Love at First Laugh: Eight Romantic Novellas Filled with Love, Laughter, and Happily Ever After

by Krista Phillips

  JoAnn rose from her seat. “Pudding anyone?”

  “Yes, please,” Brian, Elizabeth, and Errol said in one voice.

  Jordan’s answer came in the form of dishes being carelessly loaded into the dishwasher. Not that Brian blamed the young man for being irked with his mother.

  “Give me a moment to get it from the fridge.” JoAnn offered a half-smile. “I guess I owe Jordan an apology, so this might take a little longer than a moment.”

  Brian pointed to the black guitar case containing his twelve-string that he’d propped against the wall beside the front door. “I brought my guitar. Perhaps after dessert, we could sing some Christmas carols around the tree before we open gifts later on?” Carols would get them back on track, and open the way to share about God’s Christmas gift to the world.

  “That would be nice.” JoAnn turned away and walked toward the kitchen.

  Chapter 10

  “Are you ready for this?” Brian’s hand hovered above the door handle leading into the Stork’s Nest prenatal class held at the Albertino Hospital.

  Elizabeth nodded, although with her pounding pulse and sweaty palms, she felt worse than that first day JoAnn had dragged her off to spinning class—which she’d given up weeks ago. The baby bump had finally gotten in the way, and it had become impossible to even try and take a leisurely cycle. Hard to believe their little Bean had grown from smaller than a poppy seed to almost a pineapple. Her belly on the other hand had gone from an ironing board—okay, a padded ironing board—to looking like she’d swallowed one of those exercise balls down at the gym. How much more could she swell in the eight weeks before she popped?

  She’d made it this far though. She could manage this class, too, couldn’t she?

  “New year, new experience.” She flashed Brian a smile before turning to Jordan standing behind her. Shaun filmed from upfront. “Thanks for swapping your Fridays at the coast for Mondays so you could be here to document the prenatal antics.”

  “Elizabeth, I wouldn’t have missed this for the world. And the viewers would never forgive me either if we didn’t capture this experience for the next episode. Besides, it’s only this trip and the next one. Then we’ll be back to the usual routine…until the week that baby’s due. Then Shaun and I will be here, ready and waiting until it all goes down.” He shook his head. “I mean happens. Sorry, Elizabeth, bad choice of word there.”

  What was he talking about?

  Elizabeth thought hard. “Down?”

  He nodded.

  Ah, of course. Down syndrome.

  She touched his arm. “Don’t feel bad. I didn’t interpret your comment in the light of our pre-screening results.” Which felt like a lifetime ago. “I assumed you were talking about gravity having its way with the birthing process, as Dr. Kerr had explained.”

  She chuckled. “Who would’ve thought people would get a kick out of watching two old people having a baby?”

  “Me?” A grin stretched across Jordan’s handsome face. JoAnn and Errol certainly knew how to make a baby. Not that Jordan was a baby any more…far from it.

  “Yes, you did.” Wonder why they never had more children. Perhaps she’d ask her friend sometime. Then again, maybe she shouldn’t. She remembered well the sting of people’s questions to her and Brian when they came to learn of their barren nest. Maybe JoAnn only got one chance at being a mother. Just as she was. Except, her friend got to do it a whole lot earlier in life.

  “Jordan’s Journeys’ ratings have soared since Life Begins at Sixty started.”

  Elizabeth was certain she’d only caught the tail end of what Jordan said.

  “Are you two done chatting?” Brian shifted on his feet as he muttered. “I’m waiting to open this door.”

  Elizabeth swirled back around. “Of course, honey. I’m sorry. Let’s go inside.” She took a deep breath. It usually helped to calm her. And since she’d started to show, she’d done a lot of deep breathing. Her gray hair and growing waistline—heck, what waistline?—attracted a lot of attention from strangers in shops. Did she even need this prenatal class? She had this breathing thing down to a tee.

  Brian pushed the door open and stepped aside for Shaun to enter first, as had become habit over the past few months.

  The room was empty, except for the petite young woman who looked up from where she sat in one of the chairs arranged in a circle. Tucking her long, chestnut-brown hair behind her ears, she smiled as she rose and walked toward them. “You must be the famous Dunhams?”

  “We are the Dunhams. I’m Elizabeth, and that’s my husband, Brian.” Elizabeth pointed to Brian. “I’m not so sure about the famous though. You must be Annette Fisher.” She held out her hand to greet her prenatal teacher. This young person was going to teach her how to give birth? Although Annette could have more personal experience with this than she.

  “I was so excited when I heard that the stars of Life Begins at Sixty were joining my prenatal class.” She grasped Elizabeth’s hand then pulled her into a hug. “Welcome.”

  Elizabeth returned the embrace. “Thank you. You came highly recommended by my obstetrician, Dr. Kerr.”

  Annette took a step back. “Dr. Kerr? Such a darling, that woman. Always sending young mothers-to-be my way.”

  Elizabeth caught Jordan’s gaze and waggled her brows at him.

  Pan-faced, he ignored her attempt to remind him how great Melanie Kerr was.

  “Older ones, too.” Brian chuckled.

  “Your wife’s not old, Mr. Dunham. Don’t you know that gray’s the new blond? Look at her. She’s gorgeous, although she’s somewhat of an enigma. Both of you are, actually.” She released a satisfied sigh. “Ah, I’m going to love having you in my class.” Her gaze flitted to Jordan and Shaun. “You, too.”

  She gestured to the chairs. “Take a seat while we wait for the rest of the attendees to arrive. And you guys…” She pointed a finger at Jordan and Shaun. “Feel free to do whatever it is you need to do.”

  Elizabeth and Brian took a seat opposite Annette, their backs to the door, while Jordan and Shaun positioned themselves outside the circle, facing Elizabeth and Brian. As always.

  Annette gave the men a sideways glance. “I have to tell you, you guys are doing an amazing job documenting the Dunhams’ journey. I am glued to my TV on a Wednesday night watching your show.”

  “His show, not mine.” Shaun pointed at Jordan. “I’m just the cameraman.”

  “And an excellent one at that,” Annette said. “Golly, the night you aired the pre-screening scan…I cried like a baby. My husband and kids could do nothing to console me.” She pointed at Shaun. “You captured Brian and Elizabeth’s raw emotions so—” She exhaled a long breath, dabbing at the corners of her eyes. “You simply blew me away. Still do.”

  She turned to Brian and Elizabeth. “I take my hat off to you both for sticking to your convictions. I’ve known of parents who have aborted at lesser odds than you’re facing.”

  “Taking life isn’t our decision—life and death is in God’s hands.” Elizabeth reached for Brian’s comfort and twined her fingers between his.

  His squeeze reassured her that he believed everything would turn out all right, that God truly has this pregnancy in his hands.

  “They’re amazing people.” Jordan’s voice echoed in the large, near-empty room. “I’ve learned a lot from them in the past five-and-a-half months. Especially about faith.”

  At the sound of the door opening, Elizabeth glanced over her shoulder. Two couples entered and hurried across the room to join the circle. The new arrivals greeted and introduced themselves as Mandy, Gerald, Rebeccah, and Robert before sitting down. Both pregnant women did a double take at Elizabeth when they realized she wasn’t the prenatal teacher having fun with a pillow under her shirt.

  Seated by Elizabeth, Mandy turned to her and smiled. “Are you a surrogate mother?”

  Elizabeth shook her head. “It’s our own baby.”

  Mandy’s mouth formed a perfect ‘o
’.

  Rebeccah’s widened. “Aren’t you that couple from TV?”

  Brian grinned.

  “They are,” Jordan proudly announced from the sidelines.

  Brian stared at the young whippersnapper, Mandy, sitting beside Elizabeth. She couldn’t have been more than a teenager, as was her husband, Gerald. He glanced at her left hand. No ring. Correction—must be her boyfriend. Not that Mandy noticed Brian’s glares. She was too fixated on the TV presenter.

  Surrogate mother… Pfft. Perhaps the publicity from the show was a good thing. If people recognized him and Elizabeth, they’d know they weren’t surrogates. They’d done this all on their own, and the baby Elizabeth carried was theirs. Of course, they had a huge amount of help from God. Must have. After all the years of trying and not conceiving, there had to be divine intervention involved in this conception. Not that there wasn’t in any life created, but somehow Brian felt they’d had a little extra help this time around.

  Another two couples arrived and joined the circle, taking the last four seats. At least Layla, Tyrone, Jemina, and Alex, as they introduced themselves, were slightly older than the first two couples.

  Brian huffed out a breath. If only he and Elizabeth were a little younger, they might’ve felt less out of place.

  Annette clapped her hands together. “Now that everyone has arrived, shall we get started?”

  Everyone nodded.

  “Welcome to my couples class for first time parents,” Annette beamed a wide smile. “As you know, we’ll meet every Monday and Wednesday until we’ve completed the five evening schedule. Each session is two hours long. I like to keep my classes small so that we can have active participation, and partners are encouraged to attend all the sessions. Your support to your pregnant spouses is invaluable.” She turned her head and gestured to Jordan and Shaun. “And, of course, you two are welcome at any time.”

  “We’ll only be here tonight and on the last Monday night,” Jordan said.

  Puzzlement washed over the late-comers’ faces, and Annette laughed.

  “For those who don’t know, those two gents outside the hallowed preggy circle are Jordan and Shaun from Jordan’s Journeys. They’re filming a documentary on Brian and Elizabeth’s late-life pregnancy.”

  “The Jordan of Jordan’s Journeys?” Jemima’s green eyes twinkled in stark contrast to her red hair and freckles. “I love your show, but I must admit I haven’t watched for a while because our TV’s broken.” She smacked Alex on the back of his head. “See why you need to get it fixed? I’ve missed out on seeing Brian and Elizabeth’s journey.” She turned to Elizabeth. “Wow. Pregnant at your age. That must be something?”

  Elizabeth laughed. “It is rather something.”

  “So, how did that happen?” Her freckles wrinkled with her nose.

  “Uhm, you might not want to ask that question.” Jordan emitted a loud chuckle, and Jemima frowned at him. “Believe me, I know. I did.”

  Annette clapped her hands together a second time, drawing her class’s attention back to her. “I’m sure we all know where babies come from, otherwise you wouldn’t be sitting here right now. No, we are here to learn how best to get them out of our bodies safely when the time for labor comes as well as all that happens after delivery.

  “Because any one of you could go into early labor at any time, tonight we’ll be covering relaxation, massage, and breathing techniques during labor.” She handed out flyers to everyone. “In these notes are sketches to help you practice when you’re at home, as well as the schedule of what we’ll cover over the next four sessions. Things like pain relief and—”

  “Yes!” Mandy punched the air.

  All eyes veered her way.

  She shrugged. “I hate pain. In fact, I’m planning to have a Caesarean birth.”

  If that was the case, what was she doing at this class? He shook his head. Kids these days… Always want the easy way through life. Never want to suffer in the least. Yet, suffering brings us closer to God.

  Brian exhaled, probably a little too heavy. It was only five sessions. He could handle Miss No-pain Whippersnapper.

  Elizabeth clasped his hand. “Grace, honey,” she whispered. “You don’t know the road she’s walking.”

  His wife knew him so well. Often he wondered if she could read his mind. But she was right. He did need to extend grace to everyone who passed through his life, especially when they worked on his last jangled nerve.

  “I’ll try, love.”

  “As I was saying,” Annette continued, “pain relief and relaxation techniques—including birthing pools and epidurals; labor and birth positions; interventions like induction of labor and monitoring the baby electronically; assisted deliveries; Caesarean births; breastfeeding; handling your newborn baby; and, the changes you may experience after your baby is born. On the final evening we’ll watch a natural birth DVD as well as a Caesarean DVD. I don’t want to scare you all away just yet.”

  Brian leaned toward Elizabeth and spoke in a low voice. “Can’t we just skip to the ‘handling your newborn’ section?”

  “I wish.” She offered a weak smile.

  “A–are you scared about giving birth, love?”

  Elizabeth’s mouth turned down and she raised one shoulder. “Show me a woman who isn’t. But I’ll get through it. A gazillion before me have.”

  Indeed. A gazillion have. But not that many at sixty.

  Annette cleared her throat. “Who would have thought the talkers in class would be our golden oldie celebrities?”

  “Sorry.” Brian sat upright in his chair and zipped his lip.

  Elizabeth did the same, and the entire circle, including Jordan and Shaun on the outskirts, burst out laughing.

  Annette pointed her finger at Brian. “Ooh, you’re a naughty one, Brian Dunham. I’m going to have to watch you.”

  Great, all he needed. Another pair of eyes focused their way.

  For the next forty-five minutes, the prenatal teacher spoke to the group about the various stages of labor, the myriad positions for labor, and the numerous ways to give birth. By golly, he had no idea this whole giving birth thing was so complicated. He’d always thought it was something that came naturally, just happened wherever a woman might find herself when her waters broke. At least, that’s the way it had worked most of the time on the mission field. Now there were props to make a mother comfortable during labor—beanbags, balls, straps, birthing stools, birthing chairs, and birthing pools. His mind swirled.

  “Personally, I’d prefer to just use you as my support and comfort during labor,” Elizabeth whispered.

  “All right, everyone.” Annette rose from her chair. “I’d like all the moms-to-be to place their hands against the nearest wall. We’re going to practice the breathing techniques I just spoke about. Birthing partners, you’ll stand behind them, reminding them what it is they’re trying to accomplish with their breathing.”

  Everyone scurried to position themselves against the wall, smiling and waving to the camera as they did.

  Brian and Elizabeth took it slow. There was plenty of space for them all.

  Jordan, Shaun, and the camera followed Brian and Elizabeth.

  Hands pressed against the pale green plaster, Elizabeth did as Annette had instructed. She breathed in deep through her nose, and then out through her mouth.

  “Are you relaxing your jaw, love? And your breathing muscles? And everything else…you know…further down that you need to relax to help the baby come. Not now, of course. We don’t want the baby to come now. Remember, this is just practice.” Brian rubbed her back. “Rhythmic breathing, love. You are getting enough oxygen breathing this way, aren’t you? And the baby? Those breaths are mighty slow, which means less oxygen.”

  Elizabeth swung around. “Brian. Chill.” She shook her head and laughed. “I think you could benefit from learning this breathing technique. Goodness, what are you going to be like with the actual birth?”

  “Probably a wreck, but I’l
l try my best not to be.”

  “Remember class—relax. Breathe in on ‘re’. Breathe out on ‘lax’.” Annette strode down the wall, reminding each couple how to breathe during labor. “In through your nose. Out through your mouth.”

  After about fifteen minutes of breathing practice, Annette had them move back to the chairs to teach them about relaxation massage. Massage? This wasn’t a beauty spa. When was the teacher going to teach the women how to give birth to their babies safely?

  “Right, all the mommies in the chairs, daddies behind them.” Annette stepped behind Elizabeth, leaving Brian to stand to one side. “Get comfortable ladies, with your feet flat on the floor. And now, lean back against your partners. Men, take your lady’s head in your hands, holding the weight.” She placed her hands at the sides of Elizabeth’s head and proceeded to show them all the various massage techniques—from the forehead out to the temples, hand-over-hand up the forehead, from the chin to the ears, circular motions on the temples, and finally, head forward stroking from the ears, down the neck, over the shoulders, and down to the elbows.

  Elizabeth’s eyes closed at the touch of Annette’s trained hands. She released a soft moan. “That feels good. So soothing.”

  “Remember everyone, the person doing the massage has to be relaxed to make this work.” Annette indicated for Brian to take over, and for the rest of the group to practice the same.

  Elizabeth’s eyes opened at the changeover. She looked up at Brian and smiled “Relaxed? Oh, honey, maybe you should be the one sitting in the chair.”

  He emitted a soft laugh. “Close your eyes again, love. I’m nowhere near as good as Annette, but I’m going to try my best to get this right.”

  Elizabeth leaned against his stomach, and Brian began to massage her head as Annette had shown them.