“Now!” I said when another pain enveloped me, and Angus and Colt both held me underneath an armpit while I pushed hard. It only took three times to get the baby out, and then I fell back, finally able to rest. The bed was disgusting with birth fluid and cum all over it. As soon as Laura took the baby away to clean it, Angus lifted me up and Colt stripped it and got a fresh sheet on the bed.
“Here she is,” Laura said, bringing the baby to me.
“She? It’s a girl?” I asked, starting to cry.
“What’s the matter, you wanted a boy?” Angus asked.
Lower lip trembling, I said, “Angus, no. Oh, don’t tease me.”
Chuckling, Angus moved the blanket so we could see the baby’s face.
“We haven’t even discussed names,” he said.
“We’re lucky I finished the crib,” Colt said. “Aw, look what a cutie she is. Her hair’s so dark.”
“Put her to a nipple,” Laura instructed.
I did, and when she began to suck, I cried some more.
Laura left us alone with the baby, and the three of us gazed at her in awe while I nursed her.
“Lucy wanted a girl,” Angus said.
“Did she?” Colt asked. “How come you two never had any more kids after Maddox’s dad?”
“We tried, but it just never happened. I know it was a big disappointment to her.”
“What about to you?” I asked.
“More like a small one. I was always so busy with the ranch, I didn’t give it a lot of thought. Maybe that was unfair to her.”
Angus seemed to be struggling with what to say. Resting my hand on his arm, I said, “Tell us what’s bothering you.”
Looking uncomfortable, Angus cleared his throat. “You two have to understand. Lucy and I had a good marriage for many years. We made this ranch together and had a son and grandson. Losing her tore me apart.” He glanced at Colt. “You know it did.”
Colt nodded.
“And I’ve told you it came as a surprise—my feelings for the two of you. But I wasn’t lying when I told you I wanted to marry you, and I don’t regret it for a minute. I also want to make sure you know how happy I am to be sitting here with you looking at our beautiful daughter right now. Don’t ever doubt my feelings for the three of you.”
I wiped the tear from under Angus’s eyes. “We know that. Right, Colt?”
“Right. We don’t doubt your love, Angus,” Colt said roughly.
Angus swallowed hard and nodded. When he had his emotions under control, he said, “But I sometimes wonder what Lucy would think of our situation. That I’m with two partners? And they’re both men?” He shook his head. “I can’t imagine. I want to believe that was her voice telling me to get Ben, and I want to believe it means she approves of us.”
“If there’s anything I know about Lucy Angel,” Colt said, “it’s that she would want you to be happy. She loved you so much, Angus. Anybody with eyes could see it. I believe that it wasLucy you heard. She’s watching out for you, and when she saw Maddox’s son—her great-grandson—so ill, she wanted to help. And, somehow, she knew Ben was the one who could help her.”
Angus nodded. Colt and I cooed over the baby, giving him a moment. Suddenly, I had a thought.
“I know what I want to name her!”
Angus and Colt looked from the baby to me.
“What?” Colt asked.
“Lucy, of course! That is, if it’s okay with you, Angus.”
Angus’s eyes were wet again when he gazed into mine. “That’s more than all right, Benny, if you’re sure it’s what you want. You don’t have to do that for me.”