~Four months later~
Becca.
“I can’t do this,” I panted as the pain of contractions ran through . “Goddamn it, Neal! Drive faster!”
There was nothing like being woken up at three in the morning by a soaked bed only to realize that your water had broken. At first, the pain was nothing more than slightly uncomfortable and feeling extra heavy below, but as ti gradually went on, the pain began to spread.
“I’m going as fast as I can, Becca.”
“It’s f*cking not fast enough!” I scread out as a cry of pain radiated through .
“Becca, in and out. In and out,” Allegra said, soothingly, as she placed a cold cloth against my head.
I did as she said and continued the breathing exercises that the native island woman had told to do in my classes, but it didn’t matter how much breathing I did, the pain was horrible.
F*ck having a natural birth... all I wanted was the damn pain dication the doctors had promised . One prick of a needle, and all my pain would be over. The problem was that the place where I got the needle of happiness happened to be forty-five minutes away.
My fault honestly. I had picked the most secluded of hos in New Zealand as our forever ho, and it wasn’t anywhere near a hospital... unless I drove forty-five minutes away. “Won who do this naturally are f*cking insane!” I cried with tears rolling down my face.
“It’s okay,” Allegra laughed. “I can see the hospital in the distance. We’re almost there.”
Nodding my head, I held on. I held on for the life that was about to be brought into this world, and also for the love I had to give. So much had changed in four months, and to think I was about to bring the final step of my life into the world was incredible.
I was scared, and more than anything, I wished that Jas was here to see this, but I had hope he was here in spirit. That he was looking down upon us with open arms and loving eyes watching as I brought his child into the world.
As soon as Neal pulled the car into the ergency driveway, he put it in park, and jumped out, running inside as Allegra tried to help out of the car. I could hear Neal yelling for soone to help which both Allegra and I found amusing.
“Bless him for acting the way he is.” Allegra chuckled as two nurses ca running out to us with a wheelchair in tow.
“I know you would think that he hadn’t been prepared for any of this. He read enough books for the entire household,” I replied as one of the nurses gestured for to take a seat in the wheelchair.
“How far apart are your contractions, dear?”
Allegra stepped forth with a notebook and shoved it into the woman’s hands. “Two minutes apart, and growing closer. She has been in active labor for an hour now.”
“An hour?” the woman said with wide eyes as if shocked by what Allegra was saying.
“Yes, an hour. I know how to keep track. I went to all the classes with her.” Shrugging her shoulders Allegra rolled her eyes as if irritated the woman would even question her.
I wasn’t sure why the woman found that weird, but when she looked at the other nurse she turned her gaze back to . “Is this your first child?”
“Yes, what does that have to do with anything?” I pushed out as my panting started again going through another contraction. “Can we get the dicine now?!”
They didn’t bother to keep talking as they quickly rushed into the hospital and up to the maternity ward. My panicked state was made widely known. Especially when I got into the labor room, and they inford I was almost ready to push... and not allowed an epidural.
“What?!” I scread as I felt the need to push. “No, no no.” I shook my head back and forth as I cried out in pain, my back arching as I felt the need to push.
“Co on now dear. Let’s take a look and see how it’s going down there.”
With my legs propped open, and the blanket pulled back, I heard a small fit of laughter escape her. “What is it? Why are you laughing?”
“Because I can see the jet black hair of a baby’s head.”
“What?!” I cried out. “You can?”
“Yes, dear. On your next contraction, I want you to tuck your chin to your chest and give a big push. The biggest you can give .”
My eyes gaze towards Neal who stood off to the side for moral support. He hadn’t thought that I would want him in here, but he had been wrong. “I need you.”
It was the only thing I had to say for him to be at my side without hesitation. “It’s okay. You’ve got this, sweetie.”
As the contraction ca, I did as the woman said and pushed. I had expected more pain like I had been having, but what I didn’t expect was the pain that this brought forth.
Screaming louder than I ever had, I pushed as the lady said until, finally, the pain disappeared and the sound of a baby crying echoed through the air. I gasped for breath collapsing upon the delivery bed with my only desire being that I wanted to sleep.
However, as I looked at Neal, I watched the tears that filled his eyes slowly slide down his face. “Are you okay?” I asked him, watching as he quickly wiped them away.
“Yeah, I just never saw sothing like that before.”
The won in the room laughed at the sa ti I did. My hand reached up to brush against his cheek as the head nurse wrapped the babyin a towel, bringing the baby towards .
“Congratulations sweetie. You have a beautiful baby girl.”
I couldn’t believe it. The mont that she laid my daughter within my arms, I cried. She was the most beautiful thing that I had ever seen, with little puffy cheeks and rosy pink skin. “She is so beautiful,” I whispered.
“She looks just like her mother, so of course she is,” Neal replied as he gently touched her head. “She also looks like her father though. Look at all that jet black hair.”
This was a joyous mont between us, and as the nurses finished cleaning up, I couldn’t help but feel the void inside slowly filling. The void that had been created the day that Jas had died.
*****
Neal.
I had contemplated the day that Becca would have the child for quite so ti, and through every single step that she needed , I was there. Through every class, shopping trip, through every bit of decorating and moving from the States to New Zealand, I was there.
There had been so much stuff that had happened in the last four months when it ca to moving over. One of the major things being that we indeed had found out that Sara, the nanny, had other motivations behind her when it ca to actually taking care of Taliana’s child.
The woman in question was actually known for trying to take babies from wealthy families. Kidnap them after forming a bond and then raising them for a bit to turn around and sell on the black market or even hold for ransom.
She was a criminal mastermind, and after all the digging I had done, I had found out she had many aliases and looks. It was no wonder Jas had missed it.
She was dealt with though... having t a very untily death.
It wasn’t that had landed that blow to the woman, but in fact, another woman irate with how evil soone could be to a child.
Soone who had failed to protect once upon a ti and refused to fail again.
After that mont, Becca clung to Tally’s child, feeling nothing but guilt or remorsefort the fact that she hadn’t been there any sooner to protect the babe from the woman who was trying to prey upon him.
After three months of dealing with that situation, Becca was finally open to the idea of hiring a new nanny for the child, one that was very well vetted by Allegra and I.
The last thing we expected, though, was for Becca to end up going into labor early.
“Why don’t you finish getting cleaned up, sweetie, and I’ll go tell Allegra the good news?”
Becca nodded her head at with a smile on her face as I turned quickly making my way out of the room and out into the lobby where Allegra was waiting. Unfortunately for her, only one person had been allowed to co into the back room with Becca as she gave birth, and Allegra had been adamant that that was .
“Oh my God, is she okay? Is the baby okay?” Allegra quickly stamred out as she stood to her feet, running over towards .
“They’re both doing perfectly. She had a little girl who looks just like her father.”
Tears flowed down Allegra’s face. She hadn’t ever really considered having children, but over the past two months, she had been hinting more and more to the fact that she wouldn’t have minded actually having a child of her own.
It might have had sothing to do with all the ti she spent with Tally’s baby and also the ti she spent with Becca getting prepared for her child coming into this world.
At the end of the day, I was happy to know my sister was willing to move forward with her life. She deserved it after years of putting her life on hold for .
“Can I go back and see her?” Allegra asked , and slowly, I nodded my head. If anybody should be in there right now, it would be Allegra. She had given up so much to be able to stand by mine and Becca’s side.
“Yeah go on. I’m going to go make a quick call. They are in the process of getting her cleaned up, and then the lady said sothing about moving her to a more private room.”
I didn’t have to tell Allegra twice for her to quickly disappear through the double doors, down to labor and delivery. When she did disappear, though, I stood silently to myself as I pulled my phone from my pocket, hesitating on the call that I was about to make.
It was sothing that Becca didn’t know, and neither did Allegra, but Jas and I had been in communication over the past three months, and as promised, I had been filling him in on every little detail that was going on.
I loved Becca, but it didn’t take a genius to realize that no matter how much she cared about , I would never be able to replace Jas.
Not that I was trying.
So instead of fighting it, I would let her love as she chose to. But I would also remind myself on a continual basis that, at the end of the day, the child wasn’t actually biologically mine, and any father, no matter the situation, should not be revoked of his rights, if he chooses to try and be a father.
At least, unless there was a good reason for him not to see the child.
Even if Jas being a father was more complicated than we would have hoped for, part of wanted to help him. Even if it was impossible for him to be present.
Dialing his number, I waited as the phone rang twice and a gruff voice answered.
“Hello? Neal, what are you calling for? Did sothing happen?”
Letting a heavy breath escape , I pushed aside my personal feelings. “Yeah, it sure did. Congratulations, Daddy, you just had a little girl.”
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