All But Broken Mate

CH 20: Knight Mare

CH 20: Knight Mare (Jay's POV)

The sounds of whimpering wakes me. My mate... My love is so uncomfortable. She has had such a hard time sleeping. For her, I hope the last few weeks of her pregnancy pass by swiftly. It kills me to know I'm responsible for her discomfort. I wish I could do this for her, so she doesn't have to bear this pain.

Her face scrunches in pain and she wakes screaming. "It's okay Cookie, I have you. I'm here."

I move to tighten my hold on her, but she squirms free. Panting and whimpering she sits up. Another scream falls from her lips and the bed is suddenly drenched. Holy shit. It's too early. She can't be going in labor now.

Izza is crying as I lift her into my arms and pull her from the bed. Barely dressed, I race us from the room and down the stairs. She curls in on herself as she cries out again in pain. I'm so sorry my love. I mind-link for someone to pull a car, any car, around front for me.

I have her seated in the back of a black SUV within minutes of her waking. The race to the hospital feels like it takes hours, but in reality, I made the twenty-minute drive in less than ten. The nurses are ready for us when we arrive.

Izza is in a private room, and they are hooking her up to a plethora of monitors. She reaches for my hand and I intertwine our fingers. "It's too soon." She cries.

Our princess is two weeks early. It's not the best-case scenario, but she has a fighting chance. At twenty-three weeks, her lungs should be developed enough to join us. It's scary to even think about what could happen if they aren't. We are joined by Dr. Brown. We had seen Dr. Rush, but she unsettled my mate. She didn't like the way she looked at me. I'm not a fan of her having a male doctor, but Dr. Brown's father delivered me.

"Good morning Beta Alpha and Luna." He steps forward and shakes my hand. "I hear there has been a lot of excitement this morning. I'm going to check and see how things are progressing, so please sir, do not kill me."

He smiles as he says this. I nod and Izza squeezes my hand as another contraction hits her. I choose to focus on her, not what Dr. Brown is doing.

A clearing of a throat catches my attention and I turn back to the doctor. "Things are progressing very quickly. I had hoped we could slow the process, but it is too late for that."

I raise a brow as Izza screams again. My attention is turned back to her. This is it. Our daughter will be with us very soon. Sooner than expected.

"Luna, I need you to place your feet here in the stirrups, and on your next contraction we need you to push."

"No, no, no, no... It's too soon." Izza pants and tries to press her legs together.

"Be that as it may, she is coming no matter what we do. So let's get her out quickly and safely." His warm gentle words reassure Izza. No sooner than she gets into position, another contraction hits. I watch as her face screws up in pain and concentration. She pushes again and again. Her contractions are back to back, and again I wish I could take this pain for her.

Twenty minutes after we arrive, our princess is born. She is here. Bright green eyes, flaming red hair, with ten fingers and ten toes. Fat tears roll down my cheeks as I hear her first cry. She already has me wrapped around her tiny fingers. She is laid skin to skin across Izza's chest, and I watch in amazement as my two girls stare at each other.

Izza looks so tired, but she has a broad smile across her lips. She lays her head back on the bed and the monitors start to beep. Izza's body shakes as the machines set off a symphony of sounds. Nooooo... She was just fine. Just perfect with our daughter in her arms. A flat beep plays and I nearly drop to the floor.