Page 53

Beth

G ideon had us at the hospital in record time.

He held my hand the entire drive there, and I squeezed the living crap out of his fingers every time a contraction hit.

And oh, did they hit. A few minutes after my water broke, they came fast .

“Fuck. Why did no one warn me that contractions felt this bad?”

Gideon had the nerve to chuckle. “Then no one would have babies.”

“Oh, they would,” I grumbled. “I would happily do it for Joey, if it had been up to me, and for this munchkin—but I reserve the right to complain while it’s happening,” I said through gritted teeth.

Gideon smiled softly at me. “I know you would.”

“Eyes on the road!” I hissed, making him laugh.

We drove in silence for a few minutes, Gideon focusing on weaving in and out of traffic, and me focusing on getting through the hellish contractions every time they hit.

“Jensen is already in labor and delivery, waiting for us,” my mate said as the text notification popped up on his phone.

I guess there were a few perks to being with a doctor. There were also downsides, thanks to their workaholic nature, but I was a fan overall.

“He’d better have picked out a nice room for me,” I grumbled.

Gideon’s thumb rubbed circles on the palm of my hand in a soothing gesture I was thankful for. I needed cuddles, but considering the only alpha in my vicinity was driving, that wasn’t really an option. “I’m sure he did,” he said as we pulled into the hospital parking lot.

Jensen was waiting for us in the parking lot, a wheelchair ready for me.

“Oh, thank you.” I sighed, sitting my butt in the chair. “I think I leaked on your car.” I winced, looking at Gideon.

He waved off my concern. “Cars can be cleaned. Cullen will be here in just a moment. He’s dropping Joey off with a friend.”

Silently I prayed for a quick labor. I wanted to be back home with my baby and my daughter. Also, a shorter labor meant less pain.

In theory.

They wheeled me up to labor and delivery while I was examined and immediately admitted.

“You’re already seven centimeters dilated,” the nurse chirped.

“Seven?” I exclaimed. How on earth could I be so dilated? Sure, the contractions were hurting, but not that much.

The nurse nodded, taking off her gloves. “Let’s get you in a labor gown and into a delivery room. It won’t be long until you’re meeting your baby.”

Cullen came sprinting into the room, his hair a mess. “Did I miss it?”

Gideon shook his head. “Not yet. Get your ass in here.”

Cullen strode over to me, pulling me in and kissing the top of my head. “How are you feeling?”

I bit my lip. “I’ve felt better, but evicting a baby isn’t exactly a walk in the park.”

All three of my alphas settled around my bed, Gideon sitting behind me, lightly massaging my back while Cullen sat at the foot of my bed, rubbing my feet periodically. Jensen sat next to me, holding my hand, reassuring me that everything was going amazingly.

“We still haven’t decided on names!” I groaned.

“That’s something we can worry about once the baby is here safely,” Gideon assured me. “I still love the name Ethel.”

“I vetoed that one!” Cullen cried. “It sounds like an old lady.”

I happened to disagree and quite liked the name, but I wasn’t going to choose a name that any of my alphas didn’t like. I was gaining a newfound appreciation for packs that named children because it wasn’t just two people with opinions trying to name a child.

Still, I couldn’t help proclaiming, “It’s a beautiful name!”

“It sounds like a grandma. I want my child to have a name that works for both a baby and an adult.”

I couldn’t help but giggle at that. “Cullen, you named your daughter Joey. Your daughter .”

Cullen grinned. “And it’s an adorable name! She can go by Josephine when she’s an adult.”

Shaking my head, I cocked an eyebrow at him. “If you think that little girl is ever going from Joey to Josephine, then you need your head examined.”

“I still think classic is best,” Jensen said.

Right as I opened my mouth to answer, a particularly violent contraction hit, making me bend with the sheer pain of it.

“Holy fuck! How do women go through this multiple times?”

“We are suffering right here with you,” Jensen assured me.

My head whipped around to meet his eyes, and my anger at his words must have been evident because he shrank back a bit, a sheepish smile on his face. “I just mean, through the bond…”

Gideon laughed, still massaging my lower back. “We can feel the tiniest fraction of her pain. You are a doctor and should know that.”

Jensen grimaced. “Yeah, my bad. You can punch Cullen in the balls, if that helps?”

“Hey, why are my balls being volunteered when you’re the one being an idiot?” Cullen asked.

“I think we all need to stop bickering and focus on Bethany,” Gideon said.

“It’s a nice distraction, actually,” I admitted.

Gideon wrapped his arm around me, pulling my back flush with his chest. I instinctually snuggled into him, letting his familiar papery scent wash over me. There was something about huffing his scent that made the pain a little less intense.

“I swear your scent is crack,” I muttered, craning my head to get a better sniff.

“Alpha biology—our scents can help lessen the pain,” Gideon murmured, resting his chin on top of my head.

The nurse came in, beaming at us. “Well, I think it’s about time for you to have a baby!”

It took almost an hour of pushing for my daughter to enter the world.

I didn’t know why I’d believed pushing would only take a few minutes. Maybe it was because all the TV shows made it seem so quick.

Agonizing pain, mess, and a lot of stress, but she was out.

The moment the doctor placed her on my chest, my heart almost exploded with emotion. This little creature, who was all wrinkly and screaming, had been inside me for months, wriggling around and kicking me in the ribs.

The first little cry that escaped her chest had me sobbing with overwhelming emotions I couldn’t put my finger on.

The entire delivery, my guys had been there for me—Gideon behind me, Jensen and Cullen on each side, holding back my legs.

“She’s perfect,” I whispered as I handed her to Jensen. The nurses had whisked her away to clean her off and swaddle her, so now she smelled like new baby and had a cap on her head.

It was so cute, I had started to tear up again when the nurse handed her back.

“We are so fucked.” Cullen laughed. When I turned to look at him questioningly, he explained, “Two daughters. Joey is cute as a button, and if this little girl looks anything like her mama…well, just imagine how many boys are going to be sniffing around them when they’re teenagers.”

A grumpy growl emanated from Gideon as I giggled. “We’ll get better security,” he said, dead serious.

“She’s not even three hours old yet!” I exclaimed.

“Better to be prepared.” Jensen nodded.

“Are you hungry? I can get the guys from the restaurant to deliver some food,” Cullen offered.

“I wouldn’t mind some chicken pasta. I’m not sure what the hospital food is like.”

Jensen grimaced, not looking away from our daughter, staring with rapt attention. “It’s healthy, but bland. Take Cullen’s offer. I’ll have a burger.”

There was something about watching my large, domineering alphas hold our tiny baby with such gentle concern that turned my brain to mush. How was I supposed to think clearly when Jensen was rocking and saying sweet nothings to our tiny nugget?

They sent us home the next day. The doctor had offered to keep me an extra night, but I was feeling good and wanted to be back in my own nest. I had managed to stand, shower, and even shuffle around the room a bit.

My body felt a special kind of bruised and broken. Everything was swollen, and I did mean everything . Even my eyes were puffy. My stomach had gone from being heavily pregnant to looking as if I was still four or five months pregnant, even though there was no baby in there anymore.

My ankles were holding so much water, but Cullen had slipped some compression socks on me after I delivered, and they were helping me feel just a little less like a dough ball.

My breasts—holy fuck, my breasts. I’d known breastfeeding was going to hurt, but I hadn’t even started yet, and my boobs felt like they were engorged.

As soon as we got home, the guys settled me and our little girl in the nest. Her bassinet was right on the edge so I could easily reach her.

Gideon crawled onto the nest, pulling me into his arms. “I really don’t want to go, but I should get Joey. You and the nugget okay?”

I smiled lazily into his chest. I was exhausted. “I’ve got two other manservants to attend to my every need. I’ll manage for an hour.”

He smirked. “But I’m the best manservant.”

I pecked him on the lips, resisting the urge to pull him closer. “Go get our daughter.”

“Mom!” Joey squealed as she ran into the nest. “I washed my hands!” she declared, crawling onto the nest. She had scampered straight into her bedroom to change out of her uniform and into a soft T-shirt and leggings.

Gideon must have told her she needed to keep her hands clean when touching her little sister. He followed her into the room. He had dark circles under his eyes—we all did.

“You want to hold her?” I asked.

“Yes!” Joey squealed softly, crawling next to me so she could get a better look. The dads were all on the edges of the nest, content with watching.

I gently talked her through sitting down and holding out our hands so she could support the baby’s head. Joey listened to me with rapt attention, her eyes never leaving her baby sister.

The moment I handed her the baby, my chest almost exploded with emotion, and I had to do my best to avoid crying. Joey was a smart kid, but I wasn’t sure she would believe me when I told her I was crying because I loved the two little girls in front of me so damn much.

It didn’t matter that my nipples were on fire, or that my organs still didn’t feel in the right place. All that mattered were my two girls.

So much had changed in just a year. I had gone from single, with no children, to happily bonded with two children.

How had I gotten so lucky?

“She’s so little,” Joey whispered in awe. “When will she get bigger?”

“She’ll start growing soon enough, munchkin,” Jensen said, grinning at them.

Cullen already had his phone out and was snapping photos of them together.

“You’d better send me those pictures,” I muttered.

“Of course.”

Joey looked up at me, still perfectly supporting the baby’s little head. “Did you come up with a name?”

I glanced between the guys. We had one idea, but we had been mulling it over and weren’t sure.

“What do you think of the name Zoey?” I asked.

“Zoey and Joey!” she cried excitedly. Thankfully, the baby was a good sleeper and didn’t even stir at her outburst. “I like it!”

Well, I was pretty sure that settled it. Glancing at my three alphas, they all wore matching dopey grins.

“I think we have a name,” I whispered, unable to wipe my own cheesy smile off my face.