She nodded.
He leaned his gun behind the bench, laid on his side, head against her thigh, his torso so long that he had to prop his feet out to hold himself on the seat. The end of the bench jutted into his butt cheek. It was very awkward and uncomfortable, but it only took about two minutes before he was asleep.
Luna sat. And stared. And she waited.
About thirty minutes passed and Beckett’s phone rang, waking him with a start. “Huh, what — hello?”
Chickadee’s voice demanded, “Where are you guys? Are you going to have your baby in the goddamned woods?”
He put his hand over the receiver and looked around sleepily. “Luna, you okay?”
Luna was leaned forward. “Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”
He whispered, “You okay?”
She nodded. “I’m not shushing you, just for a while this is the only thing I can do that feels okay.”
“Crap, okay Chickadee we’re coming back, I fell asleep—”
He hung up to Chickadee’s voice yelling, “What the hell do you mean you fell asleep!”
He helped Luna up and tried to hustle back, but she needed to stop every few minutes to lean over, hands on her thighs. “Shhhhhhhhhhh. shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”
The fifth time she remained bent for a long, long time. Beckett was trying to be patient, but also wanted to get her home out of the dark woods. “Ready?”
She was quiet.
He waited some more. “Ready to walk?”
She straightened. “I can breathe again, but we better walk fast.”
Chickadee jumped to her feet when Beckett and Luna made it to the porch. “You’re scaring the hot mess out of me. What were you—”
Luna said, “Shushshshshshhhhhhhh,” and walked by focused on getting to her bedroom.
Chickadee muttered, “What in the world?”
“That’s what she’s been doing for an hour or so.” He placed the shotgun in its rack over the door. “Dilly can you get some ice water? Luna,” he called, “need anything?”
“Nothing—shhhhhhhhhhhhhh.” She disappeared into their bedroom.
Beckett ran a hand over his head. “Someone going for the midwife?”
Chickadee said, “Peter is headed over there now, but it will be six before they arrive. Tell her to hold on.”
“Yeah, that might not be possible. I’ll tell you if there’s anything else.”
Luna was sitting on the bed, leaned back on her arms, sweaty head, tousled, messy hair, sticking, wet cheeks, red flushed, shhhhhhhhhhh. The room smelled of lavender and mint, candles burned on the dresser and scents clung to the air.
Beckett closed the door and sat beside her. “How’s it going?”
“Shhhhhhhhhhh.” She moaned and dropped to her knees, the top half of her body draped on the bed.
He jumped for the door and received the glass of water from Dilly and brought it to Luna. Their eyes met momentarily, but hers were unfocused and drifting. He stuffed a pillow under her knees.
She ripped her shirt off over her head, half-stood, and gestured at her legs. “Take my. . .off.”
He pulled her pants down and tossed them away.
She returned to kneeling and Beckett listened.Her breathing was deep, sleep-like, the whole room still and quiet. Then she would shift, her breath would quicken, her body would tense and work and move. Her hands clutched, tugged, and stretched the sheets. And she’d moan and shhhhhhhhhhhh until slowly she’d collapse into the semiconscious half-sleep for a bit. Then the wave would begin again. Beckett listened for the shift, counted the time, found his own breath quickening with hers, as the waves came closer, steeper, and more difficult for her to ride.
After about an hour she added the word, owwwwwwwwwwiieeeee.
Beckett asked, “Okay?”
She nodded. “Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”
Dilly knocked on the door. Beckett opened it a crack and she asked, “Does Luna need me?”
“Luna, do you need Dilly?”
She shook her head and moaned again.
Dilly said, “Peter called. He and the midwife are still two hours away, and traffic is terrible, could be longer.’”
Beckett scrunched up his face. “I don’t think we have that long. Can you tell Peter, thanks, and to drive faster? Then call Dr Mags, tell her we’re having the baby and ask her to come? She didn’t think she was qualified for the birth, but it would be good for the baby, I think.”
“Definitely. Anything else?”
“More ice chips?”
He closed the door and dropped to his knees beside Luna.
She gestured frantically at her lower back. Beckett gingerly stroked her skin.
“Massage my freaking fragnastic back, Beckett, freaking push on it, before I freaking go scream into the woods, goddammit, shhhhhhhhhhhh.”
Beckett massaged.
“Harder. Harder.”
He pressed with as much strength as he thought she could bear, and she was still moaning. He pressed harder.
“If you don’t press — shhhhhhhhh. Ow ow ow owwwwwwwwwwwwieeeee. Crap, Beckett, stinkcrawling, fudsuperlicious — shhhhhhhhhhhhh — owwwie owiiieeeee.”
Beckett massaged, watching the side of her face. Her eyes were clamped shut. “You cool?”
She gasped out, “How freaking long?”
“Um, like two hours?”
“Freaking scatrastic monsterjiminy—ooooooowwwwwwwww, shh, owie-owie owieeeeeeeeee.” She moaned and dropped her forehead down to the bed panting. “Okay, that—why are you still massaging my back?”
“Um, because you told me—”
“Stop. That’s over. We aren’t going to do that anymore.”
“Okay, good because that was—”
She raised back up on her hands. “Owwwie owwwie, freaking oh shhhhhh owie owwwwwie. Massage — now, now, now. Owwwwie, no no no nooooooooooooooooowie. Stop. Nooooo.”
She collapsed onto the bed. “I don’t want to anymore.”
“Okay, we won’t anymore. Do you want me to massage your back?”
“No.” She panted and raised up on her arms. “Oh crap, oh crap, owwwwieeeeee, oh no oh no oh noooooooooooo.” She dropped back down on the bed.
He stroked the wet hair off her forehead.
She said, “Okay that was the last one I’m going to do.”
“That sounds good.”
“I want to go do something else now.”
“Like paddle, we could go to Heighton Port and paddle out for the day.”
She nodded her head and laid there for a few moments panting, so quiet that it seemed like she might be asleep. Then she said, “That sounds good. This sucks I don’t want to anymore.”
“I agree, but you know, I think you have to if we’re going to meet the baby.”
She scowled and raised up. “Arrrrrrr-owwwwie owwwie owwwwwwwiiiiiiiieeeeeeee. No no noooooooooo.”
Her sound switched suddenly to a deep guttural, “Unnnnnggggghhhh,” and she didn’t collapse forward but said, “The baby, the baby is—”
Beckett dropped down behind her and looked up.
“Unnnnnggghhh, the baby—”
“I see it. I see it, Luna, just—”
She grunted again and the baby’s head fully emerged. “Catch the baby.”
“I know, one more, okay?”
Luna raised taller and grunted, bearing down until the baby slid from her body down into Beckett’s waiting hands.
Luna burst into tears.
“Can you drop back for a moment?” Beckett helped her move a leg, bringing the baby around and up in front of her.
She spoke to it. “Baby?”
The baby looked up at her and Luna started laugh-crying. Beckett started laughing too, with tears rolling down his cheeks.
They both sat and stared down at the baby. Luna asked, “Oh baby. That was really hard. Was it hard for you too?”
As if in answer the baby screwed up its face and made a small crying sound. Then it quieted again staring up into Lu
na’s eyes.
Beckett wrapped his arms around them both. “You made a baby. You can freaking do anything.”
Luna nodded. “I did, I made a whole baby.”
A few minutes later she passed the baby to Beckett, had another couple of contractions, and delivered the placenta. Beckett said, “I just realized it’s a boy.”
“It’s a boy?”
“It is. You made a whole little boy.”
Luna cut the cord and Beckett tied the cord with a piece of colored string. He wrapped a sheet around Luna and the baby, forgetting that there was anyone else in the whole wide world, until they were brought back to the present by a timid knock.
Dilly asked through the door, “Beckett is everything okay? It’s super quiet in there.”
Beckett whispered, “You ready to meet the world, baby?”
Luna said, “We’re ready.”
He opened the door and whispered, “Luna had a baby.”
Dilly said, “A baby?”
Chickadee came running from the front porch. “A baby? Already?”
Beckett laughed. “I don’t know about already. I think that was plenty long enough.”
They helped Luna up to the bed and surrounded her with pillows and towels and sheets.
Everyone gushed at the beautiful baby and beamed and exclaimed and gave blow by blow reports. Chickadee teased, “I have never once been shushed like that.”
Beckett said, “You know that’s bullshit.”
Dilly said, “Watch your mouth in front of the baby Beckett.”
Chickadee joked, “That baby has been exposed to enough bad language. We could hear Luna carrying on through the door.”
Beckett asked, “Was that bad language? She kind of sounded like a toddler pirate.”
Everyone laughed. Chickadee joked, “It’s all fun and games now, but we’re going to have to have that wedding dress altered again.”
Luna groaned, and everyone laughed even more.
Finally Chickadee said, “Roscoe is here. He’s been on the porch since four in the morning, waiting to hear. Can he come in?”
Luna said, “Of course.”
Chickadee and Dilly left to rustle up some breakfast.
A few moments later Roscoe appeared in the doorway. “Hello Luna, Beckett, congratulations.”
“Thank you, Roscoe.”
“I, um, won’t stay long,” He tapped a large envelope on his leg. “I have a gift for you. Really it’s for Luna and the baby. I would like her to have it now that the baby is safely on the mainland.”
He passed the envelope to Beckett, who peeled the end open and pulled out a stack of papers. He read the top and showed it to Luna. “It says, the Last Will and Testament.”
Roscoe nodded. “In it I name the baby as the beneficiary of my estate.”
Luna said, “Really, Roscoe?”
“It’s not as much land as you once had, but it’s a working farm. In the past three years I added a lot of steer to it. And I have a few men who work it for me, so this isn’t a job, it’s an income.”
Beckett said, “Wow Roscoe, I never imagined.”
He nodded quietly. “You’ll also see, once you flip through the pages, that there are seven more wills, naming your baby as heir. Families without much, but they’re giving it all to you as a thank you for your kindnesses, Luna. In the end you’ll have almost as much as you had before.”
“Wow,” Beckett said again flipping through the pages.
“You were becoming used to the idea that you wouldn’t need the land or the income, Luna. It was very selfless what you did, and I am in awe of you. But I believe in the future you’ll need something, land or money, so these families are providing for your son.” He clapped his hands down on his knees. “I’ll need to take the papers with me and continue the process. You’ll let me know when you have a name picked out?”
Beckett smiled, “You’ll be one of the first to hear.”
“Sounds good.” Roscoe left the room.
Beckett turned to Luna. “That was amazing.”
She said, “I gave everything away and now my son is richer than ever. It’s some strange mainland magic.”
The baby closed his eyes and fell asleep in Luna’s arms.
Then Beckett shifted beside Luna on the bed, an arm wrapped around her shoulders, and they all three fell asleep before breakfast could even be served.
Chapter 64
A few days later Luna stood in the middle of the floor, baby tucked in her arms, breastfeeding, while Millie, the seamstress, attempted to alter the dress once more. Everyone was there watching.
Millie jabbed pins around Luna’s belly area. “It would be easier if you had the dress all the way up on your shoulders.”
Luna grinned. “Baby’s gotta eat. Can you put in some panels right up front, so I can just lift them to feed the baby?”
Chickadee laughed gleefully.
Millie looked shocked. “You intend to nurse the baby in the middle of your wedding ceremony?”
“Only if he’s hungry. It seems like panels would be easier than lifting my skirts all the way up over my head.” Luna grinned, enjoying Millie’s discomfort. She had after all vetoed Luna’s choices and called her shoulders ‘man-like.’
Dilly tried to translate. “I think what Luna’s trying to say is she’d like to conveniently feed the baby on her wedding day. Before and after the ceremony. I’m sure it’s a rare request, but if anyone can pull if off, it would be you, Millie.”
Millie pinned a fold over around Luna’s puffy belly. “Well, of course I can do it, it will just require more patching.”
Chickadee held up a pile of chiffon and satin. “There’s still plenty of fabric, patch away!”
Beckett added his opinion. “You’ll need to work on the top of the dress anyway, Luna’s breasts are probably double their former size.”
Millie pulled to a stop. Beckett added, “I vote for just removing the top altogether. Who’s with me? Topless bride?”
Chickadee burst into laughter. Luna passed the baby to Beckett, pulled the sleeves of the dress up on her shoulders, and allowed Millie to attempt to button up the back. But there was no way to get it completely closed. Millie sighed. “Fine, we’ll just start over. Panel here, panel there, no topless bride while I’m the seamstress.”
Beckett and Luna met each other’s eyes, and Luna giggled.
Dilly said, “All this talk of patching has me worried, please make it beautiful too.”
Beckett kissed the tiny fist of the baby, watching Luna, hands out, dutifully still, while the seamstress poked pins all around her dress. “Look at her Dilly, everyone, have you ever seen anyone more beautiful?”
Luna blushed.
Dilly said, “Aw.”
Chickadee said, “You are such a sweet boy and no, I’ve never seen anyone as beautiful. You’re right.”
Millie said, “I will put my heart and soul into making this dress match this beautiful girl for you.”
Beckett winked at Luna with a grin.
Chapter 65
On the day of their wedding Luna woke up to Beckett’s voice. “Wake up, baby, wake up.” Beckett was nose to nose to the baby. He looked up into Luna’s eyes and smiled. “Good morning! Today’s the day. Are you ready?”
Luna smiled and rubbed the back of his head. “I am.”
“No, the answer is ‘I do.’ We’ve been over this and over it. If you don’t say, ‘I do,’ at just the right time, with just the right amount of solemnity combined with happiness, people will whisper that it’s a shotgun wedding.”
Luna giggled. “You see this baby? Literally everyone thinks it’s a shotgun wedding.”
Beckett joked, “Are you telling me you had a baby? I hadn’t noticed.” He kissed the baby on the nose and shimmed up to kiss Luna. He ran a hand along her stomach, tickling the lines and marks that were left behind by her pregnancy. “You were really pregnant, weren’t you? That will teach me to not believe you.”
�
�I was definitely pregnant, now I’m a mom, and I’m five hours away from being Mrs. Beckett Stanford. When you said people, you mean the twenty close friends and family, right? A modest garden wedding, like we talked about.”
“You know as well as I do that the number has ballooned to astronomical proportions. Dilly is trying to keep the final headcount from us so we won’t panic. You, my dearest Luna, are beloved in these parts, literally everyone will be there.”
Luna giggled. “Who would have thought giving all your stuff away would make me so popular.”
“Our stuff, you literally gave away all of our stuff. You’re a nut job.” He pushed a dark curl off her cheek and tucked it behind her ear.
“I’m your nut job, Nut Job Stanford.” She kissed him sweetly. He ran a hand through her hair and kissed her again.
“Speaking of names, what are we going to name baby? I’m leaning toward — I don’t know. I thought Dylan was good yesterday, but now I’m not so sure. Maybe we should consider your Dad’s name?”
“It seems like an old guy name, not a baby name. I can’t decide.”
“We’re thinking about it too hard. It will come to us if we take it one step at a time. First, I give you my last name, then we give the baby a first name, and then we legally give the baby my surname, and it will go perfectly with the first name because it is. . .?” Beckett gestured for Luna to say the first name that popped into her head.
“I got nothing, except Sugarbunny. Sugarbunny Stanford?”
“I love you. I suppose I should go help the crew with the preparations.”
Chapter 66
Chairs filled the garden. Luna counted ten across and but stopped counting at five rows back and refused to do the multiplication because she didn’t want to know. Her job was to sit in a chair and nurse the baby. Which she did happily because the preparations were hectic and outrageously detailed. Some guy that was there helping mistakenly asked her where a bouquet were supposed to go and she said, “Um, the table?” He huffed and disappeared to ask Dilly. Which was just as well, Luna didn’t care where the flowers were, but Dilly was enjoying every second of planning and organizing and decoration.
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