LITMIR.BIZ

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a shorter, younger version of her sister, bustled around for a few more minutes. She tucked and untucked blankets, smoothed sheets and patted Daisy’s hand in a distracted, nervous sort of way. Finally, when she’d run out of things to straighten, she announced, “I’m going to go make you some tea,” and left the room.

      This just wasn’t working out at all the way she’d planned it, Daisy thought. And she’d spent plenty of time planning for the birth of her child. She’d been to a clinic for regular checkups and had even arranged for a midwife to come to her apartment to deliver the baby. Sure, some of her friends had been aghast at the idea of her delivering at home. But a trained midwife was every bit as good as an obstetrician—especially when the mother was young and healthy, and no problems were expected. Sarah Lovell was an excellent midwife, warm and caring and far less expensive than an unnecessary hospital stay. Which was an important consideration for a single woman with limited health benefits.

      Besides, Daisy had wanted to go through labor and delivery surrounded by familiar things. After all, she’d assumed that she’d be alone when giving birth, and at least in her own home, she’d feel safe…comfortable.

      Instead, though, she was lying on a stranger’s bed, with even more strangers hovering over her, asking if she was all right. All right? She was so far from all right she wasn’t even in the same universe. Then Alex entered the room, pausing briefly in the open doorway. Her gaze met his and she felt a little bit better as she watched him cross the room in a few long strides. Funny how just a couple of hours ago she hadn’t known he existed. Now his was the only familiar face in a world gone suddenly very weird.

      “How you doin’?” he asked, leaning over her and brushing her hair back from her face.

      “I’ve been better.”

      He smiled, and she thought, That’s easy for you to do. Then the next pain hit and she bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep a screech from erupting.

      He took her hand, enfolding it in his. Just having him hold on to her helped, and she drew on his strength when her own started to ebb.

      “Squeeze my hand,” she whispered through gritted teeth. The midwife had told her that during delivery she should try to keep her muscles as relaxed as possible, so she couldn’t hold on to him.

      “I don’t want to hurt you,” he said, but tightened his grip nonetheless.

      “You won’t. Tighter.” His fingers clenched harder and it actually helped to distract her from the real spasms twisting her middle. Closing her eyes, she arched with the pain, trying not to fight it. Trying to remember that when this was all over, she would have her baby. She’d never be alone again. She would have someone to love. Someone who would love her back.

      “Rita?” Alex turned to look at his sister as she hurried back into the bedroom.

      “The midwife was out on another delivery. I left a message,” she said, forcing a smile for Daisy before looking at her brother. “Alex, go away.”

      “What?”

      “I want to check her progress. Leave.”

      “No,” Daisy said, and could hardly believe she was saying it. But she simply didn’t want to go through this alone. His warm strength reached down into the cold, dark corners inside her, and Daisy couldn’t imagine letting go of that feeling. Not now. “Stay. Just don’t let go of my hand.”

      Alex looked down into those pain-filled blue-green eyes and knew he wasn’t going anywhere. She seemed so small, so alone. And yet she faced each pain as bravely as any military man he’d ever seen. She didn’t back down. She didn’t scream or complain. She simply braced herself and rolled with each progressively stronger contraction.

      He looked down at her small hand as his fingers tightened around her fragile bones and a part of him wondered at the strength in her. Alone. No one to help her. No one to help raise this baby. She faced it all bravely—even though she was going through the biggest moment in her life surrounded by strangers.

      “I’m not goin’ anywhere, Rita.”

      Rita scowled at her brother, then smiled at Daisy. “It’s okay. The midwife will get here eventually. But until she does, we’ll do fine. I’ve helped to deliver lots of babies and even done a couple on my own in the ER. Mothers and babies are doing nicely.”

      Good to know. Very good, Daisy thought as another pain crested and she arched her back, riding it as though it were some invisible bucking bronco in a rodeo.

      Her world became nothing more than the pain and Alex’s grip on her hand. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else registered. Not Rita’s tender hands or whispered words of encouragement. Nine long months had come down to this one moment in time.

      Daisy’s brain raced, trying to stay one step ahead of the pain, trying to remember that every contraction brought her one step closer to being a family. That any minute now she’d be holding her baby in her arms and the pain would be only a memory. Oh, she wished it was just a memory.

      But that sense of peace hadn’t hit her yet. What she needed at the moment was a distraction. Any distraction.

      “Talk to me.” She looked up at Alex and forced the words through gritted teeth.

      He grabbed a nearby chair and drew it close to the bed. Sitting down, he kept a firm grip on her hand and said, “Sure. What should I talk about?”

      “Anything. Everything.” She sucked in a greedy gulp of air. “Just talk to me.”

      “Right.” Alex shot a glance to the foot of the bed, where Rita was stacking clean towels and arranging a lamp for the best possible light. Maria was in the other room, probably pacing a trench in Gina’s carpet. He shifted his gaze back to Daisy, smiled and started talking.

      His words flowed over her, creating wonderful pictures that took her out of the lovely bedroom, away from the body-twisting agony of labor and into worlds and places she’d never seen before. She could almost see Alex at the commands of a navy jet. She nearly felt the G forces of takeoff and the meteoric rise as the jet climbed toward heaven. She sensed the freedom that flying gave him and she heard the joy in his voice as he described being a member of the navy’s elite flight team, the Blue Angels.

      He painted word pictures for her and she saw the incredible stunts he and his team performed miles above the earth. She could hear the oohs and aahs of the crowd as they stared, transfixed, at the intricately choreographed maneuvers the pilots made. And she sensed his regret that his time on the team was over. But the stories he told, the magic in his voice, were enough to take her mind off the torment in her own body, and for that, she’d always be grateful.

      “I’ll be reassigned when my leave’s up,” he continued, leaning in close to her, making her concentrate on his words rather than the pain. “Don’t know yet where I’ll end up, but—”

      Daisy nearly flew off the bed. A sudden, desperate urge to push grabbed her and she clutched at Alex’s forearm with a frantic grip. “Oh…oh God. Something…something’s changed. It’s different now. And…I think it’s coming and—”

      “Rita…”

      Already in position, Rita lifted the edge of the thin blanket covering Daisy’s legs, and when she straightened up again, she had a determined glint in her eyes. “Okay, honey. This is it. The baby’s crowning.”

      “Oh, God.” Finally. Her child. So close. Daisy’s arms ached to hold it.

      “Whatever it is,” Rita added with a quick smile, “it’s got a lot of hair.”

      Daisy’s breath hitched and tears stung the backs of her eyes. Her baby. A tiny person. Almost ready to enter the world.

      And she had to help.

      “Have to push,” she said. “Have to push now.”

      “You can’t. Not yet. Just breathe, Daisy,” Rita told her. “Let the

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