Check how many stems of roses there are, go back into the office, I think silently. Bending down to pick up a bucket of roses, I shift the one on top to pull another box out from under the shelf. When I rise up with the box in hand, I know something is wrong. The flowers are practically spinning around me.

At the edges of my vision darkness starts to seep over my gaze.

I hear a shout and something hitting the floor.

Blackness completely overtakes my vision.

Everything is blurry.

When my vision comes back into focus, I see Lyndsey’s ginger hair falling around her face. She’s leaning over me, slouched on her knees. My head is rested on her lap like a cushion, but I can’t seem to speak. My throat feels scratchy as I swallow.

I can make out Lyndsey holding a phone to her ear, but I feel like I’m under water. Everything sounds far away. My eyes flutter before closing fully again. The only thing I can feel is Lyndsey’s fingers brushing through my hair.

“Liam,” I whisper when I come back around again.

This time it’s strangers standing above me. Paramedics poke me, shining a torch in my eyes. Lyndsey gives me a cup of water to sip but it feels strange to swallow, like my throat is raw. My heartbeat is still thumping in my head, like my temples are bursting.

“I’m calling him, El, I promise.” Lyndsey’s voice sounds closer this time. She’s above me, using my phone to call him.

“Liam,” I moan again. It’s all I can muster. It’s all I want right now. Liam.

As I become more aware of my surroundings, that’s when fear hits.

There’s a band strapped around my belly. I’m in the back of an ambulance. My baby’s heartbeat is being projected onto a monitor.

Lyndsey passes my stuff into the back of the ambulance, her words a catalogue of promises: promising that she will take care of the store and asking me to promise to give her updates. But I can’t think about that now.

I need to know my baby is okay.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Liam

Even during the offseason, I try to spend as much time as I can on the ice.

Not making the playoffs this season was a blessing and a curse. No NHL player wants to get knocked out, so obviously it sucks that all the hard work the team put in wasn’t enough. My contract coming to an end plus the fear of being away from Ellis if she needs me is a lot to deal with. I know that I only have a few good years left, and I want to leave on my own terms – not because my body can’t handle the strain.