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"Hey," I told her quietly. "Everything is okay. We’re going to come through this with flying colors and the best damn story in our family’s history. I know your last name is going to be Post, but you’re half Avery, so winning in the story stakes is a big deal.”

Adam was watching me with a soft smile.

“And what’s more, Olivia, you’re going to be so loved. Not just by me, but by your mommy and daddy and the million aunts and uncles and cousins that you already have. Just wait ‘til you meet your cousin Bella. She’s been chomping at the bit for a girl cousin.”

My voice only wobbled a little at the end.

The contraction that followed was the longest one yet.

Chapter Four

One nap, one potty break, and another Minions movie and at the rate James kept popping up his head, I was pretty sure he really was going to find out how babies got here.

If we only had Wi-Fi, then I could get him playing one of his games, which would definitely keep him occupied.

“Dad?”

“Yeah, Bud?”

“Can’t you make it so Miss Zoe doesn’t hurt so much?”

“I wish I could, son, I wish I could.”

“I’m all right, James.”

She really wasn’t. I’d been turning off the truck for twelve-minute intervals to save the battery, conserve gas, and make sure we didn’t die of carbon monoxide poisoning, but Zoe was dripping with sweat despite the sixty-degree temperature in the truck. Her complexion kept vacillating between beet red and parchment white, and James was right—she was whimpering and biting back screams like nobody’s business. Marie’s delivery was nothing like this. This was ten times worse.

“Miss Zoe, do you want to watch a movie with me? We could watch about Elsa. She sings.”

James started singing:

Let it go, let it go

Can’t hold it back anymore

Let it go, let it go

My kid had a good voice. I looked at Zoe, she had tears in her eyes.

“Come on, Miss Zoe. Maybe if you sing with me, you’ll feel better.”

Her knees were up, and I hadn’t measured, but the last time I checked, she’d looked pretty dilated to me. I knew another contraction was hitting her, because of the way she was squeezing my hand and trying to break every single bone in it. I looked at her face again.

Fire engine red.

Her lips were clamped shut.

She was breathing through her nose like a bull. Doing everything she could not to scare my boy, even though the pain had to be horrific.

Fuck.

This woman was fucking amazing.

I ducked down under the blanket and took another peek with the flashlight. Still no sign of the head, even though her contractions were coming less than a minute apart.

Zoe’s entire body slumped, her contraction over.

“James, I can’t sing right now. I’m sorry, honey. Maybe some other time.”