Tame the Beast : Small Beach Town, Single Mom Romance

“Let’s do this.” The midwife claps her hands, pulls out a little speaker from her coat pocket and turns on music. “The Final Countdown” by Europe.

“What the fuck is wrong with people in this hospital?” The look on Matteo’s face is priceless. “They are either too fucking happy or too crazy?” he muses to me, shaking his head as we watch the doc start shaking off her hands and legs as if preparing for a fucking fight and I can’t help it. I burst out laughing despite the pain.

He’s right, this is batshit crazy territory and so ridiculous I can’t stop giggling.

I’m in so much pain I can barely see straight, yet with him here it feels manageable and watching his what the fuck face does me in, reminding me of the best night of my life and it’s like he can read my mind, locking our eyes on each other.

“Never have I ever given birth while ‘The Final Countdown’ is playing, and the midwife was high on something,” I whisper, and watch his beautiful face stretch into a huge grin. Matteo lifts up my hand he’s holding and kisses the back of it.

“Never have I ever felt like killing so many people at once,” he answers with that same grin which now is a bit more frantic, and I laugh again.

“All right, let’s do this,” the midwife interrupts our conversation and thrusts one of my legs into his arms.

Matteo looks at the leg, then at me with eyes as wide as saucers, leg again and to the midwife.

“What am I supposed to do with this?”

“Hold it, Dad, so you can get a better view of your baby being born into this beautiful world,” she says casually, bobbing her head to the music, totally oblivious to this “dad’s” fast-paling face. Oh, Jesus, he’s so going to pass out now.

“Y-you want me to s-see that?” He motions with his finger to where she just raised my gown and started probing around my vagina. I’m in so much pain, I no longer feel anything.

“Don’t you?” the midwife asks with a raised eyebrow as she stretches me down there. “Are you not man enough?” she challenges him, as if she knew exactly what to say. Right away, Matteo’s back snaps up, his eyes narrowing on her.

“I’m man enough for anything,” he protests and says something else, but my mind is growing fuzzy, and I no longer keep up with the conversation.

I think he’s talking to himself, because I swear I hear, “It’s okay. Man the fuck up, Matteo! You are about to become a dad!” Following with the freaking breathing exercises I was supposed to do as if he’s the one pushing this baby out.

The midwife and the nurse are telling me to push, and I get a glimpse of Matteo getting all up and personal with my vagina as he yells for me to do the same, his head hunched over to see what’s going on between my legs.

Oh well, if he wants to be traumatized for life it’s not my fault.

Somewhere along the way I hear him call out, “I see the head! Beastie! I see the head, but I can’t tell the color of the hair. It’s too bloody.”

“Jesus Christ, Matteo, stop looking at my vagina,” I manage to mumble as I push again and again until the pressure is gone. The pain is gone. Everything is gone apart from a piercing cry from both Matteo and my baby girl at the same time.

“IT’S A GIRL!” he yells out as she wails.

“Congratulations, parents, you have a beautiful baby girl.” My little bug gets placed on my chest and all the worries I’ve had about being a single mom vanish. She’s my entire world. Just like that.

Tears are streaming down my face as I lift a shaky hand to her back, gently caressing the soft as silk skin.

“Where is the second one?” Matteo asks, bent over me, looking in between my legs.

“What second one?” the midwife asks.

“The second baby! Did you forget to get it out?” he hisses out, and she raises her eyebrow at me.

I smile, placing my hand on his and his eyes snap to mine, immediately thawing as he takes us in. “Matteo, there is no second baby. I was only pregnant with just one. This one.” I kiss the top of her head as she’s resting on my bare chest.

“No second baby? So, no twins?” he asks, drawing his eyebrows together and I think he’s…sad about it?

“Nope.”

“Oh.” Yep, definitely sad, which is crazy! The guy didn’t want a relationship not even six months ago, and now he’s disappointed that I had only one kid?

“One is enough.” He nods to himself and bends over to us. “Can I…can I touch her?”

I should open my mouth and tell him he’s off the hook, but those eyes…the way he’s looking at her…I can’t.