Merry Christmas, Baby

  arms. He followed Josh through the community room, down the hallway to the offices, and into one where the desk had been cleared off and covered with blankets and pillows.

  He set Chloe down and turned, raising a brow to find Ford, Jax, Tara, and Maddie all crowded into the room behind them.

  Tara and Maddie pushed past him to cluster around Chloe.

  The guys faced him. “Going to be a daddy,” Ford said, and clasped a hand to his shoulder. “You ready?”

  “I don’t think he is,” Jax said. “He’s looking a little pale.” He leaned in close. “Just make sure you don’t faint. They really hate it when the daddies faint.”

  Sawyer firmly escorted them out of the room.

  “This is pretty appropriate, Chloe,” Tara said. “All your life you’ve been racing through it, and now your baby’s taking after you.”

  “You,” Chloe said in a hiss, “I could do without right now.”

  Josh and Mallory washed thoroughly, and then Mallory instructed Sawyer to remove his jacket and wash up as well.

  The best thing that could be said about Chloe’s labor was that it was brief. Brief but hard. Over the next hour she screamed and cursed at Sawyer, and for good measure, Tara and Maddie as well. She actually decided to ban them, saying, “I want to be alone with the man who put me in this condition.”

  Tara and Maddie opened their mouths to argue, and Chloe, in a moment of absolute stubborn clarity, sat up and jabbed a finger to the door.

  They left, and Chloe went back to her business of having a baby with a single-mindedness that impressed the hell out of Sawyer. She’d have made one hell of a world leader—if the world could get past the fact that she loved drama but not rules or any form of organization.

  The loud festivities continued in the community room, making a strange accompaniment as Chloe’s labor pains came harder and closer together.

  Mallory was called out when one of the party revelers got drunk and slipped and fell, hitting his head. “Effing Anderson,” Josh muttered.

  Maddie came back in and Chloe seemed happy to see her. Not five minutes later Josh said, “Head’s crowning. Need another set of hands over here.”

  Maddie and Sawyer looked at each other, and then Maddie started to move toward Josh.

  “No!” Chloe yelled. She gave Sawyer a nudge that was more like a shove. “Go help our baby. She needs you.”

  Sawyer hesitated. He didn’t want to move from her side, plus there was the very real fact that she had a vise grip on his hand so hard he was pretty sure she’d embedded her fingers into his skin.

  “Sawyer,” Josh said, and something in his tone had Sawyer disentangling his hand from Chloe’s—probably with only a few broken bones. He kissed her forehead before shifting to the end of the makeshift bed.

  “Can you do this?” Josh asked quietly.

  Sawyer, who had no idea what he was agreeing to, nodded.

  “Some dads pass out,” Josh warned.

  “Not this one,” Sawyer said, and hoped that was true.

  Josh kept his voice low for Sawyer’s ears only. “The cord’s wrapped around the baby’s neck. I need you to put one hand here, under the baby’s head, and the other here so that when the shoulders come out, you’ll get a good grip.”

  Jesus. He nodded.

  “It’ll be slippery; be careful. I’m going to make sure the cord doesn’t wrap any tighter.” Josh looked at Chloe. “Ready to push?”

  She looked panic-stricken. “No! Listen, this has been fun, but I want to go home now, okay? I’ll come back tomorrow, I promise.”

  Sawyer knew she was completely consumed by the pain and a little out of it. Leaning over her, he put his face right in hers to get her attention. “Chloe, babe, you’ve got this.”

  “But I don’t!”

  “You do. Don’t you know? You’re the strongest woman I’ve ever met. You can do anything.”

  Her glossy eyes filled. “I can’t. Please, Sawyer, do this for me?”

  She never asked for help, never, and she was officially killing him. “Oh, babe,” he said softly, wishing with everything he had that he could do just that. “I’ve got you. I’m right here. Together, okay?”

  Another strong contraction hit and she had no choice.

  “Chloe, push,” Josh instructed.

  She clearly gave it all she had, crying out with it, almost screaming, and Maddie yelled right along with her, no doubt because her fingers were now being crushed instead of Sawyer’s. As the contraction seemed to go on and on, Chloe rode the wave, swearing with impressive skill, threatening both Sawyer and Josh for good measure while she was at it.

  “I’m sorry,” she gasped when she could, panting, trying to catch a full breath. Sawyer had been watching her carefully for signs of asthma, but so far so good.

  “No worries, and you’re doing great,” Josh told her. “The last woman I helped deliver threatened to cut off my twig and berries. Of course, it was my wife, so…”

  Chloe laughed and then cried out again with another contraction, each of which was ripping Sawyer’s heart out, just right fucking out of his chest.

  “A couple more pushes,” Josh promised, “and we’re done.”

  “We?” Chloe joked weakly, and pushed.

  “That’s it, keep pushing,” Josh told her. To Sawyer he said, “Here comes the shoulder.”

  Chloe gritted her teeth and pushed for all she was worth.

  “Good girl,” Josh said, “here comes the baby, right into Dad’s hands—ah, there she is. Sweet, beautiful baby Thompson.”

  Sawyer stared down at the baby in his hands in shock. Logically, he’d known that this was the end result, but holding the baby in his hands it suddenly became real.

  A baby.

  They’d made a baby.

  Who wasn’t moving. “Josh.”

  “I know.” Josh’s hands were right there with him. Together they turned the baby over, laying her chest on Sawyer’s palm, head down while Josh rigorously rubbed her back.

  “Is she okay?” Sawyer heard Chloe ask anxiously.

  The baby coughed and sucked in a lungful of air. With the next breath, she wailed her distress at the world in general, her eyes still tightly closed.

  Sawyer took his own breath. Jesus.

  “She’s perfect,” Josh said to Chloe, quickly and efficiently tying off the umbilical cord. He cleaned the baby with a warm washcloth and wrapped her in a towel, handing her over to the new mama.

  Maddie had helped Chloe get propped up on the pillows, but the last few hours had been hard on her. Her hair had gone wild and there were shadows of exhaustion all over her face, but she’d never looked more beautiful to Sawyer than she did right now.

  She stared down at the baby in her arms with the same awe and amazement Sawyer felt, and then she lifted her head, her eyes shining brilliantly.

  “We did this,” she whispered. “My God, Sawyer. They’re trusting us with a baby.”

  He laughed softly, but his throat was so thick and burning he couldn’t do more. “You were amazing,” he said.

  “No, I—”

  “Amazing,” he repeated.

  “Take her,” Chloe said. “I want to see her in your arms.”

  Sawyer took the soft warm bundle. The quick warm bath seemed to have soothed her, because she’d quieted. His hand spanned the baby’s entire body.

  His daughter.

  He who’d once been the scourge of all of Lucky Harbor, a troubled, neglected, abused kid with no good future in sight, had somehow managed to turn his life around enough that he had an incredible wife and a new baby.

  A family of his very own.

  Chapter 7

  Every single inch of Chloe’s body ached and throbbed, but adrenaline was a funny thing. It allowed her to ignore the pain. She was shaking a little bit. Okay, a lot. And from the back of her mind she was aware that Josh and Maddie were still bustling around taking care of her, but she couldn’t tear her gaze off Sawyer and the baby.
br />   Their baby.

  God.

  She watched, holding her breath as she stared at father and daughter. She’d never seen that look on Sawyer’s face before. The cop face was gone, and the tight mask of control he usually wore as a buffer between him and the world had slipped away, replaced by sheer awe.

  The baby had opened her bright blue eyes and seemed to look directly up into her daddy’s gaze.

  Gently, his face serious, Sawyer bent his head and kissed her forehead.

  The baby stretched and and made a wide yawn, and Chloe nearly melted at the utter beauty and heartbreaking sweetness.

  “You’re perfect,” Sawyer whispered to the baby. “Absolutely perfect.” He looked up at Chloe then, his eyes suspiciously shiny. “She looks just like you, thankfully,” he said. “But given how stubborn she was tonight, she might have a hell of a lot of Thompson in her. God help us all.”

  Chloe laughed, and held her arms out for the baby again.

  Sawyer laid the infant in her arms, and over the sweet bundle she looked into her husband’s gaze. “Are we okay?” she whispered.

  His mouth quirked but his eyes remained serious, oh so serious. “We’re always okay. Always will be.”

  Again her eyes filled and she tried to say something but let out a sob instead.

  “Ah, Chloe,” Sawyer said, voice thick with emotion.

  “I’m sorry,” she gasped. “I’ve been such a bitch. I lost my mind there for a while, and then you kept leaving, and I thought—”

  “Never,” he promised, cradling her face in a palm, letting his thumb swipe softly over her lower lip. “I’m in this, Chloe. All the way in. I thought you knew that. I thought I vowed that to you when we got married. I thought I’ve been showing you every day for five years.”

  Her heart squeezed. “You have. And it’s been the best time of my life, but I guess a little part of me worries I tied you down.”

  “Or,” he said, “you worried that you were tied down.”

  She stared at him. “I shouldn’t be shocked that you know me better than myself.” She closed her eyes and then opened them. “Yes,” she admitted softly. “I’ve never been so tied to a place, to a person. Until you. But,” she said when his eyes began to shutter, “it’s the way I want it. I want to be tied to you.”

  He studied her for a long moment and then his lips curved.

  “You’re picturing it, aren’t you,” she said drily. “Me tied.”

  “To my bed,” he said on a low laugh. “Yeah, a little bit. But mostly I’m liking knowing that you’re tied to my heart.”

  Aw. Damn, he was good. “I let my stupid fears get the most of me,” she admitted. “I was afraid of being a crazy wife and mom. I don’t know how to do this, Sawyer. I have no idea what I’m doing.”

  “You have the best instincts of anyone I know,” Sawyer said. “Just listen to them and you’ll do fine. As for being a crazy wife and mom—never going to happen.”

  The baby squirmed and then let out a howl.

  Chloe hugged her. “Hush, Bean,” she murmured softly, gently rocking her in her arms. “Mommy’s very busy having a freakout.”

  At the sound of her voice the baby went utterly still and then relaxed. Her eyes opened, that shocking newborn glorious blue blinking up at Chloe as she turned her little head so that her cheek rested on Chloe’s chest where Tara’s poor robe-turned-ball gown gaped.

  The skin-to-skin contact seemed to comfort the infant, and she closed her eyes again, content to lie there.

  A feeling of peace washed over Chloe. Peace and…

  Contentment.

  She looked up into Sawyer’s dark, warm gaze, and that feeling washed over her again, doublefold now. “You’re right,” she whispered.

  “Wow,” he said. “You’re more tired than I thought if you’re admitting that.”

  She laughed, and shook her head, and then let her smile fade. “I’m sorry I was so hard on you. I nearly pushed you away—”

  “Impossible,” he said. “Don’t you know yet? If I ever lost you, I’d lose myself.”

  Her eyes filled again. “Oh, Sawyer. I’m so sorry—”

  He put a finger over her lips and then bent low and replaced it with his mouth, effectively silencing her with a soft, sweet, meaningful kiss. “No apologies for your emotions,” he murmured. “Ever.”

  She relaxed, letting his love and affection feed her soul, relieved and grateful he understood her.

  Sawyer looked down at the baby and then back into Chloe’s eyes. “Thank you for my daughter. For being my wife. For being my entire life. Merry Christmas, Chloe.”

  “Merry Christmas,” she whispered back, knowing that this was one she’d never forget.

  “Can we come in now?” asked a muffled voice from the other side of the office door, one with imperious attitude and a southern accent.

  Tara.

  “Yes,” Chloe called, and to her shock and surprise, the entire town seemed to squeeze into the office. Her sisters. Her sisters’ husbands. Lucille. Mallory. All their friends. There was champagne and toasts, and through it all, Chloe couldn’t take her eyes off her new baby daughter or her husband.

  “Happy?” Sawyer quietly asked her.

  “Happy doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

  Did you miss the final novel in the Lucky Harbor series?

  Here’s an excerpt from One in a Million.

  Chapter 1

  I want a hoedown wedding.”

  Callie Sharpe, wedding site designer and planner, was professional enough to not blink at this news. “A hoedown wedding.”

  “Yes,” her client said via Skype. “The bridesmaids want to wear cowboy boots, and Jimmy wants to eat pigs in a blanket at the reception. You okay with that?”

  “Sure,” Callie said to her laptop. After all, she loved pigs in a blanket, so who was she to judge? “It’s your day, whatever you want.”

  Her bride-to-be smiled. “You really know your wedding stuff. And you always look so wonderful. I love your clothes. Can I see what shoes you’re wearing? I bet they’re fab too.”

  Callie didn’t let her easy smile slip. “Oh, but this is about your wedding, not my shoes. Let’s talk about your invitations—”

  “Please?”

  Callie sighed. For the camera, she wore a silky cami and blazer. Out of camera range, she wore capri yoga pants that doubled as PJs and…bunny slippers. “Whoops,” she said. “I’ve got another call. I’ll get back to you.”

  “But—”

  She disconnected and grimaced. “Sorry,” she said to the client who could no longer hear her. She went back to work, clicking through page after page of the season’s new wedding dresses, uploading the ones she liked best. She switched to the latest invitation designs next. And then unique party favors and stylish