Keeping It in the Family (Linstead)

Chapter 126

Over 12 hours after Erin's water had broken, the baby was finally coming. Jay had been with her almost the whole time, barring a few toilet and food breaks. He felt exhausted by it all, so he couldn't imagine the toll it was taking on her.

'Please be okay. Please be okay,' he continued to silently plead with his unborn child. The midwife had said that giving birth less than two weeks early wasn't anything to be concerned about, but he couldn't help himself.

Now he found himself standing in the corner of the delivery room, out of the way. Erin was sweating, panting, and yelling in pain as she tried to push the baby out. Jay had tried to move in and hold her hand, but she had made it perfectly clear that she didn't want that.

"I can see the baby's head," the doctor who was in charge of the delivery said. "Give me a big push, Erin."

Another harrowing cry of strain and agony filled the room, making Jay's toes curl. He couldn't imagine the pain, and didn't want to.

"Good!" the doctor encouraged. "The baby is almost out. One more push."

Erin gave it everything she had left, with one more horrifying cry. Jay's heart filled with joy as he saw the doctor take their baby in her hands. Then, in less than a second, it dawned on him that there was no crying. He felt like that was bad, and his heart hit the floor. No, not us, please, he prayed, fearing a stillborn baby.

The next few seconds felt like years for Jay, but then, after the umbilical cord had been cut, he heard the most wonderful sound of his life. The baby started crying as loudly as it could.

"Oh my god," he gasped, instantly roller coastering back to a state of elation.

Erin lay back, sweat-soaked, exhausted, in fact pretty much destroyed by the look of her. "Is the baby okay?" she managed to say.

Jay moved over to her and took her hand, holding it tight as the doctor said, "Give us a minute."

"Jay, is the baby okay?" Erin asked him, pleading with him to give her a positive answer.

"I think so, Er. Let's let them check it out." He took her hand and squeezed it while they both heard the doctor and the midwife muttering to each other as they examined the baby on the other side of the room. He couldn't make out what they were saying, but they didn't sound concerned to him.

The midwife turned around with the baby in her arms, wrapped up in a soft blanket. It was still crying. The midwife had a smile on her face. "Can you sit up a bit for me, Erin?" she asked.

With a bit of help from Jay, Erin moved into a sitting position with a pillow behind her back for support. When she was ready, the midwife handed the baby to her. "Congratulations, you have a perfectly healthy baby boy."

She continued talking about the baby's weight and the time of the birth, but Jay wasn't paying attention. He was transfixed by looking at his son, who in his eyes was adorable beyond words. He was a big baby, as they had expected, and had quite a bit of brown hair. He had stopped crying as soon as Erin held him, which melted Jay's heart.

"Jay, look at him," Erin breathed.

Jay kissed her lightly on the forehead. "You did so well, Er. So well. And he's gorgeous. He's perfect."

"Have you thought of a name?" the midwife asked excitedly.

"Yes," Erin said, looking at Jay to make sure he was still happy with what they had agreed on ahead of time."

"Henry," Jay announced. "And Paul for a middle name."

"Henry Halstead. Wonderful name," the midwife said.