Chapter 22

Glen nervously eyed the clock as he waited for Susan to come back. He knew she hated for him to worry about her so much, but he couldn't help himself. He was sure that her visit with her husband would be less than pleasant and he worried that maybe she would be too upset to drive home safely. Or that maybe David might somehow find a way to get away from the officers and come after her again.

Stop it, he warned himself, when he realized he was working himself into a panic. She'll be fine and she'll be home soon.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard her pull into the driveway. He fought the urge to run out to the car and meet her, but he knew that it would only irritate her even more, so he remained where he was and waited for her to come to him.

He held his breath when he heard her come in the front door and he stared anxiously at the doorway as he waited for her to enter the living room. She finally appeared and she leaned against the door frame and stood silently as she watched Glen stand up and come to her.

"How did your visit go?" he asked, noticing that she looked exhausted.

Susan shrugged her shoulders. "About as good as could be expected I guess."

"Want to talk about it?" he asked, concerned that she seemed so distracted.

"Maybe later. Right now, I just want to go lay down for awhile. I'm really tired." she replied softly.

"Okay. You go rest for a little bit. If you need anything, call me."

Susan nodded and Glen watched as she disappeared down the hall toward her room. Realizing that there was nothing else for him to do at the moment, he turned and headed back to the couch and waited for her to get up.

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Glen picked up the small tray and carried it down the hall to Susan's room. She'd been closed up in her room ever since she had gotten back that morning and he was starting to get concerned about her. Thinking that maybe she was hungry, he fixed her a sandwich and sliced some cheese and fruit and put it on the tray to take to her. He couldn't stand for her to go very long without eating.

Reaching her door, he knocked softly and waited for a reply. When he didn't hear her stirring inside, he cautiously opened the door and peered inside, noticing that Susan was still lying on her bed, with her back toward the door. He eased himself into her room and carefully sat the tray on the nightstand before sitting down on the edge of the bed. He leaned over her and was surprised to see that she was awake, her gaze fixed on the opposite wall. Reaching out, he spoke to her softly as he ran the back of his hand down her cheek, noticing that it was wet. Apparently, she had been crying again.

"Are you alright baby?" he asked softly, as he gently rubbed her back.

Susan offered no reply, her gaze never wavering from the wall.

"Susan? Are you okay?" Glen asked again, concerned that she didn't respond to him.

When she still didn't answer him, he frowned down at her. He wondered what in the hell had happened while she was gone to make her act this way. He had a good mind to go down to that jail and have a nice little chat with David himself.

Looking back down at Susan one last time, he sighed deeply as he stood from the bed. He knew it was probably best if he just left her alone for a little while and let her deal with things on her own. He would come back and check on her again later.

"I left you some food on the table. If you need anything, come and get me." he whispered, as he leaned down and kissed her softly on the cheek.

He turned and headed back toward the door and was just about to close it back when he heard Susan's voice.

"I love you, you know." she said softly and Glen stopped in his tracks and turned toward the bed.

"What?" he asked in surprise, not sure that he had heard her correctly.

Susan slowly rolled over on the bed so she was facing him.

"I said….I love you." she repeated and this time Glen was certain that he heard her correctly.

He slowly approached the bed and sank down on the mattress again, as he looked down at Susan.

"I've known it for a while, but I was always to afraid to admit it to myself….until today." she continued. "I know I've been horrible these past few weeks and I know that I'm huge and you probably think that I'm crazy about right now and I don't even know how you feel about me but…"

Smiling, he shushed her by placing a finger against her lips.

"I love you too." he replied, as he lay down beside of her and pulled her into his arms. "And I don't think you're crazy, or huge, or horrible. You're beautiful and wonderful and I'm glad you're mine."

Susan smiled faintly as he rolled her onto her back and leaned down to kiss her. He pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. Feeling her lips part beneath his, he pressed forward with his tongue, exploring her mouth as she opened herself to him. She returned the kiss with equal passion, pulling him close to her as he touched her.

He slowly broke the kiss and looked down at her, as he stroked her face.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked cautiously, hoping that this was for real. If she pulled away from him now, he wasn't sure he could take it.

"Yes. I'm sure. I love you Glen. I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

He leaned down to kiss her again, this time the passion steadily rising out of control. Susan gripped his arms tightly as he began gently kissing his way up her jaw toward her ear. He nibbled lightly on her earlobe before moving to her neck, kissing a gentle path up and down her skin as she tilted her head back to give him better access.

"Glen…please." she moaned softly, as her hands caressed his massive back.

Pulling away from her again, he gave her a questioning look. He wondered if she was ready to go this far with him again. He didn't want to push her into something she wasn't ready for.

"Susan…are you sure?"

"Yes…Glen …please. I need you so bad. Please don't stop."

Smiling, he leaned down to kiss her once more, his lips moving slowly over her skin as he tortured her. Susan writhed and moaned beneath him, his every touch causing an incredible heat to build between her legs.

Slipping his hand underneath her shirt, he gently rubbed her stomach for a moment before moving his hand upward to cup her breast. Susan whimpered loudly and arched upward into his hand as he caressed her. He grinned down at her, enjoying her response to his touch. He had waited so long for this moment, and he intended to enjoy every second with her. But before they could continue, he had one last thing he needed to do. Pausing for a moment, he slowly pulled away from her and sat up.

"What are you doing?" Susan asked in confusion, when he pulled away from her.

"Wait right there. I've got something I have to do before we continue this. I'll be right back."

Susan stared at the empty doorway in confusion as Glen rushed from the room. Lying back down on the bed, she waited for him to come back.

He rushed back to his room, searching through his drawers as he tried to find what he was looking for. When he didn't find what he needed, he turned his attention to the closet, digging through his coat pockets as he tried to find his evasive surprise.

He heard Susan calling him from the other room and assumed that she was getting impatient.

"I'll be right there!" he replied, digging deeper into his closet as he tried to find his hidden treasure.

Suddenly, he heard Susan call for him again, and this time he definitely picked up a hint of concern in her voice. Climbing back out of his closet, he looked and saw Susan standing in the doorway, holding her stomach.

"Susan? What's wrong?" he asked, rushing to her side.

"My water just broke. You have to get me to the hospital Glen. The baby's coming!"

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Glen fidgeted nervously as he looked down at Susan, who was lying in a hospital bed, anxiously awaiting the arrival of their baby. They had been there for quite a while now and things were moving very slowly. Pacing back and forth in front of her, he silently wished there was something he could do to speed things up. He hated the waiting!

"Glen. Sit down. You're starting to get on my nerves." Susan warned, as she watched the big man pace around the room.

"Sorry." he mumbled sheepishly, as he took a seat in the chair beside the bed.

He looked over at all of the monitors that were located beside of him, his gaze following the tubes from the machinery over to the bed where Susan was laying. He never knew it took so much technology to deliver a baby. There was the machine that was used to monitor her contractions. Then there was the machine that tracked the baby's heart beat. And then there was the machine that automatically took her blood pressure every fifteen minutes, with a constant beeping noise that would manage to drive anybody up the wall.

His gaze then focused on the IV that was taped to Susan's hand, following the clear tube upward to the bag that was hanging ominously over her head. Even though Susan's water had broken, she still wasn't having any contractions, so the doctor had ordered the nurse to give her a drug that would help induce labor. That had been almost two hours ago and there was still nothing happening. He wondered how long this could possibly take. He thought with all of the technology behind them, the doctors could figure out some way to help speed things up. He'd seen grass grow at a faster pace than this!

Susan watched Glen as he sat quietly in his chair and took in his surroundings. She could tell that the wait was killing him. It wasn't doing her much good either, but at the same time, she wasn't eager to experience the pain that she knew would come. She just hoped that she could be strong enough to make it through the delivery, although with Glen by her side, she knew she could make it through anything.

"Did you call Mark and Sara?" she finally asked, trying to help take his mind off of things.

"Yeah. They were so excited, Mark said they were going to catch the first flight out here so they could be with us. Sara's dying to come and see the baby…but the way things are going, it looks like they may be here before he's born."

"Don't you mean she?" Susan teased, causing Glen to smile. He nodded his head in agreement.

During her last ultrasound, the doctor had offered to tell them the sex of the baby, but after discussing it, they both had decided that they didn't want to know. They wanted to wait and be surprised along with everyone else. Besides, even if the doctor had told her, Susan knew she would have been skeptical anyway. She knew there was always a chance that the doctor could be mistaken and she didn't want to get her heart set on having a child of one sex, only to find out that it was actually the opposite. So in preparation, they had finally agreed on two names, picked a neutral color for the nursery and now all they had to do was sit back and let nature take its course. The only thing that mattered to Susan was that the baby was strong and healthy. Everything else was insignificant.

Unable to sit still, Glen stood up again and resumed his pacing.

"What's taking so long?" he growled, looking back at the monitors once more.

"Be patient Glen. You can't rush these things you know. We could be here for quite a while before anything happens."

Mumbling in frustration, he paced a few minutes more before he reluctantly took his seat again and waited.

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Hours later, Glen found himself standing by the bed, holding Susan's hand as another painful contraction ripped through her.

"Are you happy now!" she moaned, as she felt the pain begin to subside.

Glen reached down and brushed some loose strands of hair from her face as she collapsed back onto the bed. As much as he wanted the baby to arrive, he hated seeing her in so much pain.

"I'm sorry baby. Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked softly as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"Yes. Promise me that you'll never touch me again." Susan teased, trying to maintain her sense of humor, even though she was completely exhausted.

Glen chuckled as he leaned toward her.

"Sorry baby, but that's one promise I'm afraid I can't make." he replied, teasing her back.

Susan smiled faintly and closed her eyes, trying to catch her breath as she felt another pain shoot through her abdomen. The pain was steadily getting worse and no matter how hard she tried, she simply could not block it out. She didn't know how much longer it would take, but she prayed that the baby would be there soon. She didn't think she could handle the pain for much longer!