“I'm half afraid to do this, but I need to talk to you about something really important.”
Oh no, what is wrong? My heart started to race.
“I know that we decided a while ago that we would take some time to get to know each other better and we would take things slowly, but I'm not doing so well with that.”
“What do you mean?” I asked not knowing if I wanted to hear what he had to say. I thought things had been going great. What was this coming out of left field?
He stood up and looked down at me. “I love you so much. You are everything that I have ever wanted in a woman. I'm not happy with just living with you,” he stopped.
My heart stopped.
He got down on one knee and pulled out a velvet box and said, “Pay, you are my whole world and I simply adore you. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Then he flipped the box open and there was a beautiful diamond ring. I was speechless
I said nothing and then I felt a rush of fluid from between my legs.
“Umm Crew, my water just broke, I need to go to the hospital.”
“Just sit down here on the bench, I will run home and get the car and your bag. I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.” He took off running.
Way to ruin the moment Pay, way to ruin the moment.
15
Crew
I don’t think I ever run so fast in my whole life. I ran around the back of the house and went in through the patio doors. I picked up her bag from the bedroom, grabbed a towel for her and I ran back down the stairs to get the keys to the car. I locked up the house, made sure the grill was turned off. I am a firefighter after all.
I got in the car and drove over to the park where she was still sitting on the bench where I left her, I got out and helped her into the car; she took off her undies in the car and used the towel to clean herself up.
“Are you okay Payton?” I asked. Dumb question, she was in labor.
“It hurts, just drive.”
I made a call to Brad and asked him to let everyone know that we were having the baby and he said he would notify the police to keep an eye out for us. I told him that we were in the car.
“Keep breathing, honey… little pants like they told us in the classes.”
“Yes, I know. Just be careful. We don’t need to have an accident.” She laughed a little at me and how nervous I was.
I was putting the pedal to the metal and before I knew it, I had a couple of police cars giving me an escort to the hospital. It was pretty cool. They had their lights flashing and the sirens going. Everyone got out of our way. Baby Hudson was making her first appearance very soon, by the sounds of Pay’s groans every time she had a contraction.
I phoned ahead and told the ER crew that it seemed like her labor was progressing rapidly. They said that they would be ready to receive her. Her doctor was already there standing by.
We arrived and I pulled into emergency like they told us to do. I could move the car later. They met us at the door and helped her into a wheelchair. I parked in the emergency lot and ran in after her. They took us back to an exam room; a doctor checked her and said that she was dilated seven centimeters. They called upstairs to the labor floor and had a room ready for us when we got there.
One nurse was helping her into a hospital gown and another was handing me some scrubs to put on and instructed me to wash my hands. Everything was happening so quickly. When I stepped back into the room, Payton was already on the birthing chair/bed with her legs in the big stirrups. There was a monitor on her belly, measuring her contractions.
“I'm thirsty,” Payton said between contractions.
“You can’t drink anything right now, but I will go and get you some ice chips for you to suck on,” one of the nurses told her.
I couldn’t imagine how women could do this more than once. I know if I had to endure this kind of pain, my baby would be an only child. I hoped that Pay didn’t feel like that because we have two more bedrooms to fill with kids. And if we needed more, we could move to a bigger house!
I just kept telling her how much I loved her and I leaned down to her belly and talked to the baby about going easy on her mommy. I tried to say some funny things to make her laugh, but things were not so funny right now. It was serious. Our baby was on her way.
The doctor was now telling Pay to push each time she had a contraction. We were counting with the breaths and pushes as we cheered her on. She began to crown, the doctor said. Finally, he told us that he could see the baby’s head.
“Come on down here, Daddy and see your little girl as she comes into the world.” The doctor told me.
Pay nodded and told me to go see. I walked down to the bottom of the bed, and when she had the next contraction, she pushed and the baby’s little head started to come out. The next contraction came and I could see our little angel’s face. She had a full head of black hair.
Tears were running down my face as the most perfect little girl appeared in front of my eyes.
The doctor told Pay to bear down and push really hard, and the rest of the body was out. A nurse wrapped her in a blanket and handed her to me. She was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen. She was mine…and Pay’s. I was instantly in love.
The doctor kept working on Payton, while we laid the baby on Payton’s belly. I was allowed to cut the umbilical cord. And after the new mama kissed her little angel, the nurses took her to another part of the room where they cleaned her up and weighed and measured her. She was six pounds and three ounces and nineteen inches long.
Absolutely perfect.
After all the medical stuff was finished, the doctors and the nurses left us alone for a little privacy before they would take the baby down to the nursery. She was in her mommy’s arms and I sat on the bedside with my girls.
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Pay asked me.
“Of course she is, she told us that she was, during her ultrasound. Remember?”
We laughed remembering the ultrasound and the funny things I did and said to help her to relax.
“What do you want to name her?” I asked. We never did decide on a name for our little princess.
“How do you like the name Bethany Rose? My mother’s name is MaryBeth; I wanted to honor her. And your mom’s middle name is Rose and I love how they sound together,” Payton answered.
“I love the name. It’s perfect.”
Payton smiled. “Or you know, we could name her Lacey.”
“You’re insane.”
She laughed. “Maybe. I'm so happy, Crew. Everything is perfect.”
“Everything except…” I paused.
“Except what?” she asked.
“Except you never answered my question.” I pulled out the box again. “Payton, will you marry me?”
“Yes! Yes!!! I will marry you, Crew!”
After our rocky start, things were finally falling into place. I wasn’t going to be the single guy at the firehouse anymore. I was a father, and soon to be a husband. Things really do change in a year.
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Big Engine: A Firefighter Romance (Firehouse 22 Book 1) Page 6
