Read Online Mischief and Mistletoe by Lena Matthews - Free Book Online Page A

even a contraction. That was just me giving you proof of life.”
    “Well , keep doing that. But slower. Like this.” Russell demonstrated in the most dramatic manner that Tamara could not resist laughing.
    In the midst of laughter another contraction hit, cutting her off midstream. Cl enching, Tamara placed one hand on her stomach and the other on the back of the couch. She rose on her tiptoes and rocked back and forth, trying to work through the contraction while doing her best to breathe calmly and steadily. It was painful, not bad-period-cramp pain, like her lying, stupid Lamaze coach had said, but more like someone-was-stabbing-her-over-and-over-in-her-side-and-back painful, and it seemed like it was taking forever for it to end. But just when she thought she couldn’t handle another second of it, the pain thankfully subsided. She let out a deep breath when it was over much in the way Russell had just mimed only seconds earlier, which caused her to laugh again.
    “What is so damn funny?”
    “You.” She knew from the length the contractions were coming that she would have a few minutes before the next one hit and wanted to put the time to the best use. Grabbing Russell’s hand, she pulled him to her then wrapped her arms around his waist. “Everything is going to be okay. This is natural. Women have been having babies for thousands of years.”
    “In the hospital.”
    “Well, technically no.”
    “Do you really think I give a fuck about technicalities right now when you should be in a hospital?”
    “Sweetie, we weren’t ever going to be in a hospital. Even if it wasn’t snowing.” She’d purposely chosen a midwife because she wanted a more natural, personal experience.
    “A birthing center is like a hospital. They have medical stuff there and Juniper has degrees and licenses and a stethoscope and…stuff.” His face got redder and his eyes grew wider with every word. “Lots of stuff. She’s done this before. That’s why we’re paying her money…because she’s done this before.”
    “I think you’re the one who needs to breathe before you have a stroke. In and out,” she mocking ly mimicked his earlier movements. “In and out.”
    “Not everything is a joke , Tamara.”
    “It can be if you say it right.”
    Russell laid his forehead against hers and sighed. “How are you so calm?”
    “Because you’re not.” She laughed. “It’s going to be okay. I promise.”
    “You can’t make a promise like that. No matter how much I wish you could.”
    Tamara wanted to reassure him but before she could think of something witty or soothing the pressure began to build again.
    Crap, that wasn’t good . This one was coming on faster than the one before it. Grimacing she pulled away from Russell and reached for the couch once more to use it as an anchor to bounce through the pain. Russell began to breathe again but this time not in the annoying manner he did before, but more in time with her own, which allowed her to anchor herself and focus her energy. When it ended, she brightened once more. “I’m thinking we’re beginning to get the hang of it.”
    “I’d rather we’d get the hang of an emergency room.”
    “I’d rather we were pushing it out of your penis instead of my vagina, but we don’t always get what we want.”
    “Oh hell no.”
    Tamara bit her bottom lip to quit from grinning at the disgusted look on his handsome face.
    “Okay,” Charlotte said as she came back into the room. From the overly happy look on her face Tamara knew the shit was about to hit the fan. “Do you want to hear the really bad news, the bad news or the let’s look for the silver -lining news?”
    Tamara groaned. Normally she liked being right but she would have been okay if she was wrong in this instant.
    “All of it,” Russell growled.
    “I called 9 -1-1 and your midwife. Neither had good things to say. Apparently the not really a storm has turned out to be a big fucking storm. There are several