“No,” she said tiredly. “I have been a little crampy though.”
“How often have you been having these little cramps?” he asked her seriously, his hand splayed wide across her belly, rubbing it soothingly. He could feel the tightness of the muscles as a contraction began and gently stroked her abdomen to calm her. He looked at Rachel’s face to gauge the intensity of the pain.
“It started about five hours ago,” she said, gasping a little at the strength of the last cramp.
“Rachel, honey, you’re in labor,” he told her quietly.
“Do you think so?” she asked, stunned. “I thought it was too weak to be labor.”
“Was that last cramp weak?” he asked.
“Actually, that one kind of hurt,” she admitted.
“When did the last one kind of hurt?”
“About four minutes ago.”
“Sweet Jesus!” he nearly yelled, jumping from the bed to stand beside it. He turned and grabbed for the already packed suitcase that was nestled beside their bureau and placed it quickly by the doorway.
When he turned back to face Rachel, she was smiling at him. He was stunned by her reaction. How could she remain so calm? He was ready to scream with panic. He had to get them to the hospital as quickly as he could without worrying Rachel.
“What are you smiling at?” he asked her, his voice desperate.
“You’re naked,” she told him.
“So are you,” he reminded her, stepping closer to her and kneeling down beside the bed to reach out and grab her hand. “We need to get dressed and get you to the hospital or I’m going to have to deliver our child right here.”
“That would be nice, Sam,” she told him calmly, reaching out and touching his face gently.
“No. It wouldn’t, Rachel,” he told her seriously. “I don’t know enough about obstetrics to trust your life and our baby’s life in my hands.”
Rachel smiled and pulled at Sam’s hand to bring him closer to her. When his face was close to hers, she leaned forward and kissed him tenderly.
“I trust you,” she told him simply.
She pulled the covers back from her body and was glad when Sam’s hands were there to help pull her up from the soft mattress. When she was standing beside him, she leaned into him, her naked body fitting against his body comfortably.
“Woman, you drive me crazy!” He looked down at her and smiled tenderly.
“That’s my job,” she teased him, laughing softly.
“Have I told you lately how beautiful you are pregnant?” he asked her quietly, kissing her forehead tenderly and laughing despite his worry.
Rachel smiled up at him, reaching up to touch his arm gently. “Have I told you lately how much I love being your wife?” she asked him, smiling.
“Rachel, I love you so much,” he told her quietly, taking her into his arms and closing his eyes, his throat suddenly tight with emotion as he held her to him.
Walking with her to the closet, he helped her put on her underclothes and one of her maternity dresses, zipping it quickly and kissing her neck in the process. He pulled on his boxer briefs, his jeans, and a T-shirt quickly, tugging on his socks and boots while she brushed her hair.
Once she stepped into her black canvas shoes, she turned to face him again. She was about to tell him she was ready to leave when another pain grabbed at her. She reached for her stomach and gasped at the intensity of the contraction.
“Breathe with me, Rachel,” he told her calmly, holding her hand as she leaned into him, rubbing her stomach in soothing, circular motions and taking even breaths with her until the contraction subsided.
Rachel held his hand tightly, tears filling her eyes as fear began to take hold of her. “We’d better get going,” she whispered.
“You know it,” Sam answered, grabbing for the suitcase and guiding her out of the house as quickly as he could. He helped her climb into the front seat of his truck and buckled her seat belt carefully.
He threw the suitcase into the back seat, then jumped into the driver side and started the engine. It was then that he felt Rachel’s hand on his arm. He turned to face her worriedly and saw her smiling up at him.
“Sam, you’re better than I could ever have made up in any novel,” she told him lovingly.
He smiled and touched her face gently. “Try and remember that when you’re in the transitional stage of labor, honey,” he told her nervously as he pulled out of the driveway and drove toward the hospital, his heart pounding all the way.
Sam sat next to Rachel on her hospital bed and watched as she nursed their beautiful daughter. He held her tiny feet in his hand and marveled at the two miracles before him—his beautiful child and his loving wife.
“You know, when I saw you again at the campground last summer, I had a dream that I was nursing our daughter in our backyard,” she whispered, not taking her eyes off of their baby.
Sam smiled, leaning forward to kiss the top of her head. “Nice dream,” he whispered, smiling at the beauty of his daughter suckling at his wife’s breast.
“I think so, too,” she said quietly, looking up to face him.
“I had dreams about you, too,” he told her, smiling devilishly.
Rachel laughed and tenderly stroked the soft black hair of her daughter’s head. She leaned back, smiling as the baby pulled away from her breast and stretched contentedly.
Sam reached down to lift the baby from Rachel’s arms to hold her against his chest. He patted her back gently, winking at Rachel as she covered her breast with her nightgown.
“I’ll just bet you did,” she said quietly as she laughed softly. She eased back against the raised mattress of the hospital bed and watched the tender scene before her. “You were wonderful during the labor and birth.” Her voice was gentle as she spoke so softly.
“So were you,” he answered.
“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” she admitted.
“I know, honey. I don’t know how you were able to do what you did,” he told her honestly.
“Me either.” She looked at Sam as he cuddled their daughter and was filled with love for the both of them.
“I’m glad you only hated me for a little while,” he teased.
“I did not!” Rachel protested, laughing as she nudged his leg gently.
Sam smiled down at her and suddenly became very serious. “I was afraid, Rachel,” he told her honestly. “I couldn’t bear it if something had happened to you.”
She placed her hand over his as he held their baby. Words were unnecessary.
The baby burped softly, breaking the silence and making them both smile. Sam kissed her tiny head then placed her gently within her mother’s waiting arms.
“We have to name her,” Sam reminded Rachel as she tucked the baby into the crook of her arm.
“I know,” Rachel said quietly. “What do you think about naming her Joanna—after your mother?” She looked up at Sam and saw the surprise on his face.
“I think that would be a great name,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
He cleared his throat and knelt down beside the bed to place his head directly beside his sleeping daughter. She was the most beautiful little girl he had ever seen—and she belonged to them.
“I’d like to have her middle name be Bernadette,” Rachel said after a moment.
“Okay, honey. Where did you get that name from?”
“I’m not sure. I remember dreaming about a beautiful little angel whose name is Bernadette.”
“Well, this little one is certainly our little angel, so it fits,” Sam said as he leaned in toward their little girl.
Rachel smiled as she touched their little girl’s head. “She
is
a beautiful little angel,” she whispered. “You make beautiful babies, Sam.”
“We made her together, sweetheart,” he reminded her, kissing Rachel’s temple lightly.
“Yeah. We did.”
She reached out and touched Sam’s face tenderly. “Love you,” she whispered.
“Love you back,” he answered her, leaning in to her touch.
Rachel watched silently as Sam reached out and touched their daughter with utmost care. He brushed her cheek with the back of his knuckles and smiled as she turned toward his touch.
“Hello, Joanna Bernadette McCoy. Welcome to our family,” he whispered, leaning forward to kiss his daughter’s tiny hand.
Rachel’s eyes filled with tears. She reached out to touch Sam’s face and smiled at him when he looked up at her, his blue eyes sparkling brightly with happiness.
“You
are
a charmer, Sam McCoy,” she told him happily.
“If you feel up to it, there are six members of our family out there in the waiting room waiting patiently to see you and our baby,” Sam told her quietly.
“Who?” Rachel asked, confused.
“Roy, Paulette, Kay, Jarod, Gwen and Stan,” he told her, smiling at her surprise.
She looked up at him with tears of joy in her eyes. She didn’t think she would ever be this happy in all of her life. She looked at the man who had given her so much and reached out to draw him closer, kissing him tenderly and hugging him to her with her free arm.
“I can’t wait for them to see her. They all had their hand in creating her, that’s for sure,” Rachel told him, smiling.
Sam laughed and stood beside the hospital bed. His eyes devoured the two loves of his life. Reluctantly, he turned and left the room to go and get the rest of their family. Rachel watched him go and smiled down at her daughter as she slept so peacefully within the cradle of her arms. Love swelled in her chest. Life was indeed wonderful.
She pressed the button on the controller to lower the mattress so that she could lie flat. She looked down at her beautiful baby as she snuggled against her chest. She carefully placed her arm around Joanna possessively as she settled her daughter carefully beside her on the bed and closed her eyes to rest. She was so very tired.
It had been a long night. She would relax for just a bit until everyone came in to visit. It was only a matter of seconds before she was sound asleep, her tiny bundle tucked protectively against her. The delicately tiny hand of her daughter reached out as she stretched contentedly and came to rest lightly against her face, a mere whisper of a touch that met the warmth of her face at the angel’s mark.
Rachel sighed contentedly as she felt the warmth of love and contentment surround her. The distinct smell of cinnamon and sugar wafted through the room. A small sparkle of light kissed the tiny crescent moon birthmark at the corner of her right eye, and she was gifted with another dream.
She was outside in the backyard of their home. Her baby was nursing contentedly at her breast, and she reached up to touch the tiny face gently. She heard a small child laughing, and she looked up to see Sam pushing a beautiful little girl with silky black hair and eyes the color of the sky in a baby swing.
“More, Daddy!” the little girl squealed delightfully.
Sam pushed her to swing back and forth a few more times then reached out to lift her out of the swing and throw her up into the air to catch her and hug her to him lovingly. He kissed her rosy cheek and cuddled her against him.
“Time to rest, Joanna,” he said, laughing softly. “Daddy’s tired.”
Rachel smiled and watched as the two headed toward her, their little girl cuddled against her daddy’s chest. Sam sat down next to her on the blue quilt and smiled at Rachel as their eyes met. He reached out and caressed his son’s tiny hand then lifted his hand to touch his wife’s cheek tenderly. Rachel kissed his palm lovingly.
“I want to kiss Mommy and my baby brother, too,” Joanna said happily, squirming off her father’s lap to give love to the other two members of her family.
Rachel smiled in her sleep. She had no doubt in her mind that she was seeing the beautiful future that she and Sam would share. She stirred slightly and opened her eyes to find her husband beside her. She blushed slightly and reached out to hold the hand that was gently touching her cheek.
“I’m sorry, I fell asleep,” she mumbled apologetically.
Sam smiled and sat down beside her on the bed, careful not to wake the tiny sleeping bundle beside her. “Everyone is here to see you and the baby. Are you too tired?” he asked her worriedly.
“No, I’m fine. I want everyone to see her,” she told him, smiling. “I have to tell you about a dream that I just had. It was so incredibly real. I saw you playing with our daughter, and I was nursing our son.”
Sam laughed quietly. Her words touched him. He could envision his life with her and their growing family. Her dream just echoed his own desires. He looked up at the smiling faces of his adopted family.
Roy stepped forward, tugging on Paulette’s hand as they stood beside Rachel’s bed. Kay reached out to touch the baby’s head while Jarod placed a gentle hand on Sam’s shoulder and squeezed it lightly. Stan and Gwen took their place on the other side of the hospital bed, taking Rachel’s hand and kissing it lightly.
Sam looked at the people who surrounded them with their love and wasn’t embarrassed to let them see the tears of joy that were filling his eyes.
“I’m the last person in the world to argue with dreams,” he told Rachel quietly, leaning down to kiss her lips gently.