Girl Dad…

Galina has given birth to her and Luca's first child, Raiya.

You can read about that below but read closely as there's a hint to who the blind date book is about.

Galina

Luca shuffled through our mail with a frown, while I pretended not to notice his current mood. The deeper I got into my pregnancy, the more antsy he became.

I sort of liked this excited yet anxious version of him.

“Are you looking for something specific?” I asked gently, caressing my overgrown belly.

It was almost time for baby girl to make her entrance, but in true Moretti fashion she was taking her time.

Raiya would be exactly like her aunt, I felt it in my spirit. And while I knew she’d possess some of my great qualities, I found peace in knowing she could be a bad ass like the Lucia Bianchi.

Luca raised his gaze to meet mine and that annoyed expression he wore daily, softened.

“We got invited to a wedding,” he replied, waving a dark green envelope as he left the kitchen island and sat beside me on the sofa.

A wedding?

Violet and Finnegan had gotten married over a month ago, and Gaia and Rocco hadn’t picked an exact date for theirs.

And though Luca and I were having a large ceremony mid-May, right after Raiya was born, we had been secretly married for almost a year.

“Let me see…” I reached for it, my interest piqued, but he pulled it away with a smirk. “Luca…”

“Kitten,” he drawled in response. “If you want to know, kiss me first.”

I pouted for a second but the urge to oblige was much stronger.

As I leaned over to meet him halfway, a sharp pain shot through me and I gasped, eyes widening.

The indescribable feeling lasted a few seconds too long before I eventually caught my breath.

“Are you having contractions?” Luca asked calmly, his fingers caressing the side of my face as I held onto his hand for dear life.

I hadn’t realized I’d grabbed onto him until he spoke.

My husband had never been the panicking type, making his calm demeanor something I’d come to expect.

And it was exactly what I needed, what I would need if our daughter was readying herself to enter the world.

“Braxton hicks probably,” I said, biting my lip. “I want to wait a little before we start rushing out the doo—oh, fuck.”

“Less than five minutes,” I heard Luca mumble through my groans.

Of course he’d been timing the contractions to come to his own conclusion.

He stood after my grip on his hand loosened and gently pulled me up from the sofa.

“Today you aren’t a doctor, okay?”

“But, I am and—”

“I’m not hearing any of that…” His stern eyes met mine. “You’re going to let me help you get dressed and walk you to the car without a fuss.”

There was no point in arguing with the man.

And with the way my body ached from the back-to-back contractions, I didn’t have the energy to fight with him.

“I can go in my pajamas,” I decided, looking down at the loose fitting grey pants and long sleeved shirt to match.

He’d just helped me shower not long ago and was in a pair of joggers and white t-shirt himself.

“You should call your sister and—”

“I’ll worry about them later,” he cut in. “My first priority is you and our daughter.”

I nodded and leaned into him for support as another agonizing pain worked its way through my body.

It was much more intense and less than five minutes from the last, which meant I was in active labor or something was seriously wrong.

My heart knew it was the former, that Raiya had finally decided to grace us with her presence and despite the pain I felt excitement.

Luca laid a pair of Nike slides in front of me and I slipped my feet in.

“Hey…”

I looked up at the sound of his voice, barely able to see his face through my watery gaze.

“I’ll be by your side every step of the way, okay?” he murmured, wiping tears away.

I nodded and we were on our way to the birthing center with my name on the outside of the building.

Luca refused to call anyone but the midwife and standby doctor we’d chosen to assist in our water birth.

My suite was ready upon arrival but I hadn’t expected anything less from my staff.

What I’d curated for my momma’s to be was special and I couldn’t be prouder of the work accomplished in such a short time.

Home births were on the rise and I brought that home feel to my facility with the safety of having a full staff on hand at the drop of a dime.

The suites were spacious with state of the art whirlpool tubs in a bedroom-like atmosphere.

“Dr. Whitloc—”

Luca’s eyes shifted in the direction of Dr. Larson, the physician we’d chosen in case of emergency.

As long as things went smoothly, the midwife would be assisting in the delivery with her team.

“Dr. Moretti,” she corrected, a tiny smile on her face.

Most of the staff was used to Luca’s glare when they addressed me by my maiden name.

His insistence that they start now to be prepared for after the official ceremony hadn’t weaned. No one knew we were married or that I had submitted the paperwork for a name change on all of my professional and personal documents months ago.

“Let’s get you comfortable and I’ll check to see how dilated you are,” Dr. Larson went on.

We did that with Luca’s watchful eyes on us at every turn.

“Six centimeters,” she announced, snatching her gloves off. “More than halfway there. I’ll send Cara in.”

“Can you call my aunt and uncle?” I asked, drawing Luca’s attention from Dr. Larson’s retreating frame to me.

“You want them rushing here and crowding the room?”

He sat next to me on the bed, his body facing my direction.

“I—well, no.”

I bit my lip as another contraction tore through me.

“But,” I mumbled, eyes closed. “You can keep them in the waiting room. I want my aunt here with me.”

His lips met my forehead and relief filled me for a short moment.

“I already texted them, Kitten,” he whispered into my skin, while caressing just beneath my bump. “Don’t worry about anything, I’m taking care of it all.”

There hadn’t been a doubt in my mind or heart about what he’d do to make this process as smooth as possible for me. Having Luca, his support and love, felt like something out of a movie. Sometimes I couldn’t even fathom that this was my life, that he was my man—my husband.

“And my dad?” I asked, opening my eyes to find him staring down at me with a faint smile on his face. “Why are you smiling?”

“We’re about to be parents,” he replied softly, fingers dancing along the side of my face. “I’ve been dreaming about this, about you and our little girl. Coming home to the sound of tiny feet running toward me. I’m happy it’s with you.”

“You’re such a sap, Moretti.”

But my goodness did I adore when he spoke to me about the future he envisioned us having.

“I’m exactly as I need to be when I’m with you…” He kissed my forehead and stood. “As for your dad, he’ll be here.”

I nodded and tried my best to relax while Luca stood watch, his eyes on everyone who entered and left the birthing suite. That protective nature of his had sky rocketed over the last few months but I didn’t mind it.

“Hey…”

He looked over from where he stood, brows lifted.

“Who’s getting married?”

“Not anyone important.”

“Luca…”

“Kitten…”

“If we were invited then we have to go, you know that, right?”

His frown deepened and I smiled.

My husband wasn’t a people person and had I not found my way into his life and heart, he’d skip every wedding he was invited to. But as the head of this family, as the head of a criminal organization, showing face—even if you preferred not to—was important.

“It’s someone who’s been trying to get in with me for a while,” he finally said, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. “Not sure how I feel about him yet.”

“And he invited you to his wedding?”

“To his arranged marriage,” he corrected. “Seems he found another way in. I’m slightly impressed.”

“Oh—shit…”

I squeezed my eyes closed and gripped the sheets.

“Another one,” he murmured, closer this time. “Should I get Cara?”

“I’m right here,” the mid-wife we’d chosen spoke, her soft cadence soothing. “Press this to her forehead.”

A few seconds later, I felt a cold cloth against my skin.

“Let’s check you again,” Cara went on. “See if you’ve progressed.”

Only an hour had passed since Dr. Larson checked.

I gripped Luca’s hand as the pain intensified, that uncomfortable feeling rooting itself in place and sprouting throughout me. Cara checking my cervix only made the pain worse.

Shifting a little, I tried my best to take it.

“Much closer than before,” she said, pulling away. “Eight centimeters.”

She checked my temperature and blood pressure, her movements gentle every step of the way. Even as she wrapped the fetal monitor around my belly, I barely felt her touch.

“You two are doing great, mama,” Cara murmured as she wiped my forehead from the other side of the bed.

“I can’t do it,” I cried softly, tears burning my eyes. “It hurts.”

“There’s still time for a—”

“No!” I exclaimed, much louder than I’d meant to. “I want to do this without an epidural.”

As a doctor, who had helped bring more babies into the world in the last year than I could count, I encouraged expecting mothers to do what they felt was best for themselves.

And as an expecting mother, I wanted nothing more than to do this as naturally as possible. Not to feel stronger or superior over mothers who chose the other route but because I wanted to fulfill what my own mother hadn’t been able to.

Her chance to connect with me during the birthing stages had been taken away from her and I needed… I wanted to share that connection through this.

She wasn’t here physically but she was here; I felt her all around me, all the time.

“I’m ready to be in the water,” I announced, attempting to sit up on my own before Luca took over.

He pulled my gown off, leaving me in just my sports bra and slowly led me over to the filled tub. As I submerged my lower half into the warm water, a sense of relief filled me.

While the pain was still prominent, I was content with what was to come.

“Your aunt is here,” Luca murmured from behind me, his arms wrapped around my neck and face against mine. “I texted for her to come back.”

She’d been the only person I wanted in the room with me besides Luca.

The men in my family were too intense to be part of this.

“I love you, Luca.”

His lips met the shell of my ear as he replied, “I love you, Galina Moretti.”

My skin tingled.

His love for me was evident.

“I thought your uncle would be a problem but your cousin is,” my aunt spoke as she entered the room. “Niko is insisting on being able to sit outside the door, just in case.”

“I’m fine, Nikolai,” I shouted, knowing he’d followed her back.

“I’m still sitting here,” he shouted back, forcing a smile out of me.

A stubborn Ivanov could never be swayed after making their mind up about something.

“Let him stay,” Luca said, showing his adoration for my cousin.

They were closer than close these days and I had a feeling that Niko looked up to my husband just as much as he did his father.

“How are you feeling?” Sasha asked, sitting at the edge of the circular tub.

I whimpered a little before finding my words.

“Like I’m being ripped into two.”

She smiled and it made me want to curse.

Nothing about my pain was smile worthy.

“The joys of childbirth,” she said, eyes meeting Luca’s before returning to me. “It seems you have all you need.”

I shook my head, the tears rushing back.

“I need you,” I cried. “I always need you but especially now.”

I felt Luca move, the chair he’d been sitting in sliding back.

“Come sit, Sasha,” his deep voice commanded. “The closer you are, the better.”

She obliged and soon her arms were around me as Luca’s had been.

“I’m getting in,” Luca announced, removing his shirt and shoes before sliding into the tub with me.

My family was in the waiting room, Niko outside the door, and the most important people in my life were by my side. I couldn’t have asked for a better support system.

Before I knew it, I was pushing with my team of nurses and mid-wife coaching me through. The noise around me quieted as Raiya made her entrance into the world through one last push.

“You are a fucking star,” Luca murmured, helping to bring our daughter to my chest.

I barely saw her face through my tears but I felt her presence, that unmistakable feeling of something being mine—ours.

Our daughter.

Raiya Sierra Moretti.

She would walk this earth with the strength of my mother’s name and the force of her father’s.

“Luca…”

“Yes, Kitten?”

Our eyes met and he smiled, broadly.

It was the most teeth he’d ever shown and I felt so lucky to be on the receiving end of it, not just for a moment but for a lifetime.

“You have to protect her, our family.”

The smile he’d been wearing was replaced with a look of certainty.

“I’ll protect her with my life,” he declared, leaning in to kiss my forehead. “The both of you.”

‘til death do us part.

Based on what was said in this chapter, can you guess who my next release is about?

I was vague but was I?