“Okay, you remember what Dr. Evans said about the contractions and what to expect?” Words eluded me and I could only nod. “Okay, great. We’ll be in to check on you periodically and we’ll be watching our monitors, too. If you need anything in-between, just use your call button. Any questions?” Shaking my head, I chewed on my lip nervously. Satisfied that I was as settled as I could be, she left the room.
“Now we wait.” The way his face brightened made my heart soar. For a brief moment, the nervousness, fear, and panic subsided and his joy took over every breath I experienced. Relaxing back on my pillow, I continued to hold his hand and bask in his peaceful aura.
Before I knew it, my belly started to tighten uncomfortably.
“Ohhhhhhh myyyyyyyy Gawwwwwwwwwd!” I clenched my teeth, my chin trying to bore through my chest to my spine. A cool rag was pressed to my forehead, and my vision zeroed in on my mother’s calm expression as she tried her best to soothe me. Levi’s mom was next to her and was rubbing my back as I lay on my side, curled in a fetal position.
“Ms. Pritchard, we need you to turn over to your back now, okay?” The voice from the foot of the bed spoke, but my gaze had already moved on and was burning into Levi.
“Come on, Poppy-baby, let me help you turn over.” No matter how much I lashed out, he had remained caring and sweet. And that pissed me off for some ridiculous reason.
“Don’t you ‘Poppy-baby’ me. You did this to me. Don’t you dare smile!” Screaming through gnashing teeth, I let him help me nevertheless. As the contraction continued to squeeze me like a goddamn nutcracker, I swear my head spun and I levitated off the bed.
“Levi! I changed my mind! I don’t wanna do this today! Stop it. Shut it offfff!” It was at that time that I peed the bed. Well, I thought I did. “Motherfuckerrrrrr! I just pissed the bed!” The nurse who was still at the foot to the bed that was now broken and missing the bottom half, folded the sheet up above my belly that was contorting like an alien was going to burst through it any second. My modesty by that time was absolutely, positively nonexistent.
Legs spread wide because I couldn’t close them for the feeling of a bowling ball sitting in my pelvis trying to shoot out my hooha, I could only grunt-scream.
“Well! That was your amniotic sac rupturing! We’re moving right along.”
“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and all of their carpenter friends! Why are you all so freaking cheerful?” Yep, my head spun around again. I was just waiting for the pea soup to shoot out and the little alien to tear through my skin and dance across the bed.
“Well, that’s a fine how-do-ya-do!” Dr. Evans chose that moment to enter the room. It was the moment I believe my eyes shot out of my head, bounced on the wall, and returned to my sockets. By the time I was able to focus again, she was settled down between my legs, stretching her neck to make eye contact over the massive mountain that was my belly.
“Okay, the head is right there, Poppy. The next contraction, I want you to bear down and push like you’re having a bowel movement. I know it sounds weird.”
“You want me to shit the bed?” I was panting, one hand in Levi’s and the other in Linda’s. My mom was still swapping out the cool rags and gently picking my sweaty hair from my face and neck. It had started out in a messy bun that I could now feel hanging lopsided off the side of my head.
“You’re not going to poop, and if by some chance you do, we aren’t going to worry about that. We’ll take care of it and move on.” Was she fucking serious? Eyes wide in disbelief, I looked at Levi and saw his hairline trying to eat his eyebrows and his jaw hanging slack. Jesus, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the thought of him seeing me crap all over the white sheets. Evidently, neither was he. That modesty I thought was gone? It chose then to slam back into the room with a vengeance, and I wanted to crawl in a fucking hole.
“I’m not delivering my sweet little girl into a pile of poop!”
“You won’t, Poppy, I promise.”
And that’s when the next contraction hit me like a freight train at midnight.
Imagine trying to shit out a watermelon or a bowling ball. Because not only was I getting squeezed in half, the watermelon-sized head of my little angel was pushing and pushing and pushing to come out. There was no stopping the movement.
Obviously deciding the risk of seeing me shit was worth it to see our child enter the world, Levi moved. Still holding my hand, he stretched and leaned over my leg to be able to see what people told us was the most beautiful moment ever. I honestly believed the people who said that have never experienced the whole messy, painful birthing process. Regardless, my man wanted to see his baby enter the world and I was in no condition to reason with him.
“Holy shit, Poppy! I can see her hair. It’s so dark.” Awe heavy in his exclamation, he squeezed my hand and caressed it with his thumb. Rolling my eyes as sweat trickled down my neck, I thought about how that wasn’t an incredibly shocking observation since we both had dark hair.
“Keep pushing, Poppy! Push, push, push!”
“Gawwwwwwrrrrrrr!” Gritting my teeth and feeling veins popping out all over my body like Arnold Schwarzenegger at the gym when he’s ninety, I kept pushing even though I really wanted to kick someone in the fucking face.
“Damn, baby. With that growl, you could be on the stage with me and the guys.” Through my steady pushing, my eyes shot fire at him for his smart-ass comment.
With a popping feeling, some of the pressure lessened. “Her head is out!” Levi’s play-by-play was irrelevant to me, but I chose that tiny reprieve to just breathe and rest my head back on the pillow.
“You’re doing great, Poppy. The next one should get her all the way out. Are you ready?” Like it fucking matters if I’m not. I really wished healthcare professionals would think about what they said. But I fucking nodded like my life depended on it, because come hell or high water, I was shitting out this kid so I could sleep.
“She looked right at me, baby. Oh my God, Poppy, she’s so beautiful!” Levi’s excitement was endearing in hindsight, but at the time I wanted to wrap my leg around him in a leg cradle and choke his ass.
As the next contraction jumped me like a sumo wrestler, I pushed for everything I was worth. The excruciating, burning pain I felt in my poor, abused hooha told me something was not quite right.
Screaming to make my concern known, I then became one of those women I heard when I took the Labor & Delivery tour a month ago. You know, the ones who you want to stuff a grapefruit in their mouths to shut them the hell up.
But goddamn, by all that was holy, I’d never hurt so bad in my freaking life. However, at the same time, there was a slippery, releasing feeling and the pain subsided to a dull ache.
A high-pitched wail preceded Dr. Evans announcement of, “It’s a boy!”
Wait. What? Lifting my head to try to see, I indignantly shouted, “No it’s not!!”
“Umm, pretty sure it is.” Dr. Evans was trying not to laugh, but as she handed the baby off to the nurse to hold, I could see her grin. Both of the moms were crying. The purple rope of umbilical cord stretched from the biggest newborn I’d ever seen and I could still feel it coming out of my vagina. I shit you not.
“Okay, Dad. Do you want to cut the cord?”
“For real?” I’m surprised he didn’t jump up and down like a two-year-old. When he took the scissors from the doctor and placed them to the cord, the shock on his face was priceless. “Holy crap! That’s not as easy to cut as it looks!”
As soon as he was done, my monster of a son was laid briefly on my chest before he was whisked away to be cleaned up. The whole time he made everyone aware of how displeased he was at being removed from his snug, warm cocoon.
“He sounds like you.” At my observation, Levi gave a snort of disagreement and then grinned as the nurse brought our swaddled son to him while I pushed out the placenta. Once the doctor cleaned everything up and stitched the rip my ten-pound baby boy so generously gave me, Levi laid him in my arms.<
br />
Big, dark blue eyes blinked up at me as his perfect lips pursed. If I’d thought I was in love with the little munchkin while he was nestled in my belly, when I held him in my arms and stroked his velvet-soft cheek, my love for him was close to bursting my heart in two. He was everything.
Tears rolled from my eyes as I ugly cried in joy.
Levi pressed his lips to my forehead. “Baby, you did amazing. He’s perfect. I’m so proud of you.”
Laughing through my blubbery tears, I pulled my gaze reluctantly from my sweet angel baby to his father. “Now we have to come up with a boy name.”
Ten Months Later
Ian Lucas MacKenzie made his appearance into this crazy ass world with a serious bang. Not only had he shocked us all by having a stem on his apple, but he was loud about everything. The guys all said he had a set of pipes on him and obviously took after me. What could I say? The kid wanted to be heard.
The only saving grace was he was a damn good baby. Other than waking up to eat every two hours, he slept well from day one. Especially if I sang to him. Which, nine times out of ten I would—well, if I was home. At times, lying against my bare chest was the only thing that calmed him.
Yeah, he probably ate enough to sustain a full-grown man, and I cringed every time he dug those little fingers into Poppy’s breast like it had been years since he last ate. His little head would shake back and forth like a little baby bird straining to get the food its mom was holding just out of its reach. Then he’d latch on like a little shark. Each and every time, it dragged a whimper out of Poppy and I wanted to cry for her.
Eventually, he learned that the booby wasn’t going anywhere and he calmed down. Sort of.
“Hey, buddy! Daddy’s home.” Eyes jumping to where I stood, he lit up like a Christmas tree and spun his arms around in the air reaching for me. Sitting on a blanket with his favorite toys, he was the spitting image of me and Lucas when we were babies.
“Da!” Two, tiny white teeth showed in his bottom gums as he yelled at me.
“Oh sure, Daddy’s home so now Mommy’s chopped liver. Sheesh, I feel like I’m just a damn milk cow. If it wasn’t for my boobs, he wouldn’t even want me,” Poppy grumbled. Trying not to let her see me smirk, I crouched down to where he had started banging on the plastic drum Dominic had bought him with the toy guitar Aiden got him. When I reached for him, he grinned, dropping the guitar and drooling down his chin.
The tiny white tooth peeking through his top gums was new. For a minute, the reminder that I was constantly missing little things when I was on the road stabbed into my chest. “He’s getting a tooth!”
“Oh, trust me, I know.” Absently rubbing her right breast, Poppy leaned over to kiss me. “God, I missed you. How was Chicago?”
“Windy.” The laughter that bubbled up and burst from her gorgeous lips at my corny humor warmed me from the core. “Not to mention miserable without you.” I kissed her again; this one lingered as our tongues reacquainted themselves with each other. “Mmmm, when does he go down for a nap?”
Flicking her wrist, she looked at her watch and then at me. With a sly grin, she responded with waggling eyebrows. “In about fifteen minutes, but we’re close enough.”
“Thank God. I love this little man, but I have a fierce need for his mommy.”
Together, we settled our little man in for his nap before we walked hand-in-hand to the bedroom, firmly closing the door to the world.
No matter how many times we were together, it never got old. Though our fans may scream and yell at the music Straight Wicked belted out each time we were on stage, the best music I ever made was with the woman in my arms.
Levi’s parents had picked up Ian so we could have a date night. It felt like it had been ages since I’d seen him last, so I was as excited as hell about having this night out. I still had no idea where we were going, just that it was a nice restaurant and I should dress “fancy.”
I’d just finished putting my lipstick on when he walked into the bathroom and our eyes met in the mirror. “You about ready?”
Smiling, I couldn’t help but tease him as little. “Or we could just stay in for the night?”
He didn’t walk toward me, he strode with a predatory grace, the hunger still apparent in his eyes. His lips touched mine briefly before he held out a bent arm for me to loop my hand through. “No way. Tonight is special and I want to treat you. You know, the whole wine and dine routine.”
No man should look as good as him. It should be damn illegal.
Holy shit. My panties are going to be soaking wet by the time we get to the restaurant if he doesn’t stop looking at me like that.
We spent the ride catching him up on all things Ian, and that allowed the meal itself to be all for us. It was fairy-tale-like in its splendor. Absolutely romantic and delicious. The company was even finer, and I wondered how my life could possibly get any better. We were only interrupted once by someone who recognized Levi and wanted an autograph. Thankfully, they were quiet about it and left as soon as he signed the paper.
When the waiter delivered a single red rose to our table after we finished sharing a scrumptious chocolate mousse dessert, I felt tears well up in my eyes.
“You should smell it. The scent is amazing. I picked that specific flower out just for you because it was nearly as perfect as you are.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Thank you! Levi, you’re so dang sweet.” Raising the velvety petals to my nose, I caught the glint of something tucked down inside and looked closer. My heart nearly stopped when I realized exactly what was buried in the center of the silky petals. Then it galloped recklessly, and my gaze flashed to his. With my other hand covering my mouth, it was all I could do to hold in the squeal of excitement.
There was no holding the tears in now. A sob slipped from behind my stifling fingers. Holy shit. There’s no way this is what I think it is. It can’t be. We said we’d wait, but oh my God, I changed my mind. Please let this be what I think it is, oh please, please. My eyes flashed to his in question.
That’s when he rose from his seat, walked to my side of the table, and went down on one knee.
“Poppy. My darling Persephone. I know it’s been a rough journey and I know I said I’d wait, but I love you and I want you to bless me with the honor of becoming my wife. You were made for me and I never want to lose you. Marry me?” Those bright blue eyes shone with a hopeful and expectant gleam.
“Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! Yes! Yes, Levi, I will marry you!” My arms flew around his neck and he plucked the rose from my hand to retrieve the ring from its center. After disentangling my arms from his neck, he slid the ring on my left ring finger.
The fit was perfect. The ring was perfect. It was unpretentious and lovely. White gold, or maybe platinum, I wasn’t sure, with a simple round solitaire. Perfect. Everything was perfect.
Levi laughed and we kissed in the middle of the restaurant with everyone around us clapping and cheering as if they had been brought there to be our own special audience. He tasted of champagne and chocolate, which was divine.
All the heartache and turbulence of the last year and a half had been a test of our strength and perseverance. We’d weathered the storm and while we may never have smooth sailing, I knew in my heart we’d always have each other.
Life with a rock star would certainly never be boring, and I couldn’t be happier than I was at that moment. The discreet click of cameras told me it wouldn’t be long before the world knew the lead singer for Straight Wicked was off the market. Which was fine by me. Let the whole world know he was making music with me now.
The End
Demented Sons MC Series
Colton’s Salvation
Mason’s Resolution
Erik’s Absolution
Kayde’s Temptation
Coming Soon in the Straight Wicked Series
Snare My Heart (Dominic)
No Treble Allowed (Logan)
String Me Up (Aiden)
First, let me apologize for the blurb being a little misleading. Yes, I know it implied they were already a successful band, while this was actually the book about their beginning. I hope you forgive the artistic liberties I took on that. So, this is the first book in this new series and my fifth book in all. Yikes, it’s pretty real now, isn’t it? It’s been a little over a year since I started this writing and publishing journey of mine. I thank each and every one of you who have been there from the very beginning! To my new readers, welcome to my crazy literary world! Buckle your seatbelt and hang on, because it’s going to be one heck of a ride.
First and foremost, I want to thank my husband and friend. I love you, babe. Thank you for putting up with me during deadlines, writer’s block and editing. That goes to my kiddos, too. Thank you all for understanding that my “hobby” can be demanding at times. If any of you ever meet us, call the Mister “Mr. Allen,” he loves it. Bahahahahaha!
To the authors who have taken time out of their days to answer questions and offer support—you are AMAZING! While this can be a cut throat world, I have been blessed to have some of the most down to earth and good-hearted people enter my circle. Sybil Bartel and Lee Piper—you ladies have been at the very top of this list. Your advice, encouragement, and constructive criticism were priceless. I truly believe without you, this book would have fell flat. I love you both! Readers: check out their books! You won’t be disappointed.
Make Music With Me Page 28