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She pulled one off the top and I had to hold the rest of the tower from breaking apart. My caramel skills had not been airy enough and stuck to the tower in globs instead of delicate skeins.
"Not bad," Elsa said as she chewed. "Thierry?"
"Fuck no. I saw him make it. I'm never eating that stuff." But even he took a cream puff and announced that I should keep my day job.
"It's very nice," Elsa protested.
I laughed, pulling her into a gentle hug, careful of her growing belly. "I'm glad you think so. It was definitely a labor of love."
She looked up at me, and my heart skipped a beat. Seeing her smile, I knew this was just the start of many more moments like this—full of love and laughter.
Chapter 39: Elsa
We were still making fun of Duncan'scroquembouchewhen a sharp pain shot through my abdomen. I clutched my belly, laughter dying on my lips.
"What the fuck?" Thierry barked.
"Elsa?" Duncan cried out.
I watched as water gushed out of me and onto the floor of the bakery. God, I was glad the cleaning crew would be here later in the evening; otherwise, this would be…Merdé! But this hurts!
"I think it's time," I declared.
Duncan's eyes widened in panic. "Time? You mean—"
"Yes, Duncan," I gasped as another contraction hitting me. "The baby is coming!" It was too fast. It was supposed to start slowly. That's what the midwife had told me.
"Thierry, get her bag from her apartment. It's in the closet by the front door." Duncan put an arm around me as he pulled out his phone. I heard him ask his driver to get the car to the bakery, and it sounded like Guillaume had been waiting for the call because he said he would be at the bakery in less than five minutes.
Thankfully, it was late in the evening and the hospital wasn't too far, so I hoped traffic wouldn't be an issue.
But what if we couldn't make it? What if I had to give birth on the road and—.
"Breathe, my love," Duncan whispered. "It's all going to be great. We're going to meet our baby girl today."
I gave him a withering look. How the hell was he so calm? But I was glad he was; that one of us was.
The ride to the hospital was a blur of contractions and hurried reassurances. By the time we arrived, I was in full labor. I was rushed into a delivery room. Duncan stayed by my side, staunch in how cool he stayed even when I told him that he was the asshole who knocked me up because the pain was really, really bad.
Now, I wished I'd agreed to an epidural.
But as soon as I thought about it, I felt calm. No, I wasn't going to take any drugs. This was going to be fine. I just had to….
"Mon Dieu, ça fait tellement mal!"I screamed as I crushed Duncan's hand in mine. My God, it hurts so much!
"You've got this,ma douce," he said, holding my hand. "I'm right here with you."
Tears streamed down my face. The pain was intense, but having Duncan there, being my rock gave me the strength I needed and a nice punching bag when I wanted to blame someone for my pain.
In the delivery room, the nurses and doctors buzzed around like a well-oiled machine, their calm professionalism that soothed my frayed nerves. Duncan stayed close.
Each contraction felt like a showdown, but I powered through, fueled by the thought of our little girl making her grand entrance.
Outside the delivery room, I knew my makeshift family was waiting. Duncan told me Angelique, Thierry, and Dean, who was in Paris for a short visit, were all demanding regular updates.
After what felt like an eternity, the doctor finally said, "Okay, Elsa. One more push."
I gathered all my strength and did as my doctor asked, a primal scream tearing from my throat. And then, I heard the sweetest sound in the world—our baby's first cry.
