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"Yes, the time is coming soon. Very soon," the midwife said. "I have to prepare the herbs."
"Herbs?" Callum looked between the old woman and Fiona.
The midwife had turned away by then. She walked to the counter at the side of the birthing room. Had Fiona not held his hand so tightly, Callum would have hurried over when she opened the cabinet and picked up a large granite mortar, lifting it to rest on the countertop. She might have been ancient, but she still had her strength.
"Someone wasn’t listening when we last met with Ethel," Fiona said, then her eyebrows rose at his reaction. "You didn’t even remember her name, did you? And she brought you into the world."
"I was more interested in your condition."
"As he should be, as he should be," Ethel said, not turning away from her work. "Don’t worry, Callum. I’m not poisoning your mate, but she won’t enjoy the taste, I suspect. This herbal preparation will dull her pain and, if we are lucky, hasten the baby’s arrival. I’d have made it earlier, but it loses all its potency if I do that."
Ethel hobbled back toward the bed. She carried a glass with a thick olive-green liquid in it. The drink sent up a harsh, bitter smell that only got worse the closer it came to the bed. Fiona frowned at it, but after Ethel nodded and grinned, she accepted the glass.
"Yuck," Fiona said, her head shaking side to side as she raked her teeth over her tongue, trying to get rid of the taste. "That’slike a mix of concentrated spinach with boiled Brussels sprouts and … lavender?"
"Happy I don’t have to taste it. Smelling it was more than enough," Callum added, earning a glare from Fiona. She stuck her tongue out, and the mixture had dyed it that foul green tint.
"Maybe you should. This is your fault, isn’t it?" She pointed at her belly.
"I’m sure you played your part, too, didn’t you, dear?" Ethel, the midwife, barked a laugh. "I couldn’t count the number of women blaming their men at this point in the procedure. Some even swore they’d never let them touch them again."
Fiona’s brow rose at that, her eyes on Callum. Her finger waggled at him, but she giggled and shook her head almost immediately.
"I don’t think I’ll take it that far," Fiona said.
She stared at her finger and waved her hand back and forth slowly. It took her into another bout of giggles until she dropped her head back against the pillows. The hand in his relaxed its grip but not completely.
"Good, the herbs are taking effect," Ethel said after ducking under the sheet covering Fiona’s legs. "It won’t be long now."
That might have been debatable. It felt like several more hours as Callum waited, unable to offer any other help to Fiona than holding her hand. Even with the herbs, when the time finally came, she squeezed the life out of it. He was honestly surprised she didn’t break one of his bones, not that he would have cared.
With one final push, Fiona fell limp against the bed, sweat matting her hair against her forehead. Callum heard the most beautiful sound he’d ever heard … the ear-shattering primal scream of his son and heir.
Ethel emerged from between her legs holding the baby, cleaning him off. She set him in Fiona’s arms. Fiona’s eyesglazed with unshed tears as she looked at their child. Callum snuggled close, and they marveled at their miracle.
EPILOGUE
FIONA
The dressing room looked as if a tornado had rolled through. Garment bags hung over the sides of chairs with everyone’s street clothes in haphazard piles. The hair and makeup stations were littered with bottles, brushes, rollers, and hairpins. Still, everyone looked immaculate.
Fiona found herself grinning at her closest friends, all decked out in their elegant bridesmaids’ dresses. Chloe watched the hairdresser in the mirror, adding the last bit of curl to her bangs. She almost always chose a simple look with minimal makeup, but the way she watched herself, Fiona knew she appreciated going all out.
Lillian and Alexis were already ready. They stood to the side, whispering and glancing toward Fiona. She’d never thought much about her wedding. Alexis was the type who had started a scrapbook before she was out of her teens with wedding ideas, themes, and even color combinations, though they all laughed at some of the more dated ones. Coral was so 2010.
As much as Fiona might have wanted to keep her wedding simple, marrying Callum made that all but impossible. Billionaires didn’t elope to Vegas, and neither did wolf packAlphas. Almost three hundred people were waiting in the main hall.
Alexis caught Fiona’s eyes and flashed a grin. Lillian joined her a second later, chuckling.
“I still can’t believe you are the first of us to get married,” Alexis said, stepping closer. “And after you were so insistent that you wanted to come to the Full Moon Masquerade just to get a story.”
“And I still got a story out of it,” Fiona replied. “Rocco committed enough crimes in his life to fill a book or two.”
“Yeah, a story, a baby, and a man. You didn’t even know who Rocco was until after you found yourself in Callum’s bed,” Lillian added. “I’m as surprised as Alexis that you are the first to tie the knot. I would have bet you’d be third, with Chloe the last single woman standing.”
Chloe looked over as the hairdresser finished adding curls. She frowned at them but then shrugged.
“It’s a good thing you are not a betting woman,” Chloe said. “Glad I’m not, either. I figured Fiona would never get married. You value your independence more than any of us.”
