Page 120 of Sometimes You Fall

“Yes, we need an ambulance,” Chase says as he stands on the other side of the door, talking in the phone and giving the operator as much information as he can.

“God, Grady! She’s coming!”

I strip Scottie’s underwear from her body and toss them to the floorboard of the truck, peeking between her legs to see my daughter’s head beginning to crown. “Do you need to push, Scottie? I see her head.”

“Yes!”

“Okay, push baby. Do what feels right.”

Scottie screams as I watch her body do one of the most miraculous things I’ve ever witnessed.

I’ve pitched games in front of thousands of people, played a sport professionally for twelve years, and won a fucking World Series—but nothing will ever compare to the experience of watching my daughter come into the world.

With sirens wailing in the background, Scottie gives me one more push and I catch my daughter in my hands, bringing her up from the seat and right onto my chest as she cries and Scottie joins her.

“Oh my God,” Scottie breathes out before pushing up on her elbows to see her.

“She’s here, baby. She’s here.” I smooth my hand over our daughter’s back and then reach for Chase’s shirt to wrap around her as I hear the ambulance pull into the parking lot. “You did so fucking good, Scottie. Holy shit, she’s perfect.” Tears cloud my vision as I hold this little miracle in my arms.

“Let me hold her, Grady,” she says through her own tears as I press a kiss to the top of my daughter’s head and then hand her over to her.

Chase peeks his head around the corner, and when he sees the blood and details of childbirth, his face goes white. Luckily, I catch him before he faints and hits the ground. “Easy there, son.”

“Is he okay?” Scottie shouts before looking down at our daughter. “Hello, baby girl. My goodness, you were in a hurry to get here, weren’t you?”

“Excuse me, sir?” A paramedic gets my attention from behind me. “Is this where the mother is?”

“Yes! The baby is here. They are both doing good,” I say, trying to keep my emotions in check.

I just delivered my daughter in the back of my truck, in a parking lot, with no preparation whatsoever.

And suddenly, I’m sliding to the ground to sit next to Chase so neither one of us passes out or throws up, because that would just make Scottie so fucking happy and put the cherry on top of this perfect yet crazy day.

Chapter twenty-two

Scottie

“There you go.” I stare down at our daughter, Calliope Olive Reynolds, as she nurses and makes the cutest fucking noises. “I love you so much, little girl.” Tears fill my eyes for the thousandth time in the past six hours, but I can’t help it. Today was crazy, emotional, and overwhelming, but it all led to this moment and I’m so fucking happy that I can’t help but let the tears fall freely.

“Hey, you’re awake.” Grady enters the room with a cup of coffee and a clean shirt.

“Yeah, she just woke up and was hungry, so…”

He comes over and sits on the edge of the bed, staring down at our daughter as she eats. Leaning over me, he presses a kiss to my head and brushes my curls back. “How are you feeling?”

“Sore. I guess I ended up doing this without drugs after all, huh?”

Grady chuckles. “Yeah, babe. But you did so fucking good.”

I glance up at him, cupping his jaw with my free hand. “So did you. You brought our daughter into the world, Grady. How’s that for a story?”

“Best start to this new chapter ever.” He leans down and presses his lips to mine softly. “I love you so much. Thank you for the best gift I could ever ask for.”

“Our lives are never going to be the same.”

“I couldn’t ask for anything better.”

“Knock, knock!” I twist toward the door to find my mom, Gigi, and Chase walking in one right after the other.

---