Operation Bailey Babies: A Bailey Series Novella

by Piper Rayne

  Savannah holds her hand out for his. Sometimes I forget how close they are. They were the oldest when their parents died, and they helped hold the family together. Now that they’re both married and all the Bailey kids are adults and on their own, they don’t get to interact with one another as much.

  I excuse myself to give them time together. “I’ll be right back. Scream if you think it’s time.”

  In the hallway, I pace, not willing to go too far.

  Fifteen minutes later, Austin comes out and clasps my shoulder. “Thanks. I just wanted to let her know if she really wanted Elizabeth, I wasn’t going to take it away from her. On the bad side, I mentioned a name Holly liked and her eyes lit up. Sorry, man.” He shakes his head and walks down the hall.

  I walk back into the room. I know Savannah well enough that whatever name Austin gave her will be our daughter’s name. I don’t really have a name preference like Austin did. I just want a healthy baby girl. Whatever we name her will suit her, I’m sure of it. Within reason of course.

  “So what’s her name?” I ask, resigned.

  Savannah smiles. “What do you think of Brinley Elizabeth Kelly?”

  I take my wife’s hand and bend down. Right before my lips touch hers, I say, “I think it’s beautiful, just like her mommy.”

  We kiss, and I’m ready to climb into bed with her until her teeth nail my bottom lip. I mumble for her to let me go and she finally does, not before she draws blood. The metallic taste flows down my throat.

  “Shit, babe, I’m into kinky, but—”

  She screams and grabs her stomach.

  “I guess those are the contractions,” I say.

  And like a snap of the fingers, the Savannah I first fell in love with reappears before my eyes.

  The nurse rushes in and checks the ticker tape thing. “Finally a contraction. Yay!” She does a little cheer and Sav cuts her a look.

  Partway through the following eight hours of labor, Savannah decides she’s being tormented with a long birth because she was blessed with a great personality during pregnancy. I tell her that that isn’t the case and this is all part of having a baby. I massage her back, try five different positions for her to get comfortable, and she’s a trooper. Demanding, but a trooper.

  The entire Bailey clan hangs out from the first contraction until our baby girl makes her debut.

  Brinley Elizabeth Kelly comes into this world with a wail of a scream. I expected nothing less.

  “Finally,” Grandma Dori says, falling into the chair beside the bed . “I’m so tired.”

  “You’re tired?” Savannah, who after crying that she had no energy, keeps peeking to see when they’ll bring the baby over to us.

  “I’m older than you,” Grandma Dori says before kissing her granddaughter’s cheek. “Congratulations, sweetie.” She smiles at me and leaves the room to grant us some privacy.

  I’ve loved Savannah since I was too young to truly know what love was. I thought I couldn’t love her any more than I already do, but seeing my daughter in her arms, our daughter, almost breaks me. There’s nothing sweeter in life than being with the two women who own your whole heart.

  Savannah mothered her siblings, so it’s no surprise to me how nurturing she is as she rocks and soothes Brinley. I crawl into bed with them as we point out that Brinley has my eyes, Savannah’s lips, and if we’re lucky, my temperament. It’ll make the teenage years more bearable.

  Although it’s eleven in the morning, you’d think it’s nighttime judging by how dark our hospital room is.

  Savannah is asleep and Brinley is in the hospital crib that reminds me of something you’d put a pet turtle in. I try to get comfortable on the vinyl chair in the corner to no avail.

  As my eyes close, Brinley whimpers. Knowing I’ll never sleep on this thing, I sanitize my hands and pick up my baby girl, cradling her in my arms.

  She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

  She yawns, and her two small fists open and close, her fingers on one hand wrapping around my finger.

  “My sweet baby girl, I’m your daddy. You should know, you’re so loved. Your mommy is amazing and you’re lucky to have her. She’s probably going to be better at giving you advice because as far as I’m concerned, you won’t be dating anyone until you’re at least thirty.”

  Her face distorts with another yawn and her eyes pop open for a moment.

  “Already giving me sass, huh?”

  She falls back asleep.

  “One thing I promise is that I’ll make sure you never want for anything.”

  “We can’t spoil her,” Savannah’s groggy voice interrupts me.

  I smile at my wife and look back down. “I should clarify, you’ll never want for food, shelter, clothing, and especially love. You’ll always be loved. Probably so much you’ll feel suffocated.”

  Savannah gives a tired laugh.

  “But once again, your mommy is right. We can’t spoil you, because I won’t have an asshole as a kid.”

  “Liam!”

  I chuckle and place a gentle kiss on Brinley’s forehead. “Tell Mommy you don’t want to be an asshole.”

  “Seriously,” she says.

  I’m not sure we’re going to get any sleep, because as I slide into bed with Savannah, we stare in awe at what we made together—a life.

  She’s the most beautiful baby the world has ever seen, and I’d like to see someone argue that point with me.

  Sixteen

  Wyatt

  Brooklyn’s asleep and Lance is in my arms. The nine months of Brooklyn’s crankiness was worth it as I admire the faces he makes and the wrinkled skin around his wrists and fingers.

  My parents are ready to travel to Lake Starlight on their private plane as soon as this storm passes. I could tell by my mom’s voice on the phone that she’s upset she missed the birth.

  When we first found out we were having a boy, I wasn’t all that excited about the idea. Throughout my upbringing, I witnessed that girls all had the opportunity to do as they wished, whereas boys had to worry about the family legacy.

  My dad is better with me now, but he still wishes I’d wanted to follow in his footsteps and take over the Whitmore Hotels. Now he’ll probably die in his office because he won’t trust anyone to take it over. He shouldn’t fool himself into thinking he would’ve trusted me either. I never would’ve done the job he wanted. We’re entirely different.

  “I promise you can be whatever you want, and I’ll support you,” I whisper to my little guy.

  “I missed it all.” Juno stands in the doorway. Her hair’s been thrown into a ponytail, but loose strands hang in every direction and her mascara and eyeliner are smeared. She’s wearing yoga pants and a flannel button-down that looks way too big for her.

  “Come and meet your nephew.” I stand so she can sit down.

  She smiles at me. “Congratulations.”

  “Thanks.”

  When she sits, I place Lance in her arms and her smile grows. “He’s so beautiful. What’s his name?”

  “Lance Bailey Whitmore,” I say.

  “Love it.”

  I lean against the wall and watch him wrap his fingers around her finger. She looks at me like she wants to thank me.

  “Did you pass out?” I ask.

  I overheard Phoenix and Sedona telling Brooklyn they didn’t know where she was. I saw her leave with Colton too, but first I saw Juno throw up at the side of the building before Colton helped her into his truck.

  “I might have had a lot to drink.”

  I’ve been where she is. Alcohol was my go-to when things went bad with my dad and my family before I met Brooklyn. “Want to talk about anything?”

  She shakes her head. “No.”

  “What happened to Colton’s fiancée?” I press.

  Juno swallows and the smile that was plastered to her face disappears. “She had to go into work, so she left in the middle of the party.”

  “And Colton took you home?”<
br />
  She nods.

  “You two clear anything up?”

  She shrugs.

  That’s a no.

  Just then a shadow is cast by the light coming through the doorway.

  “I can’t believe all three of you guys had your babies.” Colton gives me a handshake and a congratulations. He’s not wearing his feelings as openly as Juno, but he doesn’t look much better than her.

  “Holly, Brooklyn, then Savannah.”

  Juno chuckles softly. “Savannah must have been pissed.”

  “She had the hardest labor, I’ll tell you that. It was, like, hours,” I say.

  Juno stands and hands the baby to me. “I should check on the others. Tell Brooklyn I’ll come by later after I shower and don’t smell like a distillery.”

  “I will.”

  I sit back down, watching Colton’s hand move to the small of Juno’s back. He retracts it right away. They shut the door as I hear Brooklyn stir.

  “Hey, you,” Brooklyn softly says. “Is he hungry?”

  “No. He’s sleeping. Juno and Colton were just here.”

  She smiles. “Oh, I missed them. Where were they?”

  “They didn’t say, but it looks like they both just woke up.”

  Her eyebrows raise.

  “Yeah. You might want to quiz her when she comes back tonight.”

  She nods and her eyes drift shut again.

  “Mommy is tired. You wore her out.”

  Lance doesn’t move.

  “Let’s hope when she’s pregnant again, we get nice Mommy.”

  I raise his arm and give him a high-five.

  “I love you,” I say before kissing his forehead.

  I can’t speak for Brooklyn, but this eternal happiness and love for someone I just met makes what we share even sweeter.

  Seventeen

  Austin

  “So?” I ask Holly, staring at the piece of paper taped outside our boy’s crib that reads Bailey Boy.

  She hems and haws. “You can pick the boy’s name if you want. ”

  I laugh and sit on the bed with her, wrapping my arm around her and holding her to my body. “We can compromise. You good with Timothy as the middle name?”

  After talking with Savannah, I feel as though both of our firstborns should honor our parents.

  “Let’s look at the book,” I suggest.

  We’d highlighted some boy names before we found out we were having a girl. Maybe there’s one in there we can agree on.

  I dig out her book and curl back up with her on the bed. We scan page after page of yellow and blue highlights, searching for one in green. Knowing us, we won’t like it now.

  “Cash?” She looks at me after seeing what I highlighted.

  “Don’t judge. It’s strong.”

  “Uh-huh.” She flips the page. “Crew?”

  I chuckle.

  “And you were on me with Reighleigh,” she says.

  I say nothing, grabbing the book and fanning the pages to see if I can spot one.

  “What about Huck?” She never highlighted it, but I did.

  “Sounds a little too outdoorsy.”

  Then I flip forward and the book opens to the Es. It’s like one name is glowing and all the other names fade on the page because it’s highlighted in green.

  “Easton?” I ask.

  She doesn’t immediately say no.

  “Easton Timothy Bailey?” I say.

  Her gaze veers over to the bassinet. “I like it.”

  “Enough to name him that?”

  She nods slowly as though she’s not completely convinced.

  “Are you sure?” I ask.

  “Yeah, I love it. Easton Bailey.”

  “Sounds like a baseball name,” I say with a grin.

  Then something dawns on her and she tilts her head. “Austin Bailey, you did not just fool me.”

  I laugh and kiss her temple. “You really are a baseball coach’s wife.”

  She took a little long on the uptake. I might’ve highlighted because it’s a popular baseball brand, but she highlighted it for her own reasons.

  “Why didn’t you pick Rawlings?” she teases.

  “Rawlings Bailey?” I shake my head. “Easton is better.” I pick up Easton and hand him to her. “Does he look like an Easton to you?”

  She laughs. “Regardless of the baseball brand, I do love the name. But you will not tell him stories that he’s named after the brand.”

  “It’s a great story to tell once he makes it to the majors.”

  She gives me a stern look. “You will not push him to be a baseball player.”

  I hold up my hands. “He can be whatever he wants.” I slide in next to her, and my baby boy wraps his hand around my finger. “As long as he’s happy. I’ll teach him to follow his heart because your heart leads you to your dreams.”

  She leans back and kisses my cheek. “I love you, Austin Bailey.”

  Nothing could ever be better than this moment right here.

  “I love you,” I say, and we both look at our little boy. “You need to sleep.”

  “I can’t stop looking at him. I still can’t believe after everything we went through, that he’s here with us. It was a hard road to get this little guy, but worth it a million times over,” Holly says.

  “That’s the truth. You’re not upset that he’s not a girl?” I ask.

  A tear leaks from her eye. “I’m so happy I keep waiting for something bad to happen.”

  “Oh, Holly, be happy. You deserve it after everything you did. Your body and your mind took a beating, but you kept standing back up. He’s your reward. Cherish this moment.”

  She snuggles into my body and we watch Easton coo, yawn, hiccup, and stretch, completely amazed. Life has never been sweeter.

  Eighteen

  Three days later…

  Nurse Katie

  “The waiting room is finally cleared out,” I say, locking the break room door.

  “Does that mean all the Baileys have been discharged?” Dr. Hinkle tears off his scrubs.

  “Sure does.”

  “Thank God. Tell Dr. Baldwin she owes me, like, ten favors. That grandma alone is worth five. She kept following me around.” He lifts my shirt and makes quick work of my bra.

  I chuckle as we fall back on the twin bed that’s as comfortable as a prison cot.

  “Why don’t we stop talking about the Baileys now?” I say, opening my thighs to make room for him. We’ve got about five minutes to make this happen.

  “Good idea.”

  A loud crash sounds as something hits the floor and we both look over the edge of the bed to find his iPad open to Lake Starlight Buzz Wheel.

  “You’re really getting into this town, huh?” I say.

  “There was a business card for the blog on one of their charts, so I figured I’d check it out.”

  My hand slides to the back of his head, and I bring his lips down to mine.

  Lake Starlight Buzz Wheel

  Lake Starlight is raining babies. All three of our Bailey moms-to-be have delivered healthy babies. Technically the town gained another Bailey, a Whitmore, and a Kelly. I think I speak for all of us when I say, let’s hope that Kelly girl doesn’t have the wild streak her father had.

  Holly Bailey set a record for delivering Easton Timothy Bailey in an hour and a half. He was perfection at eight pounds five ounces and twenty-one inches long.

  Brooklyn Bailey-Whitmore is reported to have said her labor was a breeze. In the early morning hours, Lance Bailey Whitmore was born. Another big baby, weighing in at eight pounds three ounces and twenty-one inches long. I think there’s going to be some wrestling between Easton and Lance in the years to come.

  Lastly, Savannah Bailey Kelly was the first to have her water break—which broke up the baby shower—but last to deliver. Her fiery temper didn’t go unnoticed as the doctors had to eventually induce her. At nine a.m. exactly, Brinley Elizabeth Kelly came into this world. Just as beautiful as he
r mommy but weighing more than each of her cousins. Nine pounds eight ounces and twenty-two inches long.

  I wouldn’t be buying any of them newborn clothes if I were you.

  All families are happy and healthy at home, and I’m thankful I’m not with them because I enjoy my sleep.

  In other news, it was reported that Juno had too much to drink at the baby shower and didn’t make it to the hospital until the morning after all three babies were born. Someone sent in this anonymous picture of Colton helping Juno into her place after the baby shower, and this person also swears they didn’t see him leave any time soon after. So what exactly transpired after he helped her inside?

  Then again, Grandma Dori was overheard talking to Juno, Kingston, and Sedona at Brewed Awakenings a few days ago, saying they’re all she’s got left, so maybe Juno is still on the market. Is it possible that Juno and Colton crossed the lines from best friends to something more? I suppose, but where would that leave Colton’s fiancée, Brigitte?

  Only time will tell.

  Until next time.

  xo,

  Buzz Wheel

  SECRETS OF THE WORLD’S WORST MATCHMAKER COMING 6.23.20

  And we’re sure you haven’t forgotten that MASSIVE CLIFFHANGER with Juno and Colton!

  CLICK HERE to reserve your copy NOW for a discounted price if you haven’t!

  Cockamamie Unicorn Ramblings

  Oh, how fun was that? Why did all three Bailey babies have to born at the same time? Well, we didn’t want you to miss any of the births, but we also didn’t want to fill the pages of another Bailey’s story with their siblings HEA. Hence the idea was born for Operation Bailey Babies.

  Some of you might wonder why we had Austin and Holly go through infertility because this is fiction, but we like to make our books relatable. Since Rayne went through fertility treatments, she knows firsthand how many couples struggle to conceive. It’s a hard journey that involves many ups and downs. It’s a real struggle to be around people who so easily conceive (ahem… Rome and Harley). And at least with her, her pregnancy came with a checklist, checking off milestones month by month until she held that baby in her arms. In her case, she had two babies in her arms when she delivered boy/girl twins at thirty-one and a half weeks weighing in at 4.6lbs and 3.12lbs That’s why it was equally important that Austin and Holly got their baby too.