“The baby.”
“The baby sleeps in a nest?” Carter asked with interest.
Carolyn started to clarify the difference between nesting and a bird’s nest for her very literal child, because he’d asked how the baby got in her tummy and Carson muttered something lame about the birds and the bees and fertilized eggs. But she snapped her mouth shut when the next contraction doubled her over.
As soon as it ended, Carson was in her face. “How long have you been havin’ contractions?”
“Off and on.”
“Off and on in the last hour?” he pressed.
“Off and on all morning. But I think it’s false labor.”
“Guess we’ll see, won’t we?” Carson picked up the phone and dialed. “Kimi? It’s time. We’re leavin’ in five minutes.” He paused. “Thanks. I’ll tell Cord to expect you here in an hour.” He hung up. “Get your bag.”
“Carson, I’m not ready to have this baby so I haven’t even packed a bag.”
“Good. Then we can leave right now.” He told Carter, “Go get your brothers. Quickly.” Then he put his hand on her belly and kissed her forehead. “Let’s hope I don’t have to deliver this kid in the cab of my truck.”
“Oh pooh. Relax. I’m not close to popping this baby out yet.”
An hour later…
“Come on, sugar, you’re almost there.”
“I know,” Carolyn snapped. “I’ve done this a few times, remember?”
Carson curled his hands around her face. “Don’t snap at me, beautiful.”
Her hair was sweat-soaked; her skin was hot and bloated, and she smelled like cleaning supplies. “Don’t look at me. Don’t call me beautiful.” She hissed. “Oh crap, this one’s gonna be bad.”
“Look at me and breathe. That’s it. You’re doin’ good.”
Afterward Carolyn slumped against the pillows. “Can I push? I need to push.”
The nurse said, “I’m guessing about three more of those big contractions and you’ll be there.”
“Oh…here we go again.” She stayed focused on her husband. When the next contraction came on the heels of the last one, medical personnel scrambled to get ready.
Doctor Haskell, who’d delivered all their babies, ambled in, chomping on a piece of licorice. He suited up and scooted to the end of the bed. “You’ve done all the work, now I just gotta get out my catcher’s mitt.”
The nurse repositioned the bed and Carson moved in to brace Carolyn’s shoulders.
“All right, Carolyn, give that baby a big ol’ push.”
She grunted and squeezed the bed’s railings as she bore down.
“One more push and we’ll see if you cooked the stem on or the stem-less variety.”
Carolyn lifted her upper half up and bore down with gritted teeth. Then she fell back against Carson with a huge sigh of relief.
Then Doctor Haskell started laughing. “I’ll be damned. McKays, you have a daughter.”
“What?” Carolyn scrambled upright. “A girl? Let me see.”
“Doesn’t sound like you believe me.” The doctor laughed again. “You knew there was a fifty-fifty chance this would happen.”
“Didn’t even cross my mind after birthing five boys, my sister having twin boys, and my sisters-in-law only having sons.”
Carson stood and peeked over the edge, completely dumbfounded.
“Michelle,” Doctor Haskell said sharply. “Get a chair for daddy, he’s about to pass out.”
“I’m not some fuckin’ pussy who’s gonna faint…” But his face was ashen and he wobbled.
Carolyn watched with concern as the nurse pushed him into a chair. “Head between your legs and breathe.”
After a minute or so he slowly raised his head.
“You okay?”
“Hell no. Might take me a decade or two to get over the shock.”
“Lord, I never even considered picking a girl’s name.”
“At least you know it’ll start with a C like all the others,” he said dryly.
“Just for that smart comment, I’m not picking a C name,” she retorted.
Doctor Haskell wandered over with a pink-wrapped bundle. “Your daughter is a healthy seven pounds, thirteen ounces. She’s twenty-three inches long and passed all her prelim tests. So we’ll give you a few minutes before we finish the medical stuff.” He placed the bundle in Carolyn’s arms. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
Carolyn loosened the blanket. She pulled back the little pink and blue striped hat, revealing coal black hair. She murmured, “That’s nothing new. Bet the girl has blue eyes too. Stem-less variety or not, she’s still a McKay, through and through.”