Page 19 of Savage Boss

“Everyone knows, malysh, now stop worrying. You have to save your energy for this birth.”

“I don’t want to give birth!” she wailed as the contraction squeezed her hard.

Vlad picked her up and set her in the back of their SUV. The doula was sitting up front with Leo, who was going to drive them to the hospital. Vlad reached around Jane, buckling her seatbelt as she brought her knees up onto the seat and curled in the fetal position as much as she could in the seatbelt’s restrictive embrace. Vlad rushed around the other side. The moment his door was closed, Leo started down the driveaway, not waiting for Vlad’s order.

“Hang in there,” Vlad said, reaching for Jane.

The car ride to the hospital was the longest of Vlad’s life. Jane lay against him whimpering and asking after every single person she knew.

“And someone will have to let my mom and dad know,” she said suddenly, looking up at Vlad pleadingly. “They don’t have a telephone so someone will have to drive out there and that could take days!”

She started crying.

Vlad kissed her upturned face, gently wiping the tears with his thumb. “Baby, I will do whatever it takes to let your parents know the baby is coming.”

Leo glanced at them through the rearview mirror. “I will personally make sure your family has the message within the day.”

“Th-thank you,” Jane wailed, burying her face in Vlad’s chest.

When they arrived at the hospital, there was a bed ready for Jane and their obstetrician met them in the waiting room.

“The baby is early,” Vlad said in a low concerned voice to Dr. Rickman as he followed Jane’s bed down the hall.

The doctor gave Vlad a calm look. “Jane is small, and this is her first baby. She’s struggled to keep her blood pressure down. It’s no surprise that the baby wants to come early. The baby is healthy and so is your wife. I’m expecting the delivery to go smoothly.”

Vlad shook his head. “When Jane is involved, nothing goes smoothly.”

But Vlad was wrong. This was one time Jane was willing to go with convention and have a perfectly normal delivery. Jane laboured for another four hours before she gave birth to their small but strong son. He came into the world with head full of fluffy black hair and all his fingers and toes intact.

After the baby was checked and weighed, he was placed in Jane’s waiting arms. She curled onto her side with the baby tucked against her chest. Vlad sat on the bed next to her as the doctor, doula and nurses quietly left. He was going to owe the hospital a hefty donation for the personalized care he’d managed to wrangle for Jane, but it was more than worth it. The look on her face was worth any amount of money.

“Look at him,” she said wonderingly, unable to tear her eyes away from his tiny red face. “He’s the most perfect creature on the planet.”

Vlad smiled indulgently. “For once, my love, we are in agreement.”

Jane smiled happily and snuggled against Vlad, their son pressed between them. They talked about names and finally settled on Joseph, after Jane’s father. Vlad was pleased when she suggested Vladimir as a middle name. Joseph Vladimir Sitnikov. A regal sounding name for a child who would one day become king of Vlad’s empire.

“You made me proud today, Jane.”

She looked up at him with shining eyes. “And you did exactly what I expected you to do. Threatened everyone in the room, paced, sweated and generally caused a nuisance while our saintly doctor helped me give birth.”

Vlad chuckled. She was right, he hadn’t exactly been reasonable while his wife groaned and grunted in pain. After the delivery, when he failed to immediately hear his son’s cries, Vlad had really lost his shit, threatening to murder everyone involved if they didn’t get his baby breathing. Much to his embarrassment, he’d learned that it could take a few minutes.

Sure enough, once the baby was placed on Jane’s naked chest, he began wiggling and making noises. When he finally did cry, it was the sweetest sound Vlad had heard in his life.

Now, looking down at his small family, Vlad felt something inside himself that he’d never experienced before and almost didn’t recognize. Contentment. The birth of their son completed him.

As if reading his thoughts, Jane said, “I hope you like this one, because I am never doing that again. Fuck giving birth; it’s the absolute worst.”

Chapter Ten

6 weeks later

“Go the Fuck to Sleep.” Vlad read the title of a new bedtime story Jane picked up for Joseph. He flipped the book over with a frown. “I don’t remember there being curse words in books when I was a child. Perhaps this is an American custom?”

“Good book. Did you read it to him?” Jane asked as she rushed into the room, her shirt halfway opened. She wrestled with the rest of her buttons using one hand while reaching for their son with the other. “Jesus, these things are like leaking juice jugs. Give him to me. I need to get rid of some of this milk.”

Jane cradled Joseph against her chest, who immediately started seeking his supper. He settled in, curling one tiny hand over top of her full breast. Jane’s expression softened as she rocked him in her arms and kissed his downy head.

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