When Jack got home that evening, Beth was asleep as usual. She had not been feeling well at all so he was happy when she slept.
He took off his gun belt, locking the gun in the safe. Then he took off his shirt, his lead vest, and headed in to take a shower.
He froze when he saw the pregnancy test on the sink, still in the box but still…. He thought for a moment and stifled a laugh. Now everything made perfect sense. Except for why she hadn't taken the test.
"I wanted to wait for you," she said from the doorway.
"It makes sense, you know."
"Yeah. I didn't even think of it. Julie did."
"Are you feeling any better?"
"A little I guess."
"Have you eaten anything?"
"Do ice cubes count?"
"No." He kissed her gently and hugged her. "I'm worried about you, babe. You've lost weight and you have dark circles under your eyes."
"Watermelon," she blurted.
"Huh?"
"I read that watermelon is good for pregnant women because the sweetness helps with nausea and it has a lot of water in it."
"Do we have any?"
"No. We don't have much. I haven't felt like going."
He put his t-shirt back on and walked back out to grab his smaller gun to slip under his shirt in the back.
"You don't have to go now."
He kissed her again and put on another loose shirt. "Of course I do. I'll get the list, add watermelon to it and go shopping."
"Babe, its ten o'clock."
"I'll be back soon. Anything else you want?"
"Ginger ale and saltines, the little oyster shaped ones. Oh, and peppermint tea."
"Watermelon, ginger ale, saltines, peppermint tea."
"Yep. Then when you get back, I'll take the test. Oh, and babe, cat food. I keep getting dirty looks from Jazzy for feeding her crumbs."
Jack laughed and headed to the store.
When he got back, he put a bottle of water and the crackers next to the bed and went in to take a shower. She was sleeping and if she was pregnant, sleep was a priority.
So, after showering, feeding the cats and eating his dinner at around 1am, he slipped into bed with her and fell asleep too.
At six am, she rolled over and snuggled into him. "You didn't wake me?"
"No. You need to rest." He kissed the top of her head. "The lady at the store said you need to keep hydrated so you don't get dizzy. And she said to put a bottle of water and crackers by the bed and for you to eat some first before you get up. It should help with nausea."
"You talked to a stranger about me?"
"Well, she guessed. The things I bought tipped her off. She was really nice and she says congratulations."
"You're so cute," she said with a laugh. "What's her name?"
"Doris."
"Was she pretty?"
"Babe, she was like sixty. Didn't the name Doris tip you off?"
She giggled and rolled away and then sat up and opened her crackers. "There's something about the shape of these that makes them fun to eat." She popped a few in her mouth and took a sip of water. After a few moments she headed in to take the test.
Ten minutes later, she walked out and sat on the edge of the bed and kissed him.
"Hmm. Hi."
"Hey." She bounced a bit on the bed. "Are you going to wake up?"
"Yeah yeah, I'm up."
"Your eyes are still closed." She bent down and gave him a longer, deeper kiss.
"Okay then. I'm up." He sat up and stared at Beth. "You're smiling."
"I was just imagining how cute you're going to be holding our baby." She stood and walked into the bathroom.
"Wait! Does that mean that its positive? Babe?" He walked into the bathroom too.
"I think we should frame it."
"Uh, that's kinda gross if you think about it."
"So we can take a picture and frame it." She turned it and showed him. "Are you happy, Jack?"
"Yeah. I'm happy."
….
Later…
"So according to this online calculator, I should be due October 23rd."
"The things you can figure out online."
"Right?"
She looked up OBGYN near Silver Pines California and the closest was right in town, in the same building as a pediatrician. She decided to call the next day and set up her first appointment for very early April since they would have moved by then. She hoped they had an evening appointment so Jack could go too.
….
A week later Beth met Tom Sr., her dad, Tom Jr., and Jack at the new house to paint. Jack told her she needed to be careful with the fumes from the paint. She countered with the fact that their bedroom had three windows and they could paint with them open. She told him he could paint the half bath though since there was no ventilation.
Tom Sr. walked into the master and whistled. "This is a nice house, Beth."
"Thanks. It is. We really like it."
She rolled a stripe of dark gray paint on the wall that was going to be the focal point where the bed would be.
"Dad, if you want to do the lighter gray on the other walls." He stared at her.
"What?" she asked.
"You called me Dad."
"Yeah. Is that ok?" She hadn't thought about it much, but she was closer in many ways to Tom than her own Dad.
"Yes. I hoped that one day you would call me that."
She set her roller against the wall and walked over to give him a hug. "Thank you for coming today," she told him.
He hugged her and kissed her cheek. "My pleasure, sweetie."
The first coat was finished in no time in the master so Beth went downstairs to check on the others. Beth found Jack on the back deck. "Hey," she said as she joined him.
"Hi. I think we can put a barbecue right here."
"Yeah, and a couple chairs."
"And a swing set for when the kids get older?"
"Yes."
Jack was feeling overwhelmed with emotion. So much was changing all at once. So many wonderful things. New job, new baby, new house. They would be closer to Hope Valley and his job would be safer too.
"I can't believe this is happening, Beth. Our own house and the baby and my job. It seems too good to be true."
She wrapped her arms around him and looked out over their yard. "You have worked so hard the last year, Jack. You deserve this more than anyone, in my opinion."
"Alright, first coats in the living room and kitchen are done," Tom Jr. told them. "What's next?"
"I did the half bath, so I think the guest room farthest from the master and the bathroom between the 2nd and 3rd bedrooms."
"I'll do the bathroom," Tom told them and walked away.
"I'm going to see where our moms and Julie are. I'll see if they want to pick up some pizza or something."
He held her tighter for a moment and then gave her a kiss. "I love you, Beth."
"I love you more." She walked away and grabbed her phone.
….
As everyone ate their pizza on the drop cloths on the floor, Beth looked at Jack. He nodded.
"We just want to say thank you for all your help today, everyone. It really means a lot to us that you all are here," she told them.
"We also want to let you know that in October, we are going to be having a baby," Jack said like it was everyday news.
"I knew it!" Julie said.
"Congratulations!" everyone else chimed in. Lane crawled over and stood, using Beth's knees to hold on to.
"Hi, sweet boy." She picked him up and hugged him, rocking him back and forth. "Aunt Beth loves you."
"Naadaadaa," he babbled, laying his head on her shoulder.
"Are you sleepy?"
He had eaten a bottle and gnawed on a breadstick for awhile so his tummy was full. She hummed and kept rocking and he fell right to sleep.
She stayed there while everyone else got up and did their second coats. She looked around and pictured the room filled with furniture and pictures on the wall. Then she imagined holding her own little boy just like she held Lane, only in a rocking chair.
She thought of Jack coming home after work and her having dinner ready and waiting. She imagined nursing her babies while Jack laid in bed waiting and watching.
Since they met as children, her dream had been to be a teacher. She had wanted it so badly. Now, her dream changed. She wanted a family and it was within reach now.
…
March 28th
Jack had rented a U-haul truck to move their furniture and larger items from LA to Silver Pines. Tom and William rode with him so they could help once they arrived. The rest of the boxes, and the two cat carriers, were loaded into Jack's truck, Beth's Jeep, and William's Escalade. They were able to get it all in one trip.
Beth was in the kitchen, unpacking dishes and glasses when the men arrived.
"Furniture is here!" Jack yelled as they walked in carrying the headboard.
Beth smiled and walked in to meet them.
"Hello?" a voice she didn't know called through the door.
"Hi," Beth greeted.
"I'm Shaun Wyatt from next door."
"Oh, hi. Nice to meet you, Shaun. I'm Beth Thornton."
"I thought I'd offer to lend a hand if you needed anything."
"Hi, I'm Jack Thornton, Beth's husband," Jack said, wrapping his arm around Beth's waist.
"Hi, Jack. Nice to meet you. Do you need any help?"
"No, I think we have it covered, but thanks."
"Ok. Well, I'm just next door if you change your mind."
He walked away and Beth turned to look at Jack. "What?"
"Nothing." She shook her head and walked back to the kitchen.
"What, Beth?"
"You could have been nicer. He's our neighbor."
"Our neighbor and we don't know him."
"How will we get to know him if we don't give him a chance?"
"I'm not letting a complete stranger into my home. He could be staking out the place."
"Or he could just be a nice person." She sighed. "Can you ask everyone what they want to eat? I'll go pick it up."
"I'll pick it up. You should take a nap."
"On the floor? I'll wait, thanks."
"We just need to bring up the mattress and box spring and you can sleep on the bed."
Ten minutes later, Beth headed upstairs and peeked into the guest room. It was a deep blue and it had gray carpet and sheer gray curtains. Her thought was to make it super inviting, so that anyone that stayed there would instantly feel comfortable.
"Beth?" Grace called.
"Yes?"
"Can you look in here and make sure this is how you want it?"
Beth walked into the bathroom by the guestroom. "Wow, Mom. This looks great."
"Oh good."
"Did Jack ask what you wanted for lunch?"
"No, I haven't seen him."
"Ok. Well, what would you like? There's a Chinese place in town and a diner. I can get carryout from either."
"Either one is fine, dear. You know what I like."
Twenty minutes later, Beth and Charlotte headed the short five miles into town to get Chinese food and returned not too long after.
"Food is here."
"Beth, I said I would go get it," Jack told her.
"Jack, can we just talk later?" Everyone was staring at them and she could feel a disagreement brewing.
"Fine." He walked out and got in his truck and drove off.
"I made your bed with those new sheets, Beth. Jack mentioned you should take a nap soon so I thought I'd get it ready for you."
"Thanks, Julie."
Beth put some rice and chicken on her plate and walked out to the deck. She sat on the steps and ate her food. The last thing she wanted was to fight with Jack. Maybe he was nervous about his new job and that made him testy but being borderline rude to a neighbor and getting irritated and leaving because she went to get the food was going a bit overboard.
He returned a couple hours later to a quiet house and only Beth's Jeep and the empty U-haul in the drive.
He felt bad that he had left like that. He honestly was so nervous about his job that everything was making him cranky.
He climbed the stairs and walked to the master bedroom. There were a few boxes to unpack, but almost everything was done.
Beth lay on the bed, facing the window. He crawled in behind her and wrapped his arm over her waist.
She turned and looked at him. "You're back."
"Yeah. I'm sorry I left."
"You're nervous about your job?"
"Yeah. This is big, Beth. This job is what is going to pay for this house and everything we need, including the baby. If I lose it, we lose everything."
"We won't lose everything. We have each other. And you won't lose your job."
"Its so much pressure."
"I'm here and I will support you. I know how to budget and clip coupons and I can cook so we don't need to eat out. I can use thrift shops for baby furniture and clothes. We can save money in lots of ways. And then after the baby is older, maybe after the start of next year, I can look into getting a substitute teaching job to save some money."
"You've thought about it a lot."
"Of course I have. We vowed to support each other no matter what. That's what I'm doing."