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  “Fried rabbit, gravy, and griddle cakes,” Jeff said.

  “Don’t just stand there. Fix my plate,” Lucille said. “I’m starved.”

  Both men burst out laughing.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Ty?” Lucille called out from the kitchen.

  “What is it, angel?” he called from upstairs.

  “My back is hurting. I need to lie down for a while again.”

  “I’m coming. Give me a minute,” he called back down the stairs.

  She felt sorry for him. He’d been at her beck and call for the last few days. Jeff had been working on the garden while Ty saw to her every need. They’d decided that Ty worked better with her while Jeff was better in the garden, instead of them trading every day.

  While she walked back and forth in the kitchen rubbing her back and her belly, she felt as if something was squeezing her back bone in an iron grip. Then it pulled on her belly like there was a giant net around it. Just as Ty jogged into the kitchen, her water broke. She squealed and jumped back, nearly falling in the process. Only Ty’s quick thinking stopped her from landing on her ass.

  “Careful, Lucille.”

  “Oh. My. God. My water broke. It’s too soon. I’m not ready yet,” she cried out.

  “You’re ready, angel. We’re having a baby. Come on, let’s get you out of these pants and get you upstairs,” Ty said.

  Lucille couldn’t help but cry as Ty helped her step out of her pants and panties. Then he took a towel and mopped up the water and cleaned her up. She sobbed while he tried to soothe her as he helped her up the stairs to the bedroom.

  “Hold on while I strip the bed and put the bedding together. Sit on the chair over here and try to relax, angel. This is it. We’ve been waiting for this for the last eight and a half months.” Ty kissed her then went about preparing the bed for her to give birth.

  He put down a shower curtain on the bare mattress then several towels then a set of old worn-out sheets. Then he helped her over to the bed. He helped her pull off the rest of her clothes then climb up on the bed and settle in the middle of it. Once he had her covered up, he sat next to her and smoothed her hair from her face.

  “Where are you hurting?” he asked.

  “Right now, I’m good. Nothing is hurting. My back is sore, but it isn’t hurting anymore.”

  “Good. Rest while you can, angel.” Ty leaned back against the headboard and held Lucille next to him.

  She loved that he was so attentive to her. When the pain started again, he had her lie on her side, and he rubbed her back for her until it went away. It helped so much for him to massage the area that hurt the most.

  “Should I go get Jeff yet?” he asked.

  “It’s too soon. No need pulling him out of the garden until I’m further along. There’s nothing he can do. You can’t do much either other than rub my back or my belly.”

  “Have I told you how much I love your ass lately?” Ty asked, making her giggle.

  “Every day, multiple times a day,” she said.

  “Just checking.”

  “I’m scared,” she finally said.

  “I know. Everything is going to be fine, angel. We’re right here with you. We won’t let anything happen,” Ty said.

  After two more hours of sporadic pain, it finally settled into every ten minutes. She finally had Ty go get Jeff. The other man was frantic when he realized she’d been in labor for hours without him. He’d been angry with Ty until she’d laid into him to stop it. Then he’d been contrite and calmed down.

  Now, she was having contractions every five to six minutes. The men urged her to pant and breathe through them even as they panted and breathed through them with her. She thought Ty was going to pass out before it was over with, but they finally got to the point that Jeff could see the head.

  “He’s crowning, honey. He’s there. Just get ready to push with the next contraction. Push hard, honey. Push hard,” Jeff said.

  “I can’t. I’m too tired,” she protested.

  “Yes, you can. You have to. This baby is ready to be born. You’ve got to push with all your might.”

  Jeff crouched between her legs, an old housecoat turned backward on to protect his clothing. Ty had the cradle they’d built right next to the bed with all the things they’d need in it, and he was on the bed next to her, holding her hand and mopping her brow while she labored through the contractions.

  “You’ve got this, angel. You’re almost through. One or two more pushes and you’ll have our baby and we’ll be a family. You can do it,” Ty said.

  “Oh, God. It hurts so much,” Lucille cried out as the next contraction caught her off guard.

  “Push!” Jeff shouted.

  “Push,” Ty added as well.

  Lucille yelled as she pushed as hard as she could.

  “There you go, honey. The head is through. I’m cleaning out his mouth and nose. Get ready to push him all the way out. I’ve got him. I’ve got him.”

  The next one came, and she didn’t think she had the strength to do it again, but she managed. She pushed and heard the most beautiful sound in the world when her baby’s loud cries reached her ears.

  “It’s a boy. We’ve got a baby boy, Lucille. He’s healthy, and he’s beautiful,” Jeff said.

  “Look at him. Perfect,” Ty said.

  “Ten fingers, ten toes, two eyes, and one nose. Ty’s right. He’s perfect,” Jeff said.

  Lucille lay there panting, trying to catch her breath. “I want to hold my baby.”

  “Here you go, honey.”

  Jeff handed her the tiny baby, and she cradled his naked skin against hers. Ty covered them both with a blanket so that neither of them got chilled.

  “I’m going to clean up down here while you let the little tyke feed. You did good, honey. Real good,” Jeff said.

  “I can’t believe he’s here,” Lucille said, looking down at the little boy sucking at her nipple.

  “Isn’t he perfect?” Ty asked. “He’s going to look just like you, angel. He’s got the same wild hair.”

  “Don’t get attached to his hair or the color of his eyes,” Lucille warned. “Remember the book said they’re apt to change after the first few days or weeks.”

  “Doesn’t matter what they do, he’s going to be perfect,” Ty said. “Just like you.”

  “I love you, Ty.”

  “I love you, Lucille. You’re my pretty angel.”

  “I love you, too, Lucille. You’re my light in this dark world,” Jeff said.

  “I love you just as much, Jeff. I love you both so much. You’ve made me so happy. I never would have believed that living with two men could be so perfect. You both make me the happiest woman alive.”

  THE END

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