EPILOGUE
Cole
I thought I’d overcome my fear of just about everything, but watching Ella in labor had me terrified.
I knew childbirth was natural. Normal. Had been happening since the beginning of time. But seeing my little doctor in pain made everything I’d learned about staying calm in crisis situations fly out the window.
“Breathe with me,” I coached through a contraction. For once, she wasn’t spouting medical terms. Just crushing my hand and trying not to scream.
“Eight centimeters,” the nurse announced cheerfully.
“I know that.” Ella snapped. “I’m a doctor. And you.” She grabbed my collar. “This is your fault. No more sex. Ever.”
“The nurses warned me you’d say that,” I tried to joke, but my voice shook.
“The nurses can go to— oh God.” She crushed my hand harder. “Cole...”
“Right here, little doctor.” I pressed kisses to her knuckles. “Not going anywhere.”
“Even though I’m threatening your sex life?” The contraction had passed and she leaned back against the pillow, exhaustion and excitement written on her face.
“Even then.”
“Good, because...” Her eyes went wide. “I think... I need to push.”
What followed was the most terrifying and beautiful thirty minutes of my life. Ella, my brilliant doctor who’d faced her fears of driving for me, brought our daughter into the world with raw courage and determination.
“She’s perfect,” Ella whispered later, cradling our tiny girl.
“Like her mama.” I edged myself onto the bed, pulling them both close, my whole world in my arms.
“You know she’ll probably say stethoscope before daddy,” Ella teased.
“As long as she’s healthy, she can learn her ABC’s in Latin for all I care.”
Ella’s tired laugh was the best sound I’d ever heard. “I love you. Even if you did this to me.”
“Love you too, little doctor.” I kissed them both softly. “And if I recall you were an active participant in the event.”
And I did. I loved Ella more than I ever thought possible. I’d been a little broken, a whole lot of alone when she’d come into my life. She’d given me so much. Like our perfect little girl. And despite her insistence, I knew there’d be more joining our family. And I could already hear the argument she’d use.
Something about fast postpartum recovery and sibling bonding.