Page 113 of Calamity Rayne Knocked Up

“I’d like to help you cleanse the house of negative energy while I’m here.”

“That would be great.” Then Ihad an idea. “How do you feel about coming out again when I’m due?”

“I could do that.”

“Good. You can be my spiritual doula.” Willow had such a calming effect on me.

“As long as you understand I’m not an actual doula. I have no medical expertise where babies are concerned.”

“I know. But you're good for the mommy, and what’s good for the mommy is good for the baby. I’ll tell Hale to arrange your flights. We’ll take care of everything.”

That night, when I told Hale my plan to fly Willow in for the birth he was confused. “You want me to what?”

“Fly her in. She calms me down, Hale.”

He frowned. “That’s my job.”

“This is different. What’s the big deal?”

“You’re talking about the hippy who works underground in New York, right?”

“Don’t be disrespectful. She’s my spiritual doula.”

“That’s not a thing, Rayne.”

“It is now.” I rubbed cocoa butter on my belly. “Don’t you want me to be happy?”

“You know I do. But what happened to keeping thingsnormal?”

I paused. This was a little excessive, butthe thought of having Willow’s calming presence nearby for the birth really relieved some of my fear. I was terrified of labor pain and worried my vagina would be ruined after passing a human through it. Honestly, a C-section and heavy drugs seemed like the Cadillac way to go, but that wasn’t an option right now.

“I want this one bougie thing. I’m giving you a child, so I think you can give me this.” It wasn’t like Hale didn’t give me everything I wanted anyway. We all knew he’d say yes. He was just having a hard time understanding that Reiki was more than an energetic scam job.

“Fine. I’ll make the arrangements.”

“Thank you.”

The following day, Hale arranged brunch for our guests. I insisted on inviting Remington, Miles, Alphonse, and Raoul since they weren’t included in the baby shower.

Willow fluttered to Remington like a moth drawn to a flame, and plucked at the air around his head. “Your aura has some darkness to it.”

He shot me a look and growled, “Meyers.”

“Willow, I don’t thinkhe likes that.”

“Negative energy pollutes the soul. You should let me help you unblock your chakra.”

“For pity’s sake, where do you pick up these strays?” He glared at Willow. “I like my aura just as it is. Put back anything you took.” Taking his fruit plate to the table, he grumbled, “Worse than a Roman pickpocket.”

I chuckled and ate my French toast.

After brunch, Alphonse drove Tyler and Willow to the airport. My mom stuck around to spend the day with me. We watched some of our favorite movies likeOverboardandThe Princess Bride,then topped off the day with some trashy reality television—the kind Hale hated but was secretly invested in.

Every time he entered the living room, he stared at the screen, watching the drama unfold until he caught himself watching. Then he would shake his head and mumble how ridiculous our shows were. Yet he always conveniently needed something from the living room whenever there was drama with the characters.

“You’ve got yourself a good one there, Ray,” my mom said, after Hale brought me a cup of tea. “You’re very lucky.”

My mom never complained about raising me as a single parent. My dad had beenaround when she was pregnant, but I couldn’t imagine him being anywhere near as supportive as Hale.

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