Mr. Big Jerk: A Forbidden Second Chance Romance (Kinda Cocky Series Book 3), стр. 45
For once, I had everything I could have possibly ever wanted out of life.
Karina kissed my cheek. “And just to let you know? This nursery is insane.”
Kelly snickered. “If Brenden and I ever have kids? I want a nursery just like this one. I mean, a self-rocking recliner? How much did that cost, Clint?”
I giggled. “No clue, and he won’t tell me.”
Karina smiled. “Probably because he knows you’ll jump down his throat.”
Kelly pulled out her phone. “We could Google?”
I shook my head. “Nah, let him have his moment. But, Clint really did do a good job on this place, didn’t he?”
Karina rubbed my back. “Is there any reason why you guys don’t want to find out the gender of the baby yet?”
I nodded. “Yes, and it’s completely selfish.”
Kelly took my hand. “Care to enlighten us, then? Because if I were you? I wouldn’t be able to stand not knowing.”
I smiled brightly. “If you start telling people the gender of the child, then they start getting you all kinds of things in those stereotypical colors. And it doesn’t leave much for the mother and father to buy for themselves. This sounds awesome to some people, but not to me. I want to be able to buy our child that first gender-specific piece if that makes any sense.”
Karina cupped my cheek. “It makes perfect sense.”
I drew in a deep breath. “Come on. I’ll show you guys the rest of the house. It took us five months to get me moved in and get this place put together, but now I want to show you guys my favorite part of this place.”
Zane’s voice wafted up the stairs. “Dinner’s ready, girls!”
I blinked. “On second thought, food first. Lots and lots of food first.”
We started laughing again as we made our way out of the yellow-and-mint-green nursery. But, my laughter quickly ceased. Out of nowhere, a sharp pain wrapped quickly around my back before I felt immense amounts of pressure between my legs. I sucked in a sharp breath of hair as my hand flew to my stomach. I propped myself up against the doorway with my other hand as my eyes widened.
Then, I felt it.
I felt something wet trickling slowly down the inside of my leg.
“Roxy, what is it?” Kelly asked.
Zane yelled up the stairs again. “You guys coming!?”
Karina shouted. “Get Clint! Hurry!”
Zane paused. “Why!?”
Karina rushed around me and gazed into my eyes before looking down at my feet.
“Because her water just broke, Zane!” she yelled.
“What!?” Zane exclaimed.
“For the love of fuck, go get Clint!” Kelly shrieked.
I tried my rhythmic breathing. “Holy fuck, this sucks.”
Karina wrapped my arm around her shoulder. “I know. It does. And it will. Let’s get you down these stairs.”
Then, I heard Clint’s voice. “Roxy! I’m coming!”
And a wave of relief washed over my body.
“Clint?” I asked.
I heard him bounding up the steps. “I’m here. I’m here. Zane’s getting our bags into the car. Can you walk?”
Another sharp pain stole my breath away, and all I could do was shake my head.
“All right. Girls, stand back,” he said.
And before I got the strength to protest, I felt him pick me up into his arms. As if I weighed nothing. As if I weren’t nine months pregnant.
“My God, you can still lift me?” I grunted.
“I don’t care if I spend nine hours in the gym every day. There will never come a time where I can’t take you in my arms,” he said.
“I don’t know whether to be flattered or annoyed.”
“Right now, you just focus on the one task you have in front of you.”
He whisked me down the stairs and out the front door while the girls barked commands at Zane and Brenden. I heard Kelly telling someone to turn off the grill, and I heard Karina telling someone else to make to-go plates, for whatever reason. But, just as Clint set me in the passenger’s side of the new cherry red SUV he purchased a few days ago, I whimpered.
“I’m going to ruin that new car smell, Clint.”
He kissed my temple. “I’m not one bit worried about that right now.”
“Towels!” Karina yelled.
I felt Clint pick me back up before something soft slid beneath my ass.
“Towels, to soak everything up,” Karina said, panting.”
“Here comes anoth-aaaaaah!”
Clint pressed his lips to my ear. “Breathe with me. Hee hee, hoo. Hee hee, hoo. Hee hee-.”
“Hoo, I’m gonna punch you in your throat if you don’t get this car to the hospital.”
Karina giggled. “Well, you heard the woman. Let’s get going!”
We all hopped into the SUV with the smell of burgers and fries wafting from the back seat. I didn’t know whether to be thankful or annoyed by the car full of people. But, this pain was coming a lot quicker than Karina made it sound like it would. Every time I could blink right, another contraction washed over my body. And it frightened me.
“Clint, I don’t know if we’re going to get there on time,” I said through my tears.
“Keep breathing and hollow out your back. It’s going to help with your hip pain, remember?”
Kelly stuck her head up front. “You went to all of the Lamaze classes?”
Clint shrugged. “Yeah, why not?”
I looked at her with wide eyes. “Not important right no-aaaaah!”
Everything passed in a blur. One minute, Clint was racing down the road, and the next minute I was on a gurney. I wanted Kelly to call my labor coach, but I honestly wasn’t sure if she’d get here in time. The pain was dizzying. I felt like I couldn't breathe. My yoga pants were soaked, my breasts ached unlike anything I’d ever felt before, and it felt like my spine was about to crack in two.
“Shit, I have to poop,” I hissed.
I heard