Chapter 15

fifteen

ALEXANDER

" W hat if the birth takes days? You can't leave while Charlie's still in the hospital."

His father shook his head. "No, Lorenzo, they'll have to go. A state visit cannot be rescheduled so easily."

Alex nodded as the family continued to debate around him. They were set to leave for the U.S. in two days, and Charlie had just gone into labour. A little early, but the doctors assured them it was nothing to be concerned with.

Nearly the entire family was here eagerly awaiting the newest edition to the family, except for Ethan and Anda who were already in the U.S. Alex glanced around the hospital waiting room looking for his wife—they were in a separate Royal Wing of the hospital, which afforded them a separate entrance, private waiting room, and additional security—but didn't see her.

She was coming from some meetings so they had not arrived together, and he was getting worried. The press had already caught wind of it and were stationed outside, and he hoped she would be able to dodge them on her way in.

Charlie's birth was big news, as she could be giving birth to the next heir to the throne. He wasn't sure if he and Rebecca would be able to get pregnant, and his sister Cat and her fiancé weren't sure if they even wanted children, much less if they could conceive.

Rebecca strode in, protection agents trailing. "Hi, everyone. Any news?"

They all shook their heads and murmured responses as she went around to greet everyone. She took a little longer with both his mother and Grace; today was a joyous occasion, but it was a hard one too for women like his wife, his mother, and Grace who had all lost a child.

Then Rebecca saw him and smiled, and he rose to greet her as she came his way. After a quick kiss, she settled in the chair beside him.

"How are you, darling?"

"Tired and stressed about the tour, but excited to meet the baby. You?"

He reached for her hand and brought it to his lips for a kiss. "The same. Everyone was discussing whether we should postpone going, but there's no stopping the trip now. Once the news broke of Charlie's labour, the White House reached out to us but I confirmed the trip unless..."

"…something bad happens," she whispered and nodded. No one wanted to think about something happening to Charlie or the baby but, as a royal about to embark on a state visit, they needed to.

She squeezed his hand.

"Nate came out a while ago and said Charlie was doing well, but that seeing everyone would be too overwhelming for her."

She nodded. "I can understand that. There are rather a lot of us."

He huffed a laugh. "To say the least. Nate also mentioned she started having contractions last night, but she wanted to wait to come to the hospital until the doctor confirmed it was time."

"Yes, she was having Braxton Hicks a week or so ago, remember? She didn't want another false alarm. But that means she's been in labour for at least, what, twelve hours or so already?"

He nodded, then got annoyed. "They came here this morning, but still waited a few hours before telling us. Honestly, I'm shocked we found out before the press did."

She tutted at him. "Don't be like that. It's their pregnancy, their child. They're allowed to do things as they like, royal or no. Charlie's also American?—"

"—former American."

Rebecca rolled her eyes. "Vallerian-American technically, since she holds dual citizenship. Anyway, things are different in the U.S. She may have felt more comfortable waiting and, since she's the mother, she gets to decide these things."

He spoke his next words before thinking. "So when you're about to give birth, I should…"

She looked down, her free hand fisting resting near her belly button. She tugged the edge of her suit jacket down, as if that's what she was intending to do all along, when they both knew it wasn't.

Fuck! "I'm sorry, darling. I didn't mean?—"

"Yes." She cleared her throat. "Yes. Should I be giving birth, you have to cater to my whims, logical or not."

She still wasn't looking at him, her eyes looking at anything but him. "Darling."

"Hmm?"

"Will you look at me?"

She shook her head.

"Why not?"

"I'm trying not to think about the baby today. If I look at you now, I'll break. I know it. It's not that I'm not happy for Charlie, but…"

"I understand. I do. And I'm sorry."

She sighed. "No, I'm sorry. You lost a baby too. I know it was different for you, but I know it affects you too."

It did, and she'd said as much before. Yet every time she thought of him in the midst of her own grief, it only filled his heart more, something he previously wasn't sure was possible. "Thank you for saying that, darling." He kissed her hand again. "Shall we only think about happy things today, then?"

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Yes." She looked to him, a small smile on her face, then leaned forward and kissed him.

She then rested her head on his shoulder and they made idle chat about the tour. Family members moved about the room, conversations swirling around them, but Alex and Rebecca didn't pick up most of it. An hour or so later coffee was brought over, then meals a few hours after that. They all worked from the hospital that day, several of them popping into private rooms to take calls about tour logistics or to answer inquiries from the press or the U.S.

It was early in the evening when Nate finally emerged, a bewildered smile on his face. "It's a boy!"

Cheers went up around the room, and they all descended on him for congratulations. He was dressed in scrubs, his shoulder-length hair pulled back, the scar on his head slightly noticeable, the tattoos on his arms very visible.

He looked the happiest that Alex had ever seen him.

"Charlie's exhausted but wouldn't mind a visit from everyone now, in groups of two or three, please. And everyone better wash their hands before picking up my son."

Their parents gave each other a small smile and followed Nate first, while everyone else starting arguing about who got to go next.

Rebecca gently elbowed him. "I think you'll need to resolve this."

He wasn't king yet, did he have to take on family squabbles so soon?

Still, he cleared his throat and spoke loud enough to be heard. "We'll go in birth order."

Lorenzo crossed his arms over his chest. "That means you get to go next. Convenient. "

Alex merely smiled. "Yes, it is convenient. For me." He saw his parents exiting Charlie's room down the hall, broad smiles on their faces, and took Rebecca's hand. "Our turn, I believe."

The rest of the family grumbled but he merely led his wife down the hall to meet their new nephew, Charles Gabriel Louis Santoro.