Sisters Found
Page 26
Late in her pregnancy, Faith had become obsessed with the idea that her child wouldn’t be born perfect, that whatever had gone wrong with her would go wrong with the baby she carried. Hope had convinced Faith to have a sonogram, a picture of the baby in utero, which had reassured her that Cindy was perfect even before she arrived.
“Have you seen Charity?” Hope asked.
“I think she’s on her way here,” Faith said. “It takes her and Kane a little longer to get organized these days.”
“I’m here,” Charity said as she and Kane stepped into the room. Each had a baby over one shoulder.
“How are Kevin and Kacey?” Faith asked.
“Noisy,” Kane answered. At that moment, one of the little boys howled, causing the other one to cry, as well.
“They do everything together,” Charity said with a wry smile. “I’m enjoying them a lot. It makes me think of what it must have been like for you and Faith,” she said to Hope.
“It was fun being twins,” Hope said. “It would have been better if you’d been there, too.”
Over the past year, the three pregnant sisters had spent a great deal of time together learning about babies and preparing their nests for the new chicks. Faith had delivered first, and her two sisters had been there the instant she left the delivery room, to assure themselves she was all right. They’d marveled over their perfect niece and listened avidly as Faith told them what labor was like when you delivered without anesthesia.
“It hurts,” she told them. “But it was worth it to be wide awake and able to walk around right after the delivery.”
Charity had known early in her pregnancy that she was expecting twins, and she’d been apprehensive, because she had so little experience with children. Faith had volunteered to let her practice diapering with Cindy, and she was a pro long before her own two boys arrived.
Hope had taken the longest to get pregnant, even though she and Jake had been diligent in their attempts to make a baby. She’d confided to Faith that she wanted desperately to give Jake a child, and she was afraid that because she wanted it so much, it might never happen.
“You got Jake, didn’t you?” Faith reminded her. “I have all the confidence in the world that the two of you will make a baby together.”
And they had. It had taken nearly six months before Hope missed a period. She hadn’t told Jake right away, worried that something might go wrong. But by the second month her breasts were tender, and Jake noticed how she flinched, and questioned her and the truth came out.
Hope wished she had a photograph of Jake’s face when he realized he was going to be a father at last. Oh, the joy! And the awe. And the pride. The grin on his face had stretched from ear to ear and hadn’t gone away for the rest of her pregnancy. Whenever he saw her, it appeared.
Hope realized Russ had fallen asleep. She buttoned her nightgown under the concealing blanket, then turned to Jake and said, “Would you like to hold your son?”
Jake hadn’t taken Russ when the nurse had first offered him, because he was too worried about Hope. He’d practiced with his in-laws’ babies, so he knew how to support the baby’s head, and how fragile his son was likely to be.
And yet, Jake held his breath as Hope laid Russ in his arms. He felt the baby’s slight weight settle in his arms, and cupped his hand around his son’s tiny head. “Oh, God, Hope. He’s...” He didn’t want to call his son beautiful. Boys were handsome. But he could think of no other word to describe the perfect child in his arms.
“Mom and Dad are waiting to come in here,” Faith said. “And so are Jake’s parents. I suppose we need to get out of here so they can come in.”
“Tell them to give us a minute alone,” Jake said as the other two couples took their leave.
Hope looked at him speculatively. “What is it, Jake? Is everything all right?”
He rose and laid the baby in the crib beside Hope’s bed. “I wanted time alone to thank you for my son,” he said.
“It was my pleasure,” she said.
He sat down beside her and lifted her into his lap, holding her close. “I’m glad you were persistent, Hope. I’m glad you didn’t give up on me. You’ve made my life so rich. So complete. Thank you for my son, Hope. I love you...so much.”
She hugged him tight, and he heard her sniffle. “I love you too, Jake,” she said in a raspy voice. “Did you mean what you said about adopting a few kids?”
Jake put enough space between them to look into Hope’s eyes. “What did you have in mind?”
“Well, if you wait for me to have babies one at a time, you could be an old man before we have a big family.”
Jake smiled wryly. “I suppose that’s true.”
“We could start right away and find a couple of kids who need a family. Russ could use some brothers and sisters.”
“How many kids did you have in mind?” Jake asked.
“I was thinking at least eight—including the ones we produce ourselves,” she said with a grin.
“Eight.” Jake felt his heart take an extra beat. “Eight,” he repeated. “That’s quite a family.”
“It’s not too many, is it?” Hope asked. “Your mom and dad managed to raise eight. We could do it, too, don’t you think?”
“Eight sounds fine,” Jake said, hugging her tight. “Eight sounds just fine.”
* * * * *
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ISBN-13: 9781460322550
SISTERS FOUND
Copyright © 2002 by Joan Mertens Johnston, Inc.
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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