Her Texas Cowboy Protector (The Winchester Cowboys #3)

Epilogue

Landon poured out piles of feed in the pasture as the herd of Black Angus cattle milled around him. He was enjoying the quiet of the early April afternoon.

His thoughts returned to breakfast and Natalie. She’d looked so tired after another sleepless night. She was two days past her due date, and the baby was moving almost constantly. Her doctor didn’t believe in inducing labor to meet his delivery schedule. Instead, he wanted his patients to go into labor naturally whenever possible.

Landon had taken lunch at his parents’ house so that Natalie could sleep. He wondered how she was faring.

As he tossed the empty feed bag into the back of his truck, his phone rang. His heart beat faster as he saw it was Natalie. “Everything okay, honey?”

“I’ve been having contractions all morning, Landon. I think I’ve miscalculated. They were five minutes apart for a long time, but now they’ve suddenly gone to less than four. I’m sorry!”

“Dammit, Natalie, why didn’t you call me? The hospital’s two hours away!” Then he bit his lip. Why was he raising his voice at her? She had to be scared. He scrambled into the truck and threw it into drive. “Look, I’m sorry. I’ll be right there, don’t worry. Just hang in there, baby.”

As he sped down the road, he called his parents and gave them a heads-up. At the gate, he cursed under his breath at the delay of getting out to open and shut it. At least it was the only gate between him and the house this afternoon.

His tires threw gravel as he hit the brakes and slid to a stop in front of the house. He left the truck running and raced through the front door as Natalie rounded the corner from the hallway into the living room.

A look of shock crossed her face, and she cried, “Oh!” and looked down.

Fluid poured from between her legs onto the wood floor. He strode toward her. “It’s okay, honey.” He took the suitcase from her. “Let’s go back to the room and get you changed real quick.”

Tears streamed down her face. “Dammit. I’ve ruined everything!”

He took her into his arms and hugged her tight. “You’ve done no such thing.” He cupped her cheek in his hand and made her look at him. “Everything’s going to be fine, sweetheart. I’ve got you, okay?”

She gulped back a sob and nodded.

Taking her by the hand, he led her back to the bedroom and grabbed another pair of maternity leggings from her drawer, along with a pair of panties.

She struggled to take her wet things off, then moaned in frustration as another contraction bent her over in pain.

He realized that she had the hiccups too. Poor thing. “Here, honey, let me help you with that.” He gently pulled her leggings and panties down and off her bare feet.

After she’d cleaned herself up, he helped her put her panties and a thick pad on. Then he quickly put her leggings back on her between contractions.

He helped her stand up, and they headed straight for the car. Once she was settled in her seat, he leaned her back, making her more comfortable.

They were having the baby at Seton Medical Center in Austin, and he was going to drive as fast as he safely could in order to carve some time off the two-hour drive. He looked over at Natalie’s strained face and said, “Remember your breathing exercises, honey. This is what we trained for.”

She looked at him with narrowed eyes, her jaws clenched in pain from a contraction, and he wondered if he’d made her angry with his suggestion.

But a moment later, when her contraction had subsided, she said, “Thanks, I’ll try on the next one.” When she smiled at him, she seemed more relaxed.

Though the drive seemed interminable, they eventually pulled up to the West Tower Entrance and parked in the dedicated parking for pregnant mothers.

They entered and went up to the second floor. Thankfully, the final registration didn’t take long. Natalie had two contractions while they were there. He felt so helpless as she struggled to sit still while they answered questions and signed papers.

From there, they were taken directly to a labor and delivery suite, where he helped Natalie change into the provided hospital gown.

She groaned as a contraction came while he was removing her leggings and panties. He waited for it to pass, then took off her long tunic and bra.

She sighed and cupped his cheek. “Thanks for helping me, sweetheart.”

He brought her hand to his lips. “I’ll always be here for you, honey. Now let’s get this gown on.”

“The pains hurt more than I thought they would,” she said a moment later, as he helped her up onto the bed.

“Why don’t you consider an epidural, sweetheart? We can talk to your nurse about it when she comes in.”

“I think I will. I don’t want to be so miserable I can’t feel good about the experience.”

He kissed her forehead. “I think that’s smart.” He held her hand, wishing there was more he could do.

A few minutes later, their nurse came in and introduced herself. “I’m Lana, and I’ll be your nurse today.” She smiled. “You must be Natalie.”

“I’m Landon, her husband,” he introduced himself.

“Nice to meet you, Landon. Do we know if we’re having a boy or a girl yet?” she asked as she wheeled a machine over to the bed.

“We’re having a little boy,” Natalie said. She turned and smiled at Landon.

When Lana had finished hooking up the baby monitor, Natalie said, “I think I’d like an epidural before my pain gets too much worse. We took a birthing class, but I think I want an epidural after all.”

“Of course, Natalie. I’ll let your doctor know and notify the anesthesiologist. It takes a while to get the ball rolling for an epidural, so do you want me to say that you’re ready for it now?”

Natalie looked at Landon, and he nodded. He didn’t want to see her in pain.

“Yes, please do that.”

Natalie immediately looked less stressed, and he felt relieved.

“I’m glad you decided that, honey.”

She smiled up at him, then grimaced as she felt the start of another contraction. “Me too,” she said through gritted teeth.

Over the next four hours, Natalie’s labor progressed normally. Her epidural worked perfectly, making her labor pains mild. She drowsed in and out as he held her hand.

Lana, who was working a double shift, came in periodically and checked on Natalie’s dilation. By eleven that night, she was at nine centimeters and her contractions were a minute apart.

Natalie’s parents had been in to visit with her, and his parents had come in too. They were all in the waiting room, excited for the outcome.

At midnight, a knock sounded at the door, and Natalie’s mom walked in.

Natalie looked up and smiled. “We’re almost there, Mom. My nurse just checked me, and I’m fully dilated. She just went to tell my doctor.”

Her mom leaned down and gave Natalie a hug. “I’m so proud of you, honey. You’ve done a fantastic job. Your father is so excited.”

Natalie grinned. “I’ll bet he is.” Another contraction started, and she put her hand on her belly. “I can’t believe I’ll see our little boy soon, Mom.”

Amy gave Landon a hug. “Thanks for taking such good care of my daughter.”

“You bet.”

She stepped back. “I’d better go tell your dad the good news. Landon, I can’t wait for you to come tell us when we finally have a grandson!”

He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’ll come to you as soon as I can.”

Her doctor walked in a few minutes later and smiled at them. “Natalie, are you ready to push?”

“You bet I am.”

Landon stood beside Natalie, holding her hand tightly as she pushed with each contraction. Sooner than he thought possible, the doctor held his baby boy in his hands.

He said, “Dad, are you cutting the cord?”

Landon moved to the foot of the bed. “I sure am.”

“That’s great. Just give me a sec.” The doctor took a minute to finish with the baby, then laid him face down on Natalie’s bare chest.

Natalie began to cry softly, her face wreathed in smiles. “There’s my sweet boy.”

“Now I’ll clamp the cord, Dad, then I’ll give you the scissors and you can cut it,” the doctor said.

Landon’s heart began to pound with excitement. He’d never forget this moment.

When he took the scissors and applied them to the cord, it was more difficult than he expected to cut.

The baby had quit fussing immediately after being put on his momma’s chest.

Natalie patted his back. “Hello, sweet baby. Your momma and daddy love you.”

“Does baby boy Winchester have a name yet?” her doctor asked.

“His name is Blaise Allen Winchester,” Landon said, as tears came to his eyes.

As the nurses took care of Natalie and the doctor helped her deliver the afterbirth, he gazed down on his little son. Lana had covered him in a little blanket, and the baby’s eyes were closed as he slept after the trauma of his birth.

He couldn’t wait to hold him, but he knew that this initial skin-to-skin time was critical.

After a while, the baby’s nursing team took little Blaise and put him on the warmer. He fussed at first, but then calmed down as they weighed and measured him.

Finally, Blaise was put in one of the newborn outfits they’d brought with them and wrapped in the little cowboy patchwork quilt Debra had made them.

“You take your turn now, Daddy,” Natalie said.

Lana handed Blaise to him. His heart was so full it hurt. He bent and kissed his baby on the forehead. Blaise’s eyes were closed. “Do you know how much I love you, little one?” He touched the tip of the baby’s nose. “I love you the whole sky full. That’s how much.”

He walked over to stand beside the bed and looked into Natalie’s eyes. “I love you, honey. You’ve given me so much joy, and now you’ve given me a son. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for being my wife.”

She pulled him down and kissed him. “I love you with all my heart, Landon Winchester.”

He kissed little Blaise again and closed his eyes. Thank you, God, for this precious little boy and for my loving wife. I’ll cherish these blessings you’ve given me forever.