Page 128 of Vegas with my Brother’s Best Friends

For a few seconds, I forget how to breathe as pain and discomfort consume me, sweat beading up on my forehead. I grimace and squeeze my eyes shut, feeling cold and hot at the same time.

“You’ve got this, baby,” Marcus says from my right as he holds my hand. “We need you to breathe.”

“Breathe, Cass,” Jackson tells me from my left.

“Come on,” Tyler says, squeezing my left hand.

I suck in a shaky breath and focus on what I need to do. Not on the pain. Not on the fear.

On bringing our baby into the world.

“Good. Now, push!”

I bear down as much as I can, my head aching from the exertion. I’ve already forgotten how long I’ve been doing this for, but it feels like it has been an eternity.

How much more can I take when my body hurts all over, inside and out?

I drop back down onto the pillows, my eyes stinging. “I’m so tired. I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Hey, you’ve got this,” Jackson says as he peers down at me with a serious expression on his face. “You’re stronger than you think. I promise.”

That spurs some motivation in me. If they believe in me, I need to as well.

“Again, Cassidy. We need to get this baby out soon,” Dr. Wallace tells me.

I nod and gather as much air in my lungs as I can before pushing hard. I could be breaking Tyler’s and Marcus’ hands for all I know, but it’s helping. Neither of them complains. They just keep encouraging me.

I push and push until I’m dizzy and breathless, my strength and energy starting to ebb away.

“Almost!” Dr. Wallace says as she prepares to catch the baby. “One more!”

I grit my teeth and give it my all, my vision wavering as the pain hits a peak.

A few seconds later, the sound of a baby crying fills the room.

Black dots float around in my vision for a few moments, but I cling onto consciousness as much as I can so that I can get a glimpse of our baby.

“Go,” Marcus says, motioning for Jackson and Tyler to go check. He stays right by my side, kissing the top of my head. “You did amazing, baby. You did that.”

Tears well up in my eyes as I smile up at him, exhausted and relieved. I’m so glad the doctor let them all stay here with me. I couldn’t have done it without all of them next to me, encouraging me and reminding me of how strong I can be.

“Here’s your healthy baby girl,” Dr. Wallace announces as she places my baby on my chest. “Congratulations!”

“Thank you,” I say through my happy tears as I gaze down at our daughter. “She’s so beautiful.”

The guys surround me, peering down at her with awe written all over their faces.

“She’s perfect,” Jackson murmurs as he gently brushes his finger against her tiny hand. “She has your dark hair, Marc.”

“I’m pretty sure I see Tyler’s dimples,” Marcus replies with a light chuckle. “Her eyes look a lot like yours, Jax.”

“Oh, good. She took the best parts of us,” Tyler says, soft laughter surrounding me. “But she’s just as beautiful as her mom.”

Maybe that’s exactly how it was supposed to be. We stopped caring whose biology it was months ago.

“I love you guys,” I tell them before looking back down at our daughter. “And I love you, Violet. So much.”

I feel kisses on the top of my head, my heart aching with so much love and happiness. I can’t believe I’m finally holding our child in my arms right now. It has felt like years since I first found out that I was pregnant and so much craziness happened.