Iris went into labour a week before her due date. It was early evening so they were able to quietly go to hospital without making a big deal of it. She had been unsettled all day, it was uncomfortable now and when Colton got home she had a shower while he cooked dinner. Coming out Iris just looked at him and burst into tears. He was kind of used to the tears lately, they were getting harder to work out though. In the past he knew what set her off generally, now he had no clue. Last night it was because she wanted raspberries for breakfast today and she'd just eaten the last one. Colton was out the door trying to find an open grocery store that sold raspberries at nine-thirty at night.

They went in without telling anyone and a little before six am the following morning their life changed forever when they finally held their precious little girl. They were in love with her from the moment she was laid on Iris's chest. It felt a little surreal, they didn't think this moment would ever happen and the spent the first two hours just staring at her. They couldn't believe how perfect she was.

Colton cried the first time he held her, he was overwhelmed by her and in awe of his wife. What she'd gone through was tremendous and he wasn't expecting labour to be as intense as it was. Iris was in agony but she soldiered through it and kept telling him that at end of it all the pain would be forgotten, like Lola and Mae told her it would and she wouldn't remember it once she had her baby in her arms.

Making the decision to spend the day with just the three of them was a big call, they knew it was going to upset some people, particularly Colton's Mom who was desperately waiting for her grandchild. She had tried to repair her relationship with Colton and he understood how much this baby meant to her too. Marchella tried hard to be nice to Iris, her daughter-in-law held the key to letting her see her grandchild but it was strained at best. She honestly believed that it was Iris that was preventing her from having any sort of relationship with her son, which couldn't be further from the truth.

Iris was exhausted and emotional, she felt overwhelmed already with all the new things she was learning, she wanted to hold her baby, a baby she had wanted for so long, she wanted to adore her, get to know her and learn how to take care of her. Finally holding the baby they'd dreamed of for a long time was more intense than they imagined. They didn't want to share her or this time with anyone else, they didn't want to have to give her up for other people to love just yet, there was plenty of time for that. They could never get this day back and they wanted to remember it forever.

Watching Colton get to know his daughter was everything she thought it would be. If they had visitors he wouldn't get the chance to just love her. Iris had to feed her so she would always get to cuddle her, Colton would take a step back and let everyone else hold her and he'd miss out. Iris didn't remember her father, she had no physical thing to hang on to but she had photos and videos and she saw how happy and involved her Dad was in her life from the moment she was born and that's all she wanted for her daughter, to know and be loved by her Daddy.

He sat a just let her sleep on his chest, refusing to put her down. She'd have plenty of time to be left to sleep in her bed. He'd never forgotten listening to Iris and her siblings talk about how their Mom and Dad were insistent that they would always know the touch of the person who loved them the most, sadly Iris didn't remember them so Colton was making sure that's what he was doing for his daughter and for Iris all the while he was falling more and more in love with her as he held her.

It seemed unfathomable to him how Iris only had her father for three years, he wanted three hundred years with his daughter and still wouldn't be enough. His heart hurt for Iris, for her sisters and her brother, for her grandparents and for her own parents too. It hurt to think of everything they missed out on, seeing their children grow up, become the very best version of themselves, fall in love, get married and have their own children. He couldn't imagine not seeing his daughter just living. He didn't want to miss a moment of her life.

Letting other people into their world right now felt like more than they could handle, they wanted to stay in their bubble for a little longer and Colton would do whatever Iris wanted. This was Iris's moment and he was going to let her have it.

As much as they wanted to share her with the world it was better this way and when they were ready to physically share her they would. It felt a little crazy but the more people that knew about her the more chance someone would hurt her and that was stupid. Iris told him as much. He knew that those closest to him would never deliberately hurt his daughter but he was desperate to protect her from everything and everyone.

Colton didn't want to deliver their baby, she was too precious and he was worried something would go wrong, but they were happy they decided to spend the day alone with her. Even the nursing staff left them alone, they had minimal interruptions. She was weighed and measured, the Paediatrician gave her a quick once over and she was left with her parents. They lay her on the bed, stripped her off and checked out every part of her. She was perfect and they couldn't love anything more than her.

"Look at her." Iris gasped when they stripped her off, she still seemed shocked that this was their baby. Her little legs pulled up to her stomach, her arms stretched over her head and she let out a sudden wail. "Oh Colton I love her so much." Her skin was buttery soft and she didn't quite fit into it, they loved all her creases, her tiny ears, long fingers, skinny little legs and cute little rosebud mouth.

"I can't believe we made her. I can't believe she came out of you like that. I mean she was all slimy, covered in god knows what and now look at her." He bent down and kissed her dark hair. "She's just perfection. Like her Momma."

"That feels weird."

"What does?"

"That I am a Mom."

"Hottest Mom in the world." Colton kissed Iris softly, he could have just kept kissing her all day. What she'd been through, the road they'd travelled, the road she'd travelled since she was three years old had all led to this. This incredible moment where he didn't know if he could love her any more than he did right now. "You are certainly a MILF."

"Ummm, you aren't touching me anytime soon."

"Oh god no, she's trashed you." Colton had been a little bit horrified at everything that went with childbirth and what came out of Iris, it wasn't just their baby, there was a lot of other crap that he wasn't expecting. He had seen videos but seeing it happen to Iris was a completely different kettle of fish, he was horrified and amazed at the same time. "I promise to let that all heal up before I subject you to my considerable charms."

"You are too kind."

"And madly in love with you. Luckiest guy in the world right here." He looked directly into Iris's eyes. "You are incredible, I can't believe you love me and let me love you. I can't believe we did this and I hope this helps you cope with that little part of your heart that will always be scarred. I hope she always knows how incredible you are, how much you love her and adore her and how precious she is. I hope she looks at you in awe, like I do. Thank you for making every single one of my dreams come true." Iris was always going to cry, especially when Colt did.

While Iris slept Colton held his baby girl. He told her about all his dreams for her, how special her Mom was and how lucky he was to have both of them. The midwife came in and told him to strip her off, undo his shirt and lay her on his chest. She covered them with a warm soft blanket and left them to bond. She had the tiniest little cry and it was a sweet sound but listening to her cry was a little heartbreaking too, they knew that's how she communicated with them but it was confronting to think that they had to work out what she wanted. When he talked to her and as he stroked her head gently she seemed to calm down. "Daddy's got you sweetheart. I won't let you go."

Iris called the midwife when she was due for a feed and they watched her attachment and guided Iris through the process and while they were still learning they were getting the hang of it. She didn't feed for long but they were assured that was normal because Iris only had small amounts of colostrum for her and her stomach was tiny.

They left hospital the next day, Iris desperately wanted to go home. She felt great, or as good as she expected to feel, the baby was doing well, they had learnt how to bathe her and she was feeding okay and they'd have a midwife visit her twice a day for three days and they had Lola. Iris had plenty of messages on her phone from her sisters checking up on her, like she did every day and she had told them as little as possible when she responded that she was 'fine, tired and uncomfortable' and that wasn't a lie.

They were at home, safe and sound and happily starting their life as a family of three.