Erik felt helpless and guilty while he tried to soothe her pain with his backrub. Maybe Harper and Rowan should have stayed with her instead of him. They knew what they were doing; he sure as hell didn’t. Leaning his head against her hot, sweaty back, he asked,

“Sweetheart, do you want me to go get your mom and Harper?”

She shook her head. “No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I want you and you only,” she said before she yelled out, tensing up as she went through another contraction. He felt bad, but he couldn’t help feeling elated that she wanted him. When the door opened, Erik saw the nurse walk in.

“I brought ice chips and towels,” she informed them as she laid them within reach. “I think Dr. Richards will be here in a minute.”

“Okay,” Erik said.

“How are you doing, momma?”

Piper shook her head. “My back is killing me.”

“Okay, any pressure in your butt?”

Piper shrugged her shoulders. “Sort of, but it’s mostly pain.”

“Poor thing; do you feel like you need to push?”

Piper shook her head. “No.”

“Okay, well, you let us know if you do, okay?” the nurse said with a grin. She patted Piper’s knee and then went to the machine that was beside the bed. Erik wiped the wet cloths along Piper’s face to clean off all her makeup. He smiled as he piled up her hair on top of her head before wiping her jaw and neck.

“I look like poo, huh?”

Erik shook his head. “No,” he said softly as he leaned over to get the ice chips. He popped one in her mouth and said, “I was just thinking that you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

She smiled a true happy smile before smacking his chest. “You’re such a liar.”

He took her hand in his, kissing her palm before shaking his head. “I’d never lie about that.”

Looking deep in his eyes she said, “Kiss the hell out of me, please.”

Erik didn’t even think, he just leaned forward, pressing his lips to her cold ones. He missed her lips so much. He wished the kiss would have lasted longer, but the next thing he knew, Piper was almost choking him as she screamed against his mouth.

“For the love of God, I swear I’m dying!”

“You’re not dying,” another voice said.

Erik looked over his shoulder to see the doctor putting a glove on. He smiled as he came over to the bed, running his hand down Piper’s back.

“I hear your back hurts,” he said looking her over.

“Yes, very much so,” she cried as she leaned her head against Erik’s collarbone while she dug her fingers into the backs of his arms. He was going to have bruises the next day but he figured that since she was giving birth to his kid, it was a fair trade.

“Well, let’s see where this little guy is. Can you lie down for me please?”

Letting him go, she slowly lay back as harsh, uneven breaths left her body. Erik watched as the doctor moved between her legs and then smiled before looking up at Piper. “You’re almost there. Dilated to nine and ninety percent.”

“Oh God,” she muttered as she covered her face. “Everything hurts: my back, my cooter, my ass, everything.”

“I know, not much longer. You are moving quickly,” he said with a grin, then walked out.

Looking down at Piper, Erik took her hand in his, kissing her knuckles as her body started to tense up. She needed a distraction. She was about to start freaking out, he could feel it and see it. Her whole body was red, sweaty, and trembling. He knew he needed to do something.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone and went to his app store.

“Erik, please don’t take pictures of me.”

“I’m not.”

“What are you doing then?” she asked, looking down at him.

He looked up and smiled, not answering her question because he wanted it to be a surprise. Looking back down at his phone, he took her hand and started to read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows out loud for her. When she squeezed his hand, he looked up to see her looking at him with appreciation in her eyes.

“You are amazing,” she said softly.

“So are you,” he answered before looking back down at his phone. He didn’t get through two pages before she started screaming again. He tried to read through it, hoping that it would calm her, but she started to pull at his hand and when he looked up at her, she was reaching for him.

“Hold me,” she cried, pulling him toward her. He quickly tucked his phone in his pocket. As he wrapped his arms around her torso, she buried her face in his neck and dug her nails into his back. She was breathing deeply.

“I think I need to push.”

“What?” he asked, pulling back to see her face.

She nodded. “Yup, I need to push.”

Letting him go, she lay back while Erik started to slam his hand against the call button. When the nurse came on the line, Erik said, “She wants to push!”

Looking down at Piper, he saw her squirming in the bed as she tried to grip something. When she reached up and took his hand, she pulled him down, resting her forehead against his. People were moving around them, but Erik couldn’t see them or what they were doing because of the position she had him in.

“Yeah, she is ready,” Erik heard the doctor say before Piper started to slam her fist against his back.

“Ah, fire, fire, I feel fire!” she yelled as she continued to beat him in the back.