Kyle gave her a narrow-eyed look, as if he suspected her of hiding something from him. As if.
He had a quick-fire conversation with the receptionist then finally wheeled her in the direction of the bathrooms. She pointed at the ladies, but he totally ignored her, wheeling her into the disabled bathroom.
She sent him an outraged look when he didn't leave. "You can't come in here."
"You're in labor. You need help."
"No. I want to do this one thing by myself."
She might have been talking to a rock. With easy strength he helped her out of the chair.
When he saw the wet patch, he said another one of his cuss words. "Why didn't you say your waters had broken?"
Face flaming, she let him help her out of the wheelchair. "How would I know? It's not as if I've ever had a baby before."
Kyle's expression was grim as he helped her in the direction of the toilet.
When she was finished, Kyle helped her back into the chair and wheeled her out into the corridor. Within seconds another pain hit, this one severe enough that she was finally glad to be in the chair.
When Kyle wheeled her into her room, both a doctor and a midwife were waiting for them. She was already in active labor, and the pain was quite intense. Eva did her best to ride through the pain, silently begging for the fastest delivery possible
It was forty-five minutes.
When Kyle, who had stripped off his suit jacket and tie and rolled up his shirtsleeves so he could pace better, realized that she was in too much pain to be even remotely interested in conversation, his face went white. Stepping out into the corridor, he snapped out a curt series of commands, including a demand for pain relief.
Within seconds the room was full of people. Another lightning examination, this time by the midwife, and Eva found herself transferred to a gurney and wheeled into the delivery suite.
With walls that were a soothing aqua, and soft background music playing, it should have been an oasis of reassuring calm, but Eva barely noticed her surroundings. All of her attention was focused on what was happening at the center of her body and how much it hurt. Somehow, all of the literature she had read had managed to gloss over this part.
Kyle's arm came around her, a hard-muscled band of strength that in those moments she desperately needed. A cramp gripped her that was so prolonged and intense she couldn't breathe. Kyle's gaze locked with hers and for a precious few seconds they were bound together in commiseration.
Her fingers tightened on Kyle's as a powerful tingling surge gripped her, wiping her mind clean of anything but the sudden, irresistible urge to push. There was a brief hiatus then another series of surges, which squeezed all the breath from her lungs until, in a rush, the baby was born.
Eva floated in exhausted silence, watching, dazed, as the midwife cut the cord, wrapped her tiny baby girl in a cuddly white wrap and placed her in Kyle's hands. His gaze bright blue and indescribably soft, Kyle cradled their daughter as if she was made of fragile spun glass and placed her in Eva's arms. Wonderingly, she looked into her baby's small, perfect face, the tufts of damp hair clinging to her head, and fell in instant love. The bed depressed as Kyle sat beside her. She felt the warmth of his arm wrap protectively around her shoulders.
Reaching out a forefinger, he gently touched his daughter's cheek. One tiny starfish hand latched around his finger, and Kyle froze in place. Eva's heart squeezed tight at Kyle's careful stillness, the way his gaze was riveted on the fierce grip of his daughter, and another wave of pure love and connection hit her, this time for Kyle.
He would be a wonderful father. She had seen it in his patience with her, his quiet tolerance of the mood swings that had hit her, his absorption with all the aspects of her pregnancy. It wasn't just that her hormones had been running riot. It had been an emotional time of processing the past, of letting go and forming a new future together.
Another contraction grounded Eva with a thump. The midwife hurriedly took their daughter. A few minutes later the unutterable gift that had shaken them when cheerfully announced by her doctor months earlier, their second child, was born. It was a boy.
The midwife placed their son in Kyle's arms and Eva gave herself over to joy.
Twins: a boy and a girl. Even though twins ran on both sides of their families, it had been so much more than they had hoped for.
Kyle called his family to let them know the good news. He asked everyone to give them some space, but that was like asking waves to stop pounding on the beach.
The Messena and Atraeus families were like a force of nature. They arrived throughout the day: Luisa with Sophie and Francesca; Gabriel and Gemma; Nick and Elena; Damian and Sky; and a little later on Constantine and Sienna, who had flown in from Sydney where they were holidaying. They had all admired and held the babies and showered her with beautiful gifts and filled her room with flowers.
Later on that evening, when everyone had left, Grace Megan woke up, her cry distinctively high-pitched. Benedict Mario soon joined in, although his cry was more of a bellow.
Kyle handed her Grace then cradled Benedict. Both babies were on the small side, around six pounds each, but they were perfect.
Closing her eyes, Eva whispered a prayer of thanks. Somehow, out of Mario's well-meant interference, she had gained everything she had wanted and more: a perfect husband and a perfect family.
* * * * *
If you liked NEEDED: ONE CONVENIENT HUSBAND, don't miss the other PEARL HOUSE books from Fiona Brand:
Business and passion collide when two dynasties forge ties bound by love!
A BREATHLESS BRIDE
A TANGLED AFFAIR
A PERFECT HUSBAND
THE FIANCÉE CHARADE
JUST ONE MORE NIGHT
Available now from Harlequin Desire!
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NEVER TOO LATE
Brenda Jackson
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Excerpt from His Forever Family by Sara M. Anderson
Chapter 1
Twelve days and counting...
Pushing a lock of twisted hair that had fallen in her face behind her ear, Sienna Bradford, soon to become Sienna Davis once again, straightened her shoulders as she walked into the cabin she'd once shared with her husband-soon-to-be ex-husband.
She glanced around. Had it been just three years ago when Dane had brought her here for the first time? Three years ago when the two of them had sat there in front of the fireplace after making love, and planned their wedding? Promising that no matter what, their marriage would last forever? She took a deep breath knowing that for them, forever would end in twelve days in Judge Ratcliff's chambers.
Just thinking about it made her heart ache, but she decided it wouldn't help matters to have a pity party. What was done was done and things just hadn't worked out between her and Dane like they'd hoped. There was nothing to do now but move on with her life. But first, according to a letter her attorney had received from Dane's attorney a few days ago, she had ten days to clear out any and all of her belongings from the cabin, and the sooner she got the task done, the better. Dane had agreed to let her keep the condo if she returned full ownership of the cabin to him. She'd had no problem with that, since he had owned it before they married.
Sienna crossed the room, shaking off the March chill. According to forecasters, a snowstorm was headed toward the Smoky Mountains within the next seventy-two hours, which meant she had to hurry and pack up her stuff and take the two-hour drive back to Charlotte. Once she got home she intended to stay inside and curl up in bed with a good book. Sienna smiled, thinking that a "do nothing" weekend was just what she needed in her too frantic life.
Her smile faded when she considered that since starting her own interior decorating business a year and a half ago, she'd been extremely busy-and she had to admit that was when her marital problems with Dane had begun.
Sienna took a couple of steps toward the bedroom to begin packing her belongings when she heard the sound of the door opening. Turning quickly, she suddenly remembered she had forgotten to lock the door. Not smart when she was alone in a secluded cabin high up in the mountains, and a long way from civilization.
A scream quickly died in her throat when the person who walked in-standing a little over six feet with dark eyes, close-cropped black hair, chestnut coloring and a medium build-was none other than her soon-to-be ex.
From the glare on his face, she could tell he wasn't happy to see her. But so what? She wasn't happy to see him, either, and couldn't help wondering why he was there.