Page 50 of Knocked Up By the Silver Fox

"You're doing so well, baby. Have a deep breath and push again. Come on, you've got this." He coaxed me and comforted me and when the doctor ordered me to push again, I sucked in a breath and did it again, for the millionth time.

It felt like only seconds passed, but when I heard the wails of the baby and relaxed back in bed with my feet high in the air, the exhaustion of hours of labor finally hit me. I sobbed and closed my eyes and Will rained kisses all over my forehead and face. The tiny cries only made my heart squeeze harder. The baby was okay—crying, but healthy.

"Oh my God, Beth," Will said, and I heard him crying too. "It's a boy…I have a son." He sounded distant now, and I smiled as more tears leaked down my cheeks.

Will stood an arm's length away smiling and covering his mouth with his hand as he cried. I'd never seen him so vulnerable, and I reached out and took his hand. He was thrilled, and he was blocking my view. I pulled his hand hard and he took a step backward, and the baby came into sight.

Two nurses worked on him under the bright warming lamp of his bassinet. They were busy poking him with a needle and listening to his heartbeat. He was blue, but his wails were loud, probably a good sign I hoped.

"Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell, would you like to meet your son?" the doctor asked and I looked down between my legs and nodded, ignoring the fact that I wasn't yet a Caldwell, though conversations had happened.

The nurse smiled brightly as she wrapped a blanket loosely around the tiny screaming infant and walked between Will and me. She placed him on my chest and instinct kicked in. I cradled him and pressed my lips against his sticky forehead and cried even harder.

Now held against my body his cries lessened and abated, and Will leaned down and rested his forehead on mine. His hand wasso large it covered most of the baby's body when he touched him, and I smiled.

"He's so little," I said. I was amazed at his perfect fingers and toes.

"Yes, he is…And his Apgar is low. He needs to go to the NICU for a while so we can help his lungs mature." The doctor spoke from his place at the foot of my bed as he waited for us and I felt sad that I'd be separated from the baby.

"But he's okay?" Will asked, and the doctor nodded.

They barked orders at me and I did what they said. It was painful, but holding the baby on my chest while I finished the birthing process helped me cope. When the nurses came to take him away, Will made them wait.

"He needs a name," Will said resolutely, and I smiled up at him. I had thought long and hard about what I'd name the baby, and I never did pick out a girl's name. I suppose that was nature's way of showing me all along what I'd have.

"William Henry Caldwell the second," I said proudly and Will swiped a few tears away.

"You really want to name him after me?" he asked, and I nodded and grinned.

"I really do…" I yawned and rubbed my own eyes. I was tired, but adrenaline still pushed through my body making me feel stuck between needing to sleep and being too hyped up.

I dozed a little when they took Baby Will out. When I came to, the bed was put back together and I was sitting on some sort of absorbent pad. I was freezing, and Will gave me every blanket in the room. The lights were dimmed but I knew I hadn't been asleep that long, and Will pulled a chair up next to me as someone knocked on the door.

"Come in," he called and I sleepily turned my eyes in that direction as Abby walked in carrying a balloon and some flowers.

"Congratulations, Mommy," she said softly as she set the gifts on my tray table. I assumed it would be loaded with gifts and cards by the end of the day. Mom and Rachel would come by and probably people from work. I knew Will had a hundred friends who'd want to congratulate him, but for now I was enjoying the peace and quiet.

"Thank you, Abby. That's very thoughtful." I offered an air kiss to her as she leaned down to hug me.

"Where's the baby?" she asked, looking around, and I was sad to have to tell her.

"He's too little. He's in the intensive care unit, but he's doing well. We have to go down there to see him until he's big enough to breathe on his own." She sat on the side of my bed and frowned.

"It's a boy?" she asked, and the smile on her face didn't match the sadness of her tone. I could tell she was happy to have a brother and sad she couldn't meet him yet.

"William Henry…" I told her with a smile, and her eyes misted over.

"I love it…I can't wait to meet him."

After the rough start we had I was so happy that Abby had come around. She and I had grown close over the past two months and even though she was a decade younger than me, I knew we would end up having a good friendship.

"Beth," Will said, interrupting my moment with his daughter. "There's something I want to ask you."

I noticed Abby's eyebrows tick upward and a smile flash across her face, but she said nothing. So I turned to Will and noticed he held his hand up in front of me. I rubbed my eyes to make them focused and realized it was a ring.

"I wanted to do this tomorrow night. I had this whole thing planned…carriage ride in the park, romantic flowers and chocolates…But," he said, smiling.

As if I hadn't cried enough today already, more tears welled up. "Will…" I said, sighing. I already told him yes. He knew I would be with him. He knew I loved him and he knew my future was settled in my eyes, but this was sweet.

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