Chapter 23
OLLIE
After a few tense moments, my siblings agreed to go to their hotels, leaving only our parents and Blake's sister Cassie at the house to await Denise's arrival.
Our birthing assistant was on another call, also in Chicago.
She promised to come as soon as she could, but insisted, "You still have plenty of time. "
Mom didn't believe her. "His contractions are already three minutes apart. He's in active labor."
I fluffed the pillows and helped Blake into bed. We wanted a water birth, but Denise had the comfy inflatable tub.
"It's fine," Blake said through clenched teeth.
"He's been having contractions all day." Mom rolled her eyes. "Sure beats Dan's weekly trips to the hospital with Braxton-Hicks."
"Nina's a healthy baby girl," I reminded her. My niece had been born in February, and it wouldn't be long before she'd be walking on her own, if today's demonstration of pulling herself up to stand by the couch was any indication. "Dan loves her and Zander. Please give them a break."
"Fine." She sighed. "You're still my favorite," she whispered to Blake.
"You shouldn't have favorites!" The words were out of my mouth before I could temper them. I'd learned from a young age to censor my speech, so my mom didn't scream at me over every flippant word.
Instead of scowling, she beamed at me. "You're my favorite son. It's only fair that your mate should be my favorite, too."
I blinked at her, my mind trying to fit her words with my experience. I was her favorite? How could that be? She'd been so hard on me.
"Oh, honey."
She shimmied off the bed, where she'd sat beside Blake, and came around it, arms spread. I hugged her tight, and she rearranged my spine with her powerful squeeze.
"You've always been my favorite. You listen. You know the difference between a flathead and a Phillips screwdriver when I ask for one. You're the one most like me."
I snorted at that. I was nothing like my mom. She had a temper a mile long. I'd learned early to control mine, so we didn't butt heads. "I don't see it."
"He's nothing like you," Dad said from the doorway. "Is it safe for us to come in while we wait for Denise?"
Mom laughed and returned to the bed, patting the mattress at her side. Dad sat beside her.
Cassie peeked around the doorframe, her eyes wide. "Are you finished with your family squabble?"
Mom laughed. "Yes. Ollie and Blake know their places now."
Cassie grinned and sat at Blake's feet, rubbing his arches with her thumbs. "Our parents used to argue over nothing," she said after a minute. "Remember when they forgot the name of the amusement park in Los Angeles?"
Blake laughed and then whimpered when another contraction hit him. He squeezed my hand and breathed through it.
His breathing returned to normal after a minute, and he said, "Yeah. 'It was Six Flags.' 'No, it was Magic Mountain.'"
"It's Six Flags Magic Mountain," we all said together. My family had gone there, too, before the triplets were born, the only other time I'd been on a plane before I flew to Oregon.
"Do you think they had favorites?" Cassie asked.
Blake's laugh sounded a little more natural this time. "Of course they did. I was their favorite son, and you were their favorite daughter."
She nodded. "Yeah, I suppose you're right."
We sat like that for a while, with Mom timing Blake's contractions. They were a minute apart when I heard a knock on the door.
"That had better be Denise." I kissed Blake's hand and placed it on the comforter. He clenched it into a fist, balling up the soft material.
When I opened the door, Denise rushed inside without a word and hustled our family members out of the bedroom.
"Fuck!"
Blake's shout drew me back to the bedroom door.
"I'm sorry. You probably could have hopped in your tub when the contractions were mild, but these babies are coming now."
I returned to the living room. "We don't have time for a water birth."
Mom nodded. "I told you so."
Dad laughed and pulled her closer, kissing the side of her head. "Nobody likes a know-it-all."
"I like it." Cassie's voice was so soft, I almost missed it as I walked back to the bedroom door. I hesitated in the hallway, curious what she would say next.
"Our parents didn't lie to us, exactly, but they never spoke their minds. Your family is so real. I love it here."
"Thank you," Mom said. "That means so much. Blake is stuck with us now, but you're always welcome at our home, too, Cassie. It must be hard with your parents gone."
If I stayed in the hallway, I would start crying. I knocked on the bedroom door before opening it a crack.
"Get in here!" Blake shouted. "I'm not doing this without you!"
I opened the door to find our bed covered in thick absorbent padding. Blake was on his hands and knees in the middle, with his bare ass pointed at me. It was still so round. His cheeks fit perfectly in my hands as I spread them wider. "Is that—"
"The baby's crowning. It's almost time to push, Blake."
He whimpered and flattened his chest to the bed while keeping his ass in the air. "I don't want to. It hurts."
I rubbed his ass again, and slid my hands up his spine, kneading the tight muscles in his lower back. "You want to meet our babies," I reminded him. "You can do this."
"That's it," Denise said when his next contraction started. "Push."
He sobbed against his arms and every muscle in his body flexed. The first baby's head appeared. With his next push, a shoulder popped free, and then the other. She fell into my arms with a whoosh, all slick, bloody, screaming, and perfect. She was ours, this little miracle of fate.
Denise whisked her away to the birthing station she'd set up on top of our dresser. After making a few measurements and dripping some drops into the baby's eyes, she handed her to me.
"Show Blake."
His body shook with another contraction, but he smiled wide when he saw our beautiful daughter. I lay her by his face, and he kissed her perfect nose. She stared up at him and made a soft cooing sound. "So beautiful."
"So are you." I leaned in for a kiss of my own, but it was cut short.
"Fuck," he said. "How much longer?"
"In a few minutes, I'll need you to push again."
He dropped his head to give our daughter another kiss. Beads of sweat dripped from his hair onto the mattress around her.
"Take her," he said. "I don't want to get her all sweaty."
"You can put her in the cart." Denise had brought a two-bed rolling cart lined with soft blankets. I gently set her in it, expecting her to cry. Instead, she closed her eyes, waiting patiently for her sibling.
"Family," my bear said. He'd been crowing about family all day, but I'd assumed he meant the baby shower. I should have known better. Silly traditions meant nothing to my bear. He'd been telling me our children were coming today.
"Get over here!" Denise shouted. "It's better for the baby if their daddy catches them."
Daddy. I was a daddy! My arms trembled as I held them out, waiting to catch our second child. Blake shouted as he pushed, and I caught our son with a wet splat.
"Only a little bit more, and you'll be done." Denise took the baby from me. When she returned with him in her arms, he stared up at me with the same awe our little girl had when she looked at Blake.
"Do you have names for them yet?" she asked.
"Rebecca," Blake said. "We'll call her Becky or Becca, whichever she prefers. And Elias."
"Those are strong names." Denise patted his leg.
"They were my parents' middle names." His voice was thick with tears. "Cassie wanted their first names, so this is the next best thing."
My eyes filled with tears. I'd seen their names on some of Blake's paperwork from the estate and will, but hearing the names aloud sent warm shivers down my spine. I felt like they were in the room with us, looking down on our beautiful babies.
I scooped Rebecca into my arms. I'd always been too cautious to carry twins at the same time, but with my own, it came naturally. Denise opened the door for me and asked Mom to run Blake a sitz bath.
Mom kissed both babies on the forehead and then disappeared down the hallway toward the bathroom. "I'll be back for you two later!"
Cassie smiled through her tears when I shared their names. She took Rebecca and Dad held Elias while I rushed back to the bedroom to help Denise and Blake.
"You're all done," Denise said after Blake's bath, while I helped him into a pair of boxers. "I'll be back in six weeks to check on you."
"Thank you." Blake hugged her.
She kissed his temple. "You did all the hard work. They're perfect."
Once Blake lay on his back in bed, I removed the twins' swaddling and lay them on his bare chest.
"They are perfect," he said. "Ten fingers. Ten toes. Bright eyes. A little flaky skin, but that'll be gone in no time."
"And gorgeous heads of hair." Blake huffed a laugh as I rubbed their little cue-ball heads. Neither of our children had a single strand of hair yet, but that was all right. They'd more than make up for it when they shifted for the first time.