Page 91 of Moving to Love
“I hope, with my whole heart, that you’re happy, Gunnar.” Keith rested his hand over his heart.
Gunnar stood tall. “I am. Dog is my dad. I now have brothers.” He nodded to JT and Ryder, sitting across the room with them. “I have a great mom and a great life.”
Keith nodded, tears glistening in his eyes. “Good.”
He turned to leave, and Connor helped him out the door. That was it. He just said what he needed to say.
Connor looked back at Joci. “I’ll call you later.” And they left.
They were all quiet for a long time. Things just couldn’t get any more surreal than this week.
Joci looked at Gunnar. “Gunnar?”
He looked at his mom. “Yeah, I’m good, Mom. I don’t feel anything really, other than sorry for him. He looks like hell…how about you?”
Joci shrugged her left shoulder a little. “I would say I’m stunned.”
David walked over and put his arm around Gunnar. “I’m sorry, Gunnar.”
Gunnar shrugged. Joci watched him very closely. She would have given anything for that meeting not to have happened on the heels of her accident. Poor guy had enough to deal with.
Gunnar looked at Joci again. “I’m okay, Mom. Please don’t worry about me.”
Then Jeremiah walked over to Gunnar and wrapped him in a hug.
Joci leaned her head back against the pillow and closed her eyes. She was tired again. Her arm and shoulder hurt. She was grateful, though. For some strange, weird reason, it did help to hear Keith say she hadn’t done anything to make him cheat on her. For so many years now, she thought maybe she wasn’t good enough—in bed, out of bed, it didn’t matter—to keep a man happy. It was one of her biggest fears with Jeremiah. How could she make him happy when she didn’t know what she had done to make Keith unhappy? Now, she knew it wasn’t anything she had done or hadn’t done. It was him. It felt good to know that.
The nurse walked in. Joci opened her eyes when the nurse asked her to open her mouth so she could take Joci’s temperature. She chuckled a little, and the nurse looked at her with a funny expression on her face.
“I just thought you must be psychic. I hurt again, and in you walk. You and Jeremiah must both have crystal balls hidden somewhere.”
The nurse looked at Jeremiah with a funny look on her face.
Jeremiah smiled. “We’re having a baby girl.”
The nurse nodded. She gave Joci something for pain, and Joci floated off to fairyland one more time.
Chapter 38
The next time Joci woke up, she heard female voices speaking softly. She opened her eyes to see Staci, Jackie, Sandi, and Emily sitting in her room talking. Sandi looked up and noticed that Joci was awake. She got up and walked over to the left side of the bed. She leaned down and kissed Joci’s forehead.
Sandi started crying. “God, Joci, I was so scared when I heard you had an accident. They wouldn’t let me come last night. Are you okay? How are you? You’re going to have a baby!”
Sandi’s blubbering and prattling on without giving Joci the chance to speak made her giggle. The other women began laughing at Sandi. Jackie stood and came over next to Sandi, then put her arm around Sandi’s shoulders.
“Sorry, Joci. She promised she wouldn’t cry again.”
Jackie smiled. Sandi tended to get emotional over things, especially something this big. Joci smiled and reached for Sandi’s hand.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m going to be fine. Jeremiah thinks we’re having a girl.” Joci smiled.
Stiffly, she looked around for Jeremiah. Staci piped up then.
“We sent him home to change clothes. He was still wearing his bloody clothes from yesterday. He was going to shower, change, and be right back.”
Joci smiled and nodded slightly. It hurt to move her head more than a little.
Jackie spoke up next. “We were just talking about babies. Do you realize that Staci’s grandchild and your baby will be just a few months apart in age? Jeremiah’s daughter and his niece or nephew will be the same age.” She smiled. “Emily and Thomas will have a grandchild and a great-grandchild in the same year. Christmases will be fun.”
