Chapter 36
Chapter Thirty-Six
ALLISON
A week later, Allison watched her beautiful friend—and her baby’s future aunt—hold a bridal bouquet under golden leaves in Engelbert’s Apple Orchard.
And she could feel Wells staring at her. She slowly turned and said for the thousandth time, “I’m fine.”
She’d had a teeny tiny Braxton Hicks episode that morning, and Wells hadn’t stopped worrying. “Dr. Lopez said it was a classic Braxton Hicks. It’s four hours later; I’m not in labor.” She gave him a gloved thumbs-up.
He still kissed her hair, looking worried. “I want you to be comfortable. And warm,” he said, rubbing her arms.
The bride and groom had opted for a chilly, quick wedding ceremony in the first place where they said they’d felt like a family. It was near the end of October, and Wells had worried she’d get cold in the outdoor venue.
As if it was even possible for her to feel cold at eight months pregnant.
They’d had their date at Fox & Forrest the day after The Contract Signing, as Wells now referred to it.
The entire restaurant had erupted into applause as they’d come in, the news apparently out. Allison’s cheeks still burned thinking about it. A strawberry chiffon cake that said “Finally” had been on the table waiting for them, the bill already covered by their friends.
Enjoying their meal, they’d settled into easy banter and planning for the busy week of Olivia’s wedding and the baby they’d meet in a few weeks.
Nothing much had changed, she’d realized, other than the fact that they’d held hands until the food came and had stolen plenty of kisses.
They’d arrived back home, immediately changing into comfy clothes and cuddling on the couch, which had turned into a long round of Wells’s head between her thighs after she’d teased him one too many times.
The best first date she’d had in her entire life.
And her last, if she had any say in the matter.
Allison admired her handiwork as the stunning bride held her bouquet and posed for photos before the ceremony. Cream and lavender roses with tiny little accents of orange butterfly weed—it was some of her best work yet.
Gray was the photographer for Olivia and Luca’s small ceremony, and he waved them over. “Let’s get photos of the family. All the ladies first.”
Martha and Annabelle stood beside Olivia, looking gorgeous in russet and eggplant silk.
Allison smiled wistfully with a hand on her belly. These kind, lovely people she loved so dearly would be her baby’s family, forever. Birthdays and Christmases, happy and sad occasions, they’d be together for all of it.
She was pulled out of her daydreams by Olivia waving her bouquet in the air. “Come here,” Olivia shouted.
Allison pointed a finger at herself. “Me?”
“We can’t have a ladies-only family picture without you,” Olivia said with a mischievous smile.
Wells held out his hands for her enormous purse and coat, a dreamy smile on his face. “Looks like you’re needed.”
Allison was touched. “You’re so nice for including me,” she said to Olivia, trying not to get emotional.
“It’s not nice,” Martha said with a laugh. “It’s mandatory. You’re family.”
Allison blinked back tears, realizing she’d finally gotten the big family she’d always wanted.
Gray snapped photos, making them laugh. He paused, looking at his camera settings. “Hold on, everyone stay right there for a minute.”
Allison turned to look at Wells and saw him staring with such love. He winked at her, a shared moment just between the two of them.
“Things seem to be going well,” Olivia said, her eyes bright with excitement at Allison as she nodded to Wells.
Allison felt her cheeks flush as she sighed. “Very well.”
Martha leaned into Allison. “I knew you’d be good for him, but my plan outdid itself,” she whispered, smiling proudly.
Allison’s head whipped down as she looked at the pint-sized spitfire. “…Plan?”
Martha cackled. “You needed someone to boss you into taking care of yourself, and Wells needed some softening. Plus, I already considered you one of my own.”
That made Allison want to cry more than anything else.
“How exactly did this plan work?” Allison said with a bemused smile, replaying the events of the past year.
Martha laughed. “Oh, a little of this and that. I can’t take credit for it all, though. Snowing you in together at Bloom?” She shrugged innocently. “That was all fate, my dear.”
Allison knew that knowing smirk on Martha’s face.
It was a carbon copy of Wells’s.
Allison pulled the tiny woman into a hug. “Thanks,” she whispered through tears. “I always wanted to be part of a family like yours.”
“I had a feeling it might all work out,” Martha said. This amazing, meddlesome woman was going to be her baby’s grandmother. Forever.
She was overcome with gratitude at Wells’ ridiculous, impractical, unbelievable proposal she’d been smart enough to say yes to.
“All of Olivia’s family now,” Gray called, and Pop and Wells walked over, looking dashing in their suits and lilac ties.
Wells kissed her cheek, placing his hand firmly on the rounded bump of her belly. “What was that all about?”
Allison didn’t even know where to begin. “I’m contemplating fate and free will, and whether either exists in Fairwick Falls,” she said with an astonished laugh.
A short while later, they sat in white wedding chairs among the apple trees. The sun set behind Olivia and Luca as they promised love and devotion.
As the officiant spoke of hope and commitment, an ache with how much she loved Wells pulsed through her. She threaded her fingers through his, and he pulled her in, kissing her temple.
Olivia and Luca started their vows.
She looked up to see Wells fighting back tears, staring only at her. She kissed him gently, wiping the tears away. The quiet calm of just the two of them in this moment soothed her soul.
“…to have and to hold, from this day forward…”
She squeezed Wells’s hand, feeling so much for him.
“…for better, or worse...”
He squeezed hers back.
Wells leaned into her ear and whispered, “Up for renegotiating one last thing?”
She looked up at him in the setting sun, considering this as her heart soared.
A slow smile spread on her lips. “If we go with my name pick.” She raised an eyebrow in challenge.
Delight sparked in Wells’s eyes, and he whispered in her ear. “Stop hustling me, Styles. I can’t get hard at a wedding.”
As Luca and Olivia were pronounced man and wife, Wells claimed her lips in a promising kiss, white daisy petals raining down in the golden sun.
WELLS
Week 38: Your baby is the size of a small hospital go bag
“And in two weeks, when this is real, we’ll slowly get into the car and then go meet Shortcake,” Wells said as he and Allison calmly walked into the garage carrying her hospital bags. “Okay?”
She nodded, looking worried.
“Feel better?” Wells asked.
Maybe the fourth practice run’s the charm.
She chewed the inside of her cheek briefly. “No. Let’s do it again,” she said decisively, hand resting on her bump, her brow furrowed.
“Hey.” He kissed her nose. “Look at you asking for what you need. I’m proud of you.”
That sweet, lopsided smile he loved so much was her response, and she pressed onto her toes to kiss his cheek, heading back in for the next practice round.
Allison had been nesting like crazy the last two weeks, fussing over the nursery, cleaning every inch. He’d woken up at 4:00 a.m. two nights ago to her scrubbing the baseboards.
The baby had been tracking big, and Ash had warned them she might go into labor a little early, so they’d started practicing trial runs to help her be less nervous. Wells’s stomach twisted with worry as he imagined Allison going into labor. The one thing in this world he couldn’t control.
Allison’s birth plan included calm music, lots of sentimental things from home, and absolutely none of her family.
“Are you sure you’re okay with my family visiting the day of? I don’t want to rush you,” Wells said, putting their bags back in the closet.
“But I love them so much,” Allison said with a sparkly smile. “They are helpers, and so kind. It’ll be exactly what I need.”
Wells nodded. That’s settled then.
Her multiple bags were stuffed with soft clothes, pictures of Smokey-Harry, headphones for her calming music, and cozy socks. The smallest duffel bag had the hat she’d crocheted for the baby, newborn outfits, and the flower blanket he’d gotten her for period pain.
Wells had tucked a kitten figurine in for luck.
They put the bags back in the closet, resetting for another trial run. “Maybe we should try it from the cottage?” she said, pacing in their room.
Little did Allison know, he had backup bags packed in his car, her car, the cottage, the diner, and at Bloom, just in case.
“Or we can try it from bed?” Wells said in his calmest voice, wanting her to lie down and rest. She walked into the bathroom. “We’ll just pretend we’ve been asleep and—”
“My water broke,” Allison said, turning to him in the bathroom doorway.
“That’s great, but let’s practice in bed—”
“My water. It broke, Wells.” She stared at him in panic, gripping the doorframe. “Now. Currently. Today. Five seconds ago.”
Oh.
Fuck.
It wasn’t supposed to go like this. She was supposed to have contractions first.
Preferably two weeks from now.
But What to Do While She’s Expecting said this could happen. It wasn’t an emergency at thirty-eight weeks.
They could handle this.
“Okay, okay,” he said in a calm, soothing voice.
He guided her to the bed to sit down. “Everything’s fine.
We knew she could be early. Just lie down.
I’m going to put your soothing music on and call Ash to let her know to meet us at the hospital,” he said in the calmest, slowest voice imaginable as fourteen fucking fire-truck sirens blared in his heart.
He turned on her music as she settled her headphones over her ears. “Just breathe.”
Her brows rose, and she let out a long, shaky breath.
“Great job,” he said, gulping as he dialed Ash’s phone number.
It rang.
And rang.
And rang.
Allison fluttered her eyelashes open in panic.
“It’s fine, it’s all fine. Just breathe,” Wells said in an overly soothing voice. “I’ll get you some water.”
Allison nodded, breathing out a slow breath through her pursed lips with her eyes closed.
As Wells dialed Ash again, he closed the bedroom door behind him.
He started one big group chat—his friends, the Hot Girl Group Chat, the diner group chat, every Lopez in Ash’s family he had contact info for, and most importantly—his mother. All popping into one big, sure-to-be-chaotic, new chat.
WELLS
SOS. I need eyes on Dr. Ash Lopez.
Allison is in labor.
OLIVIA
2 weeks early!!! How is she??
JESSICA
Not at the diner!
TINY
I’ll cover tonight’s shift.
Is Allison meditating like I taught her?
REED
Not at the bookstore. Anything we can do to help?
MOM
Holy cannoli!!!!
Ash’s not at the pickleball court.
The Gossip Guild is checking the salon, courthouse, and credit union.
Wells re-dialed Ash’s number after the call went to voicemail. He peeked in the bedroom and saw that Allison was still lying on the bed, eyes closed, hands on her belly.
NASH
That’s a negative on the credit union.
EMILY LOPEZ
She’s not at our drs office! I’ll try paging her.
LILY
HELL YEEEEES! It’s happening!!
Also she’s not at Bloom or Fox & Forrest
VIOLET
Tell her it’s going to be great!
ROSE
I’m at the post office. No sighting here.
GRAY
Negative at the hardware store.
PEARL
she’s at the bakery!!
i shoved her out the door and told her to call you
WELLS
Fucking hell I love you all
LUCA
Such a softie now that he’s going to be a dad
Wells muted the chat and walked back into the bedroom where Allison had her eyes closed, breathing in through her nose, out through her mouth as calm music filtered through her headphones. Smokey-Harry had cuddled up beside her for support.
Ash finally picked up. “I was pushed out of a building mid-bite of a cupcake, so I’m taking it Allison is in labor?” she said with a laugh.
“You cracked the case, doctor. Here she is.” Wells handed the phone to Allison who relayed all the info. They decided she should head to the hospital now since she’d likely start contractions soon.
Wells calmly gathered her bags as his heart thundered, keeping everything bottled up inside as Allison dreamily pushed up from the bed.
“Do you think we should tell people?” she asked calmly, handing his phone back.
He swallowed a laugh at the ridiculousness of his life. The entire town probably knew already. “I uh…already handled it. Also maybe we turn our phones off for a while. To not get distracted.”
The last thing she needed was to fuck up her blood pressure responding to a thousand texts.
“Ready to go meet Shortcake?” he asked, hefting all the bags on his shoulder.
She tracked the movement, her eyes lingering on the bags for some reason. Her eyes filled with tears.
“Hey, what’s going on? Contraction?” he said, running his hands up and down her arms.
“No, I’m just…” She finally looked up from where he held her bags. “So glad you’re here. I feel so safe with you. Taken care of. It’s …” she sighed, rubbing a hand on her belly. “Perfect.”
Her words soared through his chest. It was everything he never knew he needed to hear.
Fucking invincible.
That’s how I feel right now.
His thumb stroked her cheek, wiping away her tears. “I’ve always got you. Forever. Okay?”
She nodded, now smiling. “Let’s go meet Shortcake.”