Levitate (29 page)

“MAXTON,” KENSI SAYS my name and the sound of her voice has me giving her all of my attention, “my water just broke.”

“What about the bags?” Bright asks.

“Already loaded,” I tell him.

Trying like hell to stay calm, I say, “Let’s get you to the car, beautiful.” I place my arm around her and help her out the door. Bright is in the driver’s seat and Nicole hops in beside him. Kens and I load up in the back and off we go. She’s fine until about five minutes from the hospital when she screams out in pain.

I don’t say anything; I offer my hand and she squeezes painfully. I rub her back with the other hand, trying to soothe her. There is nothing I can say that will make it better and nothing I can do to take the pain away. I read in an online forum that I just need to be there to offer whatever she needs.

We finally pull into the ER and there is a nurse waiting for us at the entrance. Kensi’s doctor had called ahead, letting them know we were on our way. Taking good care of my girl, it’s what I like to see.

She hits the button for the elevator and takes us to the third floor to delivery. We already pre-registered with the hospital, so we didn’t have to deal with it today.

“I need you to change into this; do you need me to help you?” the nurse asks.

“No,” she grits through her teeth. “Husband.”

I grab the gown and wait until the nurse leaves, shutting the door behind her to help Kensi change. Not too long after, the doctor comes in to check her and appears to be surprised. “Kensington, how long have you been having back pain?” he asks her.

“It started yesterday,” she pauses to let another contraction pass, “and has been pretty consistent since then. I just thought I had worked too much on the nursery getting things washed and put away.”

“You’ve been in labor. You are already dilated to five centimeters. Any longer to get here and we would have missed our opportunity to give you an epidural,” he explains.

“Well, get with it, doc,” she retorts as another contraction hits.

The next half hour or so is a flurry of activity. The anesthesiologist comes in to administer the epidural and her pain subsides. However, from the way that the monitor is going crazy, her contractions are coming faster than ever. Nursing staff bring in a bed with lights for the baby as well as blankets and a slew of other items needed to bring my son into the world.

When the doctor finally comes back in, he checks her yet again. He smiles when he says, “It’s time, Kensington. Dad, I need you to hold one of her legs. I’ll have one of the nurses assist with the other. Kensington, when I tell you to push, I need you to bear down as hard as you can.” He watches the monitor and when it spikes, he says, “Push.”

This goes on for I don’t know how long, and I can tell she’s exhausted. “All right, Kensington, one more big push and you can meet your son,” he encourages her.

“You got this, baby. One more big push and he’s here. We finally get to meet him,” I whisper in her ear.

She nods once. “Now,” the doctor says and she bears down with every last ounce of energy in her.

Not seconds later, I hear his cries fill the room. Kensi lies back against the pillow and a gorgeous, yet tired, smile crosses her face. Never has my heart felt so full. The doctor offers for me to cut the cord and I decline. My eyes are full of tears and I’d be afraid I would hurt him. I tell him this and he assures me that this will not happen. With a shaking hand, I take the scissors and cut the cord. Nurses whisk him away, cleaning him up, and I focus on Kens. “You did it, Kensi. You did so well. Thank you, I love you so much.” I ramble on and on, not knowing how to tell her what I feel in this moment. What this means to me to have them both.

The nurse brings him over and lays him on her chest. We’re both crying. I watch as she leans down and kisses the top of his head. “He’s perfect,” she says.

“Yes, he is. He’s perfect,” I agree with her.

“I think the name we picked, I think it fits him,” she says.

I nod. “I agree.” We chose my middle name as his first name. This is also my father’s name. We chose her dad’s name as the middle name.

“Welcome to the world, Sean Thomas Cooper.” I touch his little hand, which breaks free from the blanket, and he latches onto my finger. My heart soars. I love this little guy with everything in me.

“COME IN,” I say at the knock on my door. It’s been a flurry activity since our little man was born. Max and I sent the nurse to tell our family that they can come back and meet him. Dad walks in first, followed by Nicole and Bright.

Standing up, Maxton hands Sean to my father, who is sitting in the chair. “Dad, meet your grandson, Sean Thomas Cooper.” His eyes glass over at the name and he simply nods, letting us know he gets it.

“He’s perfect,” Dad says.

“We think so.” Maxton puffs his chest out, proud papa that he is. Bright and Nicole take turns holding him, and before we know it, two hours have gone by. They all say their goodbyes with the promise of coming to see us tomorrow when we get home. Nicole and Bright are going to stay a few nights and help us out until we get a routine down, which is something a mother would do, something that neither of us have. We don’t dwell on that because we have Nicole and Bright and my dad. We have people who love us and life doesn’t get any better than that.

“It’s my turn, Gramps,” Nicole whines to my dad. The entire room erupts into laughter, well, everyone except Nicole. Even little Sean gave us an Elvis grin as Maxton calls it. The doctor burst his bubble earlier when he told him it was gas. It was hard not to laugh at him. I held it in though, because he was truly upset that Sean was not smiling at him.

Dad finally gets his laughter under control and hands Sean off to Nicole. I watch as a single tear rolls down her cheek. Brighton wipes it away with his thumb and whispers in her ear. Her face lights up with whatever he tells her. It is my prediction that my best friend will be here where I am in no time at all.

“You did good, Kensi,” Maxton whispers in my ear.

“We did good,” I say, squeezing his hand.

Maxton and I have managed to create a life that most envy, and I thank God every day for bringing him into my life.

“MY TURN, DADDY,” Sean says, climbing up on the couch next to me.

“Yep,” he says, popping his p. “My turn,” he says, pointing to his new baby sister who is currently asleep on my chest. She’s exactly one-week old today, my daughter, Maggie Mae Cooper.

Kensi and I were worried how Sean would react to sharing our attention, but Maggie’s arrival hasn’t seemed to faze him. He loves her. Last night, Bright and Nicole stopped by and Sean scolded Bright for touching Maggie’s foot without hand sanitizer. “Germs, Uncle Bright,” he had said. Already the protector, that’s my boy!

“Okay, buddy, remember what I told you. You have to sit really still and hold her head. Your baby sister is precious and we need to always protect her.”

He scoots back against the couch, legs straight, arms stretched out, palms up waiting. “I got this,” he says with conviction. It takes great effort not to laugh at him. At three, he has his own personality. I’m amazed at some of the things that come out of this kid’s mouth. Kensi says he acts just like me, but I can see her in him too. He has her smile.

Easing Maggie from my shoulder, I gently lay her in his arms. I cradle her head while he holds her. Sean’s face lights up. Leaning down, he kisses her on the forehead; he’s seen me kiss Kensi that way a million times. “I love you, sister,” he whispers in his soft voice.

I have to swallow the lump in my throat. Being a dad is… amazing. I love the life that Kensi and I have built, and I love her more each and every day.

“I want to box this moment up and keep it forever,” I hear her say. Kensi is standing in the doorway watching the three of us.

Slowly, she moves into the room and sits down beside Sean. “I done, Daddy,” he says.

I scoop my baby girl up in my arms. As soon as he’s free, Sean is climbing up on Kensi’s lap, soaking up some mommy time. Reaching over, I tuck her bangs behind her ear. Her eyes find mine and she smiles. “I love you, Kensington Cooper.

“I love you, too.” She smiles.

“What about me?” Sean giggles as Kensi tickles his sides.

“We love you, too,” we tell him.

Kensington Cooper.

My girl.

My wife.

My truth.

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