A Very Special Delivery

by Brenda Harlen

  “I like it,” he said easily.

  She moved closer to the fireplace, drawn by the flickering flames and the tempting warmth. “Do you live here alone?”

  “Me and Daphne and Einstein,” he clarified.

  She was reassured by this revelation that she wouldn’t actually be alone with a stranger. “Daphne’s your…wife?”

  “No.”

  He responded quickly—so quickly she couldn’t help but smile. The immediate and predictable denial was that of a perennial bachelor with absolutely no desire to change his status.

  “Daphne’s a three-year-old blue Burmese, and not very sociable. Unlike Einstein, you’ll only see her if she decides you’re worthy of her presence.”

  Which meant that they were alone—except for a cat and a dog. But he was a doctor, and the emergency operator had vouched for him, and she had to stop being wary of everyone just because her experience with Elliott had caused her to doubt her own judgment. “It’s a big house for one man and two pets,” she noted.

  “Believe me, it felt a lot smaller when I had to share it with two brothers.”

  “You grew up here?”

  He nodded. “Born and raised and lived my whole life in Pinehurst, in this house. Well, I wasn’t actually born in this house—my mother wanted to do things more traditionally and give birth in the hospital.”

  “That was my plan, too,” she admitted.

  “Sliding into a ditch and going into labor during an unexpected snowstorm was a spur-of-the-moment decision?” he teased.

  “I’m not in labor,” she said again. “My baby isn’t due for another two weeks and first babies are almost never early.”

  “Almost isn’t the same as never,” he told her, and pushed the oversize leather chair closer to the fire so that she could sit down.

  When she lowered herself into the seat, he sat cross-legged on the floor facing her and lifted her feet into his lap. “Your feet are like ice,” he noted.

  She was startled by the boldness of the move and felt as if she should protest—but only until he started to rub her toes between his hands, then she closed her eyes and nearly moaned with pleasure.

  In fact, she probably did make some kind of noise, because Einstein bounded over, eager to play with her feet, too. But one sharp look from his master had him curling up on the rug in front of the fire.

  “Don’t you own winter boots or a proper coat?” the doctor asked her.

  “Of course I do, but it wasn’t snowing when I started out this morning.”

  “Started out from where?”

  “Cleveland,” she admitted.

  “Then you obviously did a lot of driving today.”

  “About seven hours.”

  “Heading back to Boston?”

  She eyed him warily. “What makes you think I’m going to Boston?”

  “I saw the Massachusetts plates on your car, and there’s just a hint of a Boston accent in your voice.”

  “I wasn’t planning on going any further than Pinehurst today,” she said, deliberately not confirming nor denying his assumption. Then, because she’d rather be asking questions than answering them, she said, “Is Luke short for Lukas?”

  “It is.” He set down the first foot and picked up the second one.

  “I’ve been researching baby names,” Julie told him. “Lukas means bringer of light.”

  And she thought the name suited him, not just because he’d rescued her—bringing her hope if not necessarily light—but because it was strong and masculine.

  “Have you narrowed down your choices?”

  She nodded.

  “Any hints?”

  She shook her head, then gasped when the pain ripped through her again.

  Luke released her foot and laid his hands on the curve of her belly. She tried to remember everything she’d read about Braxton Hicks and how to distinguish those false contractions from real labor, but in the moment, she was lucky she remembered to breathe through the pain.

  After what seemed like forever, the tightness across her belly finally eased.

  “Twinge?” Though his tone was deliberately light, she saw the concern in his eyes.

  “Yeah.” She drew in a deep breath, released it slowly.

  “I’m going to put the puppy in the laundry room, just so that he’s out of the way in case things start to happen.” Then he took the dog away, returning a few minutes later with an armful of blankets and towels and a plastic bin filled with medical supplies. He covered the leather chaise with a thick flannel sheet, then folded a blanket over the foot of it.

  “Is there anyone you should call?” the doctor asked. “Anyone who’s going to worry about where you are?”

  She shook her head. Her parents wouldn’t know that she’d been caught in this storm because they hadn’t known about her intention to detour through the Snowbelt on her way home.

  “Husband? Boyfriend?” he prompted.

  “No.” She could see the direction he was going with his questions, and she was almost grateful when her body spasmed with pain again. It was easier to focus on the contraction—whether false or real—than on the reasons why her relationship with her baby’s father had fallen apart.

  She was gripping the armrests of the chair, but noticed that he was looking at his watch, counting the seconds. She panted softly and tried to think of something—anything—but the pain that ripped through her. The books she’d read talked about focal points, how to use a picture or some other item to evoke pleasant memories and a feeling of peace. Right now, all she had was Luke Garrett, but his warm gaze and steady tone—proof of his presence and reassurance that she wasn’t entirely alone—somehow made the pain bearable.

  “Ninety seconds,” he said. “And I’d guess less than five minutes since the last one.”

  “It doesn’t look like my baby’s going to wait for a hospital, does it?”

  “I’d say not,” he agreed. “Did you take prenatal classes?”

  “No.”

  “Your doctor didn’t recommend it?”

  “I’ve been traveling a lot over the past few months, so I didn’t have a chance.”

  “Traveling where?”

  “Pretty much everywhere.”

  “Work or pleasure?”

  “Both.”

  She knew it sounded as if she was being evasive, and maybe she was, but it wasn’t in her nature to share personal information with someone she didn’t know and whom she probably wouldn’t ever see again when the roads were finally cleared and her car was pulled out of the ditch.

  “I’m just making conversation,” he told her. “I thought it might take your mind off of the contractions.”

  “I was counting on an epidural to do that,” she admitted.

  His lips curved. “Well, it’s good that you have a sense of humor, because an epidural isn’t really an option right now.”

  She liked his smile. It was warm and genuine, and it made her think that everything was going to be okay. “I knew it was too much to hope that you rented a spare bedroom to a local anesthesiologist.”

  He took her hand, linked their fingers together and gave hers a reassuring squeeze.

  “I’m scared,” she admitted.

  “You’re doing great.”

  “I don’t just mean about giving birth,” she told him. “I mean about being a parent.”

  “Let’s concentrate on the giving birth part for now,” he suggested.

  She sucked in another breath and gritted her teeth so that she didn’t embarrass herself by whimpering. Or screaming. The pain was unlike anything she’d ever experienced, and she knew it would continue to worsen before it got better.

  “Breathe,” Luke said, and she realized that she wasn’t doing so. She released the air she was holding in her lungs in short, shallow pants. “That’s it.”

  “Okay,” she said when the contraction had finally eased.

  “Two minutes,” he announced, not very happily.

  She could
understand his concern. Her contractions—and she knew now that they were definitely contractions—were coming harder and faster. The idea of giving birth outside of a hospital was absolutely terrifying, but somehow, with Luke beside her, she felt confident that she would get through it. More importantly, she felt that her baby would get through it.

  “Should I get undressed now?”

  * * *

  It wasn’t the first time he’d had a woman say those words to him, but it was the first time they’d come at Luke completely out of the blue.

  And apparently Julie realized that her casual statement might be misinterpreted, because her cheeks flooded with color. “So that you can examine me,” she clarified.

  Examine her. Right. She was an expectant mother and he was the doctor who was helping to deliver her baby. Of course she would expect him to examine her.

  He mentally recalled the brief instructions he’d been given by the 911 operator. Thankfully the human birthing process wasn’t very different from that of other mammals, but Luke felt more than a little guilty that Julie was offering to strip down for him because she thought he was an MD.

  It should have been simple enough to think like a doctor. But he couldn’t forget the quick punch of desire he’d felt when his eyes had first locked with hers. Before he’d realized that she was eight and a half months pregnant. Still, the fact that she was about to give birth didn’t make her any less attractive, although he would have hoped that this tangible evidence of her involvement with another man should have cooled his ardor.

  But the combination of her beauty and spirit appealed to something in him. She’d found herself in a tough situation, but she was dealing with it. Sure, she was scared. Under the circumstances, who wouldn’t be? But she’d demonstrated a willingness to face that fear head-on, and he had to respect that courage and determination. And when he looked into those blue-gray eyes, he wanted to take up his sword to fight all of her battles for her. Not that she would appreciate his efforts—most women preferred to fight their own battles nowadays, but the desire to honor and protect was deeply ingrained in his DNA.

  He wasn’t interested in anything beyond that, though. Sure, he liked women and enjoyed their company, but he wasn’t looking to tie himself to any one woman for the long term. His brothers had both lucked out and found partners with whom they wanted to share the rest of their lives, and he was happy for them, but he didn’t see himself as the marrying kind. Certainly he’d never met a woman who made him think in terms of forever.

  Which was just one more reason that he had no business thinking about Julie Marlowe at all. She might be beautiful and sexy but she was also on the verge of becoming a mother—no way would she be interested in a fling, and no way was he interested in anything else.

  So he gave her privacy to strip down—and his plush robe to wrap around herself. He was trying to think about this situation as a doctor would—clinically and impartially. But how was he supposed to be impartial when she had those beautiful winter-sky eyes and those sweetly curved lips, sexy shoulders and sexy feet? And despite the baby bump, she had some very appealing curves, too.

  When he returned to the family room, he was relieved to see that she was wearing the robe he’d left for her so she wasn’t entirely naked beneath the thin sheet she’d pulled up over herself. But she still looked vulnerable and scared, and every last shred of objectivity flew out the window.

  She was panting—blowing out short puffs of air that warned him he’d missed another contraction. “I thought I had a pretty good threshold for pain,” she told him. “I was wrong.”

  He knelt at the end of the chaise, and felt perspiration beginning to bead on his brow. She was the one trying to push a baby out of her body, and he was sweating at the thought of watching her do it. But when he folded back the sheet and saw the top of the baby’s head, everything else was forgotten.

  “The baby’s already crowning,” he told her.

  “Does that mean I can start to push?”

  “Whenever you’re ready.”

  He talked her through the contractions, telling her when to push and when to pant, trying to ensure that her body was able to adjust to each stage and rest when possible.

  Of course, it was called labor for a reason, and although it was progressing quickly, he knew it wasn’t painless. Her hands were fisted in the sheet, and he covered one with his own, gave it a reassuring squeeze. “It won’t be too much longer now.”

  “Promise?”

  He looked up and saw that her stormy eyes were filled with tears and worry. “I promise.”

  As she pushed through the next contraction, the head slowly emerged. The soft, indignant cry that accompanied the baby’s emergence from the birth canal confirmed that its lungs were working just fine.

  “You’re doing great,” he told Julie. “Just—”

  He didn’t even have a chance to finish his sentence before the baby slid completely out and into his hands.

  Chapter Three

  Luke stared in awe at the wet, wrinkled infant that was somehow the most beautiful creature he’d ever seen. And when the baby looked at him with big blue eyes wide with innocence and wonder, he fell just a little bit in love with the little guy.

  He wiped the baby’s face carefully with a clean, soft towel to ensure that his nose and mouth were clear of fluid. Then he wrapped him, still attached by the cord, in a blanket and laid him on his mother’s chest.

  “And there he is,” he told her.

  Julie blinked, as if startled by this statement. “He?”

  “You have a beautiful, healthy baby boy,” he confirmed. “Born at 4:58 pm on November first.”

  “A boy,” she echoed softly, her lips curving just a little. “My baby boy.”

  Tears filled her eyes, then spilled onto her cheeks. She wiped at them impatiently with the back of her hand.

  “I’m sorry. I’m not usually so emotional.”

  “It’s been an emotional day,” Luke said, feeling a little choked up himself.

  It took her a few minutes to get her tears under control before she spoke again, and when she did, she surprised him by saying, “I thought he’d be a girl. I wanted a girl.” After a moment she continued. “I don’t even feel guilty admitting it now. Because looking down at him, I know that I couldn’t possibly love him any more if he had been a she. All that matters is that he’s mine.”

  “Why did you want a girl?” he asked curiously.

  “I guess I thought it would be easier to raise a girl, since I was once one myself. I don’t know anything about little boys. Or big boys.” She glanced up at him and offered a wry smile. “And personal experience has proven that I don’t understand the male gender at all.”

  “Are you disappointed that he’s a he?”

  She shook her head. “No. I’m not disappointed at all. He’s…perfect.”

  “That he is.”

  “I never expected to feel so much. I look at him, and my heart practically overflows with love.” But she managed to lift her gaze from the baby to look at Luke now. “Thank you, Dr. Garrett.”

  He didn’t know how to respond to her gratitude, especially when he felt as if he should be thanking her. Because in his entire life, he had honestly never experienced anything more incredible than helping to bring Julie’s beautiful baby boy into the world.

  What he’d told her earlier was true—the hard part was all hers. And he couldn’t help but be awed by the strength and determination and courage she’d shown in face of the challenge. He felt honored and privileged to have been a part of the experience, to have been the very first person to hold the brand-new life in his hands.

  By the time he’d cut the cord and delivered the placenta, Julie had put the baby to her breast and was already nursing. And Luke finally let himself exhale a silent sigh of relief.

  He tidied up, gathering the used sheets and towels, then left mother and child alone while he stepped away to call Yolanda to let her know that an ambulance
was no longer a priority. She offered hearty congratulations and a smug “I knew you could handle one little baby” then signed off to deal with other matters.

  After putting a load of laundry in the washing machine, Luke fed Einstein, then realized that his stomach was growling, too. And if he was hungry, he imagined that Julie was even more so. He put some soup on the stove to heat, then peeked into the family room again.

  “How are you feeling now?”

  “Exhausted,” she admitted. “And ecstatic. I don’t know how I can ever repay you for everything you’ve done.”

  “I’m just glad I was here to help.”

  She smiled at that. “And if an ambulance could have got through the storm, you would have shipped me off to the hospital in a heartbeat.”

  “Absolutely,” he agreed without hesitation.

  “Since I am still here, there is something I wanted to ask you.”

  “Sure.”

  “What do you think of the name Caden?” She looked at him expectantly, trying to gauge his reaction.

  “What does it mean?” he asked.

  “Fighter or battle.”

  He nodded. “I like it.”

  She smiled down at the baby before lifting her eyes to meet his again. “Then let me formally introduce you to Caden Lukas Marlowe.”

  She saw surprise flicker in his eyes, then pleasure. He offered his finger to the baby, and Caden wrapped his tiny fist around it, holding on tight. “That’s a lot of name for such a little guy,” he noted.

  “You don’t mind the ‘Lukas’ part?”

  “Why would I mind?”

  She shrugged. “I wanted him to have a small part of the man who helped bring him into the world. I know we probably won’t ever see you again after we leave Pinehurst, but I don’t want to forget—and I don’t want Caden to forget—everything you’ve done.”

  “You’re not planning to go anywhere just yet, are you?”

  “Not just yet,” she assured him. “But I figured you’d want to get us out of here as soon as the roads are clear.”

  Of course, she couldn’t go anywhere until her car was pulled out of the ditch and any necessary repairs were made, but she didn’t expect her Good Samaritan to put them up for the duration.