Chapter 83
The rest of the South American tour went off without a hitch and they headed home. It was suppose to be a break for them but they all had their ‘projects’ to do. Kevin and Tyler had agreed to perform at the charity benefit for Howie. They also had Tiffany, getting settled into the new house, and Tyler wanted to fix up the nursery.
When it came to the nursery, Kevin had wanted to surprise Tyler by getting it ready for her. He talked to the guys about it and they all agreed to help. In turn, the guys talked to their respective girlfriends about it. It was all set; Sonja was going to get Tyler to go with her to shop and plan for her and Brian’s upcoming wedding while the others helped Kevin with the nursery.
The night before it was to happen, Kevin and Tyler sat out on the deck watching the people on the beach. As Kevin rubbed Tyler’s stomach, he asked, "Baby, how are you going to decorate this nursery?"
"I thought about something for the ocean. I bought a bunch of stuff in LA for it and I thought I’d buy the furniture tomorrow while Sonja and I were out."
"Why don’t you wait so Tiffany and I can go with you? You know, we DID promise her she could help with this one."
"I’d forgotten. We need to get something done though before we leave."
"We’ll go day after tomorrow, baby."
The two continued to talk well after the sun had set and then went to check on Tiffany. She had been playing on the computer and now Kevin told her to get ready for bed. The very first day Tiffany had been with them, Kevin had set up the ground rules and so far, she’d been good about following them
The next day, Tyler left not long after breakfast. For once, Kevin had gotten up with her which had surprised her. He had been sleeping in since they’d been home but then again, so had she.
Once Tyler was gone, Kevin called Howie who was bringing the baby furniture. His parents had saved Tyler’s stuff from when she was a baby. Then he called Brian who was bringing the paint. He called the others as well and within an hour, everyone was at the house ready to work.
While the guys moved things around, the girls fixed breakfast. It took them the better part of the morning to paint and while it dried, the guys set up the furniture. When the paint was dry, it was the girls’ turn to put up the curtains and the other things Tyler had bought for the walls.
They were just about done when the phone ran. It was Sonja letting them know she and Tyler were headed to the house. Knowing they were running out of time, Kevin and the guys went to lend a hand.
When Tyler and Sonja walked in, Kevin, Howie, and Brian were out on the deck getting the grill started while AJ and Nick were shooting pool. The girls were in the kitchen working on the rest of dinner. Tyler was extremely grateful because she was tired and soar. Between her arm and being pregnant, Tyler had been having a hard time and got tired easily.
Tyler went out to give Kevin a hug. "How much longer before dinner, ‘Boo’?"
"About an hour. Why don’t you go change and get comfortable?"
Kissing him lightly, Tyler headed back to their room. Knowing she’d have to go by the nursery, Kevin and the others followed her to see her reaction. Tyler walked by the door and the curtains caught her attention. She went in and stood in the middle of the room looking around in disbelief.
"Kevin!" called Tyler not realizing he was behind her.
Wrapping his arms around her, Kevin said, "You don’t have to holler, baby. I’m right here."
The others were standing at the door grinning as Tyler asked, "When?"
"After you left this morning. Sonja’s job was to get you out of the house."
Howie said, "Ty, I know you won’t recognize it but Mama has been saving your baby furniture for you and I brought it out to you."
Tyler started crying and Kevin hugged her tighter. "Thank you guys. You don’t know how much this means to me. How am I going to ever thank you?"
AJ cracked, "I’m sure Kevin will find a way."
Tyler grinned, "’Bone’, you’re incorrigible! Thank you, guys. This is PERFECT."
Tyler gave everyone a hug thanking them and then stood in the middle of the room looking around at what her friends had done. The others left to give her time as Kevin leaned lazily against the door frame. He watched as she rubbed her stomach and he all could think about how beautiful she was.
Tyler went to him, "’Boo’, this is awesome! How did I get so lucky to have such a wonderful husband and fantastic friends?"
Kevin kissed her and said, "By just being you, baby! I want to give you everything that makes you happy, Tyler. When you smile, it lights up the world and I don’t ever want to lose that ‘light’."
The couple kissed for several minutes and then Kevin went to help Tyler get changed. She was having difficulty with the arm being able to do certain things.
The couple spent the rest of the evening with their friends. It was a relaxing evening for them all before the madness geared up again.
*************
The group was in Boston for five shows at the beginning of July and they had a day off between the second and third shows. Tyler woke early that morning because of false labor pains.
Sleepily, Kevin asked, "Baby, are you okay?"
"I guess. I think I’m having Braxton-Hicks."
Kevin wrapped his arms around Tyler, putting his hands on Tyler’s stomach. "Are you sure that its just that?"
"I haven’t really timed them so, no, I’m not sure."
Kevin reached for his watch as he said, "Let me know when the next one starts."
The two lay quietly and Tyler thought Kevin had fallen asleep but when she held her breath, he lifted his arm to look at his watch. The contraction didn’t last long and was gone.
Kevin whispered, "Did it hurt much?"
"Not really, more like cramps during my period."
They lay together for almost an hour talking and timing the contractions. They weren’t coming in any pattern so Kevin relaxed. He didn’t want to tell Tyler but he was nervous about the birth. Her doctor had said to call when she went into labor and he’d fax them her information to a doctor wherever they were but that didn’t help Kevin much.
Tyler spent most of the morning having false labor pains despite what she tried to do to get rid of them. She had tried to take a warm shower and it worked for a little while but then they started again. Kevin stayed close wanting to make sure she was okay. Howie hovered too once they told him what was going on along with the others.
Around lunchtime, Tyler and Kevin both realized that this was about to become the real thing. An unusually strong contraction hit and Tyler had to sit down.
"Baby, are you okay?"
"No....that one REALLY hurt."
Kevin looked at his watch and said quietly, "Tyler, the last three have been fifteen minutes apart."
The others looked at Tyler as Howie asked, "It’s too early, isn’t it?"
"Not really," said Kevin. "The doctor said the baby could come two weeks before her due date or as much as two weeks past. Ty, I’m calling your doctor."
Nick, with a touch of panic in his voice, asked, "Are you going back to Orlando to have the baby?"
Everyone looked at Tyler and Kevin as Kevin said, "No, we’re not. Tyler’s doctor will send her records wherever we are...and it looks like we’re going to be here."
Kevin made the phone call to Tyler’s doctor. He told him about the contractions and the doctor agreed that Tyler was going into labor. He told Kevin to stay near the phone and he’d call back with a doctor’s name in the Boston area.
When Kevin hung up, he went over to Tyler and sat on the table in front of her. He took her hand in his and brushed her hair back. "Baby, it looks like this is it."
Tyler had a terrified look in her eyes that everyone saw as she said in a whisper, "Promise me you won’t leave me."
"I’m not going anywhere, baby." Kevin leaned to her and kissed her tenderly. "You need to call Joey."
Howie handed his cell phone to Tyler. "Use my phone in case your doctor calls back."
Tyler shook her head, "I don’t want to call Joey until I know where I’m going to be."
"Baby, if he’s got to fly here, he’s going to need to have time to get a flight and so forth. He can always call us once he gets here to find out where you are. That’s if he comes at all. He hasn’t been to ANY of your doctor appointments lately."
Tyler looked at the phone and began to dial. Everyone watched with baited breath. They were just as anxious as Tyler.
Kevin could tell when Joey picked up because Tyler squeezed his hand. "Joey...hey, I just wanted to let you know that I’m in Boston and I’ve gone into labor. The contractions are fifteen minutes apart so it’s going to be a while."
