks very healthy, Sydney.”

The somber feeling that shrouded the room lifted as Sydney and Jackson both laughed. “Look at that little guy,” Jackson said. “He’s moving all over the place.”

“It still might be a she,” Sydney said, as a tear slipped down her cheek. “Can you tell what the sex is yet, Dr. Nance?”

“I can try, but this little one is pretty active.” He moved the transducer. “But first let’s take a look at baby number two.”

“What?” Jackson and Sydney both said at the same time, looking as shocked as Taylin felt.

“We’re having twins?” Jackson asked.

The doctor laughed. “I’m as surprised as y’all are. This other one must have been hiding when we did your first ultrasound at seven weeks.”

“Twins.” Sydney’s face glowed. “I can’t believe it.”

Since Taylin was a twin, she couldn’t help thinking about what her parents reaction must have been when they got the news their little caboose baby was going to be two.

“Believe it.” The doctor found the second heartbeat and took some measurements. “Would y’all like to know the sex?”

“Yes,” The couple answered in unison.

“I thought they were in the same sac,” the doctor said, moving the probe around. “But this line right here separates the membranes.”

“Does that mean they’re not identical?” Jackson asked.

“It’s hard to say. Obviously if they’re a boy and a girl then no, but otherwise only a DNA test will determine if they’re identical.” He pointed to the screen with his finger. “But Baby B is a boy.” While Jackson hooted, and Sydney laughed, the doctor moved the probe to the first baby. “Congratulations, Mom and Dad, Baby A is a boy too.”

“You’re okay with that, sweetie?” Jackson asked his wife.

“Of course I am you goofball.”

While the doctor reassured Sydney and Jackson the bleeding had been normal and answered their questions, Taylin texted the youth minister the news. His immediate response of praise was followed by a text that another parishioner was in need of him and to pass on the message of congratulations to the happy couple.

“I’m so happy for you both.” Taylin glanced at the clock. “I’m not scheduled tomorrow, but I have to come in to do something for my manager. I’ll stop by and say hey if you haven’t already been discharged.”

After saying goodnight, Taylin got in her car and started for home. With Ashlee out on a date and her parents in Macon for the night, Taylin felt lonely and didn’t want to go home to an empty house. Maybe she’d stop by Jared’s condo and surprise him. She wasn’t in the mood to clean his apartment, but could use a little snuggling and kissing.

She altered her route and ten minutes later pulled up in front of Jared’s condominium. Someday she and Ashlee wanted to find a condo together, but until her sister could hold down a job for longer than a month, Taylin decided to stay at home and save money. Maybe when she finally got married, she’d have enough for a down payment on a house.

Cutting the engine, she climbed out of the car. The cool night air made her shiver and she quickened her pace. She felt the bass of the loud music coming from his condo before she heard the hard rock music Jared was so fond of. Why couldn’t he be into country music?

She knocked on the door and then pressed her finger against the doorbell a couple of times. Not expecting him to hear her, she was surprised when the door swung open.

“Hey, babe,” Jared said, his voice slightly slurred. “I wasn’t expecting you.” He moved in for a kiss, and Taylin turned to give him her cheek.

Her desire to snuggle up to her boyfriend quickly died when she saw the two other guys sitting on the couch with a game controller in one hand and a beer in the other. She didn’t drink and she didn’t like it when Jared did.

“That’s not what I wanted,” Jared said, nuzzling her neck. His hands went to her hips and he turned her and pressed her against the wall.

His whiskers scratched her cheek as his lips traveled to her mouth. His breath was sour and she pushed him away. “You’ve been drinking.”

“I’ve only had a couple.” His glassy eyes roved over her. “I’ll stop now that you’re here.”

Judging from the amount of empty bottles on the coffee table, she knew he’d had more than a couple. Jared moved in to kiss her again, and she stepped out of the way, making him stumble.

He swore as he slammed into the wall. Taylin was too angry to stay and talk to him further. She shut the door and hurried to her car. Jared wasn’t even close to the kind of guy she wanted to marry, so why was she still with him?