Ellery closed her eyes. I took the cloth from the table and gently wiped her forehead with it.
“It’s okay, baby. I’m here with you, and I’ll get you through this. We’ve been through so much, and this is nothing.”
Her eyes flew open as if Satan himself took over. “Nothing! Did you just say this is nothing?!” she yelled at me.
“Baby, you know what I mean.”
“Uh oh, I think someone’s in deep shit. If I were you, I’d get the hell out of here, and run as fast as you can.” Peyton laughed.
I couldn’t say anything right. Everything I said was wrong and just pissed Ellery off. I got up from the bed and pulled my phone from my pocket. After I had an idea that might help keep Ellery calm, I called up Claire and asked her if she could bring Ellery’s classical music CD and the small painting of the baby cuddled up in the moon amongst the stars. I would stand in the doorway of the nursery, late at night, and watch Ellery as she stared at that painting while rubbing her belly. One night, I asked her about it.
“This is the fifth night you’ve been in here staring at that painting.” I smiled as I walked into the nursery and placed my hands on her shoulders.
She reached her hand up and placed her hand on top of mine. “I feel serene when I look at it. I’m not quite sure why, but I do. So, whenever I start to feel nervous or anxious, I come in here, and it calms me down.”
As I hung up with Claire, I walked over to Ellery and kissed her on the forehead.
“Claire is on her way with something that I think will help you relax.”
She looked at me and tried to smile, but another contraction was starting. I sat down on the edge of the bed and let her squeeze my hand as tightly as she needed to. I was in awe of this beautiful woman that I called my wife and what she was going through to give me a child. When the contraction ended, she brought my hand up to her lips and kissed it softly.
“I’m sorry, babe. I know I’m hurting you,” she said.
I gripped her face lightly with my hands. “You’re not hurting me, Ellery. I love you, and I love what you’re doing for us. You do what you need to in order to get through your contractions. I’m here for you, baby.” I smiled.
Chapter 3
Ellery
I lay there and stared into my husband’s eyes as he tried so hard to make me comfortable. Peyton was sitting in the chair next to the bed and she looked exhausted.
“Why don’t you go find Henry and grab something to eat?”
“I don’t want to leave you. You’re going to need me.” She smiled as she took my hand.
Connor looked over at her. “Peyton, I love you, but I’m her husband and the only person she needs right now.”
Peyton knitted her eyebrows at him. “I suppose you’re right, but I want to be here for her.”
“You are here for her, and I appreciate it, but you really should take a break,” Connor said.
“You and Henry should go have sex in one of the rooms,” I said as I gave her hand a squeeze.
A smile brightened her face. “That’s a great idea, Elle, but don’t go and have that baby until I get back!” she exclaimed.
As Peyton walked out of the room, Claire walked in. Another contraction had started just as she set my favorite painting on the chair next to me.
“Oh God!” I started to scream.
As Connor looked over at me, he instantly grabbed my hand, and I bit down on my bottom lip.
“Look at the painting, baby. Focus on the painting, not the pain.”
“I can’t, Connor. The pain is too horrible. I can’t concentrate on anything but the pain!” I screamed.
Claire grabbed the cloth from the stand and wiped my forehead. “I remember the pain, Ellery. Just remember what the end result of that pain is.” She smiled as she pressed her lips to my forehead.
As I smiled at her and slowly closed my eyes, Connor got up and walked her out of the room. I heard him in the hallway, thanking her for bringing the CD and the painting. Nurse Bailey came back into the room and told me she had to check me again to see how far I was dilated. She sighed after she finished checking me, and Connor walked back into the room.
“Any progress?” he asked.
“No. She hasn’t dilated at all. I need to call the doctor. I’ll be right back.”
I looked at Connor as he leaned over and kissed my head. “I’m scared something’s wrong,” I said.
“Don’t be scared. Everything’s going to be fine. I just think our daughter’s stubborn. She’s starting to remind me of someone.” He smiled as he ran his hand down my cheek.
Just as I was beginning to relax, another contraction started. Connor looked at the fetal monitor.
“How can you be having another contraction already? It’s only been a few seconds since the last one.”
The pain was different this time. It was more intense and radiated throughout my entire back. The pressure was so bad that I had to push.
“Connor, I have to push. I have to!” I screamed.
“No, Ellery. I don’t think you can do that yet.”
He held onto my hand as the sweat dripped from my face, and I screamed in pain. Henry, Peyton, and Nurse Bailey ran into the room. As I looked at Nurse Bailey, Peyton came over and took a hold of my other hand.
“I have to push. I have to. Please help me,” I begged as the tears streamed down my face.
“Ellery, you can’t push,” Nurse Bailey said as she looked at Henry.
Suddenly, the monitor started beeping and all eyes went to it. Henry stood there and shook his head.
“Her blood pressure’s dropping and so is the baby’s heart rate. We need to get this baby out now!”
“I called Dr. Reed and he said he’s on his way, but he said it’ll take at least thirty to forty-five minutes for him to reach the hospital,” Nurse Baily said.
“I don’t give a shit how long it’s going to take him. Go make sure an operating room is available, and page an anesthesiologist, STAT!”
The voices around the room were getting deeper and slower. The room started to spin as Henry clasped my shoulders.
“Ellery, stay with me,” he said.
I wanted to give up. I couldn’t do this anymore, and I couldn’t stand the pain. My body was tired, and I could feel myself slowly drifting away. Suddenly, I heard Connor’s voice.
“Baby, don’t you dare give up. You better not give up on me. We’ve come too far, and we fought too hard to have our life together, and you will not give up! Do you understand me!” he yelled.
Suddenly, a group of people came running into the room and transferred me to another bed. I looked at Connor as I opened my eyes and the tears began to fall.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I love you,” I whispered.
Another doctor came from behind and put a mask over my face. “I need you to take in a deep breath, Ellery. This will help you to relax.”
With the mask on my face, I looked over at Peyton and saw that she was crying. They started to wheel me out of the room, but I wouldn’t let go of Connor’s hand.
“Don’t worry, baby, I’ll be right there. I promise you that I’ll be there with you.”
Chapter 4
Connor
I followed them out of the room and stood there as they wheeled Ellery down the hall. I was scared shitless and worried. If something happened to them, I didn’t know what I’d do. I would never forget the look on Ellery’s face as they wheeled her away from me.
“I’m going to make sure that Ellery and the baby are fine,” Henry said as he put his hand on my shoulder. “Get changed and I’ll see you in operating room.”
I nodded my head as Ellery disappeared from my sight. Nurse Bailey handed me a pair of light blue scrubs and told me to change in the bathroom.
“She’s going to be all right, Mr. Black. Now hurry up and put those on.” She smiled.
As I walked into the bathroom to change, Peyton went to the waiting room and sat with my family.
I quickly changed, and when I opened the bathroom door, Nurse Bailey was standing there, holding a mask in her hand.
“You need to put this on before we go into the room. It’s for the baby’s safety.”
As I took the mask from her, she led me down the hallway to the operating room where Ellery was. She told me to wait outside the double doors while she went to make sure they were ready. A few moments later, she walked through the doors and motioned for me to follow her. When she led me into the sterile room, Ellery turned her head and looked at me. Immediately, she held out her hand. I smiled as I walked over to her, gently took her hand, and sat on the stool next to her.
“Hi.” I smiled.
“Hi back,” she whispered.
“Okay, Ellery, let’s have this baby,” Henry said as he started making the incision.
As she stared into my eyes, I leaned over and lightly rubbed her forehead with my thumb.
“I remember the first time I stared into your beautiful eyes.” I smiled.
“In your kitchen, after you accused me of breaking your rule.” She smiled back.
“Yeah, but I’ll never forget the feeling that overtook me the moment you turned around and looked at me.”
“I thought you were an ass,” she whispered.
“I know you did, and I was, but you changed me, Ellery. You swooped in, broke all my rules, and completely turned my life around.”
Suddenly, the cries of a baby jolted us back into reality. Ellery and I looked at Henry as he held our daughter up. “Congratulations, Mom and Dad.” He smiled.
She was screaming as she moved her little arms and legs around. Henry handed her to the nurse, who took her over and cleaned her up.
“You did so good, baby. I’m so proud of you,” I whispered as I kissed her.
“You look very sexy in that mask and those scrubs.” She smiled.
“Well, that was random.” I smiled back.
I got up and walked over to where my daughter was being cleaned up. The nurse wrapped her in a pink blanket and handed her to me. I was incredibly nervous to hold her, but it was what I’d been dreaming of since the day Ellery told me she was pregnant.
“Ellery, I’m going to start stitching you up now and, when I’m done, then you can hold your baby,” Henry said.
“Thank you, Henry, for everything.” She smiled.
As I walked over to Ellery’s side, she held out her hand. I sat down on the stool and brought our daughter closer to her so she could touch her. At this point, she had stopped crying, and she could barely keep her eyes open. She wrapped her delicate little hand around Ellery’s finger. I watched as a tear fell from her eye.
“She’s so beautiful, Connor,” Ellery said.
“Of course she is. She’s your daughter.”
Ellery reached her hand up and softly stroked my cheek. I’d never felt this kind of feeling before. I loved Ellery so much that my entire existence revolved around her. I didn’t think it was possible to love her or anyone else even more. Looking down at my baby girl, seeing the love of my life in this child, and knowing that we both created this miracle, made my love grow even more for both of them.
“I want to talk to you about something,” I said as I looked at her.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I know we talked about a couple of different names for her, but I think we should name her after your mom, Julia.”
Ellery stared at me for a moment as tears sprang to her eyes. “I love it, Connor.”
“I think she should have a name that’s a part of all of us. I would like to name her Julia Rose Black.”
Chapter 5
Ellery
“I love that name.” I smiled. “Julia Rose Black is a beautiful name, and I think it fits her perfectly.”
Connor leaned over and kissed my lips. Seeing him sitting there and holding Julia was one of the happiest moments of my life. Anyone who looked at him could see and feel the love he had for that child.
“All stitched up, Ellery,” Henry said. “If you want, you can hold Julia now.”
Connor looked at me and smiled as he put Julia in my arms.
“Are you feeling okay?” Connor asked.
“I’m feeling great.” I smiled as I kissed Julia’s forehead.
Henry cleaned up and walked over to me and Connor. “Congratulations, you two,” he said as he kissed my head and shook Connor’s hand.
The nurse wheeled me out of the operating room and back into my room. I couldn’t believe that our daughter was here. It seemed like only yesterday that I found out I was pregnant. Once I was back in the room and settled in bed, Connor left to go tell our family and friends that Julia had arrived. As she was sleeping in my arms, Peyton walked into the room and instantly covered her mouth with her hands.
“Ellery, she’s beautiful,” she said as she walked over and kissed Julia on the head.
“Isn’t she? I just can’t believe she’s here.” I smiled.
Connor walked into the room with his mom, dad, Cassidy, and Denny following behind.
“Let me see my beautiful granddaughter,” Jenny said with a tear in her eye.
As much as I didn’t want to let Julia go, I handed her over to Connor’s mom. Denny walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. He took my hand and gently kissed it.
“You and Connor have made one beautiful little girl.” He smiled. “I never thought I’d see the day that Connor would become a father.”
“To be honest with you, I never thought I would see this day myself,” I said as I looked down.
“Well, you fought, you won, and now you’ve been rewarded. I can’t think of two other people who deserve this more than you and Connor.”
“Thank you,” I whispered. “I love you, Denny.”
“I love you too, Elle.” He smiled as he kissed me on the forehead.
When Nurse Bailey walked into the room, she announced that it was time for everyone to leave. She took Julia from Jenny and handed her to me, as it was time for my lesson in breastfeeding.
***
I walked through the elevator doors to the penthouse. It felt good to be home. The past couple of days in the hospital were uncomfortable and starting to drive me crazy. Connor followed behind me with Julia, and Claire and Denny emerged from the kitchen.
“Welcome home, Ellery,” Claire said as she gave me a light hug.
“Thank you, Claire.”
The aroma of apple pie filled the air of the penthouse and it smelled wonderful. “Are you making apple pie?” I asked her.
“Yes, I am, and just for you.” She smiled.
Connor looked at me and then at Claire. “What about me?” he asked.
“You can have some too, Connor,” she replied.
Connor asked Denny if he could hold the car seat while he helped me up the stairs.
“Come on, baby. Do you want me to carry you?”
“No, I can walk. But thank you for offering.” I smiled at him.
“You know what that smile does to me, Elle.”
He took my hand and helped me up the stairs. We reached the bedroom, and I immediately lay down on the bed.
“I’ve missed this bed.”
Denny brought Julia up to the room and set the car seat down on the floor. “Welcome home, you three.” He smiled and then walked out of the room.
As Connor climbed on the bed and lay next to me, we both stared at Julia, who was sound asleep.
“She’s perfect, like you,” he whispered as he softly kissed my neck.
I smiled and closed my eyes as his lips traveled to the edge of my ear.
“I can’t wait to make love to you,” I whispered. “Especially now that I’m not pregnant anymore.”
“I loved making love to you while you were pregnant.”
Suddenly, Julia started to cry. We looked at each other and smiled. Connor got up and carefully took her from her car seat. I took off my shirt as he gently handed her to me and she latched onto my breast.
“There’s nothing more beautiful than seeing you feed our daughter,” he said as he sat down on the bed next to me and kissed me on the lips.
This was my family—the three of us—and I didn’t want anything more.
Chapter 6
Connor
Six weeks later
Life was getting back to normal, as much as it could, with a baby in the house. Ellery had trouble breast-feeding after the first week, so we ended up bottle-feeding Julia, which made it easier for me to help out with the feedings. I tried to hire a nanny, but Ellery wanted nothing to do with it and said that she didn’t want a stranger raising our child. I worked from home as much as I could, but I had reached a point when I had to start going into the office.
I was sitting at my desk, going over some paperwork, when a text message came through from Ellery.
“You better be home early tonight. I just left the doctor’s office, and I’ve been cleared to have sex! You better be ready, Mr. Black, because tonight’s the night!”
Just reading that made me hard. I’d been craving her, and I couldn’t wait to be inside her again.
“I’ll be home, don’t you worry about it. By the way, I’m already hard.” I quickly replied.
“Good. You better make sure you stay that way.”
As I looked over at my computer, I saw that it was six o’clock. I needed to hurry up and finish going over some papers so I could get home to my wife and daughter. I called the florist and had them deliver two dozen roses to the office so I could bring them home to Ellery. Once the flowers arrived, I was finished for the day. I grabbed my things and headed out the door. Denny was waiting for me like usual in the front. When I opened the door, I threw my briefcase on the seat and climbed in.
“Beautiful flowers, Connor. You shouldn’t have.” He smiled.
“Tonight’s the night, Denny. I get to have sex with my wife again!”
“Congratulations, Connor. Is someone looking after Julia while the two of you celebrate?”
“No, I don’t think so. Why?” I asked.