Over in the corner, under the old maple tree, Christos half listened to the conversation going on around him, while keeping an eagle eye on his wife. He wasn't fooled by her assurances that it was just the babies bouncing around inside her.
"Hey." Andreas elbowed him in the ribs. "You haven't heard a single word we just said." His eyes followed his brother's with a grin.
"She looks lovely and ready to burst."
"Just what I'm afraid of." Shaking his head at the hovering waiter, he continued watching her. "She was having twinges just before we left."
Georgios gave him a concerned look. "It's approaching that time."
"Yes."
"And you're naturally worried," Alexander added, sipping his champagne. He recalled those anxious days, but his wife had been carrying one baby at a time. He had no idea what his little brother was going through. He would be clean out of his mind.
"She claims she's okay." He finished the champagne in his glass and was about to march over to where she was and demand she sat down, when he saw his mother, nudging her into a wing back chair that had been brought out for her.
"Problem solved," Andreas said with a grin, clapping him on the back. "And we're about to be invaded," he added as the nieces and nephews came rushing over.
*****
"I recalled the first time Lori was in the delivery room." Half an hour later, the four brothers were seated around a trestle table, plates piled and in perfect view of their wives who were surrounded by other guests. Christos still had his eyes trained on his wife, watching for any signs that she was in distress or uncomfortable.
"You were booted out because you threatened the medical team," Christos grinned in remembrance.
"I should have strangled my wife instead," Andreas muttered darkly. "First, she had this insane notion of having our son at home, a water delivery, because she got it in her head that it was natural and safe. And then after all of that, she refused the epidural. I wanted to kill her."
"Instead you threatened to have the attending doctors booted from the hospital and their licenses revoked," Georgios chortled.
"Like you were any better," Christos reminded him dryly. "You almost fainted in the delivery room."
"It was nerve wracking," he muttered. He could still remember how much so.
"And in the meantime, I was the soul of calm," Alexander interjected smoothly.
"My ass," Andreas roared with laughter. "Dad said you cried like a baby."
"What? No. Damn, he was supposed to keep that to himself."
"Something is wrong." Putting his plate down, Christos rose.
"What?" Andreas got to his feet. "What do you mean?"
"She's feeling some sort of discomfort."
"She's just rubbing her tummy. Pregnant women tend to do just that," Georgios reassured him with smug authority.
"No. She's..." When she started crying out, he was halfway across the lawn and reached her in seconds.
"What..."
"It's a sharp cramp. I..." She grabbed his hands, her fingers digging in. "Oh God!"
Christos went pale. "Dr. Henderson!"
At the first cry, the woman had fetched her bag from her vehicle and was ordering everyone to give them room.
"What's happening?"
"I intend to find out." She started taking vitals, a frown touching her brow. "Where are you feeling pain?"
