by Wendy Smith
“Chloe?” The celebrant says.
I draw in a breath. “Hunter. You gave me a second chance for love when I didn’t think that was even possible. I’m just looking forward to spending the rest of my life with you.”
Hunter and I gaze at each other. There was a time in my life when I never thought I’d be happy again, but he changed all that for me.
And I’ll spend my days showing him just how much.
Thirty-Three
Hunter
I’ve never been so scared in my whole life.
Chloe hasn’t given birth in seventeen years, but she’s like a pro, trying her best to calm me. But watching the pain she’s in isn’t easy.
I’d give anything to take it all away.
She places her hands on her lower back and straightens up. Her eyes are closed, and she breaths in through her nose and out through her mouth.
I hold her hand, I fetch her water, but otherwise I feel useless.
And somehow in between contractions, she smiles and I fall in love with her all over again.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
I laugh. “I’ll be fine. I just worry about you.”
She shrugs. “It sucks, but it’ll be over soon. Kidney stones were worse.”
“Did it take this long with the boys?”
Chloe laughs before grimacing and gripping the back of my chair. “This’ll be a lot faster, I think.”
“How’s it going?” The midwife walks back in. She left us to it while Chloe’s labour progressed, but I’ve noticed her visits are more frequent.
Chloe nods. “The contractions are definitely stronger. And faster.”
“Let’s have a look at you.”
I hold Chloe’s arm as she climbs up onto the bed.
She strokes my cheek. “Don’t look so worried, Hunter. It’ll be over soon.”
“I’m allowed to worry about my wife.”
“Well, you won’t have much longer to go. Chloe, you’re at nine centimetres. One more and it’ll be time to push.”
Chloe leans against me.
“Want some help getting up?”
She shakes her head. “I think I’ll stay here for now.”
For a moment, I just sit and hold her hand. She screws up her face, and I see the next contraction coming.
“How are we doing, Chloe?” the midwife says.
“I really want to push. Does that make sense?”
She smiles. “Nothing really makes sense about giving birth. Let’s take another look.”
Her brows rise. “This baby’s ready to come. Next contraction, push.”
“You ready for this, Mr Emerson?” Chloe asks.
I grin. “I should ask you that, Mrs Emerson.”
I lean over and kiss her, and her grip tightens as the next contraction hits. I’m not even sure how long it takes, but my woman is a machine.
My heart pounds at the sight of the baby’s head.
My own head’s so light I feel like I’m going to faint. I take deep breaths right along with Chloe as she pushes.
The rest of our daughter slides out of Chloe’s body. She’s small, wrinkled, and messy. But I love her the moment I set eyes on her.
It’s the grossest and most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever seen in my life.
Chloe’s a goddess. She lays back, red faced and covered in sweat, but I’ve never loved her so much. She’s made my dreams come true.
I lean over and wrap my arms around her shoulders, kissing her lips.
“We did it,” she whispers.
“You did. I just watched.” I chuckle, leaning my forehead on hers.
“Would you like to cut the cord?” The midwife asks.
I turn my head. “Please.”
She hands me the scissors and shows me where to make the cut. I’m not even sure I’ll remember any of this as waves of love wash over me.
It all happens so fast as our little girl is placed on Chloe’s chest, her ear resting on Chloe’s heart, listening to it beat.
There’s a lump in my throat so big I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to swallow again.
“She has your eyes,” Chloe says.
“Do you think so?” I croak.
“They could change, but both the boys had blue eyes. Hers are so dark. I hope they don’t change.”
“Me too.”
“You can touch her.”
I meet Chloe’s gaze. “She’s so small.”
“She needs to get to know her daddy.”
My hand shakes as I reach out and touch her back. Her skin’s all fuzzy, and my heart leaps as I feel her take a breath.
“You’re more gentle than you think you are, Hunter. You won’t hurt her.”
“Is it that obvious?” I laugh.
“You’re scared of a baby. I’m sure that’s pretty common.” Chloe’s tone is soft.
“I’m not scared.”
“She won’t break.” Chloe leans her head on my arm. “Talk to her. She’s heard your voice for months, she’ll be used to it.”
“Hey, little one.” I’m still not sure how to process all this. It’s all so much.
Her little mouth purses and I’m lost.
She’s perfect.
After she’s clothed and fed, Chloe rocks our daughter in her arms while I take photos.
So many photos.
“It’s Daddy’s turn to give you a cuddle,” she coos.
I drop my phone on the bedside cabinet and swallow hard. Tears prick my eyes at the thought of holding my daughter.
Her tiny face screws up and Chloe laughs. “It’s okay, sweet girl. Your father’s going to take good care of you.”
Tears roll down my cheeks as the little bundle is placed in my arms.
My daughter looks up at me, her unfocused dark eyes staring.
“Are you real?” I whisper.
All my adult life, I wanted a family. I thought any chance of that was long gone with my divorce. I thought I was too old to make a fresh start.
Chloe proved all of that wrong.
I look at Chloe through teary eyes, and she seems to be tearing up herself.
“She’s real. Look what we made.”
“Thank you,” I croak.
Chloe reaches over and brushes away my tears. “You deserve it all, big guy.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.” She draws a circle on our baby girl’s nose with the tip of her finger. “And your brothers will love you,” she says with a light tap. Chloe looks at the clock above the door to her room. “But visiting hours have closed, so they’ll have to wait until morning to meet their little sister.”
“Their little sister.” I chuckle. “I bet they never thought this day would come either.”
“Nope, but they’ll be good big brothers.” She strokes the top of our daughter’s head. “She’ll always be loved and protected, and she’ll have her father with her the whole way.”
I sniff. “She will.”
“And I know she’s just been born, but I’d like one more. Braden and Xander always had each other when they were growing up, and I don’t want her to be by herself.”
Grinning, I lean over to kiss her. “I’ll make as many babies with you as you want.”
She smiles. “Just one more. Before I get too old to make them.”
“I don’t know what to say to that without getting myself in trouble.”
Chloe laughs. “It’s okay. I’d also like to get it out of the way so we get a chance to live some of our lives just the two of us after they all leave home.”
I gape at her. “My girl’s never leaving home.”
“They all do one day. We just have to make the most of them before they do.”
Her eyes are so tired, and all I want to do is take the two of them home and care for them. But it’s late, and the earliest we’ll go home is tomorrow.
There’s no way I’m leaving the hospital tonight.
I nestle into the comfy chair in the corner,
our baby in my arms.
“What should we call her?”
Chloe smiles. “You choose.”
“Really? I thought we were doing this together.” I look back at my baby girl. We spent hours discussing names but never coming to any resolution.
“I named Braden and Xander. I think you can name our babies.” Her hazy eyes are full of love. I could live in this moment forever.
“My favourite name is Chloe. I’m not sure that’s going to work.”
She laughs, leaning against her pillow. “You goofball.”
“How about Hannah?”
Chloe smiles. “Your grandmother’s name.”
“You remember.” God how I love this woman. My grandmother died when I was thirteen, and she was the last grandparent I had. We’ve not really discussed her recently. She’s remembered from when we were kids.
“I know everything about you, Hunter Emerson. Don’t you ever forget.” Her lips quirk.
“It’s impossible to.”
“I like Hannah. It’s beautiful,” she says.
I lean back. “It suits her. Try and get some sleep. Hopefully I can take you two home in the morning.”
“Hope so.”
That’s the last thing she says before she dozes. I doubt Chloe’s fully asleep as I don’t know if I could sleep in the hospital. But I sit in the quiet and hold my daughter on one of the best days of my life.
It’s with great reluctance that I surrender her to the crib in order to return to the chair to grab some sleep myself.
Not that I’ll sleep well.
Instead, I watch Chloe. What she went through today was insane, and all to give life to that little girl. It just makes me love her even more.
“I thought we’d never get out of there.” Chloe puffs to blow a stray hair out of her face.
It’s close to midday, but we’re on our way home after an up and down night in the hospital. Hannah likes her food, and she’s got a good set of lungs on her.
I smile to myself at the thought of the twins dealing with that.
“Hunter?”
“Sorry?” I shoot a glance at Chloe. We left the hospital about five minutes ago, and I think we’re both looking forward to sleeping in our own bed tonight. Not that I think Hannah will let us get much sleep.
“Are you okay?”
Her cheeks are still flushed, and she looks so refreshed compared to how I feel.
“Me? I’m fine. How about you?”
“I’ll just be glad to get home. You looked a million miles away.”
I smile. “Just thinking about how much the boys will love their sister. Until she screams.”
“They’ll just have to deal with it. At least there aren’t two screaming babies this time.”
“Thank heavens for small mercies.”
Chloe closes her eyes, and I smile.
It wouldn’t matter to me if there were. I’d still be the happiest man alive right now. And I can’t wait to get home for us all to be together.
When I think back to what life was like before Chloe returned, I wonder how I got through the day. Now, our days are filled with love and laughter, and my family is all I could ever have wished for.
It’s not a long drive, and as I draw the car to a stop in the driveway, Chloe jerks awake.
“Sorry.” I take her hand and squeeze it.
“Don’t apologise. I’m just going to grab a nap where I can.” Her sleepy smile shows just how tired she is.
“Let’s go and see the boys.” I lean over and peck her on the lips.
Stepping out of the car, I open the back door and grab Chloe’s bag. I raise the handle of the baby capsule until it clicks into place, and lift it out of the back seat.
“I’ll take it.” Chloe reaches for the car seat.
“I’ve got it. Get inside and put your feet up.”
Her tired eyes are so full of love. “You’re so good to me.”
“You did all the hard work. Now I get to pamper you.”
Chloe kisses my cheek. “Sounds good to me.”
I follow her into the house, and as we walk through the door, the boys come bounding down the stairs.
“Where is she?” Braden pushes Xander out of the way.
“Hey.” Xander pushes him back.
“You two have to settle down before I let you anywhere near her.”
Reaching the kitchen, I place the baby capsule on the table. “Here’s your sister.”
“She’s tiny,” Braden says.
“She’s bigger than either of you were.” Chloe comes up behind me, sliding one arm around my waist. I plant a kiss on her temple.
“She’s beautiful.” Xander’s eyes shine with happiness. This is one proud big brother. No matter what happens, I know he’ll always be there for Hannah. “Did you name her?”
“Hannah. It was my grandmother’s name.”
He nods. “Cool.”
I grip his shoulder. “She’s gonna be nuts about you when she gets bigger. Both of you.”
His smile is magical. “I always wanted a sister.”
Chloe’s grip tightens around me.
“Me too,” Braden says. “Beats having a brother.”
Xander shoots a glare at Braden, and I suppress a smile, turning back to Chloe. She’s still a little pale, and she’ll need more sleep, but I’ll be right here to give her all the support she needs.
She just gave me the world.
It’s the least I can do in return.
Leaving the boys to clean up after lunch, I follow Chloe upstairs with the baby to get some rest.
For a while, Hannah’s sleeping in our room right beside the bed, and the sight of Chloe lowering Hannah into her bassinet makes me smile.
I love my life.
“I’ve been looking forward to sleeping in my own bed all day,” Chloe says.
“I’m just looking forward to sleep.”
She laughs. “That might be hard to come by for a while.”
I look down at our daughter, sleeping peacefully. It won’t last long, but right now she’s content.
“She’s worth it.”
Chloe pats my chest and undresses, pulling one of my shirts over her head. It’s the one she took the first night we were together, and I wrote it off a long time ago.
It doesn’t matter.
She climbs into our bed and closes her eyes.
For a moment, I just watch her.
Undressing, I slip into bed beside Chloe and slide my arms around her. She snuggles in tight and smiles.
“You always give the best hugs.”
“I love holding you.” I pause. “Thank you for everything.”
She opens her eyes. “What are you thanking me for?”
“For Hannah, for the boys I love as much as I love her, for loving me, for being you, and …” I peck her lips, “for coming home in the first place. None of this would ever have happened if you hadn’t made that decision.”
“Best decision I’ve ever made.” She kisses my chest.
“And for last night. Being with you while you gave birth was everything.” I kiss her temple. “You gave me my heart back.”
She raises her head. “What do you mean?”
“The minute you walked back into my life, I felt alive. It was like waking up after a long sleep.”
Her lips twitch. “I’m not sure if you realise that you did the same for me. It might have taken me a while, but I got there. And I have no regrets.”
She leans her head on my chest, and I close my eyes.
There are still days I can’t quite believe my life. I was so sure that even if I found love again, I wouldn’t have all I do now.
The boys have three parents as far as we’re concerned, and my little girl is the icing on the cake.
I’m sure I’ll be up in the night just to look and make sure she’s still real.
And in my arms is the woman I’ll spend the rest of my life treasuring, because I never thought I’d ever be the one who had Chl
oe’s love.
I’ll never take that for granted.
Beside the bed, I hear a tiny whimper, and I pull away from Chloe.
“Where are you going?” she asks.
“To check on the baby.”
“The baby’s fine.”
“She made a noise.”
Chloe laughs softly. “She’ll make lots of little noises while she sleeps. If you’re going to climb out of bed every time she snuffles, then I’ll move her to her room.”
I raise my eyebrows. “You’re not taking my little girl anywhere.”
“Then I’ll sleep in the spare room and you can get up to her fifty times a night.” She rolls over, and I reach for her, pulling her in tight. Chloe looks back over her shoulder. “Aren’t you getting out of bed?”
“No. I’ll stay put.” I link my fingers in hers and rest our hands on her stomach. It takes me back to the first night we spent together—the night I realised she had feelings for me.
“Good.” She yawns. “Let’s get some sleep before she really does wake up. I’m not sure any of you are ready for what’s to come.”
I chuckle, kissing the back of her neck. She’s probably right. I have no idea what’s to come.
But I do know there’s no way I could do this with anyone else.
Only ever Chloe.
Also by Wendy Smith
Coming Home
Doctor’s Orders
Baker’s Dozen
Hunter’s Mark
Teacher’s Pet
Fall and Rise Duet
Falling
Rising
Fall and Rise - The Complete Duet
The Aeon Series
Game On
Build a Nerd
Bar None
Coming 2021 Love on Site
Hollywood Kiwis Series
Common Ground
Coming 2021 Even Ground
Coming 2021 Under Ground
Stand alones
For the Love of Chloe
Coming 2021 Lost and Found
The Friends Duet
Loving Rowan
Three Days
The Forever Series
Something Real
The Right One
