Chapter 21 Kamryn #2
She couldn’t refute that at all. Her mother-in-law had gone all out for her first grandchild with gift cards, wine tumblers,
and mini skin-care gift sets. Kamryn was able to identify the common flavors like applesauce, bananas, green beans, and carrots,
but had trouble with the others. She tasted the last one and made a face. “Ugh. Whatever this is, we’ll be skipping it.”
Tariq coughed. “For real. What is this?”
Doubled over in laughter, Taylor said, “You’ll find out at the end.”
They found out later the two worst tasting to them had been squash and a mixed blend of carrots, sweet potatoes, and peas.
“Who got all ten?” When no one raised their hand, Taylor continued to count down.
“I’ve got eight,” Chanel said.
“Anyone else have eight? No? Okay, then Chanel is the winner.”
“Yes!” She did a little dance. “The prize is going to totally make up for the taste.”
“Amen,” one of the other guests said.
Mama Yvonne raised a hand. “We’ll eat as soon as we get the food on the table. Giselle, Taylor, Chanel, and Jada, can you
ladies assist me, please?”
Kamryn followed. “Thank you so much for this, Mama Yvonne. I’m having so much fun.”
“I’m glad. I can’t wait to hold my grandbaby.”
She lovingly rubbed her belly. “I can’t either.” She offered to help but was vetoed and told to go sit down as the women carried
platters of food out to the table. On her way out, she noticed Giselle hadn’t said much.
“Hey, Giselle. Are you okay?”
“Fine.” Giselle picked up one of the platters and took it out.
Tariq intercepted Kamryn. “I wondered where you went.” He frowned. “Is everything okay? Something going on with the baby?”
“I’m fine. Just feeling a little uncomfortable. The baby has been moving a lot, and it feels like it’s sitting on my bladder
and lungs at the same time,” she said with a little laugh.
Shawn approached. “You two coming? Food’s on the table.”
“We’re on our way,” Tariq said without turning around, his concerned gaze focused on Kamryn. He pulled her into his arms.
“Maybe we should call the doctor if you’re still feeling this way later.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead.
She waved him off. “I’m sure it’s nothing other than the normal pregnancy woes.”
“Come on, sweetheart. Let’s go eat.” He paused. “Damn, I miss Austin being here.”
Kamryn knew how much he missed his brother given their closeness. “I know. I miss him too. It would’ve made the day complete.
And I know Taylor would have loved for him to be here.”
“Yeah. Those two belong together.”
She leaned up and kissed him. “So do we. Now let’s go see the spread I know Mama Yvonne has laid out.” When they got to the
kitchen, Kamryn could only stare.
“Since it’s summer, I decided to go with a good old-fashioned barbecue. Besides, Kamryn mentioned craving some ribs.”
She hugged Mama Yvonne. “You are the best mother-in-law eva! Thank you so much for this. Hurry up and bless the food, Papa Aaron,” she added. As soon as the amens sounded, Kamryn had
her plate. She filled it with ribs, chicken, grilled fish, potato salad, baked beans, fruit salad, and a roll.
“So that’s what eating for two looks like,” Chanel said with a chuckle.
“Oh, hush. We’ll see how much you eat when it’s your turn.” She glanced down at her plate and realized Chanel had a point.
She hadn’t meant to get so much but couldn’t resist getting small portions of everything. Fortunately, she had gained only
twenty pounds and the pregnancy had been pretty easy, aside from those two weeks of morning sickness that had her puking out
her guts several times a day. Kamryn hoped it wouldn’t be too difficult to work off the excess weight once the baby was born.
“What do you want to drink, baby?” Tariq asked, setting his plate next to hers at one of the tables that had been set up on
the deck.
“Lemonade, please. And can you bring my fan with you? It’s in my purse.” Although large umbrellas provided shade and electric
fans had been placed at each corner, she was still a little warm. Kamryn rubbed her belly. She wondered if she needed to slow
down for a minute. Theresa came and sat across from her. The rest of the family drifted out and found seats. Thankfully, Giselle
chose a table on the other side of the deck.
“Girl, I’m so glad you married Tariq,” Theresa said. “I love your in-laws and all these family gatherings. Mine are on the
other side of the country, so we rarely get a chance to do something like this.”
“The whole family is pretty special.” Well, everyone except Giselle. Once again, Kamryn wished she could figure out her problem. She hadn’t noticed Giselle behaving the same way with Taylor or Chanel, so it was just her. She shook her head and bit into a tender rib. “Oh, this is so good.”
“Here you go.” Tariq sat and placed an opened can of lemonade in front of her.
“Tariq, do you think your mom will adopt another daughter? I need an invite to every family get-together,” Theresa said. “The
vibes, music, food—especially the food. Yep, I need to be part of this family.”
Tariq laughed. “I’m sure Mom wouldn’t mind. You know you’re invited anytime.” He turned to Kamryn. “What’s wrong? Your eyes
were way bigger than your stomach?”
“No. I think I’ve been moving around too much. I’m sitting now, so it should get better.”
He rubbed her back. “We can go inside for a bit so you can put your feet up.”
Kamryn waved him off. “No, no. I’m sure it’ll pass.” Except it didn’t. It actually got worse, and she managed to eat only
half of her food. “You know what, I think I’m going to take you up on your suggestion.” When Tariq made a move to stand, she
said, “Stay and finish your food. I’m just going to hang out in the recliner for a while.”
Tariq stood anyway and helped her to her feet. “Come on.”
She took two steps and froze. “Oh no.”
“What is it?”
“My water just broke.”
From that moment, everything became a blur—changing into the spare outfit she’d had the foresight to bring, Mama Yvonne rushing around with excitement, Tariq calling the doctor, and finally getting to the hospital.
They promised to call as soon as Kamryn got settled.
She and Tariq had decided to have only the two of them in the birthing room, but he sent text updates to both sets of parents.
“What is taking this child so long to get here?” Kamryn asked with a moan as another contraction hit her. She’d been in labor
for over seven hours.
“He or she will be here soon.” Tariq kissed her brow and continued to hold her hand. “You’re doing great, sweetheart.”
“Mmm-hmm. Whatever.” It took another hour for the baby to crown. Tariq moved to help deliver their child.
“It’s almost here, baby.”
“One more push, Kamryn,” the doctor said.
With a loud groan, she pushed as hard as she could. A moment later, she felt the baby slip from her body and, right after,
heard a loud wail.
“We have a girl, a beautiful baby girl,” Tariq said, coming back and kissing her. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” The doctor placed the little girl on Kamryn’s chest, and she instantly fell in love. “Hey, hey, what’s all
the crying for?” She gently stroked her cheek. “You’re okay, sweetie. Welcome to the world, Imani Joy Bradley.” As if the
little girl understood, she stopped crying and stared at Kamryn, who smiled up at Tariq, all of the pain of the last several
hours forgotten. She couldn’t have been happier.