This Man Confessed(187)

“I’m on my way. Do you remember the drill?” John asks me calmly.

“No! I can’t remember fuck all!”

“Is she okay?”

“I don’t know!” I yell, just as Ava lets out a strangled gasp.

“You?” he asks. I can hear humor in his tone. He’s laughed his way through this pregnancy.

“Shit, John, I’m fucking useless,” I admit, making it to Ava and stroking her sweaty brow as she draws long breaths.

“You need to time the contractions, you stupid motherfucker.”

“Right!” I immediately glance down at my watch. “Hurry up.” I hang up and swivel my office chair so she’s facing me. “Tell me when the next one comes, baby.” I crouch between her thighs.

“Now!” she screams in my face, nearly knocking me on my arse. “Fuck fuck fuck!”

I hold back on my scorn for fear of being punched in the face and stand her up like we practiced, placing her hands on my shoulders and watching my Rolex over her head. Her short nails sink into my flesh through my T-shirt as she braces herself on me and wails and moans. She even sinks her teeth into me, and it’s the only time in the history of our relationship that the action hasn’t made my cock immediately hard.

I can do no more than whisper encouraging words in her ear, accept her vicious scratching and biting, and hold her up. And the whole time, my heart pounds with fear and excitement. It’s time to meet my babies.





“Twenty-four fucking hours!” I yell, doing an about turn and marching back down the corridor. “This can’t be fucking normal!” I’m scowled at by a passing couple, but I couldn’t give a fuck. “What the hell are you looking at?” I yell, making them walk faster to escape the loon prowling the hospital corridor.

John shakes his head and strides over, grabbing my shoulders with his big palms and holding me in place. “Calm the fuck down, you stupid motherfucker.”

“I am!” My hands find my hair and yank. “It’s too fucking long. She’s exhausted, John. Fucking hell, when is enough enough?”

“You heard the midwife. It’s all perfectly normal and she’s doing great.” He knocks my jaw with his big fist on a laugh. I don’t know what he finds so fucking funny. “You need to calm the fuck down and get back to your girl.”

“Oh Jesus, John, I don’t know if I can take any more. It’s killing me.” I feel like a complete wanker for saying such a thing, given the pain my angel is going through, but fuck me, I’ve never felt anything like it. I’m powerless.

He shakes me and lands me with a furious glare. “Pull your shit together, Jesse. She needs you.”

Those words snap me straight out of my meltdown. She needs me. I barge back into the room, just as the midwife shouts, “Push, darling!”

“Jesse!” she screams, her head flying forward, her face bright red. “Where the fuck have you been?”

The midwife doesn’t bat an eyelid at Ava’s foul mouth, instead cocking her head at me to shift my arse. “Mr. Ward, you’re of no use in the corridor.”

My eyes are wide, my body frozen on the spot until the midwife shakes her head in exasperation and comes to retrieve my static body from the doorway, guiding me over to the bed and placing me next to Ava.

“Pull yourself together, for goodness’ sake,” the midwife says calmly, like my wife isn’t in fucking agony. “Okay, Ava,” she says and places a reassuring hand on Ava’s bent knee, “we’ll have a few more goes, and then we might need to think about other options, darling.”

“No!” Ava snaps, then commences panting again. “I’m having these babies naturally!” I don’t have the mental power to tell my eyes to roll. She’s insisted on no drugs and no scars, my stubborn, beautiful girl.

The midwife starts laughing. “Things don’t always go to plan during labor, Ava. Especially when twins are involved.”

“There’s another coming!” She puffs out fast spurts of air and holds her hand out to me. “Jesse!”

My hand flies out and clasps hers and I move right in, doing what feels right. I put my face straight into her wet neck, crowding her completely. “I love you,” I whisper, like an idiot, not knowing what else to say. “What the fucking hell did I do to deserve you?”

She moans into my neck, rolling her head from side to side. “Make it stop. I can’t take any more.” Her lips push into my flesh, her fists clamping in my hair.

“One last try, baby.” I turn my face into her to find her lips, kissing her softly. There are no sparks of desire, just pure, raw love. “Together, okay?”