Beautifully Undone (The Beaumont Brothers #3) (17 page)

Melody

I was a nervous wreck. In a little under fifteen minutes, I would be Mrs. Asher Beaumont. My father and mother were supposed to walk me down the aisle together, but he hadn’t shown up yet. Typical. He’d missed my high school graduation by ten minutes, too. My mom and I stood in a small cluster of trees by the California Academy of Sciences, hidden from the rest of the guests and Asher. Lena and Gabby were close by, keeping a lookout for my dad. Of course, they didn’t know what he looked like, but I’d told them to look for a silver-haired man with a goatee, wearing a tux matching the rest of the guys. He’d be hard to miss. Lena and Gabby were both Matrons of honor. Since they were both equal in my mind. Erica had been thrilled when I asked her to be a bridesmaid. She even threw us a combo shower for the baby and the wedding. Their gowns were forest green and strapless, and they’d all worn their long hair down in cascades of curls that flowed down their backs. My own gown was a pale off-white, also strapless, with an empire waist. Perfect for hiding the bump of a tummy I now sported. I also wore my hair down, but it was laced with tiny pearls throughout my blonde tendrils.

“Mom, why don’t you just walk me down by yourself?” I didn’t want to wait any longer.

“Let’s give him another few minutes. Everyone will wait,” she said, adjusting the bodice of her own beautiful, pale green gown. I’d wanted everyone to wear green so they matched Asher’s eyes, my favorite color.

My dad hadn’t exactly been excited about the whole pregnancy and wedding so I wouldn’t have been surprised if he was a complete no-show.

“I’m here.” My dad strolled into the passel of trees and kissed me on the cheek. Taking my hands in his, he eyed me from head to toe. “You look beautiful, honey.”

“You almost missed it,” I said.

“Sorry. Traffic on 405,” he said, looking at my mom then turning back to me. “How are you? Okay?” he asked, his blue eyes traveling to my stomach.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Nervous.”

“Don’t be. It’ll be like a walk in the park.”

“It
is
a walk in the park, Dad. We’re getting married outside, over there at the Shakespeare Garden.”

“Right. I knew that.” He winked. “Asher is going to swallow his tongue when he sees you. Hopefully, not too hard, though. That would ruin the first kiss, right?”

“Daddy!” My dad was so freakin’ corny sometimes. But I loved him, even if he had missed a few key moments in my life. But he was here now, and that’s what mattered. If there was one thing I’d learned over the past several months, it was that life was precious and it was best to embrace the love that was given to us because we never knew when it might be taken away.

“Ready?” he asked.

I nodded and took his arm then placed my other arm inside my mom’s and we all headed toward the garden. Lena and Gabby headed down first, then my mom, my dad and I followed. When I got close enough to see the glimmer in Asher’s eyes and the smile on his face, all the butterflies and nerves settled down, completely disappearing. As we walked down the center of the rows of chairs lined with white ribbon, I glanced up. Not a cloud in the sky. Birds sang their happy songs, and trees leaves swayed with the gentle breeze coming in from the ocean.

I was glad I’d listened to Asher this time. He was right to want all the frills.

Asher

I thought I’d died and gone to heaven when Mel approached in that gown. I couldn’t believe I’d wasted so many years ignoring my feelings for her. Ted had been so right, and I’d been so blind. I closed my eyes for just a second, feeling his spirit beside me along with my other two brothers. Mel and I stood facing each other, her hands in mine.

“Melody Grace Stevens, do you take Asher Becket Beaumont to be your lawfully wedded husband?” He’d already asked me a similar question, and I’d given a quick and definite “Yes, I do.”

Now it was her turn, and I stood patiently, waiting for Mel’s answer. She looked up into my eyes after she placed the ring on my finger. “I do.”

I grinned.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.”

I took my wife in my arms and crushed my mouth to hers. It felt like the first time I’d ever kissed her. She tasted sweet, and I wanted to stay absorbed in the kiss with our tongues engaged in this erotic tango forever.

When I heard a whistle from beside me, I slowly eased back, and the small crowd erupted in applause. I took Mel’s hand and we waltzed down the aisle, past the rows of chairs and our friends and family.

Mel and I headed for the limo that would take us to the reception. We’d talked the club where we performed into letting us have it there. Even though Mel’s dad had offered to pay for most of the wedding, we didn’t want to go overboard. He’d also offered us a down payment on a house if we didn’t go too crazy on the wedding. We’d had no problem obliging him.

The apartment was dark when I came home. Mel had moved across the hall into my apartment right after we tied the knot. We hadn’t taken her dad up on the down payment for a house yet since we weren’t sure exactly where we wanted to settle. Mel had stopped performing with me about two weeks ago. The baby was due any day, and the doctor had told her to take it easy and stay off her feet.

My brother, Jackson, and his wife Lena had had a baby boy two weeks ago. They sent pictures and told us to come up as soon as we could. They named him Brodie Asher Beaumont. I was so moved by his display of unconditional love and his ready acceptance of me as his brother that I’d cried when he told me. I never thought having a nephew named after me would bring such joy. Hell, I’d never thought much about nephews period.

I enjoyed my time in bed with Mel, rubbing her stomach with lotions and oils to keep it subtle and soft then snuggling close afterwards. It had become a nightly ritual so I was surprised when I came home and found all this lights off. An alarm instantly went off in my head.

“Mel?” I called out and ran into the bedroom.

I flicked on the light and she slowly sat up. “What?” Her voice was throaty and groggy.

“All the lights were out. I got worried.”

“Oh, sorry, babe. I couldn’t sleep. The light from the other room kept me awake so I turned it off.”

I went to her side. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just tired.”

“Okay, go back to sleep. I’m going to hop in the shower.”

“Okay,” she yawned and pulled the pillow over her head.

I always showered after a night at the club. I usually got hot and sweaty up on stage when I performed, and my t-shirts were like a magnet for the aroma of booze and other odors permeating the air at the club—from perfumes to the essence of weed. Not a scent I wanted Mel and the baby to have to sleep next to. The hot water felt amazing after the night I’d had. I was looking forward to snuggling in close to Mel and sawing some z’s myself.

I stepped out of the shower and turned off the water, grabbing a towel from the rack when Mel came in holding her hand below her belly as though she were holding the baby up from slipping down.

“You okay?”

She shook her head as liquid dripped down her legs and pooled at her feet.

“Oh.” I pushed the toilet seat cover down and helped her to sit. “I’ll throw some clothes on. Just stay there.” I said, pointing my finger at her to stay put and hurrying out of the bathroom. I scrambled in my closet for a shirt and shrugged into it, tugging my jeans up next without any boxers. I stepped into my black Converse, foregoing the extra time it took for socks. I grabbed her jacket off the coat tree by the door and came back, putting it around her. “Let’s go.”

I helped her to stand. She hadn’t said a word, but I could tell she was in pain. “How far apart are they?” I asked.

“About three minutes for the past hour I think,” she said. “And about a minute each time.”

“Really? That’s close.” We were twenty minutes from the hospital and this time of night there wouldn’t be much traffic, so that was in our favor. But still, I worried. Three minutes. “Why didn’t you say something when I first came home?”

“I knew you’d want to take a shower,” she smiled. How the hell could she be smiling? But I loved that she was. I was nervous and maybe a little scared, but I did my best not to show it.

Suddenly, another contraction came on and I glanced at the little frog clock that Mel had grabbed from my mom’s house. I was glad she’d taken it. I said a silent prayer, hoping my mom was listening and maybe she could put in a good word to the big guy. This contraction seemed even stronger than the last by the way Mel was panting, and I counted.

“That was sooner than three minutes,” I said.

I grabbed the small suitcase we had packed and waiting in the hallway. I had my hand under her arm, leading her to the door when she stopped. She started the rapid breathing. I breathed with her, counted in my head with her. And then, took a deep breath with her long, cleansing breath. She acted like a pro. We’d gone to all the classes and did all the exercises, everything you’re supposed to do, but I was still a basket case inside.

“That one was a doozie,” she said. “We should hurry.”

“Okay.” Fuck…me.

I got Mel in the car and buckled. She was in the middle of another contraction. They were coming every minute now. We were on the road, heading down the hill when she screamed. “Oh no!”

“What?” I glanced at her, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw that the light had turned and slammed on the brakes.

“It’s coming.”

“What?”

“It’s coming.”

“No. It can’t come. Not yet. Hold on.”

“Asher, I can’t control it. Please. I need to push.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

“Okay.” I pulled over.
God, this can’t be happening
. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed 911.

“911. What’s your emergency?”

“My wife is having a baby. We were on our way and…”

“Asher!”

“The baby’s coming. Now!”

“Sir, where are you?”

“We’re at the corner of…” Shit. I didn’t know this part of the city all that well. I looked up at the street sign, but it was backwards. “Fuck. Hold on.” I stepped away from the car and went to the post with the street name. “Oak and Pierce. Hurry.”

“The ambulance is on its way. Sir, stay on the phone with me. I’m going to patch you through to the medical center. The nurse will take over the call.”

“Okay.”

“Hello, are you there?”

“Yes, I’m here.”

“What’s your name?” Why the fuck was this guy wasting time asking my name? “Ash. My name is Ash.”

“Okay, Ash. Mine is Tom. I’m a delivery nurse and I’m going to walk you through this. Put the phone on speaker mode and set it down.”

“Okay.”

“Where is your wife?”

“She’s in the car.” I went back and got in the car.

“Asher, the baby is coming right now. Help me pull my pants down.”

“Put the phone on speaker and help your wife, the ambulance is on its way.”

I put the phone down. I didn’t say anything, just swiped my hand over my face and got on my knees so I could face Mel.

“Ash? Did you hear me? You’re going to have to help your wife deliver that baby.”

Fuck. “Yeah. I heard.”

Okay. I could do this. Beads of moisture beaded on Mel’s forehead. I unbuckled her seatbelt and helped her shove her pants down.

“Okay, her pants are down,” I yelled into the phone.

“What’s your wife’s name?”

“Melody.”

“Melody, you’re doing great.” I appreciated his sentiments, but fuck a duck. We were having a baby right here in the fucking car.

“I feel the baby’s head,” Mel said and grunted. With one hand on the door and the other on the middle console, she held herself up off the seat and pushed as the head came out. I felt completely helpless. There wasn’t a thing I could do to help Mel.

“The head is out,” I said.

“Good. That’s good news, Ash. Melody, we need a big push from you so your baby can come out the rest of the way.”

“Oh my God!”

“What is it, Ash. What do you see?”

“The cord. The cord is around the baby’s neck.”

“Okay. Don’t panic. Don’t push anymore, Mel. Wait. Ash, use your fingers and pull the cord away. Clear it from the baby’s neck so it can continue out.”

“Okay.” I slipped my fingers in under the cord and pulled it out over the head. The baby’s face was down, which I was glad about. “Okay. I freed the head.”

“Okay. Melody. One more big push. You can do it,” Tom said.

“Come on, baby. I love you,” I told her as she squeezed down again and the baby slipped out into my hands.”

The baby had a purplish tint. I cleaned out its mouth the best I could with a hooked finger and held it face down, rubbing it’s tiny back until a couple of seconds later, it cried. “It’s a boy,” Mel cried, as I turned him over a little then helped her place him on her chest.

“Now what?” I asked.

“He’s crying, that’s good. That means his airway is clear. Ash, do you have a blanket or anything in the car?”

“Um...yeah,” I said, remembering the small yellow blanket Mel had packed in her overnight bag. I reached into the backseat and tugged on the bag, unzipped it, and searched for the blanket. Everything inside felt the same, either soft cotton or plastic diapers and it was dark. I finally found the blanket and pulled it out.

“Ash, are you there?” the male voice came over the phone.

“Yeah. I’m here. I have the blanket.”

“Okay. Just place it over the baby to keep it warm until the ambulance gets there. There’s nothing else for you to do now except wait for the paramedics. Congratulations.”

I felt a hand on my shoulder. “Good job.” A soft female voice came from behind me. “You did great.”

I beamed and looked at Mel as I placed my hand over my beautiful son.

Welcome to the world, Becket Theodore Beaumont,” Mel said. I kissed my beautiful wife.