Texas Lullaby (Texas Montgomery Mavericks Book 7) Read Online Free

long to get to you. There was an issue with Mitch’s plane when he got back, so we drove.” He pulled her up out of the rocker and held her and the baby tightly against him. Her eyes shuttered closed in relief.
    “What can we do?” Travis whispered.
    “I don’t know where to begin.” She filled them in on Meredith’s rapidly failing condition, her father’s heart event and refusal for immediate surgery, and the abject terror her nieces were going through. If there was anything fortunate tonight, it was that her nephew, Levi, was too young to understand more than dirty diapers and empty tummies. The entire time she spoke, she continued to sway with Levi.
    “Do you want me to check on your sister?” Caroline asked. “Make sure nothing has been missed?”
    Caroline had a much stronger background in emergency medicine than Lydia. Before marrying Travis and settling in Whispering Springs, Caroline had been much in demand as a contract physician for trauma centers.
    “Would you?” Lydia asked. “I’ve read her chart, but I can’t think of anything they’ve missed or that should have been done that wasn’t, but trauma is more your expertise than mine.”
    “Of course.” Caroline gave Travis a peck on his lips. “You can’t go with me to ICU. Make sure your phone is on and I’ll catch up with you later.” After getting directions, Caroline headed off toward ICU.
    “Travis, can you check on my parents? I need to look in on Ellery and Annie. I can’t let them wake up again and be so scared. If you can talk my dad into surgery, I’d be in your debt.”
    “Sure. Where do I need to go?”
    Lydia gave him directions to her father’s room and he headed out.
    Once he was gone, that left her alone with Jason. “Thank you for coming.”
    “You don’t have to thank me. I wanted to be with you. I hate it took so long.”
    “Doesn’t matter. You’re here now.” She carried the sleeping seven-month-old to the crib and lowered him into it. He wiggled a little at the sudden loss of her body heat but didn’t wake. Lydia was thankful for the small favor.
    For a couple of minutes, she held on to the crib rail and watched him sleep.
    “He’s a good-looking kid,” Jason noted.
    “Yeah. I can’t believe how much he’s grown.”
    His broad hand covered the back of her neck and he began to massage the muscles here.
    “What did you do about the wedding?”
    “Postponed. With all the Montgomerys working the phones, it didn’t take long for the notification to spread. Lots of well-wishes for you and your family.”
    Glancing over at him, she smiled. “I know you told them, but make sure your family really knows how much we appreciate their help.” A hiccup rattled her and then, because there was no way to stop them, a volley of tears overflowed her eyes and trickled down her cheeks.
    “Oh, babe. I wish I could do something.” Jason slid his hand off her neck and down her back in comforting strokes.
    “Meredith isn’t going to make it,” she whispered. “I haven’t said that out loud, but I know it. I can’t find a way to tell my parents. Mom is so frantic over Dad that I don’t think she realizes how bad Meredith is. In her mind, Meredith is hurt but she’ll be okay. She won’t, Jason.”
    “Dr. Henson?”
    She and Jason turned toward the voice. A pediatric nurse stood in the doorway. “I’m sorry, Dr. Henson. ICU called. You’re needed there.”
    Jason took her hand and squeezed. “Come on,” he said. “I’ll go with you.”
    When they arrived at the ICU, they found Caroline, Travis and both her parents waiting for them. Her father looked up at her from his wheelchair, his ashen face a reminder that he still faced his own medical challenges. Her mother clung to Travis’s arm, his strength most likely the only thing keeping her upright.
    “What’s going on?” Lydia asked.
    Caroline put her arm through Lydia’s. “Meredith’s doctor is here. He wants to talk to the family.”
    Lydia had