Man of Honor (Passion in Paradise Book 4) by Sarah O'Rourke

inhale deeply, crying out with the effort. 
“Why does it hurt so much?  Zeke, what…wait!  Patience!  Oh, God.  The wreck. 
There was a car wreck!  Where’s Patience?” she shouted, her body going stiff as
Zeke watched the confusion clear from her eyes as the earlier events of the
evening flooded her memory.
    Dropping a heavy
hand on her shoulder when Honor would have jerked upright in the bed no matter
how much the movement hurt her, Zeke bent until his lips hovered above hers and
stared into her wide, terrified eyes.  “Breathe, Honor.  Patience is here. 
She’s okay.”
    Blinking rapidly
as her dilated eyes shined under the fluorescent lighting, Honor struggled
against the pressure of Zeke’s hand.  “Where?  Where is she?  What about the
babies?” she questioned quickly, her voice high and anxious as her eyes went
from Zeke to the nurse and back again.
    Exchanging a look
over Honor’s head with the nurse, Zeke saw the woman nod slightly.  “She’s
lookin’ good, Sheriff.  I’ll let the docs know our girl is awake and we’ll get
her a dose of morphine.  Miss Honor, your man… or your non-man is gonna fill
you in on everything.  You just settle down while I go get your meds and put a
call into the doctor,” the nurse ordered calmly before quickly hotfooting it
out of the cubicle.
    “Zeke?” Honor
called, tugging at his sleeve with what little strength she had.  “Patience and
the little ones?   Please, tell me they’re all alright!” she begged.
    “Your big sister
is just a few cubicles down from you, Sweetheart.  She’s banged up and a little
tired from givin’ birth, but Abel stuck his head in here an hour ago and
assured me that they were all fine.”
    “They’re too
early,” Honor worried brokenly, her eyes tearing up as she stared at Zeke with
concern.  “Almost a whole month.”
    “Babies are
resilient, Kitten.  Each was a bit small, but all were healthy.  Although,
there was one major surprise,” he noted with a wide grin.
    “You’re smilin’,”
Honor muttered.  “Smilin’ is good, right?”
    “Well, in typical
Patience McKinnon style, she chose to go big before going home,” Zeke chuckled,
rubbing his fingers through the silky blonde hair resting on the baby blue
pillowcase.
    “Huh?” Honor
grunted.
    “Patience didn’t
have twins, Honor.  She had triplets.”
    Honor’s eyes
closed for a long second before opening again to stare blankly at him. 
“Triplets?” she breathed.  “For real?”
    Zeke nodded. 
“You’re an auntie again times three, baby,” he informed her, his hand reaching
for hers when a tear drop escaped her eye to roll down her cheek.
    “And all of them
are okay?” Honor clarified, watching Zeke’s face closely for any sign of
deception.
    “I swear on my
love for you, baby, all three kids and your sister are all going to recover
just fine,” Zeke vowed solemnly, leaning forward to press a lingering kiss
against Honor’s forehead.   
    A raw sob escaped
Honor’s lips at that promise as she lifted her hand to curl it around Zeke’s
neck while he held his lips pressed to her forehead.  “Thank God.” 
    “You took the
brunt of the injuries, Kitten,” Zeke shared against her skin.
    “Good,” Honor
declared with a watery laugh.  “If somebody had to get the brunt of it, I’m
glad it was just me.”
    “What?” Zeke
growled, lifting his lips to glare at her. 
    “My overachieving
sister is now a mother to three tiny little humans.  She needs all her
strength.  If somebody needs to suffer here, it should be me.  Nobody depends
on me for anything.”
    “That’s bullshit. 
I depend on you for everything, Honor.  My happiness.  My sanity.  Pretty much
every single thing in my life.  I hate that either of you were hurt,” he
grumbled.  “But you need to get it through your head that you are every bit as
important as any of your sisters.  And you’re more than important to me. 
You’re vital.