“I won’t disturb her. I promise.” Eric’s voice is gruff as he tries not to give in to his emotions in front of her.

“She’s already doing better, knowing you’re here. Her heart rate is where I’d like it to be, and it seems like she’s responding well to the oxygen. Just keep her comfortable and I’ll be back to check on her in an hour.” The doctor gives Eric a quick nod before exiting the room.

We’re finally alone.

“Oh, Ivy…” he murmurs, pressing his lips against my temple. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”

I want to respond, but I already feel the tug of sleep pulling me under. I can’t keep my eyes open as the image of his face drifts out of my vision. The beeping of my heart is lulling me to sleep. I can’t resist its call.

* * *

I’m in the void until I hear Eric’s voice again.

“You’re telling me you had no idea she was behind this? C’mon, what kind of idiot do you take me for?”

He sounds mad. I don’t know how long I’ve been out, but I don’t want to wake up to him like this, even though he has every right to be angry.

“I’m telling you, I didn’t know it was her. No one did.”

It’s Will. Eric’s fighting with Will. I have to stop them from arguing. We need to stick together. Now is not the time to turn on each other. But it feels like lead weights are holding my eyes shut. I’m starting to drift again. No, I have to hold on. They can’t keep fighting like this.

“So basically she threatened Ivy in front of a restaurant full of witnesses and then simply waltzed out the door before anyone could stop her? I find that hard to believe.” Eric’s voice is low but deadly.

“I got scared when I saw the blood. My sole focus was on Ivy. I didn’t think she’d bolt. I mean, who does shit like that?” Will whispers back.

“But if you had detained her, we could have pressed charges for endangering the life of the baby.” Eric seems frazzled, like he’s grasping at straws. He begins to get more agitated. “She’s all about maintaining her image.”

“Lower your voice, man. Do you really want that nurse coming back in here, telling us to keep it down?” Will warns, jiggling the blinds as he peers out the window. “I don’t do hospital rooms. You’re lucky I’m even here. I’m already starting to feel claustrophobic.”

“This isn’t about you, asshole, in case you haven’t noticed.” Eric gets closer to the bed and his hand finds my cheek. I move my mouth, but my lips are chapped and nothing comes out.

“Oh, I think it is,” Will says then changes his tune when Eric shoves his chair, getting to his feet. “Listen, I’m sorry about what happened to Ivy. I really am, but this whole thing isn’t just about the two of you. There are other people involved too. We have to think this through and decide what we’re going to do as a team.”

“But how could you just sit there and let Lauren goad her like that? I mean, you had to have noticed that Ivy was in distress. Why couldn’t you be a man and get Lauren to stop?” Eric’s voice is heated, but he retakes his seat.

“I was overwhelmed.” Will paces in front of the bed. “Lauren was coming at us from every direction. It was like being pinned against a wall while facing a firing squad. My head was spinning. I didn’t even realize Ivy was in trouble until—”

“Until it was almost too late,” Eric cuts him off.

“But the baby’s fine. Nothing happened,” Will responds a little too cheerfully.

“You know that’s not true. Ivy is going to have to be closely observed for the remainder of her pregnancy in order to ensure the health of the baby. They’re even recommending bed rest from this point forward. So don’t even think she’s going to be working on some damn screenplay in order to save your ass.” Eric sounds tough, but I know he’s scared out of his mind. The thought of losing another baby must be eating him up inside.

“It’s not just my ass and you know it,” Will counters, braving his wrath. “We can limit her hours. I can do the typing. All she has to do is lie there. Just as long as we get the pages to Lauren, we’ll be okay.”

“So you’ve been in contact with her?” Eric grunts. “Why am I not surprised?”

“She called me back after I left her a message about Ivy,” Will protests, turning around as his shoe squeaks loudly on the tiled floor. “I had to know what was going on and how she was going to play this.”

“And?” Eric asks dryly.

“She gave me the whole false sincerity bullshit, but she expects us to get back on schedule once Ivy is released from the hospital.” Even Will sounds defeated as he pats my leg beneath the blanket. “There’s no getting out of it. She’s not going to let us walk away. She thinks that if Ivy can breathe then she can write.”

“I can’t fucking believe this,” Eric mumbles, his voice muffled as he holds his head in his hands.

“Tell me about it,” Will groans. “It took us months to come up with the first draft and she’s only giving us until Christmas, basically a little over eight weeks to turn it around. It’s going to be virtually impossible in Ivy’s fragile condition, but try telling her that. As soon as Ivy gets back on her feet, she’s going to want to do it. She’ll think she can swoop in and save the both of us.”

“And what’s gnawing at me is that we might not have a choice. If Lauren starts calling in my loans, I can’t repay them. Everything’s going to collapse like a house of cards. I can’t bring this baby into the world without any means of supporting it. She has us, plain and simple.” Eric says, sounding confused and out of options.

“You really think she has that much sway over the bank manager?” Will asks, filling a glass from a pitcher of water positioned somewhere near my head.

“Sway? Her stepdad sits on the board of directors. You might as well say he owns the bank. If I default, it’ll hurt my credit rating across the board. I might not be able to purchase new inventory next spring. I’ll be dead in the water. I’m barely hanging on as it is. One ripple like that and it’s all over.” Eric shifts in the chair, rustling the cushion beneath him.

“Ivy knew her stepdad long before Lauren did. She even mentioned to me once how much he liked her when she was still friends with Ryan. Do you really think he’d ruin her like that?” Will questions before nervously gulping down the water.

“That’s the thing. He wouldn’t be ruining her. He’d be ruining me—the guy who created a public spectacle kissing his stepdaughter, the guy who stole Ivy then beat up his son. Yeah, I don’t think he’d have any problem burying me,” Eric admits, sitting back in the chair with a sigh.

“But it’d be affecting her too, wouldn’t it?” Will presses. “I mean, she is pregnant with your child and the two of you live together. If you lose your house and your business, then she’s homeless and broke too.”

“Not if she loses the baby and goes back to school,” Eric mutters under his breath.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. You really think they’d sink that low?” Will grips the edge of the blanket, slightly pulling it down from around my shoulders.

“Ivy was writhing in pain in a puddle of her own blood and Lauren walked away, leaving her there. That right there tells me she’s capable of anything.” Eric’s hand is back on my forehead as I feel his warm breath on my face.

“So are you going to go ahead with your plan to take Ivy back to Pennsylvania when she’s able to travel?” Will questions somewhat nervously.

“Yeah, there’s no way I’m leaving her in L.A. She needs the safety and security of those she loves around her. I’m not letting her out of my sight again.” Eric leans down and gently kisses my closed eyelids.

“There’s just one little problem,” Will interjects, getting up and wheeling what sounds like a suitcase out of the corner of the room. “Dave had Warren kick me out of their poolhouse. I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“And why should I care?” Eric asks, annoyed.

“Because I hold the rights to this little screenplay, and without me, Lauren doesn’t get to ruin your former flame.” Will huffs, hitting Eric where it counts.

“What do you mean former?” Eric seethes.

“Oh yeah, that’s right. This is the part we didn’t get a chance to discuss yet.” Will scoots his chair closer to the bed as I feel him lean over my body.

I wish I could kick him to shut up. He can’t tell Eric about Cassidy. He’ll freak. He needs to hear it from me. Someone who will break it to him gently and not rub it in his face. This is going to send Eric over the edge—if he’s not already there. Damn it, Will. Why do you always have to be such a prick?

“I’m all ears,” Eric says mockingly, stretching his arms above his head. “Tell me why I should support your sorry ass while you work on this with Ivy? Because truthfully, I don’t want you anywhere near her.”

“You’re offering me a place to stay?” Will asks, taken aback.

“I might if you can pick up the slack and let Ivy rest,” Eric muses aloud. “If you need Ivy to come up with the ideas, fine. But she’s not going to be spending hours hunched over a computer or communicating with Lauren in any way. You’re going to handle the majority of the workload, serving as the go-between when it comes to the two of them.”

“And you want me to stay in your house with you and Ivy?” Will asks, pushing his luck.

“I don’t think so,” Eric says smugly. “I’ll set you up with a cot and a kerosene heater in the woodshed out back. If you need to shower, you can use the facilities at the garden center.”

“Are you serious?” Will asks, his excitement over Eric’s offer clearly ebbing.

“There’s nothing wrong with roughing it, Will, especially when you don’t have anywhere else to go. Besides, when you’re not working on the screenplay, I could use an extra hand around the garden center. The Christmas tree season can get pretty hectic. You look like a guy who likes to work with his hands.” Eric must be enjoying this because he starts to chuckle.