Authors: Ahren Sanders
Finn (43 page)
We walk into the hospital hand in hand, and I’m not surprised when we’re greeted by a room full of anxious adults. Thad is pacing in circles so fast that I get dizzy after a few seconds of watching him. He’s running his hands through his hair repeatedly, murmuring under his breath. James, Jenna, and Chloe are in a corner, drinking coffee and chatting, ignoring Thad completely.
When they see us, they smile wide and wave us in.
“How are things going?” Presley goes to Thad and forces him to stop moving by throwing her arms around his waist.
“They say she’s fine. Everything’s fine… that’s all they’ll tell us.” His voice is grave and does nothing to hide his worry.
“Thad! Stop it, she
IS
fine,” Chloe scuffs at him and then looks at Presley. “Ember is perfect. She’s fully dilated, and the baby’s heartbeat is strong and good. Robbie will be out any minute to tell us when she’s going to push. The doctor on call has already stopped by to say it’s almost time.”
“Eeeekkk! This is so exciting!” Presley gushes and dances in a circle.
“WHY IS SHE DANCING? I didn’t miss it, did I?” Cruz bolts into the room with panic written on his face. Alex is close behind with the same expression.
“No, calm down,” Chloe shushes him.
Robbie walks in and slaps me on the back then looks at everyone with a slight tremor in his voice. “We’re going to start pushing now. Ember is ready.”
There’s a collective round of ‘good lucks’ around the room, and I follow him down the hall out of earshot.
“Man,” I put a hand on his shoulder, “you got this.”
“Yeah, I do.” A spark of excitement flashes across his face.
“Oorah!” I whisper fiercely.
“Oorah, brother.”
He walks away, and I watch him disappear into a room.
“You know you never cease to amaze me. You are my real life Hero,” Presley says softly, and I turn to see tears in her eyes. “That was priceless.”
I shrug, my heart warming at her calling me ‘her hero’.
“Come back in. Raven and Declan are here. Everyone wants to hear about our honeymoon, and I want you to help me tell them.” She holds out a hand, and instead of taking it to follow her, I pull her close.
“Should we skip over the part about fucking for two days straight? Or setting our all-time record of earthshattering orgasms?”
She giggles and nods rapidly. “Yes, I think we can skip that part. Let’s stick to the snorkeling, shopping, and general trip details.”
She leads me back to the waiting room where a few others have arrived, and we share the PG- rated details of our honeymoon… while we wait…
“Your turn. Robbie insists it’s you next,” James says quietly, eyeing Presley sleeping in my lap. I nod and jostle her lightly.
“Babe, wake up.”
She sighs and stretches a bit then scoots back. “What’s going on?”
“Robbie and Ember want to see us.”
This wakes her up fully, and she pounces out of my lap and goes to the sink on the other side of the room, motioning for me to join her in washing our hands.
We walk into the hospital room, and I am shocked to see Ember sitting up, glowing. Robbie is hunched over her with his forehead against her shoulder, staring at a bundle in a pink blanket.
“Hey, guys, congratulations.” Presley speaks softly, going to them and laying a hand on each of their arms. She stretches her neck and then inhales sharply. “She’s so pretty. Oh my God, look at her! She’s perfect.”
Ember beams, reaching out her free hand. I join them and kiss her cheek, looking between the proud parents.
“She really is perfect,” I agree.
“We wanted to be the ones to tell you.” Ember sucks in a deep breath and locks eyes with me. “Please meet our daughter, Finnley Hayes.”
My ears start ringing, and I fight to catch my breath. Presley openly lets out a wail, her hand flying to her mouth, but I can’t find my voice. My legs start to wobble, and I lean into the bed to regain balance.
“You named your daughter after me?”
“We sure did. It’s kind of a combination of Finn and Robbie, but we both agreed we wanted the emphasis on Finn.” Ember gives me such a loving stare, I feel it to my bones.
“Jesus, I’m honored.”
Presley throws herself into my arms, holding me tight. “It’s so perfect.”
“Enough tears, we have a lifetime for me to regret this decision.” Robbie tries to appear strong, but I read the emotions on his face. “I’m making my wife rest for a few hours before any more visitors.”
“We’ll be back mid-day, and I’ll bring food.” Presley kisses them both on the cheek and steers me back to the hallway. I’m still stunned speechless. I don’t pay attention as she leads us into an empty room instead of the waiting room.
She stands in front of me and takes my face in her hands. “You okay?”
“Yes, shocked, but I wasn’t lying. I’m honored.”
“It’s beautiful, but it sort of takes the thunder out of my own surprise.”
She slides one hand down my arm, linking it with my hand and placing them in the center of her stomach. My brain fires in different directions as understanding slams into me.
“I’m pregnant.”
I hear her, but my mouth won’t work. Suddenly, my throat is dry, and I can’t form words. My eyes slice between her face and our joined hands. It all becomes too much, and I drop to my knees and lay my forehead against her stomach. I feel the tremors and realize it’s me, shaking. Tears spring to my eyes, and I don’t push them back as I soak in the enormity of this moment.
“How? When? What about the pill?”
“I was feeling off and never started my period, so I took a test. Actually, I took six tests. They were all positive. I wanted to surprise you and when you mentioned wanting a baby at the wedding, I stopped taking the pill that night. I made an appointment with my GYN this morning. They confirmed, so this is a honeymoon baby.”
“How do you know?”
“It’s still very early on. I’m not going to give you a human biology lesson, but apparently the timing was right. It happened right away. I knew it in the back of my mind and threw caution to the wind.”
Her words bounce around my mind as I soak in what she has told me. I kiss along her abdomen, her hand, her arms, standing up until I reach her mouth, and empty all my emotions into the kiss.
She whimpers, and soon, our hands are everywhere. I cup her ass and force her to jump up as I back her into the wall. Our lips and tongues move together in sync until she breaks away panting. Her face goes to the crook of my neck, and the feeling of her hot breath on my skin sends a message straight to my cock.
“I didn’t think anything could make me happier than the day you agreed to marry me. Then you topped it when you walked down the aisle glowing. I knew I was a lucky motherfucker and swore I’d never take you for granted. But today, you have given me another gift, I’ll never be able to—”
“Shhh.” She places a finger on my lips. “I love you, and it’s me who’s the fortunate one.”
She gives me a wide smile that touches deep. I kiss her again then tuck her against me as the news settles.
I picture the future with this incredible woman in my arms and thank God she took a leap of faith.
As always this is the part of the book that brings tears to my eyes. There are so many people to thank, and without them, none of my books would be possible. When you hear the phrase ‘It takes a village’- it’s the truth!
A huge thank you to my family. Your patience and endless encouragement helps me trudge through even the hardest days. I love you!
To my beta readers, as always, you have graciously given me your time and helped shape this book into what it is. You guys are the ‘constant’ in my process. Thank you!
There’s a small group of women who keep me going everyday. Through thick and thin, you find a way to lift my spirits, make me laugh, and push me to keep trying. At the same time, you prove how awesome we all can be through support and praise. It’s hard enough to put my stories and words out for the masses to read, but with your reassurance, I’ve found some courage.
Lisa, Kendra, Melissa, and Becky… thank you…the phrase doesn’t seem strong enough, but thank you.
FTN Girls~ I appreciate you all for always keeping it real.
Bloggers, you have so many choices who you promote, read, review, and support. This indie community wouldn’t be what it is without your help and hard work. Thank you for taking a chance on me and introducing other readers to my books.
And finally, to the readers. You have endless options where you spend your time and your money, and I am honored you choose me. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your kind words, reviews, teasers, and emails. Please keep them coming my way!
For anyone I missed, I say this often… I suck! But I adore you!
Xoxo
Ahren spent her formative years living in an active volcano. There her family made collectible lava art. She studied rock collecting at the Sorbonne in France. There she met the love of her life-her pet pig Sybil. She returned to the states and started writing. She is happily married to a guy who used to live under a bridge and she met while pole-dancing. They have one amazing daughter.
Now, meet the real me. I grew up in the south and consider myself a true “Southerner”. Most of the special locations mentioned in my books are reflections of my favorite places. Living on the Florida coast, my family spends a lot time at the beach, which is where I usually can be found with a book in my hand.
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