Maggie
The room was bright, clean, and utterly devoid of personalization. At least I had a room, though, and a private one at that. Piper was to thank for that. She worked at this hospital.
Rocco sat on a chair next to the bed, his forehead wrinkled and his eyes on my humongous stomach.
I squeezed his hand. “We could’ve saved a lot on decorating if we’d seen this room first.”
He gave me a faint smile, not even looking up. The big man was nervous. That didn’t happen often, but his concern was hard to miss.
But I needed to talk, to distract myself from the pain of the contractions. “Guess I went a bit overboard back at the townhouse, right?”
The money from my inheritance from Emilio had come through just two months ago, thanks to some cutthroat lawyers the guys knew. I’d bought a five-bedroom brownstone in Brooklyn. Then I’d gone into overdrive, doing what I could to get it ready for us—and for the baby.
“Tommy’s mother never did anything like that,” Rocco said after a moment.
I didn’t know much about the woman, but Tommy was such a wonderful little boy that I didn’t want to speak ill of her. “Well, not everyone gets a large sum of money from a father she’s never met.”
Rocco finally met my eyes. “It wasn’t that. She just wasn’t interested in getting things ready for the baby the way you were.”
“Nesting,” I said. “That’s what Julian called it.”
Then I bit back a laugh.
Rocco noticed the change in my expression. “What’s wrong? Is another contraction starting?”
“No, I was just remembering how Slater calls it a love nest.” I giggled. Rocco grunted, apparently not appreciating the humor, but it wasn’t like Slater was wrong. We’d already spent plenty of time making love in it—and deepening the bond between us.
But he, Julian, and Rocco had definitely done their part of making the townhouse into our home. They’d hit up all their contacts and gotten us the best price on the supplies we’d needed. And they’d done a lot of the work themselves. Pregnancy hormones plus the constant sight of three absolutely shredded shirtless men in toolbelts had made my life super interesting the last few months.
Then a contraction hit, wiping the smile off my face. “Squeeze my hand,” Rocco ordered. “And breathe.” He looked pale but determined to be here for me.
A minute later, I was completely out of breath, sweat pouring down my forehead. “They’re getting closer,” I said.
“Should I get the doctor?” Rocco asked anxiously.
“Not yet.”
There was a knock on the door, and Julian and Slater entered the room. Relief filled me. Lately, I’d hated it when any of my men were out of my sight. Julian said it was my mothering instincts kicking in. I didn’t know what it was, but I was happiest when the four of us were together.
Slater came over to give me a kiss. Then he tied an array of balloons to the head of the bed. I smiled as they bobbed over me. They were pink in honor of the little girl I couldn’t wait to meet.
Julian set down a gorgeous bouquet of roses on the windowsill next to the lilies Piper had brought. He gave me a quick kiss and then focused on my birthing coach. “How far apart are the contractions?”
“Still about five minutes,” Rocco said.
Slater frowned. “Shouldn’t we get someone?”
I reached out for his hand. “I’m fine. We’re in the middle of a hospital. People keep popping in all the time. It’s not like they’re going to forget I’m in here.”
Julian stood at the foot of the bed and patted my foot. “You’re a pretty hard person to ignore.”
I laughed. “I’m not sure that’s a compliment.”
“Me either.” The sexy wink he gave me reminded me that I was still a woman and not just an expectant mother. A very lucky woman who was loved and cherished by these three men.
Then a cramp tore through me, and I grimaced. Slater grabbed my hand, staring at my face. “Another contraction?”
“No,” I assured him. “It’s just, well, this entire process isn’t the most comfortable thing ever.” And it would get worse—far worse, I knew. But it would all be worth it.
Slater still looked concerned, but he tried to disguise it with humor. “You have big things go in and out of you all the time.”
I rolled my eyes, and Julian punched him in the arm.
Rocco didn’t even look at his buddy, but he said, “This is a special moment. A miracle. Don’t make me spoil it by shooting you.”
“A miracle,” I repeated, Rocco’s words warming me. And then I burst into tears. “I’m not ready.”
In an instant, all three men moved in, Julian sitting on the edge of the bed and Rocco and Slater leaning in from either side.
“You’re not alone,” Julian said, rubbing my leg through the blanket.
“And none of us feels ready,” Rocco said.
My tears still flowed. “I should’ve done more reading.” I’d bought every book on parenting I could find, but I was also taking online classes. It was still my dream to finish my four-year degree and then go to law school.
“Julian has done enough reading for all of us.” Slater’s voice wasn’t sarcastic anymore. I forced myself to smile as I looked at him. He’d kept his hair short, since he knew I liked it that way. He still looked like a very fit military man, and it made me want to jump him every chance I could.
Except not right now.
“You’re going to be a wonderful mother,” Rocco said. “You know how I know?” I shook my head. “Because you already are with Tommy.”
“That boy loves you a ton, Maggie,” Julian added.
That thought brought more tears. I loved Tommy, too. His excitement about being a big brother regularly reduced me to tears. Pregnancy hormones were only part of it.
Rocco finally tore his gaze away from me and looked at his friends. “His life sure has changed a lot in the past year. For the better. He’s lucky to have you two.”
“And the baby will be lucky, too,” I said. We still hadn’t decided on a name. That was definitely a downside of having four opinionated people involved in the naming process. “I can’t wait to see you reading to her, Julian.”
He’d already filled two bookcases in the nursery with picture books he’d personally picked out. “And you have to teach her how to be tough, too. Maybe someday you can teach her to ride your motorcycle.”
Julian grinned. “Sure, when she’s about thirty.”
“Which is when she’ll be allowed to date,” Rocco growled.
Slater squeezed my hand tighter. “I like tough women. Like women who have no qualms about pulling a shotgun on two thugs who try to rob her bar.”
I smiled. “If those guys hadn’t come into the bar, we probably wouldn’t be here.”
Would I have ever gotten to know these men if Rocco hadn’t stepped in to rescue me? The love in his dark eyes told me he was wondering the same thing. “You can teach the baby how important family is,” I told him. It was a lesson he knew well.
“What about me?” Slater asked.
“You need to teach her how to have fun. The world can be a grim place—we need to enjoy the light-hearted moments while we can.” I knew that Slater understood that. He’d taken to spending hours building Lego sets with Tommy.
“I can do that,” Slater said, and then a familiar gleam entered his eye. “And you know what I really can’t wait to teach her?” He winked as I shook my head. “That your name is Magnolia.”
In spite of myself, I started to laugh… and then it became a moan. All three men stiffened as another contraction hit. Even through the pain, it was sobering to see them looking helpless. They were my big strong guys who took care of me—it didn’t suit them to let me do this on my own.
But I knew I could do it. I had to. This was the next step for the family that I loved. It was my job to introduce these amazing men to their daughter, and I was going to do my best.
When the contraction subsided, I spotted Piper just inside the door. Relief filled me, both because she was my friend and also because she was a medical professional.
Piper had never completely gotten used to our untraditional relationship, but she’d done her best. She seemed to get along best with Julian, and he was the one who told her about my contractions.
Slater politely got up so that she could sit next to me. That gave me an idea. “Can we have a few minutes, please?”
Julian opened his mouth to object, but Slater grabbed him by the arm and pushed him toward the door. With one last squeeze of my hand, Rocco followed.
Once the door was shut behind them, Piper sat down next to me and raised her eyebrows. “Too much testosterone in the room?”
There was pretty much too much testosterone in any room I was in these days—but I couldn’t say I minded it. Living with three virile men who couldn’t keep their hands off me had its perks. But sometimes it was relaxing to just hang out with another woman.
Rather than answer her question, I hit her with one of my own. “Don’t I even rate wearing scrubs?”
“I don’t work until tonight,” she said.
“You could wear scrubs to make me feel better.”
She laughed. “You have strange tastes.”
That was pretty pointed, but I waved it off. “You know I always wanted a big family.”
“Well, you’ve got one.” She brushed my hair back from my forehead. “And it’s soon to be bigger.”
“Soon,” I agreed as I smiled at my friend. Deep down, I knew that Piper was happy that I was happy. It just wasn’t the way she’d choose to live her life, but she always had my back. It was she who had made sure that all three of my guys would be allowed in the delivery room.
“Does my goddaughter have a name yet?”
“Soon?” Truthfully, though I had some ideas, I just wasn’t sure. It was such a big decision.
“How about something that goes well with magnolia?” Piper said. “Willow? Holly? Laurel?”
“No, thank you.” This had already been discussed—and rejected—several times by me.
“Come on, there are lots,” she teased. “Baby Sequoia. Baby Aspen. Baby Birch. She’ll never have to worry about having too many kids in her class with the same name.”
“No wa—ow!” My objection turned into a loud groan. “Wow, this one’s strong,” I said, barely able to talk.
Piper looked concerned. “I’ll just go get someone.”
“Yes, please,” I gasped. “And my men.”
“Yes, your men,” Piper said, already on her feet. “Wouldn’t want to forget them.”
Even through the pain, I knew that I certainly wouldn’t. Ever.
* * *
“She’s beautiful,” Rocco said, in as gentle a voice as I’d ever heard from the big man.
“The baby or the momma?” Julian asked.
“Both,” Slater answered before Rocco could. His eyes were moist, as they had been since the first moment he’d laid eyes on his daughter.
And she was his daughter—she belonged to all of us. I knew that with all my heart.
“Definitely both.” Rocco leaned over and kissed my forehead, but his eyes were on the sleeping beauty I held in my arms. “You did great, sweetheart.”
I smiled. I was exhausted, but so happy. So very, very happy. My family meant everything to me, and the missing member would be here soon. Julian was going to pick up Tommy after school in an hour.
As if reading my mind, Rocco mentioned his son. “Tommy’s going to be thrilled.”
I agreed. Julian, thanks to all the parenting books he’d read, had told us it might not all be smooth sailing with a new baby in the house, but the little boy had been so excited.
“Maybe when he gets here, we should tell him her name,” I said.
Slater’s mouth twisted upward in amusement. “The hospital seems pretty interested in knowing, too.”
“But no rush, gorgeous,” Julian said. It was a real testament to his love that he said that, because I was well aware that I looked anything but gorgeous at the moment.
“I had an idea,” I said hesitantly. “What about Emily?”
There was silence for a moment as they all thought it over. “I like that,” Slater finally said.
Julian hesitated. “I thought you were looking into Italian names?” He threw Rocco a glance.
But Rocco just stared at me, his eyes watering slightly. “It’s for Emilio, right?”
I nodded. “It kind of reminded me of Emilio. He was the father I never knew, but you three knew him. He was a good father-figure to you.”
“But it’s still her own name,” Slater said. “She can be her own person.” He looked away for a moment, and then said, “Would you like your mother’s name for her middle name?”
I smiled at his discomfort. He’d always used humor—or sometimes raw sexuality—to sidestep meaningful conversations, but he’d been getting better. “Maybe,” I said. “Do I have to know right now?”
“Of course not,” Julian said. “But at least we have something to call her now.”
“I love you, Emily,” Rocco told his daughter, touching her little fist. “And I love your mamma.”
“And she’s going to love all of you.” I knew that with every fiber of my being. These were dangerous men who’d done bad things, but they’d been abandoned by everyone who should have supported and loved them early on. They’d done what they had to survive. And now that they no longer worked for a horrible boss, they were trying to become better men.
But I knew that they were good men, deep down inside. And I knew that little Emily would know that as well.
(c) Stephanie Brother 2023
