Chapter Twenty-Two
Malone
There was no due date for a human pregnant with a ferret shifter’s baby, but the longer this pregnancy went on, the more I wished I had at least a ballpark of when this would all be over.
I’d reached that part of this pregnancy. The one where I’d do just about anything for it to be over. I spent my free time cleaning and nesting. Riglan even hired a cleaning crew to come in.
Of course, to me, they didn’t do a good enough job.
We had the nursery ready even though for the first few months, I didn’t want our little one to sleep in another room.
I couldn’t imagine bonding with our baby while he or she was spending hours alone in another room, so we had a bassinet in our room.
The onesies and blankets had been folded and refolded. Organized and reorganized.
I had no idea how it would feel to chest-feed, so we had formula and bottles at the ready just in case.
Everything was ready for our family to grow except the wild and active baby inside me who wasn’t ready to come out.
I yawned. Again. The couch was calling me even though there was work to be done. More nesting. Always more nesting.
“You need to rest,” Riglan’s voice carried through the house as he came in the front door. I’d made a request for groceries and he went to get them, claiming he needed some time out of the house.
We both valued our alone time though it was infrequent. The bigger and further along in this pregnancy I got, the less time he wanted to be away from me.
“What makes you think I’m not resting?” I asked, waiting for him in the kitchen.
I’d prepared all kinds of meals to store in the freezer for the arrival of our baby.
We would both be busy being new dads, and cooking wouldn’t take precedence.
I didn’t want us relying on delivery food during that time.
“I got everything on the list. I had to go to another store for the balsamic vinegar, and I accidentally picked up some blackberry cobbler ice cream while I was there. A local brand.”
“How dare you!” I laughed, rummaging through the bags. “I’m going to have to taste it. Make sure it’s not…”
The word poison never left my lips. I gasped, looking down as water flowed out of me, splashing onto the floor.
“What’s happening, Malone?” Rig only used my real name when he was serious, which wasn’t often.
“I think my water just broke. Now I have to clean that up.”
“You’ll do no such thing. I need to call the healer. Let’s get you into the shower.”
“It’s not a big deal,” I said, forcing a smile. “Water breaks, and it can be hours before…oww.” I clamped onto Rig’s arm with only a fraction of the force of pain in my back.
“A contraction,” he said. “First one.” He set a timer on his watch. “Do you still want a shower?”
I did. And it was the quickest of my life. Rig called the healer who said he was on his way. I got out and toweled off but wrapped a robe around me instead of putting on clothes. What was the point?
“Our baby is coming.” The fact weighed on me fully now.
“Yes. It is.” He must’ve noticed me on the cusp of freaking out. “But we’ve prepared for this. We took classes. We know what to do. You, omega, know what to do.”
I did. “I do. Stay with me.”
He kissed me hard. “Always.”
The healer arrived and examined me, exclaiming that I was fully dilated. I felt the urge to get on my hands and knees and push. The pain grew, and each time I thought I might not be able to withstand more, I did. Waves of agony washed over me until a burning sensation told me it was almost over.
“That’s the head,” Rig said. “I see our baby’s head. Almost there, omega.”
I cried out with the last three pushes and then I heard the cries of our baby.
“It’s a boy,” the healer proclaimed. “A healthy boy.”
I almost collapsed in relief. The pain receded, mostly. Endorphins filled my system. I’d never been so unburdened in my life. Blissful, almost.
Riglan held our son while the healer helped me to turn over and release the afterbirth and placenta. My mate placed the baby on my chest. “A son, Malone. Look what you did.”
“Look what we did,” I whispered, still breathless and utterly exhausted. I chuckled, looking down at our new baby. “Should we name him Sketch?”
A long-standing joke between us.
“No way. You said you liked Callum the most, right?”
I did. “Yes. Callum.”
The healer took him from us to clean him up, and Riglan held me tightly while I caught my breath.
“I love you, omega. You gave me life again and now a family. I couldn’t love you two more if I tried.”