by Marie Force
“Since when are you not in the mood for wine?”
“My stomach was bothering me earlier.”
“Kind of like my stomach was bothering me that day at your house when you thought the same thing I’m thinking?”
Andi’s heart began to race. “What’s that?”
“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
“Who’s pregnant?” Jamie asked as he returned with Jack right behind him.
Jack laughed. “I don’t believe it! You didn’t even last a day!”
Andi wondered how she’d ever expected to keep a secret in this group.
“And you thought I’d be the weak link,” Jack added.
“I didn’t say a word.” Andi tossed a look at Frannie. “She guessed.”
Frannie clapped her hands. “I knew it!”
Andi shushed her. “I’m only like five minutes pregnant, so we aren’t saying anything for a while…or we weren’t going to.”
Frannie hugged her. “We won’t tell, will we, Jamie? I’m so glad our kids will have a cousin almost the same age. Congratulations, Jack,” she said, hugging her brother.
“Bit of a surprise, old man?” Jamie asked Jack.
“Just a bit, but a good one.” Jack put his arm around Andi. “The best kind of surprise.”
“God, I hope you’re not sick like I was,” Frannie said with a shudder.
“I wasn’t with Eric, so I probably won’t be this time, either.”
That turned out to be wishful thinking. Andi was so sick one day that Jack stayed home from work because he was afraid to leave her alone. He called Jen to let her know Andi wouldn’t be into work. They’d had no choice but to bring Jen in on the secret. Fortunately, her assistant was happy to cover for her. They’d told the kids she had a stomach bug but would have to tell them the truth if it kept up much longer.
Jack ran a cold cloth over her face after she was sick again. “Let me call the doctor.”
“No.” Even her voice was weak. “I don’t want to end up in the hospital.”
“But you can’t keep anything down. I can’t stand this. It can’t be good for you or the baby.”
She started to get up from where they sat on the bathroom floor. “It’s stopped now. I want to go back to bed.”
“Wait.” Scooping her up, he was alarmed by how light she was. He carried her back to bed and tucked her in with an extra blanket since she was shivering. She was asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, and he prayed the vomiting had passed—for now.
Except for Frannie, he’d never heard of pregnancy making anyone as sick as Andi had been for weeks now. Clare was never sick with the girls, and Andi hadn’t been with Eric, either. While she slept, he went downstairs to call Frannie.
“How’s she doing?” Frannie asked.
“Not so good. I don’t know how much longer this can go on.”
“Months, I’m afraid.”
Jack groaned. “I can’t imagine that.”
“Try to get her to eat—anything. Just a few crackers and some ginger ale or something like that. I found it helped to feed it, as odd as that sounds.”
“I don’t think she could keep it down.”
“It might be time to call Dr. Abbott.”
“She’s afraid she’ll end up in the hospital.”
“I felt better after. Maybe you should call her anyway.”
“I think I will.”
“Let me know if you need anything. I know how miserable this is.”
“Thanks, Fran.”
He hung up and stared at the phone for a minute before he picked it up again to call the doctor. Andi wouldn’t be happy, but he wasn’t risking her or the baby.
Jack went back upstairs and found her awake but still in bed. He brushed her hair back from her face. “How you doing?”
“I’ve been better.”
“I called the doctor.”
She whimpered. “I told you not to.”
“I’m worried, Andi. You have to be dehydrated by now. Dr. Abbott wants me to bring you in.”
She began to cry. “I don’t want to.”
“Honey, think of the baby. Frannie was much better after she was in the hospital. Let them help you. Please. I can’t stand seeing you so sick. It’s scaring me.”
A sob hiccupped through her. “Okay.”
Jack got her dressed and into the car without her doing a thing, which was just as well since she couldn’t have anyway.
Dr. Abbott took one look at Andi and ordered IV fluids.
Frannie had recommended the doctor to Andi, who was now almost through her sixth week. They’d postponed their trip to the Virgin Islands until she felt better, and the one-year anniversary of the day she moved in with Jack had passed without fanfare earlier in the month.
“Not feeling too hot, Andi?” Dr. Abbott asked after the nurses had settled Andi into a bed.
“No,” Andi said.
“We’ll do what we can to help you, but you’ve got another few weeks to go before you’ll start to feel a lot better.”
Andi groaned.
“Weeks?” Jack asked.
“I’m afraid so. Moms who’re this sick are often stuck with it for the first trimester. But we’ll get you some fluids to help you get your strength back. I also want to do a quick ultrasound to check on your little one. Nothing to worry about, though. Be right back.”
Andi reached for Jack’s hand. “I hope the baby’s okay.”
“I’m sure he’s fine.”
“You’re quite sure it’s a he.”
“There’s no way it can be another girl.”
“Actually, there’s a fifty-percent chance.”
“That much?” He brought their joined hands to his lips. “I’m so sorry you’re going through this, honey.”
“This is what I get for being stupid.”
He chuckled as a nurse wheeled in the ultrasound machine.
The doctor came back a few minutes later to take a look. She tilted her head and moved closer to the screen.
Jack never had seen anything resembling a baby on those screens, and this time was no different, but he could make out a strong heartbeat. And then he saw another one. He looked up at the doctor just as she looked down at him.
“So Frannie tells me twins run in your family,” she said with a smile.
“That’s what my mother says,” Jack stammered.
“Looks like she’s right.” The doctor pointed to the screen so Andi could see. “One heart there, another there.”
Andi let out a gasp and tightened her grip on Jack’s hand. “Two?”
Amused by their shock, the doctor held up two fingers. “Although, if they’re identical, it’s sheer luck, not heredity.”
Jack let out a long deep breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.
Andi eyes were riveted to the screen. “Can you tell whether they’re boys or girls?”
“It’s still early—you’re right at six weeks. This one here could be a boy.” She pointed to the screen. “But don’t buy anything blue just yet. They look great. Their heart rates are very strong, and they seem to be growing, despite how sick Mom’s been. That means we have to make sure you’re getting what you need, Andi, because they’ll take what they need from you.”
“She can’t keep anything down,” Jack said, still trying to comprehend that there were two babies.
“We’ll do what we can for you while you’re here. In about four or five weeks, you should start to feel much better.”
“I hope so,” Andi said, her eyes still glued to the monitor.
“Will she be able to carry twins?” Jack worried that Andi’s willowy frame wouldn’t be able to withstand the weight of two babies.
“The last couple of months will be tough, but she’ll be fine.”
The doctor left them, and Andi turned to Jack, her eyes wide with disbelief. “First Jamie and Frannie and now us,” she marveled. “What’re the odds?”
“I can’t believe it. We had no
idea how strong the twin gene is in our family.”
“Oh my God, Jack! We’re going to have six children!”
“Two are technically adults,” he reminded her. “I was all set for five. What’s one more?”
“It must’ve happened the night of the gala.”
“Which is entirely fitting, since the hotel brought us together, and now it’s brought us the twins.”
They told the kids the news when Andi ended up in the hospital for several days to treat the dehydration. Like Frannie, Andi felt much better after she was released and soon turned a corner where she was sick in the morning but better by noon. By April she finally felt well enough to go on their long-postponed trip to the Virgin Islands.
The night before they left, Andi called her mother to tell her about the babies.
“Twins?”
“That’s what they tell me, Mother. Apparently, they run in Jack’s family. Remember last summer when his sister had twins? Ours will be born just about a year after theirs.”
“You’ll sure have your hands full.”
“I hope you’ll come be part of it. I’ll need your help.”
“I’ll be there, Andi, and I’ll bring Auntie Lou with me. Will you still send Eric out this summer?”
“Jack will probably bring him. I’ll be disappointed to not get to see you, but I won’t be going too far from home by then.” Eric planned to spend two weeks with his grandmother in July, and Andi had promised him he’d be home long before the babies were born in late September—if she made it that far.
“We’re looking forward to it.”
“So is he. Well, I’d better go. Jack and I are leaving tomorrow for a week in the Virgin Islands we’ve had planned since December. I’ve been so sick with this pregnancy we couldn’t go until now.” She hadn’t told her mother she’d been in the hospital, knowing how she’d worry. “But I’m much better now and looking forward to lounging in the sun.”
“Send me a postcard, honey. Enjoy yourself.”
“I will. You take care, Mom. Give Auntie Lou a hug from me,” Andi said and ended the call.
“How’d she take it?” Jack asked.
“Amazingly well. I think she’s totally stunned.”
He put his arms around Andi from behind and patted her belly, which had begun to pop out. “These guys were a big surprise to all of us.”
“I need to go to bed if we’re going to make that flight.” They were flying out of Boston at noon, and since the airport was almost two hours away, a limo would pick them up at eight. Jack’s parents had driven up from Connecticut earlier in the day to stay with the kids while they were gone.
“Let’s go.” He swept her up and carried her through the house, pretending to be staggered by the weight of her.
“You’d better knock it off, buddy. That will not be funny in a few months.”
“You’ll have to get your own ride then.” He tried to kiss her, but she wouldn’t let him after that crack.
They flew to St. Thomas and took a short ferry ride across the sound to St. John.
The resort had every imaginable amenity, but they were content to do nothing after the nonstop activity since their last vacation on Block Island the summer before.
Andi sipped a virgin piña colada late one afternoon as they reclined on a double lounge at the beach. Thankfully, there’d been no nausea or vomiting during their vacation. “I’m in heaven,” she said.
“Me, too. We should just move here.” He took in the sleek black one-piece bathing suit that covered the bump in her once flat belly. Her breasts spilled out the top.
“Oh, yeah, right, I can see it now—living with our six kids on the beach.” She glanced over at him and caught him checking out her newly voluptuous figure. “Quit ogling, Jack!” She tugged at the top of her suit.
He laughed at her. “Why can’t I enjoy the best part of getting you pregnant?”
She rolled her eyes. “Just don’t get used to them. They’re temporary.”
“That doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy them while they’re here, does it?”
“Do you think about anything else?”
“Not lately.” He stretched and yawned. “As a matter of fact, I’m getting very sleepy. I need you to take me in for a nap.”
“You just had a ‘nap,’” she reminded him.
“That was hours ago, and I need my rest.” He got up to offer her a hand. “Plus, I’m starting to freckle in this sun.”
She snorted with laughter and let him help her up. “We can’t have that now, can we?”
The moment they were in their room, Jack nudged the straps to her bathing suit off her shoulders.
When her breasts sprang free, Andi folded her arms over her chest self-consciously.
He moved them aside. “Don’t. I want to see you.”
“They’re ridiculous,” she said, her face burning with embarrassment.
“No, they’re not.” He skimmed her suit down over her hips and rested his hand and then his lips on the baby bump. “I didn’t think it was possible for you to be more beautiful, but seeing you pregnant with my babies… You’re so incredibly sexy, and I want you all the time.” He sat her down on the edge of the bed and knelt in front of her. Cupping her breasts, he captured an extra-sensitive nipple between his lips and skimmed his tongue over it.
Her head rolled back as she grasped his hair and moaned.
He eased her back so she was lying down, and still he kept up the tugging, sucking, and licking until she writhed beneath him. His lips were hot on her belly as he coasted over the bump and then went lower. Propping her legs on the edge of the bed, he nuzzled at her and teased her with his tongue. His fingers found her slick and ready for him, and as he slid them gently into her, he brought his tongue down hard against the spot that pulsed with desire.
Andi cried out when the orgasm blasted through her. She was still coming when he shed his bathing suit and entered her. Struggling to accommodate him, Andi moved her legs farther apart to take him deeper.
He was careful not to rest too much weight on her. “I need to keep you pregnant from now on,” he whispered against her lips.
Her arms tightened around him. “Is that so?”
“I didn’t think there could be any more between us, but lately…”
“Mmm, I know.” She arched into his thrusts. “Jack…”
“What, honey?”
Her eyes fluttered closed. “I think I’m going to…again…”
He reached down to where their bodies were joined and sent her soaring.
Clutching him tightly from within, she took him with her.
They flew home tanned, rested, and relaxed after a week on St. John. Spring had sprung in their absence, and bright yellow forsythia bushes were in full bloom when they arrived late on Sunday afternoon.
The car dropped them off at home, and Jack gathered up their bags. He wouldn’t let Andi carry anything heavier than her purse.
They were surprised when Jamie came out of the house to help with the bags. “Hey, guys. How was it?”
“Fabulous,” Jack said. “We only came back because the law says we have to take care of our kids. What’re you doing here?”
“Come in, and I’ll tell you.”
Jack sent Andi a questioning look.
She shrugged.
“What’s going on?” Jack asked, beginning to sense something was wrong. “Where is everyone?”
“Jack, Clare’s in the hospital. She’s developed an infection. They’ve got her on high-dose antibiotics, but she’s not doing too well.”
Andi reached out to Jack.
“What kind of infection?” Jack asked, his heart in his throat. “How long has she been there?”
“They think it’s a blood infection. She spiked a high fever yesterday, and they took her in last night.”
“Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve come home.”
“We figured you probably wouldn’t get here that much sooner if we called you las
t night.”
“I need to get over there.”
Andi hugged him. “Of course, Jack, you should go to her.”
“Will you be all right?”
“I’m fine. Go on ahead. Jamie, will you take him?”
“Yeah. I stayed here with Eric while Jack’s parents took the girls to the hospital. He’s upstairs playing in his room, but he’s waiting for you.”
“Thanks, Jamie,” Andi said.
“I’ll call you,” Jack said. He gave her a distracted kiss on the cheek and followed Jamie out the door.
Jack’s parents brought the girls home just after midnight.
“How is she?” Andi asked Madeline after the girls had gone upstairs to bed.
“Not good. The fever hasn’t broken, despite massive doses of antibiotics.” Madeline’s shoulders slumped. “I’m afraid we’re losing her.”
“I’m so sorry.” Andi hugged the older woman. “Can I do anything for you?”
“I don’t think so, honey. I need to get to bed and so do you. You need your rest.”
“I was hoping to hear from Jack. How’s he holding up?”
“He’s upset but resigned. He knows Clare might be better off dead than living the way she has for the last three years.”
“Is anyone with him?”
“Frannie was in earlier, and she took Clare’s mother home with her, but Jamie stayed. He won’t leave Jack, honey. Don’t worry. Why don’t you get some sleep?”
“I’ll try,” Andi promised as she kissed Madeline good night.
Jack never came home that night, and she didn’t see him again until ten the next night, when he came in looking like he was about to drop.
“Hey.” She got out of bed to go to him.
“Hi.” He hugged her and kissed her cheek. “Don’t get too close. I need a shower.” He was still wearing the same clothes he’d worn home from St. John.
“I don’t care.” She held him for a long time. “Why don’t you let me draw you a bath?”
“That sounds good, thanks.” He sat on the bed to take off his shoes.
She turned on the water in the Jacuzzi, went back to sit next to him and brushed the hair off his tanned forehead. St. John already seemed like a long time ago. “Are you hungry?”
