Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
SAVANNAH
“Where do you want this?” Blake asks as he and Daniel carry the tree into the living room, the smell of pine already filling the space.
“Can you put it over there?”
I watch as the two of them maneuver the tree into the corner of the room, cursing every time they get stuck or bump into something before they finally manage to place it on the floor.
“You know, they have fake trees, right?” Daniel asks, dusting his palms off.
“You did not!” I gasp loudly.
“What?” He shrugs. “They’re the same, only they’re way easier to manage, and they don’t make such a mess.”
“No way.” I shake my head, not believing the words leaving his mouth. “They’re most certainly not the same. Inhale.”
Daniel’s brows furrow as he glances between Blake and Levi. “What?”
“Inhale. Do you smell that?”
He rubs the back of his neck but does as asked. “I guess?”
“And what do you smell?”
His nose crinkles as if he’s trying extra hard to think. “A tree?”
“Christmas!” I press my hand against my forehead and let out an exasperated sigh. Seriously, these kids will be the death of me. “It smells like Christmas. And no fake-ass tree will ever be able to replace that, so no, we’ll not have a fake tree in our home.”
A strong jab of pain spreads through my middle. Letting my hand drop, I rub at the side of my belly.
“No fake trees.” Blake’s hand slides to the small of my back as he looks at me. “You’re frowning.”
“I’m forty weeks pregnant, I’m big and uncomfortable, and I’ve been dealing with Braxton Hicks for the past two weeks. Your baby can’t decide if it’d rather kick my ribs or bladder, so it’s kicking both, and at this point, I think I’ll never see my toes again. If that’s not a reason to frown, I don’t know what is. And, on top of that, Daniel just said we should get a fake Christmas tree.”
All the words come out in a rush, and I can feel my lower lip wobble as I try to regain my composure.
What I thought were the first signs of labor a couple of weeks ago turned out to be a false alarm. Something that apparently happens more often than not and based on the words of Dr. Gonzales, is simply my body just preparing for the real thing. As if this wasn’t the real thing. The constant pain felt very real to me.
Blake turns me to face him, his hands cupping my face. “Blondie…”
“I’m sorry, I’m just one big mess.” I shake my head. “The last few weeks have been a lot.”
After everything that played out with my mother—who was now gone, hopefully, for good—and with my due date approaching, Blake insisted we should sit the boys down as soon as possible and talk to them about this new change.
They took the idea of living under one roof way better than I hoped, and within a week, they were moved into my place, and Blake put his house on the market.
I won’t lie, the shift wasn’t the easiest, but I didn’t expect it to be. We’re all still adjusting to our new normal, but I hoped with time, things would get easier.
“Let’s just decorate the tree, and then we can watch movies and drink hot chocolate. Or, well, you guys can drink it, and I’ll just inhale the sweet scent.”
“A little while longer,” Blake whispers, leaning down and pressing his mouth against mine in a soft kiss. “Where are the lights?”
I hand him the box before grabbing one with the ornaments I pulled from the attic. “You boys wanna help me?”
Levi blinks, a confused expression crossing his face and matching his brother’s.
What in the ever lo ? —
“We can help?” I watch as a smile flashes on Levi’s face, “You mean it? Really?”
For a moment, I just stare at him, speechless.
“Of course! I can’t do it all by myself, can I?”
“Mom usually brought people to decorate our tree, and we couldn’t touch anything so we wouldn’t break it,” Levi says quietly, his smile falling.
I press my mouth in a tight line.
I should have known. The Walker boys didn’t talk a lot about Blake’s ex, but any time a little detail like this came out, I disliked the woman more and more. Who paid for professional decorators and told their kids they couldn’t touch the Christmas tree?
Blake’s ex, apparently.
A dark expression passes over Daniel’s face before he looks away, almost like he’s embarrassed, and I instantly feel bad for saying anything.
“I’m going to grab something to drink.”
Dammit.
I opened my mouth, but no words came out, and even if they did, he was already gone.
“It’s fine,” Blake says softly so Levi can’t hear him, his hand brushing against the small of my back. “Just give him a minute.”
“I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong. You’re different from anything they’ve been used to. It’ll take some time for them to adapt.”
“Can I put these on?” Levi asks, suddenly lifting the box.
Blake brushes his lips against the top of my head. “Go decorate the tree. I’ll go check in on Daniel.”
Nodding, I shift my attention to Levi. “What did you find?”
“Look.” He looks up with one of Grams’ vintage ornaments in his hand. “They’re so shiny.”
“They are. You wanna know a secret?”
Levi’s eyes grow wide as he nods, and I lean down. “They were my favorite when I was a kid.” I wink at him. “Where do you want to put them?”
He turns to the tree. “I can put them anywhere?”
“Anywhere you want.”
Levi thinks for a moment before he places the first ornament. I hand him the next one, directing him every now and then a little until the box is empty. I start to crouch down to get the next one when Daniel appears at my side.
“Where do you want these?” he asks as he opens the box and pulls out an ornament.
“Why don’t you do the high parts?”
Daniel stops for a moment, but he nods. “Okay, I can do that.”
I can feel a slight jab in my side. Resting my hand against my belly, I rub at the spot, when from the corner of my eye, I spot Blake leaning against the doorway and watching us from a distance.
Our eyes meet, and the corner of his mouth tips up as he pushes from the door. “Have a place for one more?”
“Always.”
Between all of us, we put all the decorations on in no time. Well, the boys put most of them on while I hand around the ornaments, trying my best to ignore the ever-present pain, which seems to be growing by the minute.
There was no more reservation on their faces. Even Daniel was smiling, and that’s saying something.
“It looks so pretty!” Levi says as he takes in the tree.
“It’s not done just yet.” I look around the floor, until I spot the box I’m looking for and pull out a shiny gold star and hand it to him. “One final touch.”
His smile turns blinding as he watches the star.
Blake crouches next to him. “Ready to put it up?”
Levi nods silently, so Blake lifts him up while Levi slides the star in place.
“I did it! This is the best tree ever.”
“You guys did a great job.”
“We did.” Blake puts him back down, and Levi turns around. “Is it time for cookies and a movie now?”
I chuckle at his question, but the sound dies when the strongest contraction yet, makes me double down in pain.
Holy shit. Stupid Braxton Hicks.
“Blondie?” Large hands land on my waist. “Are you okay?”
I press my lips together and nod.
Blake’s serious eyes watch me for a moment. “You’re not okay. You’ve been rubbing your back this whole time.”
“I probably overdid it. Just give me a few.”
“There is no probably about it. Sit down.”
I open my mouth to protest, but Blake shoots me a death glare, so I let out a sigh and do as he asks.
“Happy?”
“Yes. Now be a good girl and stay seated like that. I’ll clean this up and bring the snacks.”
I watch him put all the boxes on top of each other and pick them up. My stomach tightens again, stronger this time.
“Are you really okay?” Levi asks as he snuggles next to me.
I wrap my arm around him. “I’m really okay.”
Levi nods, his attention on the TV. “Sav?”
“Yes?”
He tilts his head back. “Do you think Munchkin will come before Christmas?”
“I don’t know. It depends on when Munchkin is ready to come.”
“But when will he be ready?” He sits upright and turns to me. “How is Santa going to know if Munchkin is here so he can bring him a present? He needs to get a present.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, trying to keep a straight face. “I’m sure Santa won’t forget about Munchkin.”
The pressure builds in my belly, making me squirm in my seat, but when nothing helps, I push to my feet. “I’m just going to?—”
The words die on my lips as I feel something trickle down between my legs just as Blake enters the room, two cups of hot chocolate in his hands.
“Sav, did you just pee your pants?”
My cheeks turn bright red at Levi’s question.
Holy shit.
“You did, didn’t you?” Levi pats my hand. “It’s fine, accidents happen. That’s what Dad always used to tell me.”
“Levi,” Blake chastises as he puts the cups on the coffee table. “We don’t point that stuff out. It?—”
“Blake?” I grab him with my free hand as another wave of pain spreads through me, this one stronger. “My water broke. It’s time.”
It wasn’t just back pain.
A contraction.
An actual contraction.
“It’s fine, babe, let’s go upstairs, and I’ll help you clean up. It’s not a big…” Blake trails off, and his brows furrow. “It’s time?” I watch as the realization slowly dawns on him. His eyes fall to my stomach, and for a moment, I think he might actually freak out. But then his head snaps up, his eyes meeting mine. I watch as different emotions play on his face. Uncertainty. Fear. Surprise. Excitement. Joy. “It’s time? You sure?”
I bite into my lower lip and nod, my throat feeling tight.
“Okay.” In the blink of an eye, any doubts are gone, and there is only strong and steady Blake left. “It’s going to be okay.”
Levi glances between the two of us. “Time for what? What’s going on?”
Blake pulls back, his hand falling to the small of my back as he looks at his youngest son. “Munchkin is coming.”