He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t even get that reference.”

He was a liar. And she loved it. “The sad thing for you is I know you do get the reference. Because you spent time in my company.”

“You can’t do that to a child.”

“Yes, I can. That’s the beauty of being the mother. It will teach him to stand firm in his individuality from a very early age.”

“It will teach them how to take a punch to the face.”

“Well, one must learn that, too.”

“You wouldn’t really.”

“Wouldn’t I?”

“I said I would research it.”

“Wonderful. I’ll make an appointment with a midwife.”

“Sammy...” He took a sharp breath. “I know I can’t do this for you. And that’s what kills me. I have to let you take the risk and go through the pain. And I’ll... I’ll trust you to do it how you see best.”

Her heart suddenly felt too large, and sore along with it. “Ryder...”

“I know you’re strong,” he said.

“I never thought you didn’t.”

She stretched up and kissed him on the cheek. They would be all right.

They had to be.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

THERE WERE CRYSTALS hanging in the window, and Ryder really would have given anything to be sitting anywhere else. It was like Sammy’s chakras had exploded all over the room. Which, he supposed, was why his wife looked so giddy to be sitting there in the presence of the midwife, who had long gray hair and a calming demeanor.

“You don’t put crystals on the baby, do you?” Ryder asked.

“No,” the woman, who was in fact named Sequoia, said. “I can put crystals on the mother, if she likes. And you can have some, too.”

He sensed a faint hint of sarcasm in that.

“I’m good.”

He had a feeling Sequoia wasn’t shocked by his rejection. Everything in here looked airy-fairy hippie-dippie dipped in incense and essential oils, and he could feel himself standing out against it all, in a black T-shirt, jeans and a cowboy hat. Like some deeply rooted relic of the past in the middle of...well, some relics that were deeply rooted in the past, sure, but one that felt pretty damned alternative to him.

“I might want crystals,” Sammy replied.

Ryder rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Okay. So crystals aside. How exactly does this work?”

Sequoia went about explaining the process, and how some women opted for a water birth, and that she could provide the tub for a rental fee.

“So you put a tub in the bedroom?”

“Wherever you want it,” she said, “but I think it’s best if it’s next to a bed in case Sammy wants to move around.”

“Okay,” he said. “But what about...it being sterile and everything.”

“You know, hospitals are sterile, but there are a lot of illnesses and infections in them, as well.”

“Yeah, I get that. It’s not like you can clear the air.” He sighed. “But what if there’s an emergency?”