Page 85 of Moving to Love

The nurse walked in and saw them sitting and watching Joci. No one was talking. She checked the IVs and felt Joci’s forehead to gauge her temperature.

“Ms. James, can you wake up please?” she asked her a few times in a kind voice. The nurse rubbed Joci’s left arm and moved her left hand up and down to get her to wake up. Finally, the nurse put her hand on the top of Joci’s head to gently rub the uninjured side of her face. “Ms. James, can you wake up for me?”

* * *

Joci opened her eyes and closed them right away.

“That’s it. Take your time and open your eyes,” said the nurse.

She tried again. She tried to lift her hand to shield her eyes. The nurse leaned forward and adjusted the overhead light.

“Here. Now give it a try. I turned the lights down.”

She slowly opened her eyes again and was able to keep them open. She looked at the nurse, trying to comprehend what was going on.

“Your family is here for you. But before you can visit, I need to take your temperature.”

The nurse stuck a thermometer in Joci’s mouth and took her pulse. Joci looked around the room, seeing her family there, and her brow furrowed until it dawned on her. She’d had an accident. She gasped and sobbed at the same time. She immediately reached for her tummy. She found a hand already there—Jeremiah’s. The nurse quickly pulled the thermometer out of her mouth so she wouldn’t bite into it. Tears spilled out of her eyes.

“Baby?”

The nurse smiled at her and touched her cheek. “You’re still pregnant. We’re watching you closely. Have faith, sugar.”

The nurse grabbed a tissue off the table next to the bed and handed it to Joci. She took it in her left hand and wiped at her tears. The nurse turned and walked out of the room. Joci looked down and saw Jeremiah sitting next to her. He was still, very still. The tears threatened again as she choked out, “I’m so sorry.” Her lip trembled.

Jeremiah leaned forward. “Shh, honey, don’t make it worse. Try and relax, okay?”

“Mom, how do you feel?”

Joci turned her head toward Gunnar. She weakly smiled at her son.

“Well, I guess I’ve been better.”

“Mom, what happened? Deacon said you didn’t brake.”

She looked at Gunnar, and her eyes filled with confusion.

“I did. I tried. The brakes didn’t work. There wasn’t anything there.”

Gunnar sucked in a deep breath. “I checked everything myself. I took it for a test drive before I called you to tell you it was all good. I swear it.”

Joci’s swallowed. “I believe you, baby.”

Jeremiah eyed Gunnar. “When?”

Gunnar frowned. “I don’t know. I worked on it Thursday morning. It ran great. Ryder took it for a ride, too, because we were adjusting the belt, and he helped me with it.”

Gunnar looked at Ryder, and he nodded, “I did. It was fine. After we had adjusted the belt, I took it for a ride and everything was working great.”

Joci sobbed. She looked at Jeremiah. “I’m not lying. The brakes didn’t work. They were squishy, both hand and foot. There wasn’t anything there. I tried to lean into the corner, but I was too fast for it.”

Jeremiah touched Joci’s hair and tenderly stroked her head. He stood up, leaned down, and kissed her forehead.

“Don’t cry, honey. We’ll figure it out. I’ll be right back.” He walked out of the room. Everyone watched him leave—his jaw tight, his back ramrod straight.

Jackie came to Joci’s side and rubbed her left shoulder. “Joci, honey, don’t get too worked up. It’s not good for you or the baby.”

She glanced at Jackie and nodded. “I didn’t try to hurt the baby, Jackie. I didn’t.”