I was just washing up after surgery when Chloe came barreling into my legs. "Daddy! We have been trying to call you! Brother Alex is coming!"

My heart nearly stopped and I looked up to see Oliver slowly waddling in behind her, a slight strain on his face. "Chloe, he said, I called him once. Don't stress him out."

I hurriedly finished drying my hands and went to him. He'd been experiencing Braxton-Hicks contractions more often over the last few days, but they had been irregular and nothing to worry about. "Are you sure?"

His belly was as hard as a rock. "Really? It's time?"

"I think so," Oliver nodded. 

"We need to get you to the birth center," I said, rushing out the door, making it ten steps down the hallway before I realized I had left Oliver behind. He was following slowly, Chloe bouncing happily next to him. "Chloe—I need to call Faith." I pulled out my phone as I ran back to Oliver, my fingers fumbling at the screen. "But the car, I need to get the car." I turned away and headed to the door again, but then spun around to Oliver. "Wait, do you need help? How are you feeling?"

Oliver shook his head with a wry smile. "I've already called Faith, and I think we have more than enough time to get to the hospital. My water broke about twenty minutes ago, and Tammy and Sally have been keeping me updated on your surgery. I just wanted to be the one to tell you. You should head over to get the car and the hospital bag. It's right inside the front door. Chloe and I will just sit out in the lobby, and Sally will watch Chloe until Faith arrives."

I swept him up in a kiss and Chloe giggled. "I love you," I said.

"I love you too. Now get a move on. We have time, but I would like to get to the hospital sooner rather than later. I still haven't decided whether I want pain medication or not, but I want the option of having it if I want it."

"Right." I spun away, pausing at the door to make sure he was really okay. He and Chloe took their time, turning toward the front of the building as Oliver flashed me an excited smile.

Within minutes I was screeching into the parking lot. There was a happy crowd hovering around Oliver, ready and willing to help him out to the car if he needed it, but he shooed them all away and easily made his way to the car on his own. I quickly buckled in and then stopped at the end of the driveway, waiting.

"Um, Wyatt? There aren't any cars? What are you waiting for?"

"Our escort," I said.

"What? Wyatt, no, you didn't—"

His words were cut off by the loud bleat of a fire truck as Dash and Rafe turned the corner, lights flashing. Dash's window was down and he leaned out to yell to us. "Let's get this show on the road! We have a baby to deliver!"

Oliver buried his face in his hands. "I hate you," he said as I pulled out after the fire truck, the sirens off, but the lights flashing. "I hate you so much."

"You love me."

"I can't believe you did this."

"It was Dash's idea!" I protested.

"What did you do when Chloe was born? A three-ring circus?"

"I may have rented an apartment across the street from the hospital two months before she was born..." he said. "But we had a lot more appointments with Chloe."

Oliver's face fell for a second, but then his eyes squinted shut as he focused through the contraction. "They're getting stronger," he said. 

I beeped my horn to encourage Dash and Rafe to step it up a bit, and they did. We only lived fifteen minutes from the birthing center, but we made it in ten. And then Dash and Rafe were driving away as I hovered uselessly as Oliver waddled into the building and the nurses guided us to his room. Thank goodness we had pre-registered. They already had all his personal and insurance information, and all we needed to do was give his name, and then we were settled.

"Are you ready for this?" I asked Oliver.

"I've never been more ready for anything in my life," he said.

* * *

"I was so not ready," Oliver said tiredly, his eyes full of adoration as he watched the fragile bundle in his arms. 

"I can't believe you went through the whole thing without pain medication."

"I think I hit a point of crazy with you yelling at the doctors to give it to me, and I was just so tired of everyone telling me what to do."

"You were a little fierce," I agreed. In fact, when I had shouted for the doctor to give him medicine, he'd grabbed my by the neck of my shirt and growled, "I don't want fucking pain medication, I want my fucking baby." And that had been the end of that. He hadn't cussed me out or sworn off sex like the woman in the room next to us, just that one comment and a lot of intense glares. He had been so focused on bringing our son into the world. 

I pulled the blanket back from Alex's face. My parents had texted when they'd arrived at our house last evening to take over from Faith, and in a few short hours, Chloe would meet her baby brother. He looked so different from Chloe when she was born. She had already had a head full of dark hair, while Alex had the lightest bit of peach fuzz. 

"It's hard to believe that I can love him any more than I do right now," Oliver said.

I snuggled against him as best I could without actually climbing into his bed. "But you will. Every day you'll love him more. Just like I love Chloe more every day. Just like I love you more every day."

Oliver looked up at me, his eyes brimming with tears. 

"Happy tears?" I asked, chuckling.

"Happy tears," he agreed with a nod that made them tip over and run down his cheeks.