Chapter 273 Chapter 273
Chapter 273 Chapter 273
BRAD
Years Later
“Are you sure you’re comfortable? Do your legs hurt? Or is the pillow too firm? Here—”
I snatch another pillow from the stack I had placed gently on the table.
“Try this. It’s softer. Are you thirsty? I don’t know if you’re okay with water now. I made water infused with lemon, maybe you could—”
“Hey, hey, hey! Breathe.”
Bella grabs my shoulder and for the first time since I entered the room, I actually look at her.
She has a smirk on her face, one that makes the little freckle that started appearing a few months ago twitch.
“I’m pregnant, I’m not sick,” she says.
She draws a deep breath and signals for me to do the same.
It is at that moment I realize I have been holding my breath for a while, afraid that the smell of peanuts on my breath would make her nauseous.
I exhale and the weight seems to roll off my shoulders.
“I know you’re not sick, but the days are so close. He can come anytime.”
“A she, you mean,” she says, rolling her eyes.
I smirk, biting back the remark sitting at the tip of my tongue.
This has been our battle since the first day we found out she was pregnant.
We both decided we didn’t want to ruin the surprise by checking the gender or going for a scan.
“Well, I would have argued with you on a good day, but I’m too worried.”
I sigh and sink to the ground, inches away from her protruding belly hanging like an overripe fruit ready to drop.
“Why are you stressing your mother?”
I place a gentle kiss on her exposed belly.
“You were supposed to come out four days ago.”
I stroke her sides gently and her stomach thumps as the baby kicks.
A smile tears across my face.
He is always so responsive.
“Now that you mention lemons, I feel like lemonade,” she says out of nowhere.
My feet move before my brain catches up.
Lemonade. Lemonade.
The kitchen is quiet, just as I ordered it to be for the past few days.
I want to be the one to make everything she eats because I know exactly how she likes it.
I grab the condensed milk from the fridge and the limes from the basket underneath.
I wash four limes and toss them into the blender with a chunk of ice cubes before pouring half a can of condensed milk into it.
Brazilian lemonade.
Her favorite.
I sprinkle sugar around the rim of a glass and hook a thin slice of lime onto it.
“Brad!”
A shrill scream causes every bone in my body to freeze.
Bella.
The glass slips from my hands, shattering across the floor.
I bolt out of the kitchen, make a sharp turn, almost slip, and burst back into the room.
Her face is contorted in pain.
Her hands dig into the couch, her body arching away from it.
Her legs are spread and her eyes are squeezed shut.
Labor.
Fuck.
Labor.
I have prepared for this so much.
My muscle memory from months of practice kicks in.
I rush to her and grab her gently, caressing her waist.
“Breathe, baby, breathe,” I murmur as I help her to her feet.
Carrying her will make the contractions come faster. She needs to move and keep her muscles active.
“They’re coming!” she wails before collapsing back onto the couch, clutching her skirt.
Blood.
Why is there blood?
Holy shit.
Fuck, fuck.
I didn’t plan for this.
What the hell do I do?
I can feel my heart pounding in my throat like a parade drum.
“Get the kiddie pool, now!” she barks.
I scramble out of the room, up the stairs, and into storage where the baby supplies are kept.
The room is filled with pink and blue items, fueled by our desperate need to be right about the gender.
I yank out the kiddie pool I had inflated the previous day to test but forgot to deflate.
“Brad!”
She screams again and my heart nearly stops.
I burst into the bathroom, turn the faucet to warm water, and shove a bucket underneath.
I race downstairs again.
“Here. I’ll get the water.”
I place the pool beneath her.
She heaves repeatedly, gripping her thighs as she sinks into it.
I rush back and forth, carrying bucket after bucket until the water reaches beneath her breasts.
“I’m here for you.”
I stare at her, my eyes prickling with tears at how much pain she is in.
She grips my hand and nods furiously, eyes shut tight.
She breathes heavily before throwing her head back.
A scream tears out of her.
The pool fills with blood.
“It’s crowning! It’s crowning!”
I push my hands into the water, ready to help her.
“One more, baby. One more time.”
I breathe with her.
She screams again.
The baby slips free.
I lift him from the water immediately and wrap him in a towel.
A boy.
A boy.
His cries fill the room as he bursts into tears.
A tear rolls down my face as I place him on her chest.
“He’s beautiful,” I whisper, wiping my cheek.
Her face contorts again.
She suddenly pushes the baby toward me.
My eyes widen as she screams once more.
“Twins?! Fucking twins?!”
My heart nearly bursts from my chest as I prepare to catch the second baby.
____
“What will you name them?”
“I’ll name him Jeremiah…”
Bella smiles weakly, tears glistening in her eyes.
“And I’ll name her…”
She looks at me.
“Ariana.”
THE END.