Chapter Thirty-Three
Brady
“You can do this, Allegra,” I urged, trying not to focus too much on the fact that I may not be able to use my hand after this with how hard she was squeezing it. Seriously, the pain was excruciating. But it was nothing, I knew, compared to what Allegra was going through.
She was a perfect, beautiful mess.
Tears were streaming down her face.
Her face was as red as could be.
Her lips were dry, as though she hadn’t wet them with that talented tongue of hers in a while.
And she was sweating. A lot. Her face and neck were glistening with sweat. So much so that sweat was actually dripping from her forehead, and I worried it would drip into her eyes and burn. So I leaned over and carefully wiped away the droplets with my free hand—you know, the one she wasn’t crushing.
“I can’t!” Allegra cried, bringing her knees even further into her chest.
The doctor lifted her head. “One more big push, okay?”
She turned her head to me and cried, more tears falling. “I can’t.” She paused before finishing, “I can’t do this, Brady. I don’t have it in me.” Her head fell back against the bed, and she closed her eyes.
Probably not the time to point this out, so I’d keep it to myself, but son of a bitch—Allegra had wanted to have a home birth. An unmedicated home birth. I hated to say it, but I was glad she went into labor early, and we didn’t have time to argue about that idea anymore. It would have been a disaster.
I shook my head. “You can do this. I know you can.” I brushed the pad of my thumb over the top of her hand, trying to give her more reassurance. “But do you know why I know you’re going to do this? Because you want to meet our little girl. One more big push, and we get to meet her.”
She nodded. “Okay,” she croaked out.
“That’s my girl,” I praised, knowing that would help, too.
Then she pushed, giving it all she had, lifting her head up and crying out so loud I had no doubt every patient on the floor could hear her. None of that mattered, though, because then our baby girl let out a wail that rivaled Allegra’s cries from just moments before.
Allegra tossed her head back, and she shattered completely, crying and crying and crying, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably as the doctor did her thing.
“You did so good,” I told her, bringing her hand to my mouth and kissing her fingers.
“Can I see her?” she asked, looking at the nurse. Then she turned to me and said, “I know I wanted her out sooner, but I’m glad I didn’t go into labor before now because then she would have been a premie.”
I didn’t get to respond, though, because just then the nurse walked over with our baby girl, wrapped in pink, all cleaned up.
She was beautiful. And she was ours.
Perhaps I was biased, but I thought we’d made the most beautiful baby.
I wouldn’t be forgetting this moment anytime soon—Allegra holding our baby girl in her arms, me looking on at the two most important people in my life. My girls.
This was it. I didn’t think life could get much better.
* * *
Allegra
Quinn peered over Jack’s shoulder as he held my daughter in his arms, his face lighting up as he brushed his thumb over her face. “I’m an uncle,” Jack said, staring at Brady, who was on the other side of the bed, his hand on my shoulder. “It’s a good thing you had a baby with Allegra. She got all her looks.”
I bit my lip and looked at Brady. Jack was a good man, but he was wrong about one thing. Brady was beautiful—inside and out.
He brushed my hair back as he’d been doing, and I yawned. I’d been trying to resist how tired I was, but it was getting harder. Only, I really wanted to enjoy every minute of this. I’d been waiting for what felt like forever (okay, since I’d found out I was pregnant) for this moment, for everyone to get a chance to meet our baby and hold her in their arms. I licked my lips, trying to muster up whatever strength I had left to sit up more when I saw my family peek their heads in.
“Come in,” I urged, and Quinn stepped back so my sisters could get close to Jack and the newest addition to the family.
Bianca held her hands out and shook her fingers. “May I?” she asked Jack, who gently passed her over to Bianca. My sister’s eyes practically lit up. “Aw,” she cooed, grabbing one of her fingers. “Aren’t you just adorable?” Her eyes filled with tears, and Knox came up behind her, wrapping his arm around her. “Isn’t she precious?” she asked him.
Knox smiled. “She is. You know, I’m ready whenever you are.”
Bianca gasped before sniffling. “Knox,” she said, slightly nudging him with her elbow.
Knox shrugged. “I’m serious, sweetness.”
It looked like that was a conversation they would be having soon, and I wondered what Bianca would say, but for now I didn’t care. I could only look around the room and smile, feeling eternally grateful for all the people who were here to surround us with love and support. I couldn’t imagine my life without them. My sisters and I had come a long way.
Perla was snuggled into Frankie, his arm draped over her.
Maria was standing beside Dom, who was holding Isabella close to him, a hand on her back.
Even Jade looked on and smiled, her arms crossed over her chest, her dress having long been shed in favor of jeans and a sweatshirt.
And Dad. . . Dad was standing at the foot of my bed, his gaze locked on me, joy in his eyes. I knew the feeling well, and I also knew it couldn’t be confused with anything else. Finally, Dad cleared his throat as Bianca stepped over to hand his newest granddaughter over to him.
“Do you have a name for her?” Dad asked, fixing the blanket around her head.
Brady bent down and kissed the top of my head. “Do you want to tell them?”
I looked down at our hands, our fingers intertwined, making it difficult to see where he started and I began. This was the way I always wanted it to be with this man. I didn’t want us to ever be apart. I wanted us to be together forever.
Who knew that I really could have it all if I just let myself?
Brady had given me the most beautiful thing in the world—my daughter. But he’d also given me this overwhelming feeling. A feeling of acceptance, of love, of belonging.
I belonged with him.
Wherever he was, I wanted to be.
“Allegra,” he said, taking me out of my reverie.
I shook my head, chuckling. “Sorry. Yes, let’s tell them.”
I smiled, looking at each one of them in turn. It was so perfect that it was Dad who had asked about her name. And he was holding her.
“Is it Baby? Because I’ve heard you call her that before,” Isabella said, causing us all to laugh.
“No, Peanut. Although, Baby is a good one, isn’t it?” I asked, winking at her.
Isabella shrugged. “I like it.”
Perla chuckled. “I do, too.”
“It’s all yours, then,” I joked with Perla, who only smiled.
“Okay, come on. What’s her name?” Maria questioned. “We’re on pins and needles over here.”
I took a breath. “Meet”—I eyed Dad—“Gina Jo Morelli Moore.”
A round of oohs and aahs filled the room, but it was Dad’s response that I was most interested in. His eyes were filled with tears, and he sniffled, trying to contain his emotions. “Gina,” he said, looking down at her with a smile as wide as could be. Then he looked up at me, our eyes connecting. “Your mother would be honored.”
Tears began forming in my eyes, and I gushed, “Dad.”
“I really believe it, Allegra. She’s watching over us right now, and she has a smile on her face,” Dad insisted and bent his head to give Gina a kiss on the forehead.
“I know she is,” I admitted and looked up at Brady. A knowing look passed between us. I thought about our visit to the medium as he sat down beside me on the bed and wrapped an arm around my shoulder, his touch comforting me like nothing else could.
“I still like Baby,” Isabella pointed out and walked to Dad, standing on her tiptoes to get a good look at Gina.
We all broke out into laughter, and Perla and Maria moved in closer around Dad, ushering Jade to join them, my sisters each anticipating their turn to hold Gina.
“You know, it’s a good thing you can track the planets but not your cycle,” Bianca joked.
I cringed, rolling my eyes.
“She’s perfect and the perfect addition to the family,” Bianca added.
“I know nothing that happened these past months was planned, but I wouldn’t change a single thing,” I admitted and looked at Jade, hoping she knew I was talking about her, too.
“Me neither,” Brady assured me, intertwining his fingers with mine again. “Being a father to Gina, being with you, and growing my family with all of you”—he gestured to everyone—“it’s more than a guy could ask for.”
“You certainly found the pot at the end of the rainbow, brother,” Jack joked.
“No. I think I did,” I insisted, bringing Brady’s hand to my lips and kissing his fingers.
Then he brought our hands to his mouth and kissed mine.
“The Morelli family is growing in ways your mother and I could’ve only dreamed about,” Dad announced. “You girls are so special to me.” Tears filled his eyes, and he smiled as Maria finally slipped her arms around Gina to hold her.
“It’s a beautiful family,” Dom said, his arm finding Maria’s shoulder as he looked on at Gina and smiled.