Epilogue #2
A sob escapes me as Wyatt and Owen’s phones both go straight to voicemail. In a blind panic, I try Kassie. I know she’s heading to Bozeman for a meeting, and there’s probably nothing she can do, but I need to hear a human voice.
“Hey, Em, you okay?”
“No,” I sob.
“Emily? What the hell is wrong?”
“It’s happening. The baby...she’s coming. They’re five minutes apart, Kass. I’m all alone, and I can’t reach anyone!”
“Shiiiit. Okay, okay, babe, slow down. Uh—I’m about an hour away. I’ll turn around. I’m coming back, just...shit. Em, if there’s any possible way you can make it down to the stables, one of the guys might be there. Get them to take you to the hospital!”
“Okay.” I sniff, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand.
“If it gets any worse, call me back immediately!”
I take a ragged breath and make my way downstairs. I pull on my boots and hobble down the porch steps, but another contraction hits me the second my feet hit the dirt. It’s deeper and lower this time. I lean against the railing to stay upright.
I hit call for Wyatt one more time. I have to at least leave a message.
“Wyatt, if you pick this up...just get home,” I gasp into the receiver, my voice becomes guttural as it peaks. “Ahhhhh…god...you’re about to meet your daughter.”
I cut the call, but my heart is thundering. I stay upright as I start the trek toward the stables, but I only make it halfway across the yard before the next one strikes. It’s so big and all-consuming that my legs simply give out.
Lowering myself to my knees in the grass, my fingers dig into the turf to ride it out. I’m well aware of how much I resemble a birthing heifer right now.
I scramble to my feet as the contraction retreats, picking up the pace even though my hips ache with every agonizing step.
The stable is finally in sight, but a sinking feeling gnaws at my gut.
It’s eerily quiet. As I stumble through the double doors, I’m greeted by a deathly silence.
Not a single horse or human. Just as I step into the center of the stable, a violent gush of water hits the floor from between my legs.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” I gasp as the wetness soaks into my boots.
The pressure builds again instantly, lower than before. I need to sit down, but there's no way I’m settling onto the dusty main floor. I frantically check the stalls for the cleanest one, reminding myself to give Dayton credit for his meticulous mucking later.
I’m forced to dive into the nearest stall as I’m floored by the next wave. It’s so all-consuming and violent that I know deep down, I’m not getting back up off this straw.
All I can do is breathe. Water is still trickling from me. I’m resigned. This is it. I’m going to have to give birth to my daughter alone on a stable floor.
I’m paralyzed to the ground by another three contractions that hit thick and fast. I’ve lost all track of time, but this next one feels different.
The urge to push is almost overpowering and primal.
I’m dizzy, and I think I’m delirious because I swear I can hear voices and the thud of hooves in the distance.
“Emily?” I hear Wyatt’s voice bellowing from the yard. “Shit, Jackson, where is she?”
I take a labored breath and somehow find the strength to scream. “Wyatt! I’m in here!”
The stable doors fly open.
“Emily! Fuck!” Wyatt reaches the stall in a blur, skidding into the straw. “We came as soon as I picked up the message. Holy shit, baby…is she really coming?” He crouches beside me, his arm sliding around my shoulders to hold me.
“Wyatt, I really need to push!” I choke out, my fingers bruising his forearm.
“Baby, you can’t—we have to get you to the hospital!”
“Wyatt, if she needs to push, there’s no way in hell you’re making it to the hospital,” Jackson’s voice cuts in. He’s already at the stall door, dropping into a crouch in front of me.
I glare at him through the sweat and the pain. “Jackson Miller, if you think I’m letting you look at my vagina, you’ve got another thing coming!”
“You don’t have much of a choice, Em. By the look of you, this baby’s gonna be out in the next ten minutes.”
Wyatt looks completely panicked, his eyes darting between us. “Baby, look, I know this isn’t ideal, but he’s the best person to help right now.”
“Emily, I’ve birthed hundreds of calves and foals,” Jax says calmly as he moves into position. “Just let me look, and we’ll never speak of this again.”
“Did he just compare me to a cow?” I grit.
“You can punch him later, baby,” Wyatt says, pulling me tighter against his chest. “But right now, you need him.”
Jackson lowers his head as I reluctantly part my legs, my face burning with more than just the exertion.
“Miss Emily,” Jax breathes, his eyes widening as he braces himself. “You are about one push away from delivering that damn baby’s head.”
“Oh goooood,” I cry out, the sound tearing from my throat as the pressure becomes unbearable. “This hurts so much.”
“I know, baby, I know,” Wyatt whispers, his voice cracking as he pulls my back against his chest. “But you can do this. I’m here now. I’ve got you.”
“Okay, Em,” Jax says with an instructional tone. “Next contraction, you need to push hard. Don’t hold back.”
He barely finishes the sentence before the wave hits, and I’m bearing down with everything I have left in my lungs. My fingers dig into Wyatt’s forearms, and my knuckles are almost transparent.
“That’s it, that’s it, Emily! You’re doing great,” Jax encourages. “Her head is out. I just need to hold her now so I can help turn her shoulders. Next contraction, one huge push, and she’s here.”
I inhale and push down so hard I can feel my whole body sting.
“You’re doing it, baby, you’re doing it,” Wyatt sobs into my hair, his tears wet against my temple. “I see her. I see our girl.”
“That’s it, Emily, once more…and she’s out!”
“Ahhhhh!” I gasp, my head falling back against Wyatt’s shoulder.
My vision blurs for a second. I’m exhausted, every muscle burns. A shrill cry pierces the air, but somehow it’s the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard in my life.
“She’s here,” Wyatt sobs, his chest heaving against my back.
As my vision finally focuses, I see Jax moving.
He’s grinning through his own shell-shocked expression as he brings a squirming, sticky bundle of wonder up toward me.
He places her directly onto my chest, and I’m absolutely consumed by the scent of her newness.
I’m sobbing now, my hands shaking as I reach for her, fingers brushing over her tiny, perfect back.
“She’s here. Oh my—hi, baby girl,” I choke out.
Wyatt leans over us both, his hand covering mine as we hold her together in the hay. “Em, you did it. She’s here. That’s our daughter.” He’s kissing my temples relentlessly.
Jackson beams proudly, moving gently as he brings over a clean blanket from the back of the stall to cover my dignity.
“You did great, Mama.” He’s trying to hide the fact that he’s a little choked up. “Congrats, big brother. You got a name yet?”
I look up at Wyatt. He’s looking down at us both like he’s been handed the entire world, his brown eyes shimmering with tears he isn't even trying to hide. He brushes the damp hair from my forehead.
“Penny Evelyn Miller,” he says, like he already knows her.
I close my eyes for a second. I love how it sounds. It’s like it belonged to us forever.
“Sounds like the perfect name for a Miller,” a deep voice rumbles from the doorway.
I look over to see Owen standing there, his silhouette filling the stall door. He walks in slowly to stand next to Jackson, clapping a heavy, proud hand on his son’s shoulder.
Poor Jax, he definitely saw more than he bargained for today, but he’s standing tall with a grin splitting his face.
“Yeah,” Wyatt announces with a fierce, protective pride. “She’s pretty darn perfect.”
He’s looking at me when he says it, but I’m pretty sure he’s talking about the tiny, dark-haired girl currently curled against my heart.