A Mob Boss Christmas: The Pregnancy (25 page)

“Just let me think,” Reno said, attempting with all
he had to remember all that he had read and heard.
 
He began opening Trina’s legs.
 
“That class.
 
What’s it?
 
Those LeManns classes?”

“LeManns, Reno?
 
They’re Lamaze classes!”

“Whatever,” responded
Reno.
 
“They talked about that fake labor deal,
remember.
 
The what’s
it?
 
The Hicks.
 
The Toni Braxton-Hicks, that’s it!
 
Or, hell, something
like
that.
 
These contractions could be Toni
Braxton-Hicks contractions, Tree.”

Tommy shook his head.
 
“Toni Braxton-Hicks,” he said mainly to himself.
 
“Our fearless leader, Reno Gabrini, thinks
they’re called Toni Braxton-Hicks.”
 
He
shook his head again.
 
“We’re in trouble.”

“What did those classes say?” Reno asked,
flustered.
 
“Breathe.
 
That’s it.
 
Breathe and push.
 
Push, Trina!
 
No, wait!” Reno yelled.
 
“Don’t push.
 
The cervix.
 
What about the cervix?
 
They said
the cervix has to be completely open before you start pushing.”

“Is it open?” Trina asked.

“How should I know?” Reno asked her.

“Mother of Mary!”
Tommy
prayed.

“But how are we gonna know when it’s completely
open?” Trina asked Reno.

“Maybe the head will start showing.
 
In
the what’s
it?
 
In the birth
canal.
 
That’s it!
 
The birth canal.”

“The operator’s back on now,” Jimmy said.

“Tell her we need doctors fast!” Reno yelled.

“What about the birth canal?” Trina asked, not
remembering anything she, too, had learned.

“Oh, geez, I don’t know,” Reno said helplessly.
 
“I just remember that name!”

“Mother of Mary,” Tommy implored again, shaking his
head.

But the 911 operator was able to walk Reno through
what he needed to do to keep Trina relaxed and prepped in case of a quick
arrival.
 
She assured him that was
probably not the case, given the contractions, but she prepared him
nonetheless.
 

And just a few moments later, Lonnie, who had broken
every speeding law on the books, was pulling the limo into the emergency room
area of a hospital they all were beyond relieved to see.

It would be twelve hours later before Trina gave
birth.
 
Reno saw her go from his sweet
little angel, as she made comments like
Oh,
baby, I love you, too
, when he’d hold her hand, to
Get this fool out of here now!
as
her
contractions intensified.

But Reno remained by her side and coached her through
her harshest pain.
 
It was as if he was
taking the blows right along with her.
 
When she cried out, he wanted to cry out, too.
 
When she winced and bent and screamed, he
winced and bent, too.
 

And he witnessed a miracle.
 
The birth of his son.
 
Two eyes, ten fingers, ten
toes.
 
Pink and
plump.
Bone of Trina’s bone.
 
Flesh of Trina’s flesh.
 
Reno wanted to cry.

And when the baby cried his first cry, Reno declared
if he didn’t sound like Trina already.
 
It was the most wonderful sound he’d ever heard.
 
This was theirs.
 
The son of Reno and Trina
Gabrini.
 
Their
precious gift from God.

He looked at Trina, who was fit to be tied herself,
but she was able to smile, too.
 
She knew
what this gift meant.
 
She knew how
wondrously and incredibly blessed they were to have been given this gift.
 
On Christmas day they thought she had
miscarried.
 
Reno thought it was
over.
 
But now it came to pass.
 

And when the nurse placed that baby in Reno’s arms,
and Reno walked the baby gingerly to Trina and handed him to her, he still
would not let go.
 
He held his hand
beneath the baby’s head.
 
He held his
other hand beneath the baby’s legs.
 
Even
if Trina’s weakened state caused the baby to fall, Reno was the backup.
 
He would be there, right beside her, to bear
that baby up.
 

“Thank-you, Jesus,” Trina cried as the baby looked up
at her with big blue eyes just like his father’s.

“That’s all we need,” she said with a smile.
 
“Another Reno in this
world.”

Reno laughed like a man in love.
 
Yeah, he thought.
 
That was all they needed.