Heir (Book 2)

Chapter 44

Writer's POV.

"That's it, Mrs Santiago, you are doing incredibly well!" Dr Kane encourages.

Adeline breathes heavily, sweat forming in her forehead as she waits for the contractions to intensify.

She looks at her husband, pain overtaking her features.

"Matty, don't leave me alone" she whimpers.

"Of course not, Amoré" he says, tears forming in his eyes, pain stabbing at his heart to see his wife that he adores in so much pain.

"Aghh!" She cries, as her lower abdomen rises with a sharp pain.

The doctor lifts her hospital gown.

"6 centimetres..." he says.

Adeline winces, knowing that she still has an extremely long way to go.

"Matéo, I can't do it!" Adeline says panicking.

"Yes, you can, baby" Matéo responds, kissing her temple.

"8 centimetres..." the doctor says.

"Breath, baby" Matéo coos in his wife's ear.

Adeline grips her husband's hand until her knuckles turn white.

She groans in pain, her legs feeling numb.
"Matéo, if I make it out alive, you are never touching me again!" She seethes.

Matéo chuckles and kisses her temple.

"When you make it out alive, then we'll see how long that theory lasts" Matéo responds with a grin.

"Okay, Mrs Santiago. You are at 12 centimetres, and I need you to push!" The doctor says calmly.

"Ahhhhh!" Adeline gasps, eyes widening and hot tears springing to her eyes.

Suddenly, the doors to the hospital room burst open and a panicky Jerome steps in.

His eyes immediately move to Adeline and he makes a start towards her, when the doctor blocks his path.

"I'm sorry sir, this is a family only area" he says apologetically.

Jerome scowls down at the shorter doctor, with a a snarl on his face.

"I'm her- -"

"Father!" Adeline gasps, gripping the sheets in one hand and clenching her husband's hand in the other.

"He's my dad, let him in" she sighs.
Jerome looks stunned for a moment, but then snaps out of it and hurriedly moves past the doctor and to his daughter's side.

Matéo nods at him for the sake of cutesy and for the sake of curtesy alone.

He still doesn't want to trust Jerome, but doesn't speak up, so that he doesn't stress his wife.

Adeline holds Jerome's wrist digging her nails in as she screams out in pain.

"Cazzo!" (Fuck) Matéo mutters under his breath, seeing the strain on her face.

'This is going to be a long birthing' Matéo thinks, worry etching itself into his face.
                            ***
Meanwhile, in the next room, Leonardo, Jayla, Dana, Luis, Elijah, Ruben and Eleanor are crowded in the waiting room.

Jayla bites her nails as her brother paces up and down the room.

Eleanor bows her head in a constant prayer and Elijah shakes his leg uncontrollably in anticipation.

They have all been in this position before, waiting for the arrival of a new family member but the looming anticipation never ceases each time they are there.

Jayla glares at her brother and suddenly shoots up to stand.

"Stop pacing, you're making me nervous!" She yells at him.

"We are all fucking nervous!" Leo exclaims, rounding on his younger sister.

Ruben, the usual mediator, stands up and glares at both of them in turn.

"Both of you shut the fuck up!" He growls.

"Ruben?!" His mother chastised, looking up, distracted from her prayers.

"Your mother is giving birth for the love of good God, stop arguing!" He says, looking back and forth in between them.

With one last scowl, Jayla flops down beside her boyfriend and he gently takes her hand, kissing it and then talking to sooth her.

Leonardo retreats to the window on the far side of the room, worry making its way back onto his handsome face.

Dana stands up and cautiously advances towards him.

He noticed her and holds out his hand, letting her take it, before pulling her closer to him. She places her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

She feels water touch her forehead.

She looks up to see Leonardo crying a little.

He hugs her a little tighter.

"What's on your mind?"She asks her boyfriend, her heart breaking a little.

"I don't regret what we did last night..." he says, conscious of the fact that his little sister and very religious auntie are in the room.

"But?" She asks, stroking his back comfortingly.

"I wish we'd have waited and told them later" he says.

There is a pregnant pause as Dana tries to think of a response, her brain churning for a suitable answer.

"Well, we were really excited to tell them, but in future, I guess we'll just have to be more careful about the situation" she says carefully and Leonardo nods in agreement.

Several hours later, the doors to the waiting room burst open.

Jerome walks in with a huge smile on his face.

"They're here!" He yells triumphantly and the whole room bursts into shouts of joy, breaths of relief and excited movements.

They all start to run to the door, but Jerome yells out for them to stop.

"Don't you want to know the genders?" He asks, grinning at the anticipation on their faces.

"Well?" Eleanor asks.

"Tell us!" Elijah goads.

Jerome lingers, silence hanging in the air.

The genders of the babies are..."

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Hey guys!

What do you all think the genders of the babies should be?

Tell me in the comments and don't forget to vote.