Cronus looked down. “Did you want some help with your pants?”
I looked down as well but all I could see was stomach. “Did I forget to pull them up again?”
This shit was getting way too complicated to remember. I was really going to just lie around naked from here on out.
Cronus chuckled, and then striding forward, leaned down to help me get dressed again. As soon as he grabbed my underwear, my water broke.
All over his hands.
“What the…?” He jumped back as I looked down in shock.
“Did not see that coming,” I murmured, before another contraction ripped through my body, rendering me a hot mess on the floor.
“Baby, are you okay?” Cronus asked as I cried out, clutching my belly.
“No. No. No.” I kept repeating it over and over. Mostly I wanted to throat punch Cronus because it was his fault I was in this situation. Stupid anaconda dick.
“We need to get you to a healer,” he said.
Reaching out, I grasped a full handful of his thick hair, wrenching his face closer to mine. “Get me to a hospital,” I snarled, “with doctors and morphine.”
He swallowed roughly. “Love, we talked about this. That's not the best idea. Our baby could be even more powerful than we think, and I would not like to explode their electrical board.”
I huffed until the pain eased. “Okay, fine. We'll do it your way, but please tell me these healers have pain relief?”
Hats off to all-natural mommas, but there was only so much I could handle, and a giant Titan baby exiting my body was legitimately my limit.
Cronus hauled me into his arms, then zapped us out of the house. Hopefully Hound wouldn't worry when we disappeared, because there was no time to grab him.
We landed at the familiar front door of the healer who'd stepped in and helped us multiple times.
“Panacea,” Cronus shouted, slamming his fist against the door.
She opened it not a second later, expression concerned—it turned to joy as soon as she saw me. “Maisey! Your baby is coming.”
“Yes,” I started before another contraction hit me and I wailed.
“Come in,” she said, standing back. “I'll bring you to the sacred birthing chamber.”
Sacred birthing chamber?Really hoped that was code for bed with morphine drip or epidural or whatever they used nowadays.
Her house was a mishmash of eclectic styles, statues, and random furniture. It was clear that Panacea had a wide variety of interests. Something I'd care more about tomorrow, when my body wasn't splitting into two.
“It's been so long since we've welcomed a new Titan into the world,” she said, sounding excited as she opened a purple door at the end of a long yellow hallway. Yeah,eclectic.
When we stepped inside, she murmured something to Cronus and his power trickled over my skin. In seconds, the room changed, like an instant spring clean. Dust sailed away, to be replaced by soothing light, soft music, and a large water bath and bed in the center of the room.
“We're going to do everything to help you through this,” Panacea told me, and I gritted my teeth, searching for inner strength to be okay with this sort of home birth.
Truth be told, I loved the concept, but also feared I wasn't strong enough. I once stubbed my toe and considered going to urgent care for Tylenol with codeine. Bitch hadn’t even been broken but it felt like it was.
“Take off as much of your clothing as you're comfortable with,” Panacea suggested, hurrying over to test the bath which was somehow—Cronus no doubt—filled with water. “Pants definitely, but you can leave your bra on if you want.”
I laughed. “Haven't worn a bra in two weeks. My boobs are like balloons.”
Panacea and Cronus both flashed me smiles, very different sorts of smiles.
When I was fully undressed, another contraction rocked me and I cried out. Cronus lifted me into the bath and I almost sighed as the warm water wrapped around me.
