Page 26 of A Baby for the Mountain Man

“Very true.” She reaches for my free hand and gives it a squeeze. “But you also need to stop scaring the poor guy.”

My brow knits together. “I’m not doing anything to scare him.”

“Right, I’m sure scowling at him and practically growling every time he’s in the room is doing wonders to keep him calm, cool, and collected.”

She rolls her eyes. “Need I remind you that he’s here to help bring our babies into the world? It might be good to have him in his best fighting condition.”

“Sorry.” I clamp my lips together and give her hand a squeeze. “I just want to make sure the three of you are getting the best care possible.”

“We are.” The smile she gives pierces through my fears and fills me with a bright warmth, like the way it feels when the sun shines down on you on a beach.

I raise our linked hands to my lips and kiss the back of her smooth skin. “Maybe, when the twins are a little bit older, we can take a family vacation somewhere warm.”

She blinks at me in confusion. “That’s random. But, I wouldn’t say no to a week or two on the beach.”

My lips curl against her skin. She probably wouldn’t think my suggestion was so random if she knew what other hopes and plans I have in store for us.

Still clutching her hand, I lean forward to capture her lips in a searing kiss. She gives a light gasp but returns the kiss with equal fervor.

We’re both more than a little breathless, and my heart is practically bursting when I end the kiss. Both of us are still panting, I rest my forehead against hers.

“Do you have any idea of how much I love you?”

She gives a light laugh. “I’d say your demonstration just now gave me a pretty good idea.”

“We barely tapped the surface there.” I rub my nose against hers, press a kiss to it, and lean back so I can look into her darkblue eyes. “If you weren’t in the process of having our babies, I’d be happy to give you a more thorough demonstration.”

She snorts. “I’m sure. With every part of my body from my nose to my toes swelling, I bet I look pretty sexy right about now.”

I cup her cheek tenderly. “You’ve never looked more beautiful than you do right now.”

The skepticism eases from her expression. The sultry look she’s giving is all too tempting to resist. So I lean forward for one more kiss.

My lips brush against hers and she yelps.

And not the good kind.

I recoil. “What? What did I do?”

“You didn’t do anything.” She takes several gasping breaths and her grip on my hand tightens until her knuckles grow white and mine become red.

“Are you having another contraction?” I lower myself so my elbows are resting next to her, ready to help her through the pain, even as I glance at my watch.

“Yes,” she hisses through gritted teeth. “But that’s not all?”

“What? Can you feel one of the heads coming out?”

I know it’s a stupid question as soon as I ask. If I didn’t, the annoyed look Sophie gives me would be telling enough.

“Sorry.” That word is quickly becoming the most frequently used one in my vocabulary.

I adjust my grip on her hand, clasping it between both of mine and offering her all of the strength that I can.

I try to keep my voice as calm as possible. “What’s going on? What do you need?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know.” The panic in her voice slices through me like a knife to the heart. “I’m… I’m…”

“Oh!” The nurse smiles pleasantly as she strides into the room. “It looks like your water has broken. Things will hopefully start moving along.”

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