A few weeks later

Alec woke up with the hard, fast contraction. He panted in the dark, dawn creeping slowly through the French window and lighting up the room. It wasn’t until he tried to stray from JT’s side that the alpha stirred from slumber.

“Alec,” he said, his eyes opening wide when Alec breathed harder, unable to respond in the midst of a contraction. He jerked upright, his face drawn with alarmed concern. “Now?”

Alec nodded to show that it was go-time.

Luckily, they were doing a home birth, and Alec had his plan ready to go, cleared for the peaceful birth at home, rather than a hectic one in a sterile hospital. Isolde met them in the hall, JT having called her from the guest room, once her old bedroom.

She arrived in a hurry, in a summer dress and a white veil.

Though she wore the veils still, and her surgeries weren’t finished, she looked happier than she had in the last four years. Selling the condo in New York and using that money for her surgery and recovery in Switzerland had been for the best. His father’s two-hundred-million inheritance wouldn’t be unlocked until after a male heir was born. Lucky one was on the way now.

“Mom?”

“Alec, dear!” His mother didn’t wince as he grasped her hands tightly and rode out another contraction. Once he could move and breathe properly again, she asked, “It’s time then?”

“Yeah.”

“I was awake,” she admitted, once Alec asked her in wonder how she’d dressed so quickly.

She smiled sheepishly. “Martin called.” She blushed like a schoolgirl these days whenever she mentioned the clinic director. “You know how Switzerland is five hours ahead, and he’s such a night owl. He told me he couldn’t sleep.”

“What time is it now?” Alec said, gritting his teeth at another contraction.

“Just past six.” She helped Alec out of his PJ bottoms.

Alec might have considered it awkward, but he didn’t care when another contraction hit. They were getting closer together.

Down to his boxers, his mother stood and stroked his back. “Breathe,” she instructed soothingly. “I almost forgot to do it myself when I had you. But you need to breathe.”

Alec managed to keep his head level, the dizziness sweeping over him, and the fuzziness robbing his vision, receding. In and out. In and out. His mother breathed along with him, and soon they were syncing, Alec in control of the contractions…somewhat. He nearly bowled over with the last one.

JT returned to the bedroom, his deep voice washing over Alec, soothing him. Isolde stepped back, making room for JT to sweep Alec into an embrace. Alec touching his forehead to JT’s hard pecs, and he breathed like his mother showed him. In and out.

In…

And out.

“I called the midwife,” JT was saying.

“Good,” Isolde replied. “I’ll set everything up—”

“I already did,” JT told her. “We’re all ready to go.”

Alec looked up, seeing JT’s head turned back to address Isolde. “Can we go then? Like, right now. Before I feel another contraction. Please.” Alec clenched his teeth, waiting out one last seizing in his lower half before he allowed JT to move him along.

JT walked Alec out, keeping his arm steady around his waist. He had to bend his knees to close the distance between their height gap, but he didn’t complain once. Alec’s big stomach quaked as he waddled, the small steps helping him breathe easier until a contraction stopped him.

It felt weird walking around in his boxers and a white tank, but it would have to do.

JT was still in his PJs bottoms. He remained shirtless, but by the time they got into the living room, where JT set up their purchased birthing pool and cleared the middle of the furniture, Isolde tossed a shirt his way.

“Thanks,” he said, his hands falling from Alec to draw the shirt over his head.

Only Isolde looked fresh-faced under her veil, her pale blond hair in an immaculate coif. Clearly, she’d wanted to look good for Director Martin. She was supportive though, heading off to do a towel run. And she answered the doorbell, letting the midwife and his male assistant inside.

“Good to see you,” he greeted everyone, setting up his equipment and checking on Alec first.

Once he asserted what Alec suspected, he stripped off his surgical glove and he said, “Two centimeters already. We’re going to have this baby soon, aren’t we?”

“Ready to have that baby then?” The midwife beamed at everyone in the room.

Isolde clasped her hands together, wringing them. “I’m still worried about this home-birth business.” She prattled about her concerns, all legitimate, and all questions she’d asked before.

Alec understood, and respected her concern, but he didn’t want to have to go to the hospital if he didn’t need to. He’d been cleared for this. They’d be fine.

Still, the midwife affirmed his mother. “If the birth goes south, we have 9-1-1 on standby.” Then he smiled brightly at Alec. “But I do believe we’ll all be saying ‘hello’ to a new baby shortly.”

He spoke too soon, his enthusiasm not speeding up Alec’s dilation.

It would be another five hours while Alec panted and puffed through the labor. In that time, his mother had wandered off, making breakfast for the men, and then lunch. She stroked Alec’s hair back as he rocked with JT, holding onto his alpha through the contractions.

When the midwife checked again, after lunch, he announced, “You’re four centimeters. We can fill the pool now. It should be less painful in there.” They filled the birthing pool then, the midwife’s assistant checking the filtered water’s temperature and giving Alec the go-ahead to step inside and seat himself.

JT kneeled at the edge of the pool, giving Alec his hands and allowing him to hold on as tight as he liked without a word of complaint. If Alec wasn’t a bit annoyed just then that he was the one pushing out their bowling ball baby, he would thank JT for his saintly patience.

Alec sat waist-deep in the birthing pool, his hands gripping the sides, back leaning against the edge. Another contraction tensed his body up, seized control of his ability to speak. Reminding himself to breathe, he puffed and panted through it, his eyes opening to take in the concerned expressions of his mother and JT.

“I’m fine,” he managed, puffing out his statement.

JT frowned. “Maybe we should go to the hospital.”

“I agree,” his mother said, tilting her head, her gaze flitting down to the pool. Even under her white netted veil, she turned green. Touching a hand to her mouth, she turned away and scrabbled to a stand, muttering something about fetching more towels.

JT didn’t look squeamish, just troubled.

Once his latest contraction passed and gave him a few seconds’ reprieve, Alec reached out and touched the pleat between his alpha’s brows, smoothing it out with his fingers and smiling. “I’m fine,” he repeated, stressing the words, gritting his teeth when another contraction hit.

They were coming quicker now. Shorter than a minute apart.

By the time his mother returned with the towels, apologized for the delay because she got queasy, Alec was beyond ready to push. He was on his knees now, breathing through the contractions.

The midwife was a pillar of calm. He reassured Alec and JT that the process could be nerve-wracking, but that they’d soon all take a deep breath when the baby was out, when their new family member joined them.

Checking to see how far Alec was dilated then, announcing that Alec was ten centimeters and crowning, ready to push out the baby. Then the midwife took a look at the temperature, confirming that the birthing pool remained between ninety-five to one-hundred Fahrenheit.

Alec’s mother followed the instructions of the midwife, and she dipped face towels in a bowl of cool water, swiping it over Alec’s sweating brow and his neck. Keeping him cool was imperative to keeping his blood pressure low, and the baby safe through to delivery.

Lifting the Doppler device from the water, and clearing the baby’s condition, the midwife said, “Grip the edge of the pool, Alec and,” he paused, gesturing for JT, “position your hands between his legs. You’re going to play catch here, daddy.”

Alec hummed and moaned through the fatiguing labor, and he knew he was close, but he still quivered a bit when JT joined him in the pool, his big body taking up most of the small space. Getting onto his knees, with his back to JT, Alec followed his strong, pulsating instinct to push.

“Almost there,” JT whispered, brushing the encouragement along his hot ear shell with a quick kiss. “We’re almost there. You got this, babe.”

Alec moaned, sucking in a shuddery breath and holding it with a long push. The midwife instructed nearby, offering his own encouragement. It felt like ages, when it had to be nearly an hour, before Alec felt his pelvis loosen free of the thick, splitting pressure and JT passed the baby to the midwife who held the squirming, crying child to Alec’s chest.

Alec sagged with his relief, JT easing him back down into the pool, allowing him to lean back on him. Together, they marveled at the baby in Alec’s arms. JT swiped a hand over the nest of matted, wet black hair, recognizing the gift he’d passed on to their child. Their firstborn.

Their son.

“He’s so tiny,” Alec said, looking up to reassurance from the midwife.

“He looks just the right size,” the midwife said, grinning. “Congratulations. We’ll weigh him soon enough and get him cleaned up a bit and swaddled.”

Alec held their son closer, inspecting his fingers and toes when his mother leaned over them, cooing at the baby.

She wiped at her eyes, and when her veil became too encumbrance, she lifted it from her face. Isolde revealed the impressive repair the Swiss doctors had done to mask most of the scarring on the left side of her face. But all her focus was on her grandbaby. “Oh,” she said, dabbing at her eyes and then reaching for her grandson’s tiny hand, “I’m a grandma!”

JT chuckled. “I’m a dad.”

“Ditto,” Alec said, grinning. He couldn’t snuff the euphoria warming his body even if he tried—not that he wanted to. This was right where he wanted to be, right now. With all his family; everyone that mattered. And now their son was here to stay, and Alec couldn’t wait to journey into fatherhood.

“He’s so precious,” Isolde cooed at the sniffling baby. “So dear and so perfect.”

She leaned in, kissing Alec’s forehead and then brushing JT’s cheek with her lips. “I can’t thank you both enough, for giving me this chance to dote on my first grandchild.”

Alec laughed softly, peering up at JT. “Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. She’s expecting more.”

“Did you decide on a name?” Isolde asked, tucking her dress skirt under her bottom when she sat on the carpeted floor of the living room. She tucked her finger into her grandson’s chubby little fist. He grasped on, wriggling, his eyes opening a crack as he sniffled.

He quieted pretty quickly, but he seemed restless, and Alec broke off from the naming question to ask the midwife if he could nurse.

“You should be able to soon. Give me a couple minutes and I’ll be right there,” he replied, smiling and continuing to speak in a low hush with his assistant.

“We didn’t decide yet,” JT answered Alec’s mother. He shared a stare with Alec before looking down at their son. “But it’s Alec’s choice.”

“You sure?”

JT grinned. “I’ll name the next one.”

Isolde laughed lightly, her tinkling mirth making Alec smile wider. “I just got through one birth. Give me a break before we talk more babies.” Looking down at his son, Alec thought hard and it clicked. The perfect name sliding into its slot, slipping into his heart as easily as it had his mind. Alec whispered, “William.”

“You sure?” Isolde asked.

Alec nodded, seeing the happy pride glowing from her eyes. “I’m sure…dad would have loved little William.” It was hard to call the deceased William senior dad, but Alec had been trying to acknowledge his father more, for his mother’s sake. She didn’t have to carry the burden of his passing and her mourning of the loss all on her own.

“As long as you’re all right with it,” Alec said to JT, looking up at his husband, his alpha, the father of his child, and his everything.

“I’m happy if you’re happy.” JT kissed his forehead and then brushed his lips over Alec’s.

William Junior fussed, and the midwife came over.

“Someone’s getting hungry,” he remarked, beaming at the squirming, fussy newborn. “Let’s get you latched on then.”

Once William was drinking hungrily, JT pressed another kiss to Alec’s temple and he warmed from the touch. He regarded the alpha, smiling.

“I’m thinking about the will.” JT tilted his head. “Thinking how it brought us together.”

Alec sighed. “It’s a good thing we’re going to split the money evenly. There’s a reason Zander and Drew haven’t busted down our door yet.”

JT chuckled, brushing his mouth over Alec’s temple. “I’m sure they’re just recovering from being bowled over by your generous offer to share.”

“We wouldn’t have a clue what to do with all of it anyways.” Alec kissed William’s tiny fingers. “I mean, some day I might consider college seriously. I could see myself helping others. Maybe a career in caregiving, or something.”

“You’d be good at that. You’ve got a big heart, Alec.”

Alec beamed. “This right here is all I’ve ever wanted.”

“I love you,” JT said.

“I love you, too,” Alec replied, holding William closer, looking to Isolde who watched from the side of the birthing pool in happy amazement. He caught her attention, and she gave him a warm smile and a knowing nod. “Even more so, I love that we’re all really a family now.”