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I laugh. “She would have lost it.”
Elizabeth nods in agreement. “I mean, I’m no Nancy Reagan, but I bet she would have thought I was doing a good job.”
Celeste laughs. “God, she loved Nancy Reagan.”
Elizabeth nods in agreement. “She really did.”
There’s a knock at the door and the doctor walks in. Celeste and I move to a couch in the corner while he talks to Elizabeth. He examines her and breaks her water.
“I’ll be back soon. You should be able to start pushing in about an hour. Try to rest up a little.”
She nods. When the doctor leaves, James turns off the lights.
“I’m not going to be able to sleep,” Elizabeth. James climbs into the bed beside her, and she leans her head on his shoulder.
“Try,” he says, softly.
––––––––
Elizabeth drops herhead back against the pillow. “How long have I been pushing?”
“Two hours.” Celeste checks her watch.
Elizabeth leans back and groans. “The epidural has worn off on the left side just a smidge.”
James and I are holding her legs while she pushes, and Celeste has been holding her hand and counting.
The doctor looks up, “I can see baby’s head. Elizabeth, I need you to push as hard as you can during this next contraction.”
She nods. Celeste picks up her hand and says, “Focus on the numbers, okay? You can do this. Just keep going until you get to twenty.”
Elizabeth nods and leans forward a bit as the next contraction rolls over her. She closes her eyes and groans softly. Celeste starts counting slowly, “1, 2, 3...”
“The head is out. Elizabeth, just one more big push,” the doctor calls.
Elizabeth gasps for air and then groans again.
“10, 11, 12...”
I hold my breath, watching the doctor work the baby’s shoulders out and the rest of her little body follows right after.
“She’s out,” James says a moment later. No one moves until we hear a wail pierce the silence.
Elizabeth collapses back onto the bed. I rub her leg. “You did it.”
“Damn, you made that look easy,” Celeste says. Elizabeth lets out a little snort.
Celeste and I move out of the way as the medical team goes to work. James cuts the cord and they lay the baby on Elizabeth’s chest. James walks over and kisses Elizabeth’s forehead. Tears are streaming down her face, and James’ eyes are glistening.
Celeste nudges her head toward the door and whispers, “Let’s give them a minute.”
I nod, and we slip out the door.
“I need some coffee. I haven’t pulled an all-nighter in a while,” Celeste says.
I yawn. “Sounds great. Let’s do it.”
After coffee, we make our way to the waiting room where the local Sterling siblings are hanging out. My eyes find Declan immediately.Of course they do.
