Page 45 of An Unexpected Love

“I’m two months pregnant.”

“Shelly!” Jill was so excited she nearly toppled her water glass. “Why didn’t you say something sooner? Good grief, I’m your best friend—I’d think you’d want me to know.”

“I do, but I couldn’t tell you until I knew for sure, could I?”

“You just found out?”

“Not exactly.” Shelly reached for a small packet of soda crackers, tore away the cellophane wrapper and munched on one. “I found out before your wedding, but I didn’t want to say anything then.”

Jill appreciated Shelly’s considerateness, her wish not to compete with Jill’s important day.

“Actually, it was Mark who told me. Imagine a husband explaining the facts of life to his wife. I’m such a scatterbrain, I made a mistake. I miscalculated and didn’t even know it.”

As far as Jill was concerned, this baby certainly wasn’t a mistake, and from Shelly’s happy glow, her friend felt the same way.

“I was afraid Mark might be upset. Naturally we’d talked about starting a family, but neither of us planned to have it happen so soon.”

“He wasn’t upset, though, was he?” Jill would’ve been shocked if Mark had been anything but thrilled.

“Not in the least. When he first told me what he suspected, I just laughed.” She shook her head in mock consternation. “You’d think I’d know better than to question a man who sleeps with his daily planner by his side!”

“I’m thrilled for you.”

“Now that I’ve adjusted to it, I can’t wait. I’m looking forward to decorating the nursery and wearing maternity clothes andeverything.”

After the waitress had taken their order, Jill leaned back against the banquette cushion. “It happened just like you said it would,” she said.

“What did?”

“Loving Jordan.” Jill felt a little shy talking so openly about something so intimate. Although she and Jordan were married and deeply in love with each other, they never spoke of their feelings. Jordan was still uncomfortable with expressing emotion. But he didn’t need to tell Jill he loved her, not when he went about provingit every way he knew how. She’d never pressured him, never demanded the words.

“The day we were married you told me love makes the difficult things seem effortless. Remember?”

Ever confident, Shelly grinned. “You’re going to be so happy…” She paused, swallowed and reached for her napkin, dabbing her eyes. “I get so emotional these days, I can’t believe it. The other night I found myself crying at a stupid television commercial.”

“You? Seattle’s drama queen? Impossible,” Jill teased.

Shelly shook her head ruefully. “Yes, me.” She began to laugh, and Jill joined in.

Laughter came easily since her marriage; it was all the happiness in her heart brimming over, spilling out. She’d never felt so carefree or laughed at so many silly things before.

When Jill returned from lunch two hours later, Jordan was gone. Exhausted from the flight and the excitement of the past week, she crawled into bed and slept, not waking until it was dark.

Rolling onto her back, she stretched luxuriously under the weight of the blanket and smiled, musing how thoughtful it was of Jordan to let her sleep.

She kicked aside the blanket and searched blindly for her shoes. Yawning, she walked into the living room, surprised to find it dark.

“Jordan?” she called.

She was greeted by silence.

Turning on the lights, Jill was shocked to discover it was after nine. Jordan must still be at the office, she supposed, her stomach knotting. Could it be happening so soon? Could he have grown tired of her already?

No sooner had the thought formed than the elevatordoors opened and Jordan appeared. She didn’t fly into his arms, although that was her first instinct.

“Hello,” she greeted him, a bit coolly.

He was loosening his tie. “What time is it?”

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