Jason and Gregory got her into the emergency room, where she was quickly wheeled away on a gurney to be prepped for delivery.

“It’s too soon,” Jason protested. “She has another month.”

“I’m sorry, Prince Jason,” Doctor Suarez told him, “but we have to take the baby or they could both die.”

Jason froze at the words, and Gregory nodded as he understood. Those were the longest moments of either of their lives as they waited in the sitting room for any news about Elena and the baby. Olivia showed up an hour later with an overnight bag and Nathan clinging to her in fear.

“Take him to get some ice cream,” she told her husband.

The boy needed a distraction or he would worry too much. Jason wished he had a something similar, and he wrung his hands together as he tried to find a way to console himself. After they had gone, Olivia shuffled over to him, her eyes beseeching, and he knew what question she wanted answered without her asking.

“They’re in surgery,” he told her and stood.

“She’s early.”

“I know, but Doctor Suarez said he had to or they could both die.”

“Oh, dear God,” Oliva muttered and fell back against the chair.

Jason sat down next to her and rubbed her shoulders. “She’ll be fine. They’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it. We got here in time.”

As he spoke, he tried desperately to believe his own words. His heart almost failed him when he saw Doctor Suarez coming towards them an hour later with a grim look on his face.

Jason rose with such uncertainty his legs almost buckled under him. He gripped the back of the chair and weakened as Doctor Suarez approached. He was afraid of what the man might say, and he was torn between sprinting past him to the surgical room or bolting out the door to clear his head and prepare for bad news. His nerves didn’t give him a chance, because he was unable to move. He heard Olivia gasp next to him, but he couldn’t even turn to assess how she was doing.

Doctor Suarez held out his hand to Jason as he got closer, and instead of the scowl, his face worked its way into a smile.

“Congratulations, Prince Jason. It’s a girl.”

Jason finally breathed.

“Oh, good Lord,” Olivia exclaimed. “You almost gave me a heart attack.” Her hand was still pressed against her chest, and she rose slowly.

Jason was beside himself with joy, but he realized the doctor had not mentioned Elena. “What about Elena?”

“Elena will be fine. She was experiencing some unforeseen stress that triggered an early birth. We had to perform an emergency caesarian, but both she and the baby are fine and resting now.”

Jason ran his hand down his face and finally turned to Olivia. “That’s good news.” The relief he felt in that moment could not be quantified, and he placed his hands on his hips as he paced the floor, giving himself some time to get his head back together. “Can we see her?”

“Maybe for a little while, but she really needs her rest. She’s in room 1608.” Doctor Suarez patted Jason on the shoulder and smiled at Olivia. “I have to get back now, but congratulations again. The nurses should be in shortly to check on them both.”

“Thank you,” Jason uttered.

Both he and Olivia shared a quick glance before they hurried off to the room. Jason could hear his heartbeats echoing in his ears. His heart drummed so hard against his chest he was dizzy, and he staggered and bumped into the wall for a couple of seconds before he caught himself. He took a deep breath and hurried after Olivia, who had run ahead.

The room was silent when they entered except for the steady beeping of the machines. Jason had a déjà vu moment as he surveyed the room. It was the same as before – chair in the same position, the bedside table with the food tray, machines attached to her arm, except for the small incubator next to Elena. His heart was in his throat as he went to her side, concern for Elena evenly matched with an elevated sense of anxiety at seeing his daughter. His emotions got the better of him when he saw Elena smile weakly at him, and he held her hand and kissed her forehead.

“How are you doing, beautiful?”

“I’ve had better days,” she replied and turned her head to the baby. “Meet our daughter.”

Jason’s eyes were riveted to the place where the baby lay, and his heart swelled inside him because that tiny human was a part of his creation. She was beautiful, and her black hair and lips reminded him of what he had looked like as a child.

“We did that,” he said and pinched his lower lip as he looked down at Elena.

“We did.”

Olivia came around the bed to gaze at her granddaughter, and like Jason, she was in awe. “She is perfect.”

“Yes, she is,” Jason echoed.

“I wish I could hold her,” Elena drawled. “The doctor said it’s a miracle she’s even breathing on her own. She’s a tough one.”

Jason traced his finger over the glass enclosure like he was caressing the baby’s cheek. “I can understand that, with a mother like you.”

“You can say that again. Hi, sweetheart,” Olivia cooed. “I’m going to have the house all fixed up for you when you get out. Yes, I will…”

Jason and Elena shared a dubious look. She shrugged, and he sucked in a lungful of air. He hadn’t considered what they would do once Elena and their daughter left the hospital. She might want to go home, and he couldn’t stay away from her. He had to come up with a different solution that would make everyone happy. But what?

The door opened and Doctor Suarez walked in. “I’m sorry everyone, but you have to go,” he said in a calm voice. “My patients need time to recover. They have been through an extraordinary ordeal, but you can come back later.” He smiled broadly as if to further punctuate his words.

“Sure thing,” Jason replied reluctantly. He gazed through the glass at his little girl and splayed his right hand on it. His heart swelled when he thought about leaving them, and he leaned over to kiss Elena on her lips and forehead. “I love you,” he whispered tenderly.

“Love you too,” she whispered back, and he saw her eyes get glossy when the words left her lips.

Jason got a cab for Olivia before hailing another for himself to take him home. He didn’t know what to do, and the best person he could think of to ask was his father. King Jaimie was surprised when he saw Jason burst through the door to his study.

“Jason. What’s going on?”

“I need your advice, Dad,” he replied as he pulled up a chair.

King Jaimie’s brows creased. “Okay. What’s this about?” He locked his fingers on the desk before him and leaned forward.

“Elena was rushed to the hospital this morning. No, she is fine.” He held out his hands when he saw his father’s shocked expression. “They had to take the baby, but they’re both doing fine.”

“Oh, that’s good news,” King Jaimie beamed. “When do I get to meet… was it a boy or girl.”

“Girl”—Jason grinned— “and she is beautiful.”

“I can’t wait to meet her. There hasn’t been a child in my life since you were one.” He laughed. He stopped when he saw how nervous Jason remained. “I thought you would be bouncing off the walls.”

“I don’t know what to do. I’m not sure when she’ll come home because they want to keep her for observation. But when she does come home…where will home be?”

“Hmmm,” King Jaimie grunted. “I see what you mean. And there’s no way she’ll come here? I mean, that little girl is a princess. We can’t have her living at a farm. Not that anything is wrong with a farm, but…you know what I mean.”

“I do. A farmhouse is no place for my wife either. I want to give her so much more—without rocking her world, you know?”

King Jaimie stood and went to the window, an action he was often seen doing when he was pensive. His back remained to Jason for quite a long time until he snapped his fingers and turned back around. “I have an idea.” Jason perked up. “Since she doesn’t want to come here and you don’t want to live there, or not in the farm house in any case, why don’t we simply build her a nice house? That way she won’t have to leave the farm, but you will have your own space, and—”

“Dad, that’s perfect,” Jason cried as he flew from the chair. “How quickly can we get that done?”

“Whoa! Hold your horses.” King Jaimie laughed. “This kind of thing could take months, and she is only at the hospital, not half way around the world.”

“I know. I know, but still, I want to do it. And as quickly as possible. We’ll call some people and get the… wait, what about you?”

“Me? What about me?” King Jaimie asked.

“You’re king. I’m heir. I can’t live somewhere else. I have responsibilities.”

King Jaimie chortled. “And those responsibilities will follow you everywhere you go. But I don’t plan on dying anytime soon. You don’t have to worry about being king for a while. Maybe by that time, your Elena will have changed her mind. A king has to live in a castle, after all.”

“I hope so. She is a stickler for what she wants. I’ve never met anyone so stubborn.”

King Jaimie looked behind him to make sure he wasn’t overheard by any intruder to the study. “Have you met your mother?”

Jason laughed hard, not only at the obvious joke but at the realization that things were finally looking up. There was no way Elena would turn down living in her own home on the farm. The business of building the new house was top priority, and that night the castle was filled with architects, contractors, plumbers, electricians, painters, and everyone else Jason felt they would need to get the job done in a hurry.

It was hard to contain his excitement when he visited her at the hospital. She could tell something was going on with him, but he refused to come clean. He kept playing it off, telling her he was happy about their daughter and that they were both doing well.

“I can’t wait to go back to the farm,” she said on one of those days. “Lying here is driving me crazy. As if I didn’t do enough of that before I came here.”

Jason smoothed back her hair. “You worry too much. I know you miss the farm, but you’ll get back soon enough. In the meantime, try to stay calm. By the way, have you thought about a name for her?”

Jason had a few names in mind, but he wanted to hear what she might be thinking. He had barely found out about the pregnancy before the baby was born so didn’t have much time to think about it. But his family had a tradition of naming the first daughter after the grandmother, and his grandmother’s name was Aurora. He thought it a beautiful name for his daughter.

“I didn’t really nail one down. What do you think?” Elena asked.

“Well,” he drawled and sat next to her on the bed, “in my family, it’s tradition for the first daughter of any male to be named after the father’s grandmother. My grandmother’s name was Aurora.”

Elena covered her mouth when he mentioned the name. “Oh, that’s a lovely name. It would be rude not to follow tradition.”

Jason laughed. “Aurora it is.”

“Yes,” Elena replied, her face glowing with pride. “A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”

“A beautiful princess,” Jason corrected her.

“Semantics,” Elena replied and stuck out her tongue at him. “Speaking of semantics, why aren’t you acting weird about my wanting to go back to the farm?” She folded her arms across her chest.

“Because I’ve given up asking. I know you won’t relent, so what’s the point?”

“Hmm,” she mused. “Not like you, but okay.”

Jason’s heart skipped a beat when he thought he had been found out, but he was relieved when she let it go. Soon after, she grew tired, and he kissed her lovingly before he left that evening, still uncertain of when she would be able to go home. He wished he could have it done before she was discharged from the hospital, but he knew that was only a pipe dream. Still, just the thought of it would blow her mind away. In the interim, he needed to convince her to stay at the castle, and he wasn’t sure how to do that just yet.

Jason was antsy as he left, and he was overly anxious when he got back to the castle and saw the architect going over the blueprint with his dad.

“Man, I wish this could be done faster,” he moaned.

“I know,” King Jaimie replied sympathetically. “But at least you can show this to her.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Jason relented, and wandered to his room where he ventured out onto the balcony. He stared in the direction of the projected site of the house and envisioned what it would look like. A smile came across his face as he imagined Elena roaming the large house, and of his daughter playing in the yard, no doubt following her mother around to play with the horses and other animals.

He was too wired to fall asleep, and he tried watching movies, reading books, and pacing the room, but nothing worked. Finally, he fell back against the bed and stared at the ceiling, and when he did, he felt his body grow heavy as exhaustion pinned him to the bed, and forced him into a much-needed sleep.