A/N: When she was little, my daughter loved to hear the story of the day she was born. Since I was of the belief that you used the real terms for body parts and functions, she named the story Labor Day.
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December 19, 2011
It was a week before Christmas but Rachel Hood wasn't feeling festive; her mood was more Scrooge-like. As she stared at her bedroom ceiling, she thought she had every reason to be grumpy. She was fifteen months pregnant and her aching back had woken her an hour before her alarm was set to go off.
'Ok, I'm not exactly fifteen months pregnant,' she mentally conceded. It only felt that way. Rachel couldn't understand women who gloried in their pregnancies. Yes, she was excited about the child she and Jacob created and she was looking forward to being a mother. All the other aspects of pregnancy, however, irked her.
No one told her that morning sickness could strike at any time of the day. For the first couple months Rachel had been nauseous in the late afternoon and could count on throwing up shortly after dinner. Even now certain aromas made her feel queasy. The hormonal changes were a constant challenge; she once found herself getting teary over a report from a counter-intelligence unit stationed in Iraq. The weight gain and the resultant change in her center of balance made her a bit clumsy. For the first time in her life she had to watch how she stepped, how she moved. Plus she seemed to be sleepy earlier and earlier in the evening. It was hard for her to keep her eyes open after eight p.m. A natural athlete, Rachel always considered her body a well-oiled machine. Now that machine seemed to have developed a few clunks.
What really irritated her were the reactions of other people to her pregnancy. She seriously considered getting a t-shirt that said "Yes, my doctor knows I'm doing this" to wear at the gym. She lost count of the number of well-meaning agents who were a little freaked at the sight of a pregnant woman working out with weights. Even worse were the total strangers who thought nothing of accosting a pregnant woman in public. Her lips curved up as she recalled the look on the face of the idiot who patted her stomach after she pulled her weapon and informed him he was under arrest for assaulting a federal agent.
As her alarm went off, Rachel reached over to hit the snooze button. Doing this reminded her of the other reason for her grumpiness. She sighed at the sight of the empty space on the other side of the bed. Jacob had been called out of town two days ago, OSHA requested his assistance. They were investigating a sudden upsurge in respiratory diseases in some coal miners in West Virginia. They first thought it was carbon monoxide poisoning but doctors quickly ruled that out. The OSHA inspectors couldn't find anything out of the ordinary in the mine but more workers were becoming ill. While geographically Jacob wasn't far away, the mountains and hollows of West Virginia meant cell reception was spotty. She and Jacob weren't able to keep in close as touch as they both wanted.
Wincing from the pain in her back Rachel rolled out of bed as her alarm went off again. Grumpy or not, it was time to start her day.
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Glaring at his cell phone Jacob silently cursed modern technology. 'All technology, really' he thought. It was his confidence in the reliability of cell phones, computers, and phones in general that made him comfortable accepting this assignment so close to Rachel's due date. He hadn't counted on being in an area where his cell phone and laptop were pretty much useless since Internet service weren't a given. The motel Terrance found for them did have a landline but Jacob quickly discovered it was incapable of making long-distance calls. When he complained to the clerk on duty the girl only gaped at him, not fully understanding his need to contact the world outside the county.
Checking his watch, he decided there was time for a quick shower before going over to the local diner and its payphone. He'd be able to catch Rachel before she left for work. As he headed to the bathroom Jacob made a mental note to obtain a satellite phone once they were back in civilization.
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Rachel took off her reading glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose, irritation clear on her face. Her second in command, Mike Webster, shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
"I hope you know, don't think, I had anything to do with this." he said.
"Don't worry Mike," Rachel reassured him, "I know exactly who's responsible for this situation."
Rachel never had any doubt about her administrative assistant's feelings for her. Naomi Seifert made it clear, in thousands of small ways, that she thought Rachel was an inappropriate choice for SAC of the Counter-Terrorism Division. At first Rachel wondered if Naomi's attitude stemmed from Jacob's friendship with the Director; thinking that was the only reason she was promoted. She soon realized that Naomi disliked having a young, female boss. When she learned about Rachel's pregnancy, Naomi was shocked to discover Rachel had no intention of resigning her position. As Rachel's pregnancy progressed she grew increasing petty and uncooperative. Today however, she finally crossed the line.
Rachel was the FBI representative to the All-Sec Group. The group consisted of agents from all federal departments tasked with protecting the country; the FBI, CIA, Homeland, Justice, and various military intelligence units. To prevent feelings of territorialism, the monthly meetings rotated between the offices of the various groups. Today's meeting was scheduled for the Pentagon. Rachel thought she was going to have an easy day; when she arrived at her office Naomi told her the meeting was cancelled. She was feeling out of sorts and hadn't been looking forward to the drive out to Northern Virginia.
Rachel decided to take advantage of this opening in her schedule. By working through lunch she would be able to get away early to finish up her Christmas shopping. She sent Naomi out for a sandwich. Minutes after Naomi left Mike poked his head in her office. He had come by to clarify an issue on the All-Sec agenda. After some mutual confusion, it became clear to Rachel that Naomi had meddled unforgivably.
The meeting hadn't been canceled. Naomi waylaid Mike on his way to his office and handed over the briefing materials. She told him Rachel wanted him to attend the meeting in her place. He wasn't suspicious; since the first of the month the two of them had planning how Rachel's duties would be covered during her maternity leave. Rachel had mentioned she wanted him to attend the next All-Sec meeting with her; he figured she decided to save herself the trip. He was visibly dismayed and apologetic when he realized how Naomi played him.
"Look, I'll take care of Naomi later, right now I need you to bring me up to speed on the agenda."
The two bent their heads over the briefing materials; Naomi was startled when she discovered Mike in the office when she brought Rachel her lunch. She was uneasy when Rachel merely requested her to go back out and get Mike something to eat. For the next hour Naomi kept glancing at the closed office door wondering what her future held. When the door finally opened she ostentatiously began typing.
"Naomi," Rachel spoke sharply to get the woman's attention. "When I get back f rom the Pentagon I want you gone."
"Are you, you... firing me?"
"No, I should after the shit you pulled today..."
"I did what I thought best for the Bureau," Naomi interrupted, "you have no .business ..."
Rachel lost her temper. "I don't give a good god-damn what you thought you were doing. I think you were insubordinate and I should fire your ass. But frankly you're not worth the paperwork. I've talked to HR, you're being re-assigned. As of tomorrow you are someone else's pain in the ass. Pack up your stuff and make sure you're gone before I get back."
Rachel stalked out of the office with a smirking Mike Webster trailing behind.
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"Wait a second, wait a second," Jacob murmured to himself as he peered through a microscope.
Jacob immediately got caught up in the investigation when he reached the hospital. As much as it grieved him, the death of the first miner to develop the respiratory disease was a step forward. The autopsy provided vital information as to the origin and progression of the disease. He worked steadily for the next few hours, hunched over his microscope, following leads and discarding hypothesizes. The tissue sample he was currently examining was providing him with some much needed answers. If what he suspected was true, he was close to finding a solution to the problem.
Contemplating what he learned, Jacob stretched and rubbed his aching back. Checking his watch he was shocked to see how late it was. He had intended to call Rachel at lunch time and now it was mid-afternoon. He immediately pulled out his cell phone and gave a huff of disgust, he still didn't have a signal. Luckily there was a phone in the lab. He frowned when Rachel's cell went immediately to voice mail. His frown deepened when he dialed her office and the call went unanswered.
Terrance noticed Dr. Hood's distress. "What is it sir?"
"I can't get in touch with Rachel. Her cell is going to voice mail and there's no answer at her office."
Terrance pulled out his phone to check his calendar. "Not to worry sir, today's her day for the All-Sec meeting, she probably turned her phone off."
Jacob looked at him doubtfully. "Well, yes, but what about her office? Shouldn't Naomi pick up?"
Terrance snorted dismissively. "If I know her, she's taking advantage of SAC Young being away to sneak out to do some Christmas shopping." He smiled encouraging, "I'm sure if there was any news we'd have heard by now."
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Rachel surreptitiously checked her watch. 'Damn, I can't believe this is happening.' It finally occurred to her as they were halfway to the Pentagon that what she assumed were Braxton-Hicks contractions were coming at regular intervals. She didn't think it would be a problem; the agenda wasn't that long. She figured they'd be done in an hour and she could call her doctor on their way back to the Hoover Building. She hadn't anticipated the snarkiness of the man from the CIA.
The CIA rep was never totally happy. It chafed him that the Agency was statutorily forbidden to operate in the United States while everyone else could operate both at home and abroad. So he took every opportunity to play up threats, real or perceived, from overseas.
As the meeting droned on she discreetly checked her watch and was alarmed to realize her pains were now five minutes apart. 'Shit, I'm in active labor.'
"I'm sorry SAC Young, are we keeping you from something?" The man from the CIA's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
Rachel was about to deny any problem when she suddenly felt a warmth between her thighs. 'Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. My water just broke.' Blessing the fact she had taken to wearing a super-absorbent sanitary pad while at work Rachel got to her feet and managed a smile. "Actually yes, if you gentlemen will excuse me, I have to go and bring forth a new life."
Rachel took some satisfaction at the looks on the faces around her. She managed a dignified exit with Mike scrambling from his seat to catch up with her. As soon as she reached the hallway she leaned against the wall with Mike hovering uncertainly beside her.
"Uh, what, do you want me to do anything?"
Rachel took a series of shallow breaths. "Yeah, run ahead and get the car. I'll call my doctor, let her know I'm heading to the hospital."
Mike nodded and rushed off to retrieve their SUV. Rachel slowly followed, stopping occasionally to allow a contraction to pass. After talking to her doctor she attempted to call Jacob, cursing under breath when the call failed to go through.
She reached the entrance to the building when a familiar voice sounded behind her.
"SAC Young, it's good to see you again."
Rachel turned and managed a strained smile. "Good afternoon Colonel Brooks."
Henry Brooks looked at her with concern, "What's wrong."
Before she could answer, an especially strong contraction made her gasp in pain. Brooks' jaw dropped. "You're in active labor. Do you need…?"
Rachel interrupted him. "No it's ok, my assistant is getting the car. He'll drop me at GW Hospital. Everything's fine." At Brooks' skeptical look she bit her lip. "I can't get reach Jacob," she confessed, "He's in some backwater with no cell reception."
Mike pulled up and Rachel went to the SUV. "I guess it doesn't matter, he couldn't get here in time anyway."
Brooks looked after her with a thoughtful look on his face; it made his job easier if people were in his debt, not the other way around. The way things stood now, he was the one who owed Hood. This was the perfect opportunity to change that. He pulled out his cell phone. "Jim? Henry Brooks here. I need to get the FBI's Special Science Advisor to D.C. ASAP. Find him and get him to GW's hospital."
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Alex Hood hung up the phone, a worried look on her face. She knew Jacob shouldn't have left town so close to Rachel's due date. She had pulled him aside and they had argued about his accepting this assignment. When he told her there was only a 45.2% chance of the baby being born before he returned she retorted that babies weren't real good at math. Now Rachel was in labor and Jacob was unreachable. The sound of the front door opening pulled her out of her thoughts. She was relieved that Jonathan Young has arrived home with Owen. She still found it a bit hard to believe that she had come to rely on him in times of crises.
She had no problem sharing the big house in Deale with Jacob and Rachel. She was uneasy though when she learned Rachel had issued an open-ended invitation to her father to come for Thanksgiving and to stay until the baby was born. Her unease was due to the few bits of information Jacob let drop about his father-in-law; Jacob told her the man was difficult; he always referred to Jonathan as "that stubborn bastard who never treated Rachel with the respect she deserved." While he and Jacob were icily polite to each other, Rachel and Jonathan were developing a better relationship. It wasn't perfect; Alex could see Rachel sometimes fold her lips together tightly when her father criticized some of her decisions. But things were much better than they had been when Jonathan first arrived. It was his reaching out to Owen that completely won her over.
One morning, shortly after Jonathan's arrival, Owen dallied over his breakfast. He insisted he was sick and didn't want to go to school. After some probing, Own blurted out that it was Grandparents Day and he was the only one in his class not to have anyone to bring. Alex felt a wave of anger and sadness on her son's behalf. Jacob's and her parents died when Owen was a toddler. She was estranged from her ex-husband's family; Owen's paternal grandparents hadn't seen him since the divorce. She couldn't believe the school could be so insensitive. Before she could respond Jonathan lowered his newspaper.
"What am I? Chopped liver?"
"You… you're not my grandfather," Owen's lips were still trembling.
"I'm your grandfather-in-law," Jonathan replied. At Owen's skeptical look he elaborated. "Look, your mother is my daughter's sister-in-law, right?" Owen nodded. "Well, if they're sisters, your mom must be my daughter-in-law which makes you my grandson-in-law."
"I don't think it works like that," Owen said doubtfully.
Alex bit back a smile as Jonathan Young raised an eyebrow haughtily. Now she saw where Rachel got that trick.
"Are you calling me a liar, boy?"
Owen's eyes widened, "No sir!"
Jonathan retired behind his paper, "good, now stop this nonsense and get ready for school."
From that day on Alex was a fan. She ruefully realized that maybe her brother wasn't the best judge of Jonathan Young. She also suspected Jonathan learned from his mistakes in raising Rachel. Slowly, she and Owen began to build their own relationships with him. It was something of a novelty, and a relief, to have another adult around to lend her support.
Jonathan realized immediately that something was bothering Alex. He invented an errand to get Owen out of the way. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong, exactly. Rachel's gone into labor, she just called on her way to the hospital."
Jonathan was elated, "That's great news, why are you worried? She'll do fine, she's in…" He trailed off as the source of Alex's worry occurred to him. "She's in labor and that damn fool brother of yours in nowhere to be found right? He had no business high-tailing it out of here so close to Rachel's due date."
Alex sighed, this one was topic on which they'd never agree. Even though things worked out well for her, Jonathan still referred to Jacob as "that damn fool airy-fairy so-called genius who almost cost Rachel her career." And it wouldn't help to remind him that Jacob and Rachel thought Jacob should accept this latest assignment from the Bureau.
"I know everything will be fine," Alex said, "I just wish Jacob was here. But now we need to get Owen settled. I told Rachel I'd be her back-up labor coach so I need to get to the hospital" She looked at Jonathan, "I assume you want to be there too?"
At Jonathan's nod Alex reached for the phone. The mother of Owen's best friend was more than happy to keep Owen for a night if necessary. Owen was slightly disappointed on not being allowed to go to the hospital but Jonathan promised to come back to Deale and get him after the baby was born.
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"I don't care how much money it's going to cost you," Jacob was toe to toe with the mine owner. "I want those men out of that mine. Now."
The tissue samples from the dead miner had provided the answers Jacob was looking for. The respiratory disease that brought him to West Virginia was caused by the miner's breathing in heavy metals. The mine owner, in an attempt to save money, hadn't replaced the metal containers used to store the coal sludge. Inevitably, the container rusted allowing the sludge to leach into the groundwater. The water, once it met the hot conditions inside the mine, turned into a deadly vapor. The miners who succumbed first were ones whose lungs were already weakened by years in the mines.
The mine owner was resistant to closing down the mine to allow it to be decontaminated. His and Jacob's argument was cut short by the sound of a helicopter. It's wasn't a normal, commercial helicopter, it was a black Apache attack helicopter, complete with gun mounts. Everyone stared in amazement as the helicopter came in low, turned and began its decent, obviously intending to land in the field across from the mine.
"Holy shit," one of the miners murmured. "The gov'mint's finally invading."
Everyone froze in place as the door of the helicopter slid open and a soldier dressed in camouflage jumped out. Crouching to avoid the rotors, he sprinted across the road toward the assembled crowd.
"Dr. Jacob Hood?"
"Yes?"
The soldier saluted, "Colonel Brooks compliments sir, I'm to bring you back to D.C."
Jacob was bewildered, "What? Why?" He gestured to the mine owner, "I'm not quite finished here."
"I'm afraid I don't have any details," the soldier shrugged, "my orders were to track you down and deliver you to George Washington Hospital ASAP."
At the mention of the hospital, Jacob's mouth dropped open. "Oh my god, you mean Rachel's in labor?"
"Like I said sir, I don't have the details. I was told to deliver you to the hospital and that time was of the essence." He smiled suddenly, "I guess if your wife's having a baby that explains the hurry."
Grinning broadly Felix pushed Jacob toward the helicopter. "Doc, you get going. I'll finish up here. You need to get back home."
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"You're doing great," Alex said as she wiped the sweat from Rachel's brow.
"I'm not doing fucking great," Rachel contradicted her. "I'm awful, I'm goddamned awful. I can't do this without Jacob. Where the hell is he?"
"You're father's still trying to call him, surely he's got to get a signal at some point." Alex winced as Rachel gripped her hand tightly. "Ok, just breath, you're doing great."
"So, how's my star patient doing?" Dr. Park, Rachel ob-gyn breezed into the room.
"You!" Rachel's tone was full of loathing. "You have hell of a lot of nerve showing up here. 'Oh, you're nowhere near ready, oh, you'll probably deliver after Christmas.'"
Dr. Park grinned, "What idiot told you that?
"You fucking did" Rachel spat out, "four days ago." Rachel gave a gasp as her next contraction began.
"I guess this baby had other ideas. Let me check on how you're doing." After glancing at the chart at the end of the bed, Dr. Park made a quick examination. "You're making good progress. You were admitted at 2 centimeters and you're at 5 after 2 hours. Unless your labor stalls I'd say you'll most likely deliver in a couple of hours."
"Damnit, I can't have the baby yet," Rachel was frantic. "You've got slow things down. You need to give me something to give Jacob time to get here. Just until tomorrow. He should be here by then."
"You know I can't do that." Dr. Park rubbed Rachel's arm. "This isn't premature labor. You're at 39 weeks, if we were to anything to delay your labor it could harm the baby."
Alex took advantage of the doctor's presence to slip out to see if Jonathan had any luck in reaching Jacob. She was surprised to find him sitting in the waiting room casually flipping through a magazine. He looked up at her entrance.
"How's Rachel? Any news?"
"I, uh, thought you might have news for me. Have you talked to Jacob?"
Jonathan snorted. "Him? No. His damn cell phone keeps going straight to voice mail. I figure we have to wait for him to get in range and hope he checks his messages."
Alex winced at the derision in Jonathan's voice. As annoyed as she was at Jacob for leaving town she felt she had to defend him to his father-in-law. "You're not being fair, they both..."
She broke off at the commotion in the hallway. A nurse was protesting, "Sir! I'm sorry, you can't just ..."
"My wife is here, I need to find her."
Alex sagged in relief as she recognized Jacob's voice. She and Jonathan both went to meet him.
"Jacob!" Alex called.
Jacob rushed down the hall, "Alex, where's Rachel? Is she, is everything ok? I'm not too late, am I?" He grimaced at Jonathan. "Young."
Jonathan returned the glare, "Hood."
Alex gave Jacob a quick hug. "She's fine. Her labor is progressing normally and the doctor thinks she'll deliver in a few hours." Her lips twitched, "I'm glad you're here, you can help keep Rachel in line. We're on our third delivery room nurse." She snickered at the look on Jacob's face. "The first one objected to her language so Rachel told her to get fucked. When the second one suggested an epidural, Rachel reduced her to tears."
Jacob shook his head, a small smile on his lips. "But everything's ok, she, the baby, they're not in any distress?"
Alex shook her head and took his arm to usher him to Rachel's room. "The only thing distressing Rachel is the thought you'd miss the birth of your child. Now you're here, she'll be fine."
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"About time you got here," Rachel growled. She winced as another contraction began.
Jacob kissed her forehead. "I told you, I was there at the beginning and I'd be here for the end. Now, let's see how you're doing."
Nodding to the nurse, Jacob shrugged off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. He checked the chart at the end of her bed and ran an eye over the monitor. He frowned, looking at the wire disappearing between her legs.
"Why are you doing internal fetal monitoring? According to the charts, Rachel's labor is progressing normally and she's not a high-risk patient."
"Oh, that's just standard procedure, Mr. Hood," the nurse attempted to soothe what she thought were fatherly jitters."
Jacob's eyebrows rose, "It's Dr. Hood, actually, and I want that wire removed. Now. It's unnecessary and adding to Rachel's discomfort."
"Oh, ah," the nurse stuttered, "I don't think I can..."
"Fine," Jacob pulled a pair of gloves from the box on the stand beside Rachel's bed. "I'll take care of it myself."
The nurse yelped in surprise. "You can't do that, I ..., uh, I'd better get the doctor."
As the nurse vanished out the door, Rachel glared at Jacob, "you are not a real doctor. God damnit, what do you think you're doing?"
"Relax sweetheart that was just the quickest way to get her to find your doctor for us." He leaned over and brushed her hair away from her face. "You'll be a lot more comfortable once we get rid of these wires. You can move around a bit, maybe even take a walk with me."
"Walk!? In case you haven't noticed I'm in a fucking hospital gown that opens down the front, I don't think I'm gonna be walking anywhere."
At that moment the doctor and nurse burst into the room. After a quick glance confirmed everything was still in place Dr. Parks greeted Jacob.
"I understand you have a problem with the monitoring?"
Jacob tilted his head to one side and nipped in his lip. "Theoretically, no. But in Rachel's case, yes. She's had a low-risk pregnancy, she's in great physical shape, and according to her chart, her labor is textbook perfect. I think she'd be more comfortable without them."
"Yes," agreed Dr. Parks, "I guess we could do without the internal monitor, but ..."
Jacob interrupted her, "does this unit have a Doppler fetal monitor? I've used one before, I can monitor the baby and let you know if there's signs of distress."
Dr. Park considered the matter for a few minutes. "Ok, Rachel is doing well, she'll most likely be delivering in a few hours. As long as you check every 20 minutes we should be ok. But," she poked Jacob in the chest, "if Rachel's labor stalls and she hasn't delivered in the next three hours, we go back to an external monitor, deal?"
"Deal." Jacob smiled in relief.
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"Shouldn't we have heard something by now?"
Alex looked up from her magazine, a faint look of surprise on her face. For the past few hours Jonathan had been getting increasingly jittery. This was a distinct change from his relaxed, almost casual attitude when they first arrived at the hospital. She could almost time the moment his attitude began to deteriorate; when Jacob arrived at the hospital. It was almost as if Jonathan was under the impression that Rachel was deliberately delaying childbirth until Jacob arrived and he couldn't understand why she hadn't popped out the baby now that Jacob was here. She tried to soothe him; she told him a first time mom could be in labor for twelve hours or more.
Alex smiled reminiscently, "I remember when I had Owen, I ….." She broke off as Jacob came into the waiting room with a broad smile on his face and a swaddled bundle in his arms.
"Hey," he said softly, "wanna see our son?"
Alex and Jonathan crowded around him. To both Alex and Jacob's surprise, Jonathan gave the baby a cursory look, "How's Rachel?"
Jacob's eyebrows rose. "Uh, she's fine. The baby was born about a half hour ago, we've, uh, the nurses, have been getting them cleaned up and settled."
"So I can go see her?" Jonathan asked. At Jacob's nod, he quickly left the waiting room.
"Well, well, well," Jacob looked after his father-in-law thoughtfully. "Never thought he'd be more interested in his daughter than his grandson." A soft mewl from the bundle in his arms reclaimed his attention and he turned to share his joy with Alex.
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Jonathan Young hesitated outside of Rachel's room. Recalling Jacob's comment about the nurses getting her cleaned up and settled he wondered if he should knock first. The issue was settled when a nurse exited the room.
"Can I help you?"
"Ah, I …, I'm here to see my daughter."
"Come on in Daddy," Rachel called out.
Rachel was sitting up in bed, she looked tired but she was smiling faintly, Jonathan could have sworn she was glowing with happiness.
"So, how are you feeling? Ok?"
Rachel gave a small huff of laughter. "I'm exhausted and sore and I've never felt better in my life." She smiled at her father, "what do you think of your grandson?"
"I guess he's ok," Jonathan hesitated, "but how are you, really? It, uh, seems to take a long time, there weren't any, uh, problems? And don't say it wasn't much of anything."
Rachel looked at her father in surprise. She and Jacob had kept the sex of the baby a secret but, cynically, she assumed her father would be thrilled to be told his first grandchild was a male. It shocked her, in a good way, to realize his first concern was for her. Shaking her head, she reassured him.
"I'm fine, really. The doctor told me it was a textbook perfect labor. The only thing that bothered me was thinking Jacob was going to miss the birth." She shrugged, "but he got here and things went off almost like clockwork. I'll be discharged tomorrow afternoon."
Jonathan was startled. "What, so soon? When your mom had you she was in the hospital for days. Are you sure ... '
"That's what the insurance company dictates. But it will be fine. I'm in great shape, the baby's fine." She beamed, "he got a nine on his Apgar score. With Jacob, Alex, and you to help out we'll be fine."
Rachel's smile broadened and she reached out her arms as Jacob entered the room, "and here's my baby now."
"Why don't we let your father hold him?"
"I'd like that." Jonathan said as Jacob carefully slid the swaddled infant into his arms. Jonathan looked down into the now sleeping face of his grandson. "My god, he's perfect." He cleared his throat, "um, what's his name?"
"Isaac," Rachel answered.
Jonathan nodded approvingly, "Isaac Hood, that's a good strong name for a boy."
Jacob looked at Rachel and tilted his head a bit, "actually his full name is Isaac Jonathan Hood."
Jonathan looked up quickly, a look of shock and delight on his face. "Really? That's, that's good of you."
Jonathan missed Rachel's look of surprise as Alex came in the room at that moment. Cheerfully Alex produced her phone to take pictures of everyone.
"Ah, no, Alex, I look like hell," Rachel groaned.
"You look terrific," her father said firmly as Alex, ignoring her, snapped pictures of him, than Jacob, and finally Rachel holding the baby. He grinned, "besides, we need to have pictures to show Owen, he was ticked off we wouldn't bring him along."
"And speaking of Owen," Alex said as she pocketed her phone, "we need to get going. I've called Kathy and told her we'd be picking him up before bedtime." She gave her brother a final hug and whispered in his ear, "and we need to give you some alone time with your new family."
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Jacob carefully slide onto the bed to lie beside Rachel as she nursed their child. Rachel leaned against him, using his body to support the baby at her breast. After making sure Isaac was nursing properly, Rachel looked up Jacob, one eyebrow arched.
"I thought your family didn't go in for middle names."
Jacob reached out to lightly touch his son's head. "Yeah, well, I kind of thought he deserved it." At Rachel's look of skepticism he shrugged, "I know I've always said he never treated you right, gave you the respect you deserve. But when I walked into the waiting room with his grandson all he was interested in was how you were doing." He gave a small smile, "maybe I've misjudged him."
"Maybe," Rachel answered absently, her attention now fully on the infant in her arms. "He is perfect, isn't he?"
"The most perfect Christmas present I ever got," Jacob teased her. "Even if it is a few days early."
Rachel gave a snort of laughter. "He's not your Christmas present. He's your anniversary present."
"Anniversary? Our anniversary's in April."
Rachel looked up at him smugly. "Not that anniversary. Don't you remember where we were two years ago tonight?"
"What? We . . ." Comprehension dawned on Jacob's face. "We were snowed in at my apartment."
"Umhm, it's the anniversary of the night we finally got up the nerve to admit we were in love."
"The night that changed our lives." Jacob laughed softly, "I guess it's fitting this little guy was born today since he's going to change our lives big-time"
Contemplating the child lying in her arms, contently nursing, Rachel agreed. "I wonder what he thinks of all of this."
For his part, Isaac wasn't thinking much at all. For a day that began rather hellishly, things were looking up. He gave a yawn and let the nipple slip out of his mouth. Curling his hand around his cheek he went back to sleep. He was warm, comfortable, and had a full belly. Life was good.