"Well, your daughter is definitely progressing very nicely." Dr. Valerii smiled as she maneuvered the ultrasound wand. "Everything looks good in there."
Sheridan blinked back tears and squeezed Luis's hand as they both watched the image on the monitor. "Look, Luis . . ." Sheridan's voice swelled with emotion. "It looks like she's sucking her thumb."
Luis kissed Sheridan's forehead, his eyes glistening. "It really does—I can't wait to meet her, Sher."
Tears spilling down her cheeks, Sheridan stroked the side of her belly and smiled at him. "Neither can I, Luis."
"Well, you won't have to wait that much longer," Dr. Valerii smiled. "You're getting into the homestretch. Have you signed up for Lamaze classes yet?"
Sheridan's face fell; her eyes dropped to the floor.
"Sheridan?" Luis asked her gently. "I thought you were going to sign us up for those last month."
"It's not a big deal. . ." Sheridan picked at the sheet of paper spread out beneath her. "I'll sign up sometime this week."
"Well, I suggest you do that soon." Dr. Valerii wiped the gel from Sheridan's belly. "The class that opened up on January 2nd is already almost filled up."
"Okay," Sheridan said quietly, her lips twisting into a frown.
Luis looked at his wife and then up at Dr. Valerii. "Do you think you could give us a minute?"
Gwen walked up to Katherine and touched her arm. "Katherine, you look like you're a million miles away."
"I'm sorry, Gwen," Katherine said, a bit startled. "I know today is about planning Sheridan's shower—I've just got a lot on my mind."
"Don't worry about it," Gwen said.
"How are things going?" Katherine refocused her attention on the items in Gwen's hands. "Have you had any luck finding invitations?"
"They're right here." Gwen handed the invitations to Katherine.
"Oh," Katherine said, "they're beautiful, Gwen. You certainly have an eye for these things."
"Thank you." Gwen studied her. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Thank you for being concerned." Katherine patted Gwen's hand. "But I promise you—I'll be fine. I'm just hoping some information I have can help Julian."
"Well, I'm sure whatever it is, he'll be grateful for it," Gwen reassured Katherine.
"I just wish that that were enough," Katherine sighed. "I'm sorry, Gwen. I'm so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I haven't even asked you how you're holding up."
Katherine glanced over at Theresa, who was busy sorting through an album of cake images with Pilar and Paloma. "I can't imagine that planning this shower with Theresa is easy for you."
Gwen looked at Theresa and then turned back to Katherine. "You know what? It's not as bad as I thought it would be. I guess I'm so happy with Hank that I've almost become immune to everything else."
"That's wonderful," Katherine said. "I'm so happy that you're so happy."
"Yeah, well, I've never felt like this before." Gwen beamed from ear to ear. "To tell the truth, I never knew I could be this happy."
Eve paid for her items and headed to the exit of the convenience store. Looking up as the door in front of her was pushed open, she stopped in her tracks.
"Whitney?" Hope rose in Eve's chest. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be away playing in some New Year's tournament."
"Yeah, well, I thought you'd be with Julian." Whitney pushed past her mom.
"Whitney, please . . ." Eve reached out to her.
Whitney yanked her arm away. "Don't touch me, Mom."
Eve's heart lurched. "Whitney, I just want to talk to you."
"Well, you should have thought about that earlier." Whitney scowled at her. "You broke Daddy's heart."
Eve's insides twisted in knots. "I never meant to hurt your father . . ."
"Yeah, well, tell that to him." Whitney shook her head. "Seeing you go back to Julian on Christmas Eve . . . do you even care what that did to him?"
"Of course I care." Tears sprang to Eve's eyes. "I never wanted to hurt your father. I never wanted to hurt any of you. I was only trying to be true to myself—to be fair to all of you."
"Fair to us? Fair to us?" Whitney's voice grew louder. "How is it fair to break up our family—to choose Julian Crane over us?"
"Whitney, that isn't what happened." Eve's voice cracked.
"Sure, it isn't, Mom."
"Whitney, please, let me explain," Eve pleaded.
Whitney grabbed some snacks and stormed off toward the counter. "I've heard enough from you, Mom."
"Sheridan?" Luis helped her sit up. "Why haven't you signed us up for Lamaze classes yet? Is this about all of the lies your father told you about what happened to your mother?"
"We don't know that they were lies." A tear fell from Sheridan's eye. "Yes, my mother is alive, but you didn't see how frail she was when I was little. What if my birth really weakened her, Luis?"
"Sheridan—you don't know that it did." Luis rubbed her arm. "Also—I hate to even suggest this—but is it possible that your father perpetuated that lie to cover up his own actions?"
Sheridan looked up, her voice dropping. "You mean to cover up that he was abusing her . . ."
"I'm sorry . . ." Luis glanced down at the floor. "But that's exactly what I mean, Sheridan."
Sheridan sniffled and blinked back fresh tears. "You're probably right about that, Luis."
Luis looked back up at her and stroked her cheek. "I bet if you talked to your mother about this, she could help ease your fears about giving birth."
Sheridan choked back a sob. "But my mother's already been through so much. What if I dredge up painful memories for her?"
"Believe me—I understand why you're concerned." Luis squeezed her hand. "But don't you think your mother would want the chance to help you? Wouldn't you want to help our little girl?"
"Of course I would." Her voice choked with emotion, Sheridan caressed her belly. "I would do anything for her."
"Well, I'm willing to bet that your mother feels the same way." His eyes twinkling, Luis cupped Sheridan's face and kissed her nose. "In fact, I'm willing to bet everything I have that you inherited your courage and beautiful heart from her."
