Please bear with me. I have had four kids but only felt one very mild labor pain with my third. I am thankful for the C Section and the more I googled this stuff, the more thankful I became! I know labor doesn't generally progress this quickly, but I'm trying to get the baby here. I'll go ahead and warn you in advance, that I have no knowledge of nursing, so Olivia will be bottle feeding. It's better for the baby and yadda yadda, but my kids turned out fine being bottle fed. Also, I had no desire to google that so...lol

WOW

"Alright, Olivia. I'm going to check and see how far you've dilated. Okay?" The medic asked.

"Ohmygod! Can you guys pull over so I don't have to be right here while you do that?" The medic gave her a glare. "I mean, I love you Liv, but I don't really need to be within two feet of this happening! This is not in the best friend handbook!"

"Shut up, Abby! This is happening so get over it!" Olivia said as she placed the bottom of her feet on the stretcher and opened her legs. "You think I want this random guy looking at my hoohah? Hell no!" She looked down at the man squatting at the end of the stretcher. "No offense."

"None taken."

"But apparently ALL dignity goes out the door when you are forced to squeeze a human being the size of a watermelon out of an opening as big as a baseball. Now sit down and be quiet."

The medic slipped on a pair of gloves and took a peek. "Wow. That's..."

Again, Olivia looked at the medic. "No. I don't ever want to hear you say 'wow' while you're down there. Just tell me what's going on."

"Right. You are dilated four centimeters already. You are currently in active labor. This could be a quick labor for you. Is it your first?"

"Yes. And quite possibly my last, depending on how painful it is. We might hire a surrogate for Fitz to have a daughter." Abby chuckled at her friend and held her hand. "Have you heard from Fitz yet?"

"Not yet. He'll call soon though. I'm sure of..." Her phone chimed. "Speak of the devil." Abby touched the screen and chirped, "Hello? Fine! I didn't want to talk to you either. Here, Liv." She passed her phone to Olivia.

"Hello? Fitz?"

"Babe? Are you alright? What happened?" He sounded truly panicked. It made Olivia smile. She imagined him pacing somewhere.

"I was just about to get a glorious facial when my water broke all over the floor. And Abby stole a robe." She shared a grin with her friend. "I'm pretty sure we won't be welcomed there again."

"You sound...fine?" He sounded surprised.

"I'm currently naked and this very nice man has just checked my lady parts and tells me that I have dilated four centimeters already. Isn't that great?"

"What man?!" Fitz almost yelled.

Abby chuckled, having heard him from where she was sitting. Hell, the entire state probably heard him. "Tell him to calm down. That he's a very nice stripper we ordered at the spa."

"Babe? Explain to me what man is looking at your crotch? And please tell me that Abby is lying!"

"Fitz. Would I let a stripper see me naked? I mean, I might. But not at eight and a half months pregnant." She giggled. "We're in the back of the ambulance and the man is a medic. He's very nice actually."

"Thank you," the medic replied as he took off the glove and threw it away.

"You're welcome." Olivia said.

"How far away are you from St. Frances?" He asked.

Olivia asked and was told their ETA was six minutes. She relayed the information to her husband. "I can't wait to see you. I know this is stupid, but I miss you." Abby made a gagging motion, causing Olivia to laugh. And then wince.

"Liv? What is it?"

She gritted her teeth as tried to wish the pain away, but that wasn't working. She dropped the phone on the stretcher beside her and gripped the sides of it until her knuckles were white. "Drive. Faster." She quietly commanded.

"Breathe. Just breathe, Liv."

"I am breathing, Abby. Otherwise I would be dead!" she screamed through gritted teeth.

Abby knew this was labor pain talking and decided to not hold it against her friend. While Olivia was getting helpful breathing technique reminders from the medic, and let him get yelled at for it she decided, Abby picked up the phone and heard Fitz yelling.

"LIV? Will someone talk to me? What the hell is going on? HELLO?"

"Calm down. Olivia is having another contraction. She won't be able to talk to you for another few minutes."

"Wow. How far apart are they?

"How should I know? Do I look like an obstetrician? Or a walking stop watch? Before we left the spa Yvonne said they were about eight minutes apart. What does that mean?"

"Wow. It means..."

"Let me stop you right there for a second." Abby held her cupped hand over the mouth piece and quietly said, "If I were you I would not use the word wow until you have your family safely back home. Liv just bit off the head of the medic for saying wow."

"Good to know. Thanks, Abs. It means that her labor is getting more intense and the time is coming pretty fast."

"The medic said that she would probably have a fast delivery. I don't want to know what that means. I am never, and I do mean ever, having kids. She looks like hell right now with strangers poking around her va jay jay. I'm not about that life."

"Is she okay Abby? I don't mean the normal yea, she's a pain in the ass fine. Does she seem alright?"

Abby looked over at her best friend. It appeared that the pain was lessening and Abby was thankful for that. If this was early stages of labor, Olivia was in for a long night of pain. Just then her friend shot her a thumbs up as she panted. "She's gonna be fine once she is holding that baby. This is the hardest part. She's brave and she's scrappy, so she'll be great."

"Is that Fitz?" Olivia whined.

"I'm giving the phone back to her now. See you soon."

"Babe? Did you get my suitcase?"

"Of course I got it. Who do you think you're married to? Some half assed man who can't follow simple directions?"

"This really hurts, Fitz. I'm scared."

"You're in the back of an ambulance with medics who apparently are getting a free show from you whenever they want one." He heard his wife's cute little giggle and breathed a little easier. "You should be here any minute and then I won't leave your side.

"Promise?" She asked with a hint of fear in her voice.

"I promise! We're going to get through this birth together. I love you, Liv and I'll see you soon."

"I love you more." She said, feeling a little more confident about the situation.

"It's not possible." Fitz ended the call and a few moments later the ambulance pulled to a stop in front of the emergency room doors. He all but climbed inside the back of it when the doors opened, but the medic shook his head and held up his hand. "My wife is in there so you can kiss my ass! Of course you'd probably rather look at hers though."

"Sir, we're going to unload the patient and take her inside. You can see her when she's been safely transported. Until then, stay out of the vehicle. Got it?" Fitz stomped inside like a three-year-old having a tantrum. The medic looked at him and muttered, "First time fathers can be such assholes."

They got Olivia wheeled inside as Abby walked beside the stretcher in her robe. Of course she had on no make-up, was buck ass naked, and every single person in the hospital had their eye on her. She pulled the front of her robe tighter together and wondered where the hell Yvonne was with her clothes? She desperately wanted to get dressed to feel somewhat human in what could be a long night here.

Abby's phone chimed and she looked down at it. Stephen was calling her. "Hey you. Where are you at right now? It doesn't matter. Guess where I am? Stephen just guess! Fine! I'm at St. Frances Hospital. Olivia just went into labor. Can you bring me something to eat? I'm starving. Okay. See you when you get here. Love you too."

Olivia was put into a wheelchair and taken up to the maternity floor. Fitz held onto her suitcase and tried to talk to her, but it was useless. She was having another contraction and had nothing to say. Nothing positive anyways. After she was wheeled off to a room, he was left filling out endless paperwork. The thought momentarily passed through his mind that he had the worse end of the deal. But then he remembered how his wife had yelled when the contraction hit. He quietly and repeatedly shook his head and decided that he didn't.

Finally! Fitz was shown to where Olivia was lying in a bed in her room listening to their son's heart beating from the fetal monitor on her belly. She looked relaxed and comfortable in an ugly hospital gown. She looked up and saw him standing in the doorway and held her arms open for him. He immediately deposited her suitcase on a chair and went into her arms. "I was so worried about you. Did you get a look at the ambulance driver?"

Olivia pulled back from Fitz and gave him a questioning look and said, "No. Why?"

"He took so damned long to get here I wondered if our taxi driver from the beach had gotten a new job?" Olivia laughed loudly at the thought. Fitz smiled at seeing her fully relaxed and held her hand from a chair beside her bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Slighted."

"Of all the things you could be feeling right now, you went with slighted? Why?" This was going to be the longest night of his damned life.

"Because you haven't kissed me yet." She teased.

"Let me rectify that right now, Mrs. Grant." He smiled at her and moved his head closer to hers with puckered lips. He brushed her lips once and rested his forehead on hers. "How are you feeling now?"

"Fucking hell!" She shouted in his face and clutched her belly.

Fitz closed his eyes tightly and assumed he was now permanently deaf. Contractions were a bitch. He'd gladly fill out another mountain of paperwork to never have to feel a smidgen of the pain his wife was feeling at the moment. And of course, that was the moment the nurse popped in to check on her.

"I'm Cora, the nurse practitioner. I'll be checking on you off and on until the shift change later tonight. How are we doing, Miss Olivia?"

Olivia gave her a death glare and breathed the way the medic had told her to in the ambulance. Fitz held her hand and copied her breathing.

"Another contraction huh? You let me know when it's over and I'll check to see how far you've dilated. The medic who brought you in said you were in active labor already. And that this is your first baby. How exciting for you both!"

After it had passed and her breathing was back to normal, more or less, Olivia smiled at Cora. "I'm sorry for the rude glare. I promise I'm usually pleasant."

"Well, since you'll be giving birth soon, we'll let it pass." Cora winked at her patient. She slipped on a glove and said, "I'm going to take a peek and see how you're progressing."

"This baby ain't playing around today. You've dilated another centimeter already. Unless he or she stalls, it won't be long now. A few hours is my best guess."

"Already?" Olivia whispered. "And we're having a boy."

"Already? He's been in there for thirty-eight weeks. That's about long enough. And I bet your feet agree with me." She gave Olivia a smile. "Now. Do you want an epidural? That will block the pain so you can rest while the contractions keep coming. You'll feel pressure but not pain."

Olivia looked at Fitz. They hadn't really talked about the idea of an epidural. It was one of those conversations they assumed they still had two weeks to have. "What do you think, Fitz?"

"It's completely up to you, Liv. You're the one going through the pain. If you want an epidural, get one. If you don't want to, that's fine too. I'm here to support whatever decision you make. You know how much you can and can't take."

"If I say no to getting one now, can I get it later if I change my mind?" Olivia asked.

"To a point you can. Once you get to eight centimeters there is no way to safely give an epidural so at that time, the option of getting one is gone forever."

"Get the epidural before I get to eight centimeters. Got it."

"You still have some time to think about it and talk it over with your husband. Do you need anything before I go?"

"Am I allowed to have some ice chips? I seriously just want to crunch on some ice right now."

Cora chuckled at the expectant mother. "Of course. I'll show your husband where it is so he can get it if one of us isn't around to do so. Follow me, Mr. Grant."

Fitz kissed Olivia's cheek. "Be right back, babe." He carried the pink plastic pitcher with him and returned a few minutes later with it full of ice. "Here ya go."

Olivia put some in her mouth and asked, "Have you called our parents yet? I forgot to ask you earlier."

"Oh shit! I didn't! I was so busy worrying about you getting to the hospital that I completely forgot. I'll call them now." He touched the screen of his phone a few times and then put it to his ear. "Hello my favorite mother in law." He chuckled at whatever she said. "I am probably no longer going to be your favorite son in law when you hear what I have to tell you. Liv went into labor about an hour or so ago and we are at the hospital." He held the phone away from his ear and pushed the speaker phone button.

"Why didn't you call me immediately, Fitzgerald?"

Olivia giggled and whispered, "She called you by you your big first name. You're in trouble!"

"It's a long story, Lila. And one I'll be glad to tell you after you've gotten down here and beaten me half to death, I'm sure."

"You had better be glad my baby loves you. Nathaniel and I are getting in the car now. Don't you let her have that baby until we get there. That's an order! We'll see you two shortly."

Fitz ended the call and looked at his wife. "Damn. I'm scared, Liv. Cross your ankles and keep that kid in there."

"I wanna hear you tell the same thing to your mother. She's legally allowed to kill you. I'm excited."

"Smartass." Again, he touched the screen and put the phone on speaker.

"Hello, Fitzgerald. How are you today?" Emma said in a happy voice.

"Hey mom. I'm calling to tell you that Olivia has been admitted into the hospital because she's in labor. You and dad might want to get down here as soon as you can. She's progressing pretty fast."

There was silence on the line for a short while.

"Mom? Are you still there?"

"Fitzgerald? How long has she been there?"

"That's not really impor..."

"How long?" She said in a sterner voice. Olivia covered her mouth to keep the laughter from spewing out.

"Forty minutes. Give or take."

"And you're just NOW calling me? Son, you had better hope that that sweet boy doesn't make his grand entrance into this world before I get there or I will take you out of this world. DO I make myself perfectly clear? We are leaving now." She ended the call without telling him goodbye.

The fear Lila had made him feel was nothing compared to high level of alarm he felt deep in his soul from his mother's words. He put his phone in his back pocket and looked at his wife. "If you have that baby before she gets here she will legitimately kill me. Please don't let that happen."

Olivia just laughed and crunched on her ice chips.

Abby knocked on the door fifteen minutes later, fully dressed and with Stephen and Yvonne in tow. "Is it safe to come in?" The redhead asked.

"It is now that you have clothes on." Olivia said grinning.

"I would've been here sooner, but Yvonne decided to get dinner at a drive through on her way. It saved Stephen a stop so it worked out perfectly."

Yvonne went over to Olivia's bed and touched her hand. "How are you doing?" Olivia's face contorted in pain quickly. Yvonne scrambled back away from her suddenly and almost fell into a chair. Her boss laughed from her hospital bed. Confusion crossed Yvonne's face until realization hit her. "You were faking? That was some good acting! If it feels even remotely like that, I feel bad for you."

Olivia was laughing hard. "You should have seen the look on your face."

"It's too bad I won't be here later to see the look on your face. When the pushing part comes and you can't concentrate on anything but the horrific pain. But I'll be in my bed, probably getting laid."

I will not laugh. I will not laugh. I will not laugh. Fitz was chanting it in his head and struggling to contain the laughter he could feel bubbling up. But he knew his wife would kill him and make it look like an accident and it just wasn't worth it.

"You're such a bitch." Olivia chuckled. "I'm probably gonna get an epidural anyways, so I won't feel anything. So there." She stuck her tongue out at her friend.

"How far apart are they now?" Abby asked.

"I don't know. I haven't been timing them." Olivia said. Now she was worried. "Should I be?"

"Why am I always being asked things that the doctor should be answering? How about you ask someone when they come in? Are you comfortable?" Abby asked.

Olivia was silent.

"Liv? Are you okay?" Abby asked.

"Babe?"

"Wow. It's a bad one, huh?" Yvonne said sympathetically.

"Don't say the word wow, Yvonne." Abby quietly warned.

"Fuck! Would everyone shut up for a minute, please?" Olivia had her eyes closed shut and she was gripping the metal railing of her bed pretty hard. She was trying to focus on her breathing but everyone talking was distracting. And just like Yvonne said, all she could concentrate on was the pain.

Fitz held her hand and gently told her to look at him. When her pain filled gaze met his calm blue eyes, he began to breathe the way they were doing earlier. He did his best to do it right, and a few seconds later, Olivia caught on and was mimicking him. He winked at her and they continued until the pain had passed and her grip on his hand was much less painful.

When she was breathing normally again, Olivia looked up at her friends. "Sorry about that. These things suck!" She picked up her ice filled cup and began chomping on the frozen chips once again. "What were we talking about?"

"I take it back. If that wasn't even one of the pushing pains, I'm so sorry." Yvonne said.

"It's okay, Yvonne. I would probably have said the same thing to you if the situation was reversed." She grinned. "The nurse said.."

Lila burst into the room like a tornado on a mission. "Ohmygod! My baby girl."

"Momma!" Olivia said, feeling relieved to have her finally here.

Lila rushed to the hospital bed, shot Fitz a half-hearted scowl and watched him vacate his seat to go stand by Abby, and hugged her daughter. "Are you okay? How far apart are your contractions? When was the last time you were checked? How many centimeters have you dilated?"

"This looks familiar" Abby whispered to Fitz.

Fitz chuckled quietly and replied, "I think it's a safe bet that Nathaniel won't be holding Olivia on his lap and singing You Are My Sunshine to her this time."

Abby burst into laughter, not able to contain it. Olivia and Lila looked up at the redhead. "Sorry." Abby said quietly, followed by a scowl aimed at Fitz.

"Where's daddy?" Olivia asked.

"He didn't know if it was safe to come in or not?" Lila said with a smile. "He'll come in to see you in just a bit, I'm sure."

Just then the door burst open again. "Please tell me that sweet boy hasn't arrived yet?" Emma exclaimed.

"Great. Another mother." Fitz mumbled to Abby and Stephen.

"That's your mother, mate. I'd shut up if I was you because they can see and hear everything." Stephen warned. Fitz remembered that fact and clamped his mouth shut. His mother still hadn't even noticed he was in the room yet.

Upon a quick glance at Olivia, Emma sighed loudly. "Thank God! I didn't miss it." She hugged Olivia followed by Lila. All three women smiled hugely. "How are you feeling, dear?"

"Better now. I just had a contraction a few minutes ago. They are getting stronger. It's kind of scary." Olivia admitted.

Emma looked around the room and caught her son's eye. "Fitzgerald? Why aren't you helping your wife through her contractions? You're responsible for this you know."

Fitz scrunched up his face and was about to speak up for himself when his wife said, "He's been great, Emma. I forgot to do the breathing with that last one and he was right here helping me through it." She sent him a wink and Fitz stood a little taller.

"Well, see that he does!" Emma said with her eyes still on her son.

The door opened once again and in walked Cora. She stopped two feet inside the door and looked around the room. "There are way too many people in this room right now. Some of y'all have to go." When everyone looked around at each other and no one moved she said, "Okay! No more than three people in this room at a time. So, four of you need to scoot! Now!"

Abby, Stephen, and Yvonne said bye to Olivia and almost ran out of the room but promised to be back later. When nurse Cora looked at the remaining three visitors, she arched an eyebrow at them. "One more person needs to find the waiting room please."

The two mothers and Fitz exchanged a glance. When it was clear that they weren't leaving, Fitz rolled his eyes and huffed. "I'm just the father. It's not like I belong in here." He walked out of the room in search of male reinforcement.

"That was cold, y'all." Cora chuckled at the women.

"We'll leave in just a minute, baby so Fitz can come back in. I just wanted to make sure you were doing alright for myself." Lila admitted.

Olivia gripped her mother's hand tightly and inhaled sharply. "Shit. Here's another one."

"We're just going to relax and breathe through it. It's a piece of cake." Lila soothed.

"I don't want any more of this damned cake, momma!" Liv groaned.

"You're doing great, Olivia." Cora said. She was looking at the readout from the machine beside her patient's bed. "It's almost over now. There you go. Great job. I know those contractions are terrible business, but you really are handling them fantastically." Olivia smiled weakly at her. "Now then. I need to check and see how you are progressing. Would you two ladies like to step into the hall for a minute or do you want them to stay?" Olivia gave the two women a shy smile.

Emma and Lila were reluctant, but did get up and step outside. They pressed their ears to the door though.

After a quick check, Cora told Olivia that she was at six centimeters now. "This little boy is awfully anxious to meet his momma it seems. You're doing great and your labor is going quickly for a first baby. I know it's hard, but be thankful for that. I've had patients who have been in labor with their first child for days instead of hours."

"Days? As in more than one? Are you serious?" Olivia was dumbfounded.

"Yes, ma'am. Days! Your labor pains are probably going to start coming closer together, so don't be surprised by that. Keep breathing through them until they pass. Walking helps, so if you're up to it, go for a stroll in the halls. Don't forget about the epidural if things get too much for you, okay? I'll be back in a bit to check you again. You might even have this baby before the shift changes later tonight. I'll go get the two mothers from the hall for you."

"Fitz? Where are our mothers?" Olivia asked when she saw Fitz walking through the door a few minutes later.

"Oh. They aren't coming back for a while." He explained with a smile.

"What did you do?"

"I explained to them that I am more important that they are at this event and I will go and get them later on so they can come back in. Until then, they can keep everyone entertained in the waiting room with stories of when they gave birth to their own kids."

"You did not!"

"Oh, but I did. This is our time. Not theirs. They are going to be a huge part of this baby's life, but they don't need to be squatting in here like they own the place while I'm kicked out. They will probably shun me after he gets here, but I'm pretty sure they will forget all about it by then."

"Fitz." She whispered.

"I know. I'm amazing." He said confidently.

"Fitz!" She said with her eyes tightly shut. "Contraction!"

"Oh!" After it passed Fitz told Olivia that Nurse Cora told him that walking would help. "What do you think? You wanna walk the halls with me for a little while?"

"She told me the same thing. It would feel good to get out of this bed for a little while." She admitted. Fitz helped her up and the two of them started their trip through the maternity ward halls. She would have to stop every time a contraction hit, but Fitz held onto her, rubbed her back, and told her he loved her until it passed. They spoke with a few other expecting mothers they saw in the halls too. Some were stopped, leaned against their husband, working through a contraction. Some were walking. And others were bitching at their husbands.

After a twenty minute stroll and four contractions, Olivia wanted to get back into bed. She was starting to feel tired and wanted to try to sleep. Fitz encouraged that idea but didn't think it was going to happen if the pains were basically five minutes apart. Maybe it would nudge her to get the epidural when she realized that?

Fitz carefully got her settled into bed and gave her the cup of ice chips she requested. Olivia's eyes were heavy and she set her plastic cup down on the rolling table in front of her bed. She laid her head down on her pillow and closed her eyes as Fitz sat down in the chair beside her bed and silently counted to three in his head. He got to two when Olivia cried out in pain. She probably needed to start thinking about getting the epidural and he decided to ask her about it. As soon as the contraction was over.

He held her hand and breathed with her. She was getting frustrated and couldn't concentrate on her breathing, the pain was so unbearable. She winced and gripped his hand tighter, feeling out of control of the situation. Yvonne wasn't kidding when she said the pain would be the only thing she could concentrate on, but Olivia re-focused her attention on her husband, who looked like he was about to hyperventilate. "Fitz! I...can't do it."

"Yes you can!" He commanded. "It's just breathing. You can do this!" He panted in front of her face for a few moments and watched her eventually catch on. He gave her a smile and said, "There's my girl."

"That was intense." She finally said as her chest heaved. "I'm so tired, Fitz. I just want to sleep. I don't care how fast he's coming, I need to have the strength to push him out when it's time. And right now, I just can't." Olivia started crying.

Realizing that the pain was over, Fitz held her close and tried to soothe her with whatever words he could come up with. "Liv, you can do this. I know you're tired and still have a ways to go, but you're doing amazing. You've progressed so fast in such a short amount of time and you've handled it like a damn boss. You have to remember your breathing when the contractions come. It's the only way to get through them. Unless you want to get the epidural now? What do you think? Are you ready to do that?"

She thought about the idea of the epidural. It was true that the pains were getting stronger and lasting longer, leaving less time to rest in between them. And she wasn't doing too great at remembering her breathing techniques. But Olivia wasn't quite ready to give up on the idea that she could get through a little more, as long as Fitz was there with her. And she knew he would be. "I want to wait just a little longer for the epidural. I've still got a little more in me and I want to try to do this my way for as long as I can. Does that make sense?"

Fitz gave her a smile. "Of course it does. This boy is so lucky to have such a strong mommy. I can't wait to tell him about how amazing you are."

Cora came into the room once again to check on Olivia. Fitz took that opportunity to tell her he was going to bring a new face into the room and that he'd be back. He kissed her forehead and said he'd hurry back.

When he returned, Fitz had Nathaniel with him. The smile that came across Olivia's face proved to Fitz that he knew exactly what she needed.

"Daddy!" Olivia said excitedly.

Nathaniel went immediately to her bedside and sat down on the edge of it. He took her hand and asked, "How's my baby girl?"

"Tired, but doing pretty good so far."

"Don't listen to her, Nathaniel. She's been a rock star this whole time." Fitz shot his wife a smile. "She's been super brave and handling these contractions like a pro."

"That's my girl." Nathaniel said smiling at her. Fitz squinted at the back of his father in laws head. She is his girl. But he let it go this time. "Do you need anything?"

"I think I'm okay right now. I've got my ice chips and the nurse practitioner said I've dilated to an seven. She seems to think I'll be at the pushing part soo...Oooooh! Oh God." Olivia gripped her father's hand and squeezed her eyes tightly. "Fuck! Dad it hurts SO BAD!"

"Olivia." Nathaniel's voice boomed. She opened her eyes and looked at her dad. Surprisingly, he was breathing the way she should be. She focused on his mouth and mimicked him. She never faltered and stayed with him as they breathed together. As the contraction eased, Nathaniel grabbed the cool facecloth Fitz handed him. He wiped his daughter's sweaty forehead and grinned at her. "It's been a while since I've done this and I'm really out of practice, but that brought back a lot of memories."

"That one was really bad." She took a deep breath and laid back down on her pillow. "Thanks, daddy. You don't seem to be out of practice at all. Talk about rock stars. Wow!"

Nathaniel chuckled at his daughter. She looked so tired, and he knew the worst was yet to come. "Have you thought about getting the epidural yet, baby? You've still got a while to go with this."

With her eyes closed, Olivia replied, "I'm going to wait a little while longer. But I'm no hero. I'll end up getting it pretty soon. I don't know how much longer I'll be able to keep up with these."

"Don't wait too long. Once you get to the pushing part there's no going back." He warned.

"That's what the nurse told me. I'm okay for now though. I just want to rest if I can," she yawned.

"Close your eyes and I'll sit with you for a while. I'm right here if you need me." He rubbed his daughters head and smoothed back her hair away from her face as she drifted off.

"It won't last long. The contractions will wake her up in a few minutes." Fitz told his father in law. "I feel so helpless. There's nothing I can do to help her."

Nathaniel turned to Fitz and smiled. "You're doing everything you need to be doing for her. Just being here and helping her be as comfortable as possible and helping her breathe through the pain is everything to her. Right now you have the easy job, but you're doing great with her. I appreciate you coming to get me."

Just then Olivia stirred in her sleep and started wincing. She called out her husband's name and he rushed to her side. "I'm right here, babe. Let's breathe through it together." She opened her eyes and did exactly as Fitz was doing. "Good. Just like that."

Nathaniel smiled at the two of them. His baby was in good hands, and he knew his grandson was too.

When the nurse came back into the room a few hours later Fitz took the opportunity to walk his father in law out to the waiting room and update everyone in the waiting room. Olivia was breathing hard and hated that Fitz had left. They had developed a great routine of staying on top of the rapidly repeating contractions with their breathing together. When she looked into his beautiful blue eyes, everything else faded away. Now she was feeling frustrated and the pain was overwhelming. She could barely breathe from the pain.

Cora did her best to help Olivia breathe through it and when the contraction was finally beginning to subside, Olivia grabbed her cup and threw some ice chips into her mouth. She sprinkled a few in her hand and rubbed them on her forehead and neck. It felt heavenly.

"Okay, Miss Olivia. I'm going to take a look now and see how you're doing." Olivia laid on her back and put her feet flat on the bed, letting her legs fall open.

"I think I'm ready to have that epidural when you're done here. I'm exhausted and just want to rest a little bit before he gets here." Olivia admitted.

Once the glove was on her hand, Cora moved it to between Olivia's legs. After a few moments she pulled her hand back, took off the glove, and threw it away. After she washed her hands, she looked at her patient. "I'm afraid that's impossible now."

"Why?!" Olivia demanded. "I'm not eight centimeters yet and you said I could have the epidural until I was. Why are you changing your mind now?"

"I'm not changing my mind sweetie." Cora said with a smile. "You're fully dilated and are completely ready to start pushing now. Isn't that wonderful?"

Olivia's face was one of shock. She heard the words but their meaning was lost on her for a few moments. There was no way she was ready to start pushing. It seemed that she was just at six centimeters a few minutes ago! Wow. That was way too fast! Surely she still had hours to go? Olivia suddenly felt ill prepared for delivery. Just as she was about to share these thoughts with the nurse, another contraction hit.