Kayla smiled at Steve, told Stephanie to wave at Daddy as he drove away, and then rang the bell at Shane and Kim's house. A few seconds later, the door opened and Simmons offered his usual formal greeting.

"Good afternoon, Madam Johnson. Please come in."

Kayla thanked him and entered the foyer. "Is Kimberly around?"

"I believe Madame Brady is upstairs with Miss Jeannie. I'll inform her of your arrival." Simmons gestured towards the living room. "Please feel free to wait inside."

Kayla nodded and carried Stephanie into the living room. She set Stephanie down and smiled to herself, still basking in the glow of her pregnancy. That morning, she and Steve had gone to the hospital where Neil had graciously fit them into his schedule

The appointment had confirmed the home pregnancy test, and Neil had seemed almost as happy as Steve and Kayla when he gave them the news. Kayla had nearly giggled as she watched Steve listen intently to Neil's standard early pregnancy advice. Then she had remembered that Steve had missed much of the early days of her pregnancy with Stephanie and the giggles had been replaced by unshed tears.

"Kay?"

Kim's voice startled Kayla, who turned quickly. "Hi Kim," she said with a smile. "I hope you don't mind Stephanie and me just stopping by."

"Of course not." Kim looked closely at Kayla. "Is everything okay?"

Kayla nodded. "Everything's fine. We had an appointment with Neil this morning."

"And?" Kim asked with an expectant grin.

"And Neil confirmed I'm pregnant." Kayla returned Kim's grin. "I think Steve's already picking out names."

"That's wonderful, Kay." Kim walked over and gave Kayla a hug. "But I'm guessing you didn't stop by just to confirm the news."

"No," Kayla said. "Steve said he had to talk to Jack and suggested that I come here while he took care of that." She sighed softly, trying to keep the fear under control. "He tried to pretend that he just thought it would be good for Stephanie to see Jeannie and Andrew, but I think he just really wanted me to be somewhere he thought was safe."

The smile fell from Kim's face as Kayla spoke. "I know what you mean. Shane strongly hinted that he'd prefer I not leave the house unless absolutely necessary."

Kayla took a seat on the couch and waited for her sister to join her. "It's funny, isn't it? The men we love are so worried about us, but they never quite seem to understand that we worry just as much whenever they leave the house."

Kim chuckled humorlessly. "Unfortunately for us, they can't quite get it through their heads that they aren't indestructible. It doesn't matter how many times they nearly get killed, they simply refuse to believe that something will happen to them."

Kayla nodded. "Sometimes I think I should be used to it by now . . . that it would get easier somehow. But it never does. If anything, it's harder." She shook her head, trying to banish the thoughts. "I'm sorry, I didn't come over here to be so depressing."

Kim offered a soft smile. "It's okay, Kay. I know exactly how you feel, and it's nice to be able to share that fear with somebody. It may not make it go away, but at least I know I'm not alone."

A faint cry filtered into the room. Kim quickly stood up. "Sounds like Jeannie just woke from her nap. I'll go get her. She'll be happy to see Stephanie."

Kayla nodded and watched as Kim left the room. Stephanie was still happily playing with a few stray toys she had found. Kayla watched her daughter for a moment and could not stop herself from offering a silent prayer that Steve stayed safe. She was so lost in thought that she did not hear the front door open or Shane enter the library.

"Oh, Kayla . . . . I didn't know you were here," he said.

"Hi, Shane." Kayla stood up from the couch. "We just stopped by for a visit with Kim and Jeannie."

Shane smiled and knelt down next to Stephanie. "And how are you, my darling? You're getting so big."

Stephanie smiled up at Shane and babbled something that wasn't quite understandable. It caused Kayla to chuckle. "She's still getting the hang of that talking thing."

Shane stood up. "I'm sure she'll be talking up a storm before too long." He grinned. "After all, Steve is her father."

Kayla had to laugh at Shane's remark. "She's already got his sense of adventure, so I have a hunch I may be in trouble."

"Hey, Kay . . . I have to show you what I found. It'll be perfect for your new baby," Kim called as she walked into the room with Jeannie. "It's-" She stopped abruptly as she saw Shane standing there.

"Oh. . . ." Kim looked quickly between Kayla and Shane. "I . . . I didn't realize you'd come home," she said to Shane as she put Jeannie down with Stephanie.

"I just got back." He looked at Kayla. "Did I hear right? You're having a baby?"

Kayla glanced at Kim, who responded with an "I'm sorry" shrug. Unable to dodge the question, Kayla said, "Yeah, I . . . I just confirmed it this morning. Steve and I are expecting."

Shane grinned, but there was a guarded look in his eyes. "Congratulations, Kay. I know you and Steve must be thrilled."

Kayla nodded, idly wondering what Shane was holding back. "We are. . . . It's a little unexpected, but we're very happy." She hesitated, then continued. "It's also pretty early, and we haven't really told anyone yet, so please don't say anything for now."

Shane nodded quickly. "Of course." He walked over and kissed Kim on the cheek. "Now, if you two ladies will excuse me, I'll be in the study."

Kayla watched as Kim softly brushed Shane's cheek. The worry and fear were clear in Kim's eyes, despite the small smile on her face. Shane returned the caress, kissed Kim again, and then left the room.

Kim turned back to Kayla. "I'm sorry, Kay. I had no idea Shane was in here. I didn't mean to spill your news before you were ready."

Kayla waved her hand at Kim's apology. "It's fine, Kim. I mean, Steve and I are planning on waiting a little bit to tell everybody . . . just to be safe. But it's not like it's going to be a big secret for long."

Kim grinned. "Yeah, that's not something you can really hide, is it?"

"Unfortunately, not." Kayla remembered how big she had felt in the late stages of her pregnancy with Stephanie. There was nothing as wonderful as feeling your child growing inside of you. But the downside was feeling like you no longer fit in your own body.

"So what did you find for me?" Kayla finally asked. "What will be perfect for the baby?"

Kim laughed. "It's not that big of a deal, really. I just found the baby carrier I used when Jeannie was little. I guess it's not quite as exciting as I made it sound."

Kayla smiled. "Well, I don't have hardly anything from when Stephanie was a newborn, so I'll be happy to use whatever you've got."

"Good." Kim sat back down on the couch and Kayla joined her again. "And since we have some time this afternoon, I think it's a perfect time to start planning a shopping trip."

Kayla shook her head. "This baby isn't even going to be here for another seven months or so."

"Well then, we better get started. There's not a minute to waste." Kim put her arm around Kayla, who just chuckled softly and leaned into her sister. She was not sure if Kim was serious or just trying to take their minds off the danger that seemed to surround them. But, either way, Kayla was not going to fight it.

"All right, Kimmie. Let's start planning."