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“I know and that’s what I thought too, until Lauren explained how they see it.” He indicated for the VP to turn and look at their group. “But look at it like the hospital sees it,” and he outlined the same things Lauren had for him, ending with, “she’s gone back to talk to Hex and Elizabeth, see where things stand. This could take hours. We don’t all need to be here for it, not unless there are complications, and even then, there’s nothing we can do but wait. I’m going to suggest that once Lauren’s back with news, unless it’s that Elizabeth is close to delivery, that we send most of the group away. Who can be up to you or volunteers, or whatever, I don’t care. I just don’t want to cause difficulty for anyone. Not Elizabeth and Hex, not Lauren or anyone else. Besides, look at them. Most of them will be better off with something to do. Something, anything to keep their hands and minds busy.”

Wrath nodded slowly without saying anything, at least not right away. He watched the group for at least a couple of minutes before he turned to Cypher.

“You have a point. What do you suggest? How many should we keep here, and who?”

“Honestly? I’m not sure. Let’s wait to see what Lauren says when she comes back, and we can go from there.”

A few minutes later, Lauren returned, a smile on her face as she came straight to Cypher.

“She’s doing well, but it’s going to be a while yet. She was not happy to find out that you all are out her menacing the nurses, those were her words, not mine,” Lauren reported. “She said to tell everyone to go home, and they will reach out if they need anything or when the baby is born.”

Cypher turned and looked at Wrath who was close enough to have heard everything she’d said. Wrath didn’t argue, just shook his head. There was no way they’d leave Hex and his old lady alone and unguarded, even here in the hospital. Not with some of the shit the club was mixed up in. Wrath scanned the room as if looking for someone, then seeming to spot them, got up and walked away. Lauren watched him leave, but didn’t say anything. She turned back to Cypher with a confused frown.

“Later,” Cypher said softly as he watched the VP head for Cyclone. The two spoke quietly for a moment then they separated. Cyclone headed for another of the brothers as Wrath moved to stand in the middle of the room. Just the movement, after so much sitting and waiting drew most people’s attention.

“All right, folks,” Wrath clapped his hands once, then rubbed them together. “Elizabeth found out we’re out here waiting and has ordered us home.”

Voices rose in protest, but he held up a hand and after a moment, they died down.

“Knowing we’re out here is upsetting her, so we’re going to do as she asked. We’ll head home and wait. They have promised to let us know once the little one arrives or if they need anything. That’s the best we can do.” His gaze scanned the area. “Let’s say ten minutes. I want us out of here in ten minutes. We’ve stressed out the nurses as well as our first lady, and we don’t want either one.”

“We can’t leave them alone here,” a voice Cypher thought he recognized but couldn’t be certain, came from somewhere behind Roadkill, Jenna, and Lacey.

“I didn’t say we’re leaving them alone. Cyclone is talking to the men he wants to stand guard. They will stay and make sure Hex and Elizabeth are safe. The rest of us will head home. How about we go make use of that pool while we can?”

The rustle of a bunch of people moving seemed suddenly loud. People stood, gathered whatever they’d brought with them, if anything, and headed for the door.

“Are we leaving too?” Lauren asked him.

Cypher nodded. “We can go to the clubhouse with everyone else or to your place, it’s up to you.”

“I need to get my car. Then I think I’d like to go to the clubhouse.” She glanced around the room, then back to him. “If you don’t mind that is.”

“Sweetheart, I never mind spending time with you. Just tell me where and I’ll be there.” He wrapped an arm around her waist and joined the clusters of people heading for the elevator.

Chapter Sixteen

Lauren took the time to swing by her place before going to the clubhouse. Not just to drop off her computer so it wouldn’t be rattling around in her trunk, but she also wanted to grab her swimsuit as well as everything she’d need if she spent the night. She hadn’t spent much time in the pool until the last couple of weeks, and even then, not as much as some of the other women, though she didn’t think any of them came anywhere close to how much Elizabeth had used the pool.

She didn’t know if she would use it today, not with the men going to take advantage of Elizabeth being busy elsewhere to take a dip themselves. She couldn’t imagine what hijinks a half dozen bikers would get up to when neither their president nor his wife was there to tell them to knock it off. Still, at least she would be prepared. It was a scorcher out today and she wouldn’t mind lying in the pool for a while, maybe with something cool to drink.

That sounded heavenly at the moment.

She pulled her little SUV up to the gate and waited while it rolled open. Bobby Lee stepped out of the gate and motioned for her to roll down the window.

“How you doin’?” he asked as he looked in her back seat. Movement in her mirror drew her eye and she watched as another prospect, one who’s name she couldn’t recall moved to the rear of her vehicle and looked in the back window before nodding to Bobby Lee. “Go on ahead.”

Lauren frowned, wondering what they’d been looking for before letting her in. Did they think she was smuggling something in? She pulled in and parked where Cypher had instructed her to some time ago, then grabbed her bags and went inside.

She waved at everyone as she passed, but headed for the stairs and Cypher’s room. She didn’t want to haul her bags around, or answer a billion questions about them, so it was easier not to have them. At the door, she keyed in the door code Cypher had given her, put her bags on the bed, including her purse, though she made sure she still had her cell on her, and left them there.

There were only a few people left when she made it back to the common room. Standing at the base of the stairs, she scanned the room, trying to decide what to do. She wanted to find Cypher and at least check in on him, but she didn’t see him. He was probably in his command center, especially since he wasn’t in his room, but Jenna and Lacey sat at a booth in one corner. She headed for the booth, figuring that if she was in the common room, she was easily found if Cypher wanted to find her, and if not, she was good talking to the girls. Besides, the cold drinks they each held were way too tempting.

“Why did we have to leave?” Lacey asked almost as soon as Lauren sat down.

“Wrath told you. Because knowing we were all there waiting was upsetting Elizabeth,” Lauren said, her tone patient. “I know it’s exciting, at least for a little bit, to go to the hospital to wait, but it gets boring fast. And it’s not like we all show up and in twenty minutes or an hour the baby shows up, fast, easy and on time. Labor and deliver can take hours, and even hours is considered fast. It can take a couple of days if things move slowly.” Lauren shook her head. “You don’t want to wait around that long. No one does.”

“But I wanted to be there.” The girl’s voice was little better than a whine as she folded her arms across her chest. The tone and gesture reminded Lauren that no matter how mature the girl might be and how well she seemed to be recovering from the trauma she’d been through, she really was just a teenager.