Chapter Twenty-Five

Eight months later

Lanie was between pains. Coop didn’t think he could handle another. Seeing her like this when he couldn’t help was pure misery.

“I love you, Lanie.”

Another pain grabbed her. “Breathe,” Doc ordered.

Lanie did as told, looked up at Coop when the pain passed. “I love you, too. But I hurt all over.”

“I’m sorry.”

She gave a strangled cry and struggled to sit up, but the effort was evidently too much. Another pain hit her. She clamped onto Coop’s hand and breathed through it.

How could she survive this kind of pain? She was soaking wet with sweat. Her eyes were glazed. She wouldn’t let him touch her anywhere except her hands because every touch hurt.

“Can I help?” His gaze sought Doc, but she was too busy to give him so much as a glance.

Lanie moaned as another pain hit her, this one bigger than the last. Coop fought the desire to get the hell out of there. He’d faced worse. He and Dirk left Afghanistan with major injuries, yet he hadn’t felt the helplessness he felt now. Then, he had the urge to fight, to kill the bastards. Now he wanted to take Lanie’s pain and suffer for her.

The room was cool, but he was sweating bullets. He had shed his jacket long ago, yet his shirt and hospital gown were drenching wet. How long did it take to have a baby? “Shouldn’t the baby be here by now?” he asked when another pain sent Lanie into sharp cries of pain. “Do something,” he shouted.

The nurse shot him a stern look.

“I’m going to send you out of the room if you don’t calm down, Coop.” Doc spoke calmly, didn’t raise her head, just issued orders.

It wasn’t an idle threat. She was a tough Navy doc.

But how the hell could he calm down when the woman he loved was in pain and he couldn’t do a damn thing about it?

Another pain hit. He could tell this was harder than the others. Coop thought he might die. “Pant, honey.”

“Push,” Doc ordered.

“Doc says push. C’mon. Let’s get this over with and go home.”

Did she hear him? He doubted it. Right now her concentration was intense as she alternately pushed and cried out in pain.

“Here she comes,” Doc exclaimed. “One more push.” Grunting with the effort, Lanie did as she was told, then fell back exhausted.

“It’s a girl?” Coop said in awe. They hadn’t known for sure, had wanted the sex to be a surprise, but Lanie had dreamed of a baby girl more than once.

“She’s a beauty,” Doc told him as she wrapped the baby in a large towel and brought her to the bed.

Coop’s head whirled. Was he going to pass out? Ex-Navy SEAL Cooper Browning was tougher than that, he told himself. But no amount of chastising could change the fact that right now he might end up on the floor. It was worse than a ten-mile hike in the mountains of Afghanistan. Worse than the firefight that almost cost him and his brothers their lives.

When his vision cleared, Lanie was holding their baby, a big smile on her face. Where had the pain gone? How could it disappear so fast? “Look, Coop. She’s so tiny.”

“She’s perfect. Just like her mother.” He bent over, kissed Lanie on the top of her head, kissed the baby on the top of hers. The baby was tiny. Could he hold her without hurting her? Would he be a good dad? Did all first-time dads feel this way?

“She’s beautiful.” He was a nervous wreck, yet Lanie was as calm as a satisfied kitten.

“Thank you, Coop.”

“For?”

“For our baby girl.”

“Thank you. Without you and this baby in my life I couldn’t make it.”

Tears streamed down Lanie’s cheeks. “You’re a wonderful man, Cooper Browning. You’ll be a wonderful dad.”

He wiped her tears with his finger. “I hope those are tears of joy.”

She laughed.

“Does our daughter have a name?” They’d discussed names for months, but never agreed. Finally, he’d told Lanie she could name the girls, he would name the boys.

“She does. Margaret Olivia Browning: Margaret after Shorty, and Olivia after my mom. We’ll call her Maggie.”

“I’m going to tell the family.”

When he opened the door, everyone jumped up and ran to him. Shorty, Lanie’s mom Olivia, Matt, Dirk, Mel and her fiancé, surrounded him. “It’s a girl,” he shouted. “And her name is Margaret Olivia Browning.”

Shorty grabbed her chest. “You named her after me?”

“Lanie did.”

“And me?” Lanie’s mom asked.

He turned to Mel. “I think you’re the designated godmother.”

Mel’s grin said it all.

“We’re going to call her Maggie.”

“I think it’s great.” Dirk slapped Coop on the back. “You did good, bro. Congratulations.”

Matt slapped Coop on the back, grinned, and let out his Tarzan yell. One Lanie had to hear in her room. One that brought nurses, orderlies, and doctors to the waiting room.

Coop laughed. It was the first time he’d heard Matt let loose since they were under fire in Afghanistan.

It was a good sign.

He went back to the room. Lanie was sitting up, baby Maggie in her arms. They looked wonderful. It looked as if every vestige of pain had left Lanie. A miracle.

“I heard that. Was it Matt?”

“It was. Everyone is over the moon. Including me.”

“She’s so perfect, Coop. How did I ever deserve the two of you?”

“I’m glad we added on two rooms with a Jack-and-Jill bathroom. One for Maggie, the other for the boys.”

“You’re optimistic, aren’t you?”

“You bet.”

“Do you think Thor will like her?”

“Like her! Are you kidding? Thor will protect our Maggie for the rest of his life.”

“He’s such a good and brave dog. He’s part of the family. Now we have Maggie.”

“Yes we do. Tell me how you feel? Though you look great, you just went through hell.”

“To tell the truth, I feel as if I’ve come out of a five-year period of learning. And though the learning wasn’t easy, I know so much more about myself and what I want out of life.” She looked into Coop’s eyes and his heart turned over. “All I’ll ever want is right here in this room. I couldn’t be happier.”

Coop went to her, wrapped both her and the baby in his arms. “I love you both so much.”

Turquoise eyes met his. “Not as much as I love you.”