At the same time, Pipsqueak and Mary seemed to know exactly what I needed, so it’d made sense to accept their offer when they’d said they could do the shopping. I had bought a crib, an armoire, and a changing table the day after the last ultrasound, but the rest… Apparently, my list of “diapers, clothes, bottles, baby powder, baby soap” wasn’t enough. So, while Darius and I assembled the armoire and the changing table, Mary and Pipsqueak had taken off to go nuts at Target or whatever.
Mary had mentioned some sort of diaper disposal, to which I’d surrendered my credit card.
“Did you at least give them a budget?” Darius wondered.
“I hinted at five hundred bucks,” I replied. “Let’s face it, they’ll probably buy a lot I didn’t know I needed, but I hope they don’t come back with a shitload of clothes she’s going to outgrow in a week.”
He chuckled.
Taking a swig of my beer, I surveyed the room that would now be part nursery and part study. Half the room had been empty before anyway, so it wasn’t like I’d had to make any sacrifices space-wise. The armoire was done, all white, matching the changing table and crib, although the latter would stand in my bedroom for now. It’d been a snap decision. I didn’t want any walls between us in the beginning.
“Have you thought of a name yet?”
I nodded. “I did that a while ago.” I hoped he didn’t mind where both names came from. “I read some lists online and ended up dreaming about names fucking attacking me.”
Darius laughed.
“Then I remembered what Jake was going to name his kids if he ever had any.” I cleared my throat and watched Darius’s mood shift to somber and curious. “Grace,” I said. “Think he’d mind if I stole it?”
He smiled and shook his head, then attached the last of the two doors to the armoire. “Nope. He’d give you some shit for it, but he’d be honored.”
I hoped so.
I gauged his reaction for the middle name. “So, Grace Elise Becker.”
Darius grinned faintly and quirked a brow. “Sometimes, I wonder if she sees you more as a brother than me.”
I smiled, relieved. “She’s been an amazing support.”
“That’s what she does.” He nodded with a dip of his chin. “After my last assignment, she came over to my apartment, all balls to the wall, and decided I’d avoided everyone for too long. And, of course, I was shit-faced, so I started unloading on her about how much I hated people. Said I was gonna move out into the middle of the woods so I didn’t have to watch everyone fail and let their loved ones down—obviously related to the case I’d been working.”
I assumed I didn’t want to know the grisly details of that case. I recalled it vividly—how he’d been—because I’d stopped by his place too, to make sure he got something in him that didn’t come in a bottle. I’d seen the bandage around his arm and the dressed wound on his shoulder.
“She smacked you with some truth, I bet,” I said.
“While popping fuckin’ bubble gum.” He made a face, and I chuckled. “She was all, ‘Brother, you can watch people fail or help them succeed. It’s your damn choice. But now you’re going to shower and join your family for supper.’”
Yeah, that would do it.
“Avery! It’s time! I think!”
Keira’s voice catapulted me straight out of sleep, and I stumbled off the couch, my foot getting stuck in the blanket. Shit. With sleep tugging at my senses and a sharp twinge radiating from my neck, I left the living room and jogged up the stairs.
Keira stood in the doorway to Taylor’s room, visibly anxious.
“Thanks, hon.” I squeezed her shoulder and entered the room, where I found Taylor sitting on the edge of her bed. She was in pain; that much was clear. “Did your water break?”
She nodded nervously. “I think so. I woke up thinking I’d peed, but—oh my God.” She hunched over and scrunched her face, and the sight sent my pulse through the roof. That had to be a contraction.
“That’s about four or five minutes,” Keira fretted. “It’s what woke me up. She was in pain, and I was kind of slow to react first. Then I realized this could be it, and I came in here.”
“Okay.” I steeled myself and pushed my nerves aside; I’d have plenty of time to freak out later, and I helped Taylor off the bed. “Let’s get you to the hospital, then. We’re ready.”
I’d been ready, for the past six days. I slept in sweats, a tee, and socks. Just in case. My hoodie and shoes waited neatly next to the bag I’d packed in the hallway, and I’d requested Taylor to keep a comfortable outfit within reach. Keira had packed a post-delivery bag for her sister too.