Page 63 of 7+Us Makes Nine

Work was long. Hard. Grueling. And the second I got into my car, I was ready to be done with it. Preparing for a weekend full of shows was rough, but doing it while still allowing Catherine the time she required was harder. Having a live-in nanny was a help on many occasions, but it seemed as if it couldn’t help with everything. Coordination with the kids was paramount, and even then one of us still had to compromise.

Like with her garden party last weekend.

I pulled up into the driveway and breathed a sigh of relief. I knew the kids would already be in bed. At least, they should be. And when I saw most of the lights of in the house, I figured Catherine was in bed as well. She hadn’t been staying up for me this past week like she usually did, and I wondered if something was going on. Was she feeling okay? Had I done something to upset her? Were the kids running her that ragged?

Either way, I felt my heart drop.

After a long day at work, I was hoping to spend my evening in her arms.

I pulled myself out of my car and dragged myself up to the porch. I fumbled with my keys before I figured out the door was still unlocked. My entire body went on alert. Catherine would have never fallen asleep without locking the front door. But it didn’t look like anyone was awake. I pushed the door open and stepped in, then dropped my briefcase and slid my suit coat off my shoulders.

I wanted to call out her name, but I didn’t want to wake up the kids.

I walked down the hallway and around the corner and found her sitting on the couch. Her head was bowed, and a heavy sigh left her lips. It looked like she was carrying the weight of the universe on her shoulders. I walked around the couch and saw her clutching a glass of water, and droplets of it were dripping over the edge.

Her hands were shaking terribly, and my immediate thought was that Anya had done something.

“Catherine?”

“Oh my gosh!”

She jumped, spilling water everywhere.

“Jace. I didn’t realize you’d gotten home yet,” she said. “I need to get a towel. Hold on.”

“I’ve got it, you stay there,” I said.

I went into the kitchen and got a towel as another heavy sigh left her lips. I’d never seen Catherine so exhausted and preoccupied. She’d been with the kids and I for almost three months, and this was the first time I felt nervous around her. Anya had to have done something. The only time she was anywhere near this jumpy was after that phone call in the park. I walked the towel over to her and she took it, her hands still trembling as she cleaned up the mess.

“I’m so sorry, Jace.”

“It’s just water. It’ll dry,” I said.

“Not about that,” she said.

She set the towel on the coffee table before reaching around her side. And when she pulled it out, my blood froze in my veins. Her eyes studied my face as she handed me the little device. That small stick Anya had surprised me with over three years ago.

And the glaring plus sign made my stomach clench.

“When did you take this?” I asked.

“Today,” Catherine said.

“Is this the only one you took?”

“No. There are two others in the trash can in my bathroom.”

My eyes panned up to her and I could see the fear blooming in her eyes. But it wasn’t fear blooming in my stomach. It was a warmth. A joyous glee. A happiness unlike anything I’d ever experienced. I raked my eyes up and down her form as a grin slid across my face, and I watched the confusion pour over hers.

“You’re pregnant,” I said.

“We’re pregnant,” Catherine said.

I threw my arms around her and pulled her into my lap. I buried my face into her neck, holding her beautiful essence in my arms. Holy shit. Catherine was pregnant. This beautiful, graceful, kind, luxurious woman was pregnant with my child. I couldn’t stop kissing her. I couldn’t stop tasting her. I felt her body trembling as her from gave way to a smile, and soon she was giggling into my shoulder as I stood up and spun her around.

“You’re pregnant!”

“You’re going to wake the kids, Jace.”

---