Page 59 of Unsteady in Love

“Are they coming?” Prue asked desperately. I knew she was trying to hide how much pain she was in from Violet, but there was no hiding the tight set of her jaw.

“Yeah, just breathe, baby. They should be here in less than ten minutes.”

“Easy for you to say,” she snapped and instantly her face turned soft. “I’m sorry, Holden. It hurts like a son of a…you know. It’s going so much quicker than with Violet. Do you think the baby’s okay?”

“I’m sure he’s fine. It’s supposed to go quicker with your second, and now that your water broke…”

“Don’t remind me. What if I don’t get any drugs?” she asked with her lower lip trembling.

I didn’t know what to say to appease her, so I said nothing. Instead, I sat down on the bed next to her and hugged my two girls.

Prue gripped my hand as another contraction hit and the doorbell rang.

“Violet, baby, can you go let Uncle Jax and Aunt Gabi in? They're going to stay here with you while I take your mom to the hospital so your brother can be born.”

“But I want to go with you,” she pouted and slumped to the floor.

“I know you do, but the hospital is not a fun place. You’ll have fun with your aunt and uncle, and then after your brother is born, they’ll bring you up, so you won’t miss any of the fun.”

“Really?” She jumped up and ran out to answer the door.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Prue breathed, still clutching my hand.

“I know, but I didn’t want them waiting, and I couldn’t leave you in the middle of a contraction. I’ll have a talk with her later about not opening the door. I promise.”

Her green eyes, sparkling with tears, looked up at me. “Holden, I’m scared. This is all happening too quickly. Are you ready for this?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be, but I know we’ve got this. Look at how well we’ve done with Vi. She’s such a good kid.”

“That means this baby will probably be the opposite,” she grumbled, resting her head on my shoulder.

“Possibly, but I doubt it. You’re the best mom.” I kissed the top of her head and hugged her closer.

“Aww,” she looked up at me with more tears in her eyes, “you’re the best dad. I always knew you would be.”

“Alright, we’re here. We’ll clean up the kitchen.” Jax winked at me and then smiled softly at Prue. “Violet’s in good hands. If you need anything else, call or text us. We’re on call.”

“Thank you, Jax. I don’t know what we’d do without you guys.” Prue teared up even more.

“That’s what friends are for. We’ll expect the same when we have a baby.”

“Oh?” Prue asked curiously.

“Someday, hopefully soon,” Gabi interjected. “Do you need anything else before you go?”

“No, we have the car seat installed and Holden got my bag. Pray for a fast, butwithdrugs, delivery.”

“We’ll do that.” Gabi hugged Prue and then me. “Get out of here before you end up having the baby at home.

“On it.” I wrapped my arm around Prue and helped her out to the car.

Luckily, the hospital wasn’t too far from us. I wasn’t sure if Prue would have stayed in her seat if it had taken any longer. With each contraction getting worse, she squeezed my hand to the point I was afraid I’d wreck her SUV. Once the hospital came into sight, her grip immediately loosened.

“Holden,” she stopped me as she stepped out of the vehicle with a hand to my arm, “I love you, and I’m sorry if I’m a tyrant for the next twenty-four hours.”

“I love you too.” I leaned down and kissed her until I felt her relax in my arms. “What do you say we get this show on the road?”

“I’d say I already want to smack you. It’s not a show. If I could, it would only take a minute, then bam, the baby’s born.”

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