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“Not a joke.” I laugh, my anxiety melting away.
“Oh, sweetheart.” He cups my face with his hands. “Oh, baby, that makes me so happy.” He kisses me over and over again, tears starting to fall down my cheeks.
“I’m sorry.” I cover my face. “I swear they’re happy tears. I’m just so—shocked and scared but happy.”
“Hey,” he says, wiping away the tears with his thumbs, “it’s okay to be scared. It’s normal, right? This is huge, this is a baby. This is our baby.”
“I know.” I smack his chest. “Don’t make me cry more.”
“We’ll figure it out together. Neither of us has done this before.”
“But we just got married and I just started my job… I don’t know how to make it all work.”
“We don’t have to know how, baby. I know that’s easy for me to say since I won’t be carrying our baby or going through the birth, but I will be right here beside you, every single step of the way. You want ice cream at one a.m., I’m your guy. You need someone to punch because you’re hormonal and uncomfortable and overheated? I’m your guy.” He searches my face and I know he means every word he’s saying.
“Thank you.”
“You are going to be an incredible mother, an amazing one, and I can’t wait to see you grow with our baby.” He places his hands back on my belly. “We can handle anything and we’re going to create a beautiful life for our child.”
“I love you,” I say softly, a mix of emotions rushing through me.
“I love you so much, Emery.” He presses a tender kiss to my forehead.
In this moment, I feel like we both know that no matter what challenges come our way, our love and excitement for this new chapter will guide us. Our love will carry us every step of the way.
26
MADS
NINE MONTHS LATER…
“Are you ready, mama?”
A mixture of excitement and nerves course through me as I look down at Emery. I know she can do this; she was built to bring life into this world, but the thought still terrifies me.
“You’ve got this baby. I’m right here.”
“Okay,” she says nervously. “I’m ready.”
Thirty-two minutes later, I’m holding my baby girl in my arms.
“Can you believe she’s finally here?” Emery asks beside me.
I shake my head in amazement. “No, it still feels like a dream. Our little girl is here and she’s perfect. She’s perfect.” I just keep saying that phrase over and over again as my eyes blur with tears. Emery lays her head on my shoulder as we both stare down at our beautiful Fiona.
From the moment we found out she was expecting, Emery wanted to name our baby after her mother if it was a girl. I told her I thought that was a perfect idea. We never even got around to officially deciding on a boy’s name.
“Ten perfect fingers. Ten perfect toes.” Emery smiles, holding our daughter’s hand in hers.
“How are you feeling, love?”
“Exhausted.” She laughs. “But too excited to sleep now that she’s here. Can you believe we made this?”
“You did all the work. She is one hundred percent you. Look at her.” I rub my hand over her head that’s sprinkled with auburn hair already. Her bright-blue eyes stare up at me as her tongue protrudes from her mouth.
It felt like time had been stretched to its limits over the last few months, each day the anticipation building as we waited to meet our baby. Emery was the picture of strength and beauty as she brought our daughter into this world. A fearless woman so capable. And now, holding my daughter for the first time, a wave of emotion crashes over me. She’s delicate and innocent, utterly captivating. I can’t help but marvel at the miracle of life that we created together.
We spend the next day in the hospital, but Emery is already ready to get home.
