Chapter 40
Forty
“ S -She’s coming.”
Oh, fuck. If Sam felt like he was going to pass out when Evie said her water broke, the feeling was a million times worse after hearing that.
“Here, Sam. Help Evie sit on the floor in front of the couch.”
“Shouldn’t she lay down?”
“No!” Evie yelled. “I want to sit up.”
“Gravity helps. Even if it’s just a little bit. Here, let’s get her settled and then I can get out my supplies.”
With Sam on one arm and Jake on the other, they helped Evie sit. She immediately threw herself onto her hands and knees, moaning as she worked through another contraction.
“You know how to squeeze her hips for counter pressure?” Jake asked, pulling what looked like sterile tools from his bag. Sam’s head spun. God, he needed to get a grip.
“Yeah, we’ve practiced it before.”
“Good. Let’s try some of that to see if we can’t help Evie feel a little better during these contractions.”
“Why is this happening so fast?” she groaned .
“I think you’ve been in labor longer than you realize, Evie.” Jake answered.
“No, no, no. I can’t do this. I can’t. There was supposed to be ice chips, and laboring in the shower before a blissful epidural. There’s no way I’m strong enough to do this without drugs. I want the drugs, Sam. THE. DRUGS. ”
“You can do this. You can. And you’re going to. Because all this pain? This fear? It’s the last hurdle to break through before we get to meet our girl.”
“It’s not supposed to be happening here. I can’t… I can’t give birth to her here in the office.”
“Why not? This is where we fell in love. It makes sense for Jellybean to be born here.”
“Really? Right here next to our desks?”
“Yeah. Right here, where I get to spend every day with my best friend. Where I fell in love with her and the sweet baby in her belly that made her crave the most god-awful combinations of food, and gave her hiccups at all hours of the day. Where I watched a brilliant woman stop someone from destroying my family’s legacy. It’s right that Jellybean should be born here. It’s where our story started. It’s fitting that her story will start here too.”
“What did I ever do to deserve you?”
Sam didn’t have a chance to respond before the next contraction had Evie screaming out in agony. Fuck. Sweat dripped down his back as panic edged his vision.
Evie shifted so her legs were underneath her body, and she rubbed her hand over her belly. Sam watched as her bump morphed from oblong in appearance to a perfect basketball. She groaned and went perfectly still.
“Hey, Cowboy?”
“Yeah, Bluebell?”
“Remember when we were at the little lake and I fell? You were worried about Jellybean and I…” She huffed, closing her ey es for a second before popping them back open. “I joked that the baby wasn’t in my butt.”
“I remember.”
“Well, I think I was wrong. It feels like she’s in my butt! OH GOD…”
“Evie?” Sam watched as Jake squeezed her ankle. “Are you feeling the urge to push?”
She let out her breath in short puffs, and the men both clearly knew her answer to Jake’s question. Not only had she felt the urge to push, she’d started doing it. Sam slipped in behind her, his back resting against the sofa while her back rested against him.
“You are so fucking strong. I love you.”
“I…love you…too.” Evie’s head lulled onto his shoulder before he felt her entire body go rigid. “Jake. The. Baby…”
“Okay, Evie, I’m going to lift your dress and have a look.” Sam helped gather the fabric and rolled it up over her belly.
“T-Take it off me….please,” she groaned. Sam wrenched the fabric from under her and lifted it up over her head.
“They are the most precious thing in this world to me, Jake. You make sure they’re both fine,” he growled as Evie let out another strained moan.
“Your girls are in good hands, Sam. I promise. Evie, you’re doing such a great job. I can see the baby’s head. Whenever you feel the urge again to push, I want you to listen to your body and give it a go. Okay?”
“N-Now. I feel her coming NOW…” He felt her body shake as she curled in on herself.
“Jake! She’s shaking!”
“Totally normal part of the process, Dad. Good Evie, you’re doing so good.”
His heart was going to beat out of his chest. How the fuck he hadn’t been shocked by his implant was a goddamn mystery, because nothing felt right about the way his heart was jack hammering the shit out of his rib cage.
“Everything okay, Sam?” Jake’s eyes bounced up to him and Evie’s head swiveled, panic beyond her pain reflecting back at him.
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“Cowboy, I?—”
“I promise, Evie. I’m fine. Let’s just put the focus where it needs to be. On our sweet little diva who wants to share a very special day with her aunt and uncle.”
Her gaze lingered on his face for just a second before her eyes rolled back in her head and she bunched up her face. Sam crooned words of encouragement into her ear, reminding his own body to calm down and be a steady source of strength for the warrior in his arms.
“Okay. I think this next contraction we’re going to deliver the head. And it should only be one or two after that, we’ll have her out.” Sam was so thankful for Jake and his calm approach to the whole situation.
“I c-can’t do this, Sam. I can’t.” Her wide eyes were filled with panic and her breathing started to pick up.
“Slow down.” He brought his hand up to stroke her forehead. Her head lolled on his shoulder as she moaned. “There’s nothing else in the world that matters right now except you and Jellybean. Time is standing still, waiting for her. You’re going to do this, because you are fierce, and powerful, and you were made for this moment. You’re going to bring our daughter into the world, Evie. And we’re going to celebrate the first baby born at home on the ranch in decades.”
“Something’s going to go wrong, Sam. I can feel it. I don’t get to fall in love and keep my babies.”
“You do this time, Sweetheart. God help me, this is the life I was brought back for. I’m not going to let anything happen to either one of you. I give you my word. ”
“And a cowboy never…ohhhhhhhh!!!”
“Just go with what your body is telling you. You’re doing beautifully, Evie. She’s coming, just keep pushing like that.” Jake’s encouraging words seemed to bolster Evie, and Sam placed his hands on her hard bump one last time. He felt the moment their daughter entered the world, her belly going soft as Jake caught their wiggly little girl.
“Oh my god, Sam. She’s here!”
Fuck. His face was suddenly wet.
Tears of joy, of endless love, poured down his face. He swiped them away, not wanting to miss anything.
“You did it! God, you are so amazing Evie. I love you.” He kissed her forehead and looked down at Jellybean in awe.
“She’s perfect you guys. Well done, Evie.” Jake set the baby on Evie’s chest and Sam rubbed even more tears from his eyes. Fuck. Evie was a mom. And he was a dad.
They sat in that shocked glow for several minutes, both taking in the little girl now laying on Evie’s chest. They counted her fingers, and her toes. Evie brushed her fingers lovingly over the baby’s fuzzy hair. Sam committed to memory the way her first little cries sounded.
As if to punctuate the profoundness of what just happened, Jake held up a pair of small looking scissors. “Okay, Evie. The cord has stopped pulsating. Are you ready for Dad to cut it?”
Evie nodded, her head resting back on the sofa cushion.
“It’s not going to hurt them, will it?” Sam whispered.
“Not at all. I promise.”
He reached out, taking the scissors from Jake. There were two clamps and Jake pointed to the space where Sam should cut between them. It took more effort than he had imagined, but suddenly his girls were no longer physically connected.
Jellybean was well and truly Earth-side then.
He handed the scissors back to Jake. Then he leaned over and kissed the baby’s head. “Hello, sweet girl. I’m your dad. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
Sam sat back, keeping one hand on the baby’s back, while his other hand stroked Evie’s hair. “You were brilliant. God, Evie. Thank you for making me a dad. I love you so much.”
“I love you too, Sam. I can’t believe she’s here.”
“What an entrance, Jellybean.” He rubbed his hand over her back, and was rewarded with giant blue eyes staring up at him. “I think we are going to have our hands full with her.”
“I d-don’t even know what just happened,” she panted. “We probably need to call her by her real name, right?”
“You decided?”
She nodded, tears filling her eyes. She bent her head down, gently kissing the baby’s head. “Welcome to the world, Samantha Jo Cooper.”
Sam’s heart clenched in his chest, but it didn’t scare him. It was the happiest feeling in the world.
“You want to name Jellybean after me?”
She nodded. “And Jo after my mom and your dad.”
Joanna and Joel . It was perfect.
“But you said no to naming her after you.”
“I got to carry her for nine months, Sam. So much of me is already a part of her. I want her to have the strength of your name. To remember that she is always connected to you, too.”
He rested his hand on his daughter’s back. “I love you, Sammy. I’m never going to let anything bad ever happen to you. You and your mommy are my whole world.”
Their daughter began to root around on Evie’s chest, eventually finding her way to nurse for the first time. It was the most beautiful thing Sam had ever seen.
Evie’s contractions continued until she delivered the placenta, but it was almost as if she was having an out of body experience. She only seemed to notice their baby .
Jake draped Evie’s dress back over her and the baby before he stood up, a full smile on his face.
“Congratulations you guys. You have a beautiful daughter. I’m going to step outside and call for an ambulance now.”
“Is everything okay?” Sam asked, his eyes bouncing between Evie, and Sammy Jo asleep on her breast.
“Everything is fine. It’s the safest way to get you guys to the hospital. Although I’ve delivered my fair share of babies, it’s not my specialty, and I know Dr. Hayes would kick my butt if I got to have all the fun.”
“Actually…” Evie’s eyelids were growing heavy, and Sam could see how exhausted she was. “Sam, would you go up to the apartment and grab our things? You can call for an ambulance while you’re doing that.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want to leave you alone.”
She nodded. “Jake will stay. I’d like to get into my nightgown and be a little more covered up when people get here.”
“Of course.” He kissed Evie’s lips and looked at the baby. Pulling out his phone, he snapped a photo of Evie and Sammy. “Don’t you grow any while I’m gone. I don’t want to miss a second with you.”
He hurried out of the office and up the stairs. Before long, he’d given all the details to the dispatcher, who assured him an ambulance was on its way to the ranch, gathered up Evie’s hospital bag, and began firing off a group text with the sweet picture he’d snapped of his girls.
Sam: Sorry Evie and I ditched the party early. A certain little miss wanted to share her Aunt and Uncle’s big day. Samantha Jo Cooper and Mama are doing just fine. Don’t worry if you see the ambulance coming onto the ranch. We’re heading to the hospital soon, and Evie and I can’t wait to share her with all of you .
There. Hopefully Evie wouldn’t mind him handling that part of things for her. He could already hear his sister squealing with excitement when she finally picked up her phone later that night.
Sam strolled through the barn, anxious to get back to his girls. The second he stepped into the office, his blood ran cold.
“So nice of you to finally join us, Boss Man.”
Jake stood in front of Evie and the baby, his hands held up in front of him. For a minute, Sam didn’t understand why he was frozen in place like that, until he registered the gun, pointed directly at Evie through his friend.