Page 43 of Outside Looking In

“Yes.”

What had Nathan gotten himself into? The only thing he’d ever delivered was dialogue. Fear seized his body, but the confident smolder of Liam gave him hope. It shook sense into him.

“All right,” Nathan said.

Liam gave him a sturdy head nod. “You have to reach inside Tilly and push the lamb’s shoulders in.” Liam demonstrated with his hands at his sides. “Once you do that, the lamb should come right out.”

Fear ripped through Nathan. “I—can I practice on you?”

Liam tipped his head to the side like seriously.

“Just once.”

Liam held his elbows out chicken-style. Nathan tried to push them down, but Liam flexed those arm muscles to make this more of a challenge. Now was so not the time to admire those muscles. Nathan managed to shove them down.

“The sheep won’t put up nearly the resistance.” Liam put his hands on Nathan’s shoulders. Those dark eyes penetrated the most scared parts of him. “You can do this, Nathan. I trust you. Tilly trusts you.”

Nathan thought of the lamb and the mother who needed his help, and that need overrode his trepidation.

“I can do this,” Nathan said.

Liam nodded and ran off to tend to the other sheep.

Tilly wailed.

“You can do this,” Nathan said to himself. “I mean, we can do this, Tilly.”

All I have to do is push its shoulders in.He took a huge, deep breath and squatted down. Adrenaline shoved aside his squeamishness.

I’m doing this. I’m doing this. This is really happening.His fingers and hands squished through until he felt something firm. A head. A lamb head. He could feel it pulse and breathe.

“There you are.” His fingers traveled down the head and yes! The shoulders. Tilly wailed in pain and kicked her legs out. He bet this was unpleasant for her. A lover had tried to fist Nathan once; he did not like it either.

Tilly’s bleats hit a fever pitch.

“We’re almost done!”

He counted to three and pushed the lamb’s shoulders down. He held them down for a second to make sure they wouldn’t pop up again, but the lamb did not put up a fight.

“How’s it going?” Liam yelled to him from across the barn.

“I think…” Nathan gave the lamb a slight nudge before he removed his hands. He checked inside, and the lamb inched closer to the outside. “I think it’s working!”

Tilly let out another groan. The lamb’s head came closer and closer to the world.

“Holy shit, Tilly. You’re giving birth.” It was a duh statement, but it hit Nathan so profoundly.This is that miracle of life shit parents were always talking about.

The lamb slid out. Its legs touched the floor. Nathan’s shirt and pants were covered with fluid he didn’t want to think about.

Liam ran over. “Did it work?”

But his question didn’t need to be answered.

“You did it.”

“I…” Nathan was a storm of emotions. He wasn’t the one who gave birth, so he didn’t know why he had trouble speaking.

“Sweet as,” Liam said in a whisper, in just as much as awe as Nathan.