Page 104 of Time Out

I slid into her chair. “I’m sorry. This has been a really bad day for you and a really long one. I didn’t mean to throw that in your lap as soon as you arrived.”

“Because acting until morning would have been better?” Her look could freeze a lake. Terrify small children.

“No, and to be fully honest, I hadn’t figured out how to tell you yet at all.”

She humphed. “You’ve … you’ve … had sex.”

“Yeah.”

I let that linger. I wouldn’t apologize for it, but knew the difficulties in her understanding.

“How long have you been dating him?”

Oh. Okay. So she was really starting with the hard questions. I thought we’d start with why? Or straight to scripture that proved Jenna’s ideologies true.

“We care about each other.” So much for being fully truthful.

If she noticed I dodged her question, she didn’t show it. Or push. Not surprising since she wouldn’t have been allowed to do so when she woke up this morning.

“I’m really glad you’re here. It’s so good to see you.”

I sniffed as I said it, surprised at the emotions bubbling. This was my sister. We might have been drastically different, and maybe there was a chasm between us too wide to build a bridge across. But she was here, and when she needed help, I was there for her.

“I don’t understand your new life at all.”

“You don’t have to. And I’m not trying to say my life should be yours, either. I want you healthy and safe, free to figure out what kind of life it is that you want. That’s all, Ruth.”

She nodded, facial features softening. “You’re having a baby.”

This time it wasn’t an accusation.

“Yeah. I really am.”

“That’s really kind of exciting. Isn’t it?” She grinned softly. It shook until it stretched wider across her face.

My own matched hers. “Yeah, Ruth. It really is exciting. And scary, but mostly exciting.”

“I can’t believe you’re dating a man who cooks.” I snorted and then chuckled. Wait until I told her he did his laundry, too. “Is he good to you? Is he nice?”

I reached out and pressed my hand to her knee, making sure I had her full attention. “He’s the best man I’ve ever met.”

Full truth. That time, anyway, no hesitation.

We’d get to the story of how Davis and I met when she could handle it.

Chapter 31

Maggie

Next to me, Davis’s knee was bouncing like he was getting ready to start taking off down the field. He kept bumping his knee into mine, folding a pamphlet he grabbed from the table in front of us titled, “What to Expect…”

We were at my doctor’s office for the first appointment I’d invited him to, and to say we were both a ball of nerves was an understatement.

I squeezed his knee to still the bouncing, and his hand clamped onto mine. “Sorry. I’m excited, have been, but I don’t know why this is so scary to me.”

“Because this will make it all completely real.”

“It is real,” he stated and held my hand tighter. His palm was clammy, but I didn’t let go. If he needed to touch me to calm his nerves, I’d let him every time. “But now I’m thinking of all the things we’ll need to buy. There’s a lot to do, you know? And it’ll be here so fast, and we have so much else going on right now.”

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