CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN Ginger
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
Ginger
“ H ow is she?” CeCe asks Ivy’s mom, Glenda, as she exits the delivery room. We’re all piled into the small waiting room just outside and Jo gets up immediately to get her a coffee. Glenda hasn’t wavered; she’s been at her daughter’s side for hours.
“She’s eight centimeters dilated,” she tells us. “The doctor said she was six when we got here. Probably been in labor all day.”
Just as Cole thought.
“She wanted to have a completely natural birth, but she’s regretting that choice right now,” Glenda grins. “Keeps asking every intern that comes in for drugs. Though she’ll be glad she did it this way when it’s over.” Ivy’s mama sips her coffee. “I can’t believe I’m going to be a grammie,” she says with a sweet smile on her face. Jo pats her hand and we all sit in a sort of happy bliss.
The clock ticks on and a marathon of Property Brothers plays on the waiting room TV. We’ve watched a few episodes when Glenda comes out to give us the update that Ivy is about to start pushing. We sit for another thirty minutes as we watch the end of another episode, before Wade comes out of the delivery room, leans his hand on the wall and takes a deep breath.
“She’s almost there,” he says, looking as white as a ghost. He takes a sip of water and Cole gets up to talk to him. I watch as he claps his older brother on the shoulder.
“Just needed a second. They’re checking her as we speak. It’s so fucking hard to see her in this much pain. All I want to do is fix it for her,” Wade says to Cole.
“You got this, man,” Cole reassures him. “She’s so fucking strong. Trust me, the moment your baby is born she won’t remember the pain. She’ll be so in love and so will you.”
Wade nods and pats his brother’s back before heading back into the delivery room.
“Next time we see you, you’ll be a dad,” Cole calls after him. Wade flashes him a wide grin—a truly rare occurrence. He has the same dimples as Cole.
I smile as I watch the brothers, imagining the two of them when they were younger.
Then my thoughts turn to what it would be like to give Mabel a sibling one day. Someone who could be her best friend. Half Cole, half me. The thought electrifies me.
It isn’t fifteen minutes later when a breathless and teary-eyed Glenda rounds the corner wearing the biggest smile on her face. “It’s a girl!” she cries.
Jo is instantly out of her seat and hugging her. They both cry in each other’s embrace.
“She’s perfect,” Glenda continues. “They’re just getting everyone cleaned up and then you can all come and meet her. Give us fifteen minutes.”
The whole waiting room erupts in cheers.
The wait feels a lot longer than fifteen minutes, but I’m not prepared for the scene that awaits when we enter Ivy’s room. Nor am I prepared for the emotion that overtakes me when I see her. She’s beautiful, with tearstained and flushed cheeks, her hair pulled back in a big messy bun. The look she’s wearing is one of pure, unfiltered joy. It’s the look of true love.
“Congrats, Daddy,” I say to Wade, who is a puddle when Ivy hands him his daughter.
“Thank you,” he says, staring down into his daughter’s eyes. She stares intently back at him, and it feels as though they recognize each other from another life.
“How is it that Ivy gives birth and still looks better than you?” Cole says, patting his brother on the shoulder. “Welcome to the dad club. She’s beautiful.”
The look the two of them share in this moment makes me wish I had a sibling of my own.
Mama Jo hugs Glenda, then Ivy, before the three of them start discussing the details of the birth. Nash wraps his arms around CeCe and whispers something inaudible in her ear.
“Do you want to hold her?” Wade asks Cole after a few minutes.
“Of course,” Cole replies, arms outstretched.
Wade places the tiny pink bundle into my husband’s arms and makes his way back to Ivy, determined to kiss her everywhere he can.
I just stand dumbfounded, unable to take my eyes off Cole. What a fucking sight he is: a little scruff, that backward Yankees hat on his head, and a black t-shirt rocking this newborn babe.
He grins down at his new niece and runs a big finger over her cheek.
“Her name’s Billi Grace,” Wade announces proudly.
“After my daddy,” Ivy says, giving her mom a knowing look.
“Well, hi Billi,” Cole croons, cradling her in his strong arms. “Welcome to the family, beautiful girl. We’re gonna have all kinds of fun, you and me, just to piss your daddy off. And you wait until your cousin meets you.”
Cole’s dimples are at full wattage as he converses with Billi like she can fully understand him. They’re in their own little world. And me? I’m ready to become a full-on baby-making machine for this man if it means I get to see him like this with our children.
Cole glances up at me, before slowly making his way over with Billi in his arms.
“You’re next, Auntie.” He smirks.
He places her in the crook of my elbow and I’m instantly in love. She’s all wrinkled-pink, heaven-scented goodness. Her bottom lip moves like she’s suckling away as her eyes flutter closed in sleep.
“You’ve had a busy night, haven’t you, little peanut?” I say to her. “That’s a lot of hard work coming into this world.”
I can’t understand why—maybe it’s the creation of life in my arms or the way Wade and Ivy look right now—but I feel the tears start to well up. Everything around me right now is so beautiful. So intimate. An overwhelming sense of gratitude washes over me.
“The fortress of strength and sass cries?” Wade jokes as a tear slides down my cheek. Cole is next to me instantly, swiping it off.
“Shut up, Daddy Wade,” I say. “I’m just so grateful to be here with you all.”
Cole’s arm goes around my shoulders and his lips hit my temple.
“You’re so fucking next,” he whispers. His hand grazes the small of my back and I look up at him.
“Can’t wait,” I say softly. His eyes darken and I know he means every word he says. With him, I want it all.
Cole kisses my cheek.
“Still not used to that . Who’s with me?” Papa Dean asks, coming in the door, his hand raised. The room gives a collective laugh.
“I think it’s beautiful,” Jo says, winking at me. “Always knew you two were destined to be together.”
“Of course you did, Mama.” Wade side-hugs her and kisses the top of her head. “You know everything.”
“Sure do,” she says with a grin as she tightens her ponytail. “I’m seeing a lot more grandchildren in my future.” Jo winks. “And I love seeing you all happy.”
“Who’d have fuckin’ thought?” Wade chimes in as the room laughs.
I make my way to Ivy with a sleeping Billi and place her in her mama’s arms.
“You did so good,” I tell her.
“Thank you,” Ivy says, still emotional. “It’s like taking a piece of your heart out and praying for it to always be safe and happy. It’s the best and the scariest feeling in the world.”
“I bet,” I say, feeling the tears start to build again.
“I was so nervous,” she says quietly while the room chatters around us. “I didn’t know what it would be like. I kept wondering if I would feel a connection with her instantly. Whether she’d know me. But now that she’s here … It’s like she knows I’m her home and she’s mine.”
She smiles down at her daughter and kisses her forehead. I look back at Cole, ready to go home with him after this emotional night.
His eyes meet mine across the room and it’s as though he can read my mind. He pats Wade on the shoulder and makes his way over to me, stopping to speak to Ivy as he does, telling her what a great job she did.
“Love you both,” he says to Ivy and Billi as he kisses Ivy on the top of her head. “Let us know when you get home tomorrow. Mabes will be dying to come by when she gets home from Ernie and Trudy’s.”
Ivy nods. “Of course.”
Cole closes the space between us.
“Ready to go home?” I ask quietly when he reaches me.
“Nah. Not waiting that long. There’s a utility closet down the hall. We’re going there first,” he replies, dropping a kiss on my cheek. “I’m gonna practice filling my wife right the fuck up, and then I’m going to take you home so you can properly scream my name.”
He says this in the lowest whisper so no one can hear, his breath hot on my neck. Yep, that does me in.
I say congratulations to everyone one more time, then, like the dutiful wife I am, I follow my husband out the door.