Page 153 of Wilde Flame

Another push with all my might, and I felt a strange pop in my lower pelvis.

“That’s it! Your baby girl is here! Dad, want to cut the cord?”

I dropped back against the bed, and Caden was wiping the hair from my sweat-soaked face.

“You did it, baby! You did it.”

“Caden?” Dr. Lawrence asked.

“Yes! Yes, I want to cut it.”

Our little girl’s soft cries filled the air, and when they placed her on my chest, I couldn’t hold back my tears.

Caden was also crying and saying something to the baby, but I was too focused on her to hear anything or anyone else.

“She’s perfect,” I said, as I picked up her tiny hand. Her little fingers instantly curled around my finger. “I love you so much, little one.”

I looked up at Caden, who was still crying, but he also wore the biggest grin I’d ever seen.

“You did it, Lili. And she’s the most precious thing I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

Looking back down at her, I smiled. “She’s beautiful.”

“Just like her mother.”

“Do we have a name for baby girl Wilde?”

I nodded. “We do.”

Caden reached over and placed a finger on her hand, and she quickly latched on to it.

I looked up at him and nodded, smiling.

Never taking his eyes off of our daughter, Caden said, “Her name is Nellie Rose Wilde.”

The nurse smiled. “Welcome to the world, Nellie Rose.”

We’d named our daughter after both of our grandmothers.

“Are there any family members you’d like me to bring in?” the nurse asked.

Shaking my head, I said, “It’s just us three for right now.”

When I looked down at Nellie, she was staring up at me. I smiled and blinked back my tears. My chest warmed so much that if I hadn’t known any better, I would have sworn a flame lit in my heart. This was what love felt like. I’d only felt it twice in my life…so far. Once with Caden, and now with my daughter.

Caden crawled into the bed with me and placed his hand on Nellie’s back. “She’s so little.”

“She is.”

He bent down and kissed her softly on the head. Then looking at me, he said, “Thank you.”

I raised my brows. “For what?”

“For loving me. For showing me what true love is, and for bringing this little angel into the world. You were so amazing, Lili. I’m so proud of you.”

I lifted my chin, and we exchanged a soft kiss.

The nurse came back and told us they had to take Nellie to get her cleaned up and ready to start eating. The moment the nurse took her, our daughter let out a scream so loud, I jumped.