"I just wanted to pop in and tell you now we can't find Sandalphon or Raphael. We're looking for them both. Just hang tight."
I gave him a sarcastic look and patted my belly. "Not much else for me to do."
He shrugged, pressed a kiss to my lips, and disappeared. I hated to see him go, but we had to get some damn answers already. And it was better than him trying to kill Luc again.
Two weeks passed before I heard another word. I tried to let life get back to normal. We even went out to eat a few times. I had another doctor's appointment, where they did the final ultrasound. I had to pretend I had no idea that it was a sweet girl inside me. "The baby is perfect," the doctor said. He looked over the ultrasound film that the tech had given him. "Their weight is right on track, and we see nothing that will cause any difficulties." He beamed at us.
Damn, faking enthusiasm for Lucian's sake was not easy. I smiled and pretended to wipe tears away. Luc immediately put his arm around me. "What is it?"
"Nothing," I said with a small, intentional sob. If he thought I was hormonal, he wouldn't question any enthusiasm I wasn't able to produce. "Just emotional. We're so close to the end."
The doc chuckled. He was an older man with salt and pepper hair, and kind eyes. "You could technically go into labor any time now. You're thirty-five weeks, and your baby’s lungs would likely be fine. We'd much prefer he or she cook in there for another four to five weeks though."
I nodded. "Of course. Is there anything there that would make you think I'd go into labor sooner?"
"Nope," he chirped. "With first-time moms, anything is possible. You could go tomorrow, or you could be two weeks late."
"Thank you," I said. His information directly confirmed what I'd already read online.
We stopped to get dog food on the way home. I insisted Jellybean have a raw meat diet, and we'd been purchasing it from a local butcher. As we took off our seat belts to go into the small store, pain tore across my stomach.
I cried out and bent over as far as I could, clutching my middle. "Holy shit!"
"What?" Lucian rubbed my back. "What's wrong?"
"Pain," I gasped. Rocking back and forth, I tried to breathe deep, through my mouth, like I'd seen the women on TV do. I'd been meaning to sign up for a birthing class, but never had gotten around to it. Did real people actually go to those things anyway?
The pain passed quickly. "How long did that last?" I asked.
Lucian considered for a moment. "Maybe half a minute?"
"Not long. Okay." I breathed, rested, and made no motion to get out of the car.
"Should we go in together?" Lucian asked. "I don't want to leave you."
Without opening my eyes, I shook my head. "Give me a minute."
Several minutes later, it happened again. The intense pain came along with a hard stomach. "These are contractions," I gasped.
"Are you sure?" Lucian rubbed my back frantically. "How do you know?"
"I don't know at all!" I cried out. "I know they hurt, and my belly has tightened. Do you see it?"
"No, but sit back." I did, and he leaned across me and buckled my seatbelt for me. "We're going to the hospital."
I was sure we were overreacting, but in my human body, I couldn't tell. And I hadn't heard from Gabriel or Michael in over two weeks. As much as I'd enjoyed the time to pretend nothing was wrong, and I'd be able to raise my daughter, it would've been nice to have had them with me now.
Lucian made it to the hospital in record time. He grabbed a wheelchair and helped me into it. "I can wait while you park," I said and rolled myself closer to the emergency entrance. I'd had one more of the intense contractions on the way. "Even if I have another, I'll be okay until you get back."
The parking area for the hospital was huge, meaning it took time to park and walk back. He did it in minutes. When he jogged up to me, I'd just started playing a puzzle game on my phone, figuring I had a while to wait.
"Did you teleport?" I asked.
As he wheeled me in the automatic doors, another wave of pain hit me. I groaned and hunched over. "I need help," he called, totally in a panic. "My wife is in labor."
A nurse came out of an office thing and began to question us about how far along I was, how far apart my contractions were, and if I was high risk. As soon as we answered, she sent us straight to the labor and delivery wing with a huge smile. "Good luck, honey, they'll take good care of you there."
"Slow down." I laughed as Lucian pushed me down the halls. The L&D ward was clear on the other side of our small-town hospital. "I'm not going to drop the baby out on the floor. We were just at the doctor's office, and he said I'm sealed up tight."
