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“Hungry?”
“Starving,” he confirms. “What about you?”
I look up at him from the crook of his arm. “Do you even have to ask?”
He smiles, kissing the top of my head. “I’ll go see what we have. Otherwise, we’ll drive into town and go visit Betty.”
“Sounds good to me. Except it might take me until lunch to roll off this bed.”
“Let me help.” He chuckles, standing up and reaching his hands out for me to grab them. He pulls me into a sitting position to the edge of the bed, and when I look down, all I can see is my huge belly.
“Thank God it’s flip-flop season,” I mutter, annoyed with how co-dependent I’m becoming. I hate asking him for help even though he reassures me he doesn’t mind.
He tilts my head and presses a soft kiss to my lips. “You look beautiful, so stop whining.”
I wrinkle my nose at him and scowl. “We’ll see when I’m sweating and screaming through ten hours of childbirth.”
“And you’ll still be the most beautiful woman in the world.” He winks.
“How do you always manage to do that?”
“What?” he asks, grabbing one of his shirts from the closet.
“Give me flutters every time you say something sweet and charming. Like you don’t even have to try. The words just naturally fly out of your mouth.”
He chuckles, pulling his shirt on before grabbing a pair of jeans from his dresser. “It’s the Bishop way, darlin’. Just accept it.”
I sigh, relaxing my shoulders as I feel anything but beautiful right now.
“I’m going to check the fridge, but I’m almost certain we only have a gallon of milk and a jar of Aunt Patsy’s homemade jam.” He heads out and walks down the hallway toward the kitchen.
“Okay, I’m going to attempt to get dressed. See ya in an hour.” I groan.
Placing my palm down on the bed behind me, I start pushing myself up. After some twisting and shifting, I finally manage to stand. I really underestimated what carrying a Bishop baby would feel like. I’m convinced all those pictures of those cute pregnant women in their last month on the internet are Photoshopped.
I wobble down the hallway to where my clothes are stored in my room. We haven’t made the final transition of making Alex’s room our room yet, but as soon as the baby’s out and we’re back home, I plan to turn it into a guest room of sorts. I want my parents, and eventually, Natalie and Adam, to come visit.
“Oh my God,” I screech as I reach in my closet for one of my maternity shirts. “Dammit.” I groan and let out a growl. I’m pretty sure I just peed myself.
Why does no one tell you this happens during pregnancy? I’m going to write one of those truths about pregnancy books because that sugarcoated shit they fed me was a lie.
I step back and decide I’m going to need a shower, but that’s when I realize the liquid is continuing to run down my legs.
Wait.
My abdomen tightens as another gush of liquid lands at my feet. Holy shit. Oh my God. My water just broke.
I’d had some Braxton Hicks contractions over the last week, but nothing that was consistent. Now I’m sure this is the real deal.
“Alex!” I shout, stepping aside from the mess.
He doesn’t respond, and I stand in complete shock. It’s finally time!
“Babe, where are you?” I hear him in the other room.
“Down here, hurry!”
His feet rush down the hallway, and when he swings the door open, he spots my wide eyes and immediately comes toward me.
Before I can warn him, he steps in the mess on the floor and cringes.
“What the…?”
“I think my water broke,” I finally tell him, blinking and meeting his eyes. “First, I thought I had peed myself, but then it just kept coming.”
“Oh my God…” He steps in front of me, holding my face. “Does this mean it’s time? It’s really time?”
Nodding, tears surface, and my lip trembles. Now that the reality of having this baby is happening, I can’t help feeling scared out of my damn mind.
“Sweetheart, don’t cry.” He wipes his thumbs under my eyes before pressing a sweet kiss to my lips.
“I’m nervous,” I admit. “What if this baby is like…fifteen pounds and ruins my vagina for life?” I blurt out, and I can tell he wasn’t expecting that by the way he chokes on his laughter.
“I will love our fifteen-pound monster and your vagina no matter what, okay?”
I smile and nod, though I’m not convinced about how my body is going to handle labor.
“Let’s go have a baby.”
We’re packed and on the road in less than thirty minutes. I text Natalie, my mother, and Benita to let them know we’re heading to the hospital. Alex calls Evan and says he’ll let them know to be expecting us since he’s already on shift. I doubt we’ll see him till after the birth, though, since he works in the ER. Between calling his parents and his brothers, I’ve barely come to terms with the fact that I’m really in labor this time.
