Chapter 11
Eleven
Aaric
A deep moan yanks me out of my sleep. Bolting upright, I turn to find my wife on her side, her knees pulled toward her belly.
I reach over the top of her to turn on the lamp on the nightstand. “Hannah? Are you okay?”
She shakes her head, her face pinched from obvious pain. “Something’s wrong…” she mutters.
“Honey, look at me.” Gently guiding her to her back, I lean over her. “Is this the first contraction, sunshine?”
Finally, her face relaxes marginally. “If that’s what you want to call it,” she grits out.
I glance up and down her body. “Where’s the pain?”
She reaches for her back. “Here.”
“Okay.” Lifting her head, I stuff a few more pillows behind her. “How’s that?”
She’s staring at her tight belly, barely breathing. There are wet circles on the front of her T-shirt. Her nipples are leaking.
Suddenly, she fists the sheets at her sides and screams. If this is another contraction, it’s very close behind the first.
“Shit.” I jump off the bed and grab my cell phone from the nightstand, quickly calling Adam. Thank goodness he picks up on the first ring. “Hey. Sorry to wake you.”
“No problem. Is Hannah okay?” Adam asks.
“I think so, but she’s in labor.”
“We’ll be right there.” He hangs up.
I reach for Hannah’s hand. “Rebekah is on her way. I’ll text the midwife.”
My wife squeezes my fingers, panting as the contraction ends. “It’s not supposed to be like this. I’m going to die.”
“You won’t die, honey. I promise. Childbirth is different for everyone. I think yours is going to be fast.”
She gasps, her eyes going wide as she looks down. “Oh, shit… I think I peed.”
Wetness soaks the end of the T-shirt. “You didn’t, honey. Your water broke.” Thank goodness I did a little research yesterday. I’d be flailing right now if I had no idea what to expect.
I send a quick text to Charlene and toss the phone on the nightstand. After rushing into the bathroom for some towels, I return to my wife. She’s shivering, and the fear in her eyes breaks me.
“I’m going to slide a towel under you, honey. Then I need to take your panties off, okay?”
She shakes her head. “No. I’m not ready. It’s supposed to take hours.”
After tossing the covers completely out of the way, I lift her legs and arrange a towel under the edge of her bottom. Next, I move to her face, cup her cheeks, and hold her gaze. “You’re having a baby, honey. It’s happening now. Let me help you.”
She looks around frantically. “The midwife… Rebekah…”
“Rebekah will be here any minute. You’re soaked. It’s giving you a chill. Let me change your shirt and get rid of the panties.”
She grabs my wrists. “Aaric…”
“I’m right here. We’ve got this.” I don’t feel half as confident as I sound. I don’t know the first thing about giving birth. My education extends to a Google search yesterday. Thank goodness for that. My gut tells me this baby is coming now. Ready or not.
Another contraction causes the blood to drain from her face. She squeezes my hand with a shocking amount of force. When it eases, I move down her body and pull her panties off. Without a play-by-play that will embarrass her, I ease her bent legs apart.
It takes all my will not to gasp. The head is right there . Holy fucking shit. I don’t even have time to change her shirt. This is happening now.
Hannah screams in pain as yet another contraction makes her buckle forward.
A door slams behind me. Thank God, Adam has the keys to my house. There is no way I would leave Hannah right now to go open the door. I should have called Charlene instead of sending a text. I don’t have time now.
“Hannah?” Rebekah calls out as she rushes into the room. “Oh. Oh…”
“Should I come in?” Adam asks.
“No,” both Rebekah and I shout.
“Got it. I’ll wait out here. If you need me, yell.”
Hannah’s eyes are so big. Her bottom lip trembles. I can see her freaking out. She starts shaking her head. “I can’t do this.”
“You can,” Rebekah encourages as she jumps onto the bed and comes to her sister’s side. She looks at me. Apparently, she thinks I’m the better choice between my wife’s legs.
Okay.
“Hannah, honey, I need you to push when the pain starts again.”
“Push?” Her head keeps shaking. “No. I can’t.” She’s crying hard now. I think the dam opened up when her sister arrived.
I gently guide her legs wider when she tries to close them. “Yes, you can, Hannah. You’re strong and so very capable. You can do this.” It’s not like she has a choice. I’m not sure she will need to actually push, but it seems like the right thing to say at this moment.
The head is forcing her open so wide. I hate how much it has to be hurting her. But maybe it doesn’t. Maybe she can’t actually feel that part. Her tears are from fear. I know the contractions hurt, but in between, she doesn’t seem aware of the fact that her tiny vagina has stretched several inches.
Another contraction comes, and Hannah panics. “No. No, no, no, no.”
“Push, honey. Push .”
My wife somehow manages to follow my instructions, bearing down with all her might. The head comes out, and I instinctively reach out to catch it in my hands.
“You’re doing so well, sunshine. One more push. Really hard for me.”
Hannah grunts, and her entire body bends forward as she gives me exactly what’s needed. As soon as the shoulders are free, the baby slides out of her.
I’m shaking as I hold this brand-new tiny human in my hands. I can’t believe it. I don’t think it’s even been fifteen minutes since I woke up to her first cry of pain.
The baby screams, and it’s the best sound in the entire world.
I turn her around and beam. “It’s a girl, and she has a mop of blond hair just like her mama.”
“What?” Hannah is breathing heavily. “A girl? Are you serious? Is she okay?”
I bring the baby to Hannah’s chest and gently lay her on her mother, my hand supporting her head. The cord is still attached, but I’ll deal with that in a second.
“Oh my. Oh my.” Hannah starts crying again, but this time they are tears of joy. She’s so happy. She snuggles the baby and kisses her temple. “Look at her. She’s so perfect.”
“She sure is,” Rebekah agrees, grinning.
I wipe off my hands and snag the phone from the nightstand to call the midwife. Hopefully, she can talk me through the next stage and be here soon to make sure everything is okay.