Page 13 of Unexpected Delivery

Fuck, man.

Labor isbrutal.

Why hasn’t nature come up with a more convenient way of delivering babies by now? Where the fuck is evolution when you need it?

This shit is traumatic, and I’m not even involved.

“I can see the entire crown of the baby’s head. You’re doing exactly what you’re supposed to be doing,” Hayes praises.

“You’re incredible,” Morris coos. “Keep pushing.”

“That’s good,” Hayes says at the exact same time. “You’re doing great, Arbor. You feel where my fingers are? This is where I need you to focus. Push through the entire contraction this time. Bear down andpush.”

“Oh my god, I hate this feeling!” She screams, and my system revolts at the sound. It feels like I’ll crawl out of my skin if I don’t find a way to fix the problem, but the only thing that’s going to fix this is getting that baby out.

And maybe some good drugs.

I don’t miss the life I left behind in Baltimore often, but I would have been able to get her some fucking pain relief if we were there. Opiates were never my thing, but I knew enough people who loved them that I could have found her something to take the edge off.

Only I specifically cleaned up my act when I knew Hayes was coming home. Well, I was working on it before that, but the crowd I was hooked up with didn’t make it easy.

Once I lost my mentor at the bike shop, there was nothing keeping me in Maryland. I met Morris when I was about the lowest I’ve been, and he gave me a shot.

No bullshit, that guy saved my life.

The more I think about it, the more I see a pattern. He coddled the hell out of Hayes when he came back from the Middle East an anxious mess.

That’s just Morris. He adopts strays and takes care of all of us, and Arbor sure looks like she could use someone in her corner.

“Get your ass down here,” Hayes growls. I shove my phone in my back pocket and step over. “Grab a towel and be ready.”

My hands shake, but I follow his instructions.

“I can’t. I’m too tired. I don’t think I can do this anymore.” Tears stream down her cheeks, making her big blue eyes beet red. “I’m sorry. I swear I’m trying, but it feels like I’ve got nothing left.”

She’s exhausted. Her face is swollen from all the crying, and she really does look like she’s done for, but saying that wouldn’t help anything.

What she needs is to be hyped up.

“You’ve got this,” I tell her, stepping closer to her side and offering an encouraging smile. “You’ve spent all this time growing your baby. You’ll feel so much better when they’re in your arms.”

Fuck.

It’s only one baby, right?

Morris and Hayes haven’t been specific about gender, so I went that route, too, but I hope it’s not one of each.

That’s like twice as much of an emergency.

Arbor’s face gets red, and her whole body tenses like it does when she’s pushing.

“Gentle push, but follow through,” Hayes says, startling the hell out of me. “I’m touching the baby’s head right now. That’s it! Just like that,push just like that. Follow through, keep going…”

Moving back to stand next to his arm, I make the mistake of looking.

Holy fuck me.

There’s blood dribbling around the baby’s head, and I’m pretty sure the kid is face down. They have a head of dark hair, just like Arbor, and everything is bloody and swollen.

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