Authors: Cindy Kirk
“Are you sure Travis
doesn’t
love you?”
“As a friend, yes. In the way you mean? I guess I don’t know for sure…?.” Mary Karen felt a wave of despair mixed with a tiny bit of hope.
“If he told you he loved you, if he said the words, would you believe him?”
Mary Karen thought of all the years she’d known Travis, all the times he could have said what he knew she wanted to hear, but didn’t. Still, by believing him she’d be putting her children’s future happiness in his hands. Could she trust him to be honest with her?
“Yes,” Mary Karen reluctantly admitted. “If he told me he loved me, I’d believe him.”
“Good.” With a groan, July pushed herself to a standing position. “Now you can get David in here.”
Mary Karen cocked her head.
“My water broke.” July pointed to a puddle at her feet. “Unless you want to do a restroom delivery, we’d better grab the guys and get to the hospital.”
T
ravis glanced around the waiting room in the Jackson Hole hospital’s newly redesigned birthing center. The furniture was comfortable, the pale green walls soothing and the flat screen television tuned to ESPN Sports. Still, it felt wrong to be out here with Mary Karen and Adam when he could be
in there.
Unfortunately July had made it very clear that she didn’t want a man she considered a friend anywhere near her while she was giving birth, even if he was the best OB in the region.
“You want to be with her, don’t you?” Mary Karen spoke softly as if afraid she might waken her sleeping nephew. On the way to the hospital she’d called her parents and they’d agreed to pick up her boys from Sunday School so she could watch Adam for July and David.
“Duggan will take good care of July.” Travis knew his partner was an excellent physician. That wasn’t the
issue. “It’s just I like being in the center of the action, not on the sidelines.”
Yet that’s how he’d felt all through college, medical school and residency. Once his parents died and he’d taken on the responsibility of his siblings, everything had changed. He’d watched his friends doing what they wanted to do, when they wanted to do it, while he was stuck playing the role of the responsible adult. Now he was being forced back into that role again.
The door swung open and Travis jumped to his feet.
David strode into the room, a tiny blue bundle in his arms and a proud-papa grin on his lips. “Seven pounds, five ounces and a helluva set of lungs.”
“How’s July?” Mary Karen rose awkwardly, her sleeping nephew still in her arms.
“Doing great. She said this birth was much better than delivering in the E.R.” David chuckled. “Can you believe that?”
“The quality of the attending doctor I’m sure made the difference,” Travis deadpanned, knowing they were both recalling the day David had delivered his oldest son in the E.R.
“You’re lucky I’ve got a baby in my arms, Fisher,” David shot back.
“Speaking of my new nephew,” Mary Karen stepped forward. “I’d like a closer look.”
Travis took the still sleeping one-year-old from her arms and she moved to her brother’s side.
David gently pushed back the blanket, showing off his new son.
“He’s beautiful,” she said, smiling up at her brother. “I’d forgotten how tiny they are when they’re first born.”
While Mary Karen inspected her nephew’s fingers and toes, David met Travis’s gaze. “Wait and see,” he
said softly. “There’s no feeling on earth that compares to holding your own child in your arms for the first time.”
Travis just smiled. His friend had made his feelings clear on the importance of home and family. While July and Mary Karen had been holding the ladies’ room hostage, David had asked when Travis planned to move in with M.K. and be a real husband to her. His brother-in-law hadn’t liked his answer.
The truth was Travis didn’t know when Mary Karen would agree. But David was right about one thing, time was running out. M.K. was almost at the end of her first trimester and keeping her pregnancy a secret wouldn’t be possible for much longer.
Which meant Travis had to move quickly. Because when the news broke that Mary Karen was pregnant again, he was determined to be by her side. Not just as the father of her baby, but as her husband.
Mary Karen’s parents arrived at the hospital—with her three little boys in tow—less than thirty minutes after she’d called and told them about their new grandson.
Caleb stared through the glass partition for the longest time, then announced loudly that he wanted a baby brother.
His grandmother couldn’t keep from chuckling. “You already have two brothers, Cal. Isn’t that enough?”
Caleb crossed his arms and shook his head. “I want a
baby
brother,” he said again.
Bob laughed. “Well, sport, I hate to disappoint you, but I don’t see that happening. Your mommy keeps busy enough taking care of you and Connor and Logan.”
Travis glanced at Mary Karen who was pretending to be engrossed in tying her youngest son’s shoe.
“I don’t know about that, Bob,” Travis said. “Look at my family. My mom had eight kids.”
“Your mother also had a husband,” Bob pointed out.
“That’s true.” Travis ignored the warning look Mary Karen shot him. “I’m just saying that you never know when Mary Karen might find some terrific guy, fall in love, get married and have another baby.”
“I guess anything is possible,” Bob said with great reluctance.
When the boys started racing up and down the halls, Travis knew it was time to leave. The fact that Mary Karen didn’t say much on the way to the car told him he was in trouble. The fact that she kept the conversation light all the way to her home told him he’d crossed a line.
The moment they stepped inside the house, Mary Karen sent the boys out to play in the backyard. Travis helped himself to a soda from the fridge.
For several long seconds M.K. watched the boys from the kitchen window while Travis sipped his cola and waited.
“What were you thinking?” she said finally. “Baiting my dad like that?”
“I was simply trying to get him thinking about the possibility of you marrying and having more children.” Travis knew this was a difficult time for Mary Karen and he certainly hadn’t meant to make it any harder. “Upsetting you wasn’t my intention at all.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tightly against him. When she slipped her arms around his shoulders and rested her head against his neck, he let out the breath he didn’t even know he’d been holding.
He breathed in the clean, fresh scent of her and let
himself relax. This closeness was something he’d never experienced with anyone else but her. Mary Karen understood him. She accepted him, faults and all. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like not having her in his life. “Have you ever thought about the fact that all actions have consequences?”
She jerked her head up. “If you’re talking about my hopping into bed with you and ending up pregnant, the answer is yes. I’m well aware actions have consequences.”
“Actually I was referring to myself.”
A look of puzzlement crossed her face.
“I’ve finally come to realize that living my life the way I’ve been, has prevented me from having the life that I really want, with you and the boys.”
She stiffened in his arms. “What are you saying?”
He stepped back and took her hands. “I’m saying that I want to be a part of your life. I want to be a part of our child’s life. I want that very much.”
Travis met her searching gaze unflinchingly, willing her to see his sincerity. He couldn’t bear the thought of her going through this alone.
“My doctor’s appointment is tomorrow at two.” She lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “You can come with me…if it works for your schedule.”
Relief washed over him. He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed each one. “I’ll make it work.”
“Cool.” She snatched her hand back and pushed him toward the door. “Now, it’s time for you to leave. I have a lot of work to do and I’m not going to get it done with you distracting me.”
Travis had been kicked out of her house too many times in the past to take this one personally. All that mattered was she’d agreed to let him go to her doctor’s
appointment with her. It was another step forward. And, for now, any movement in the right direction would have to be good enough.
“Any second now and we should see your little one,” Dr. Michelle Kerns said with a warm smile as the radiology tech slid the ultrasound transducer across Mary Karen’s belly.
Travis had only met Dr. Kerns a couple of times before. Today had solidified his initial impression that she had the kind of personality that would make Mary Karen feel at ease. So far everything had gone well, save a minor incident when they’d first checked in.
When the receptionist had called Mary Karen “Mrs. Vaughn” he’d quietly clarified her last name was “Fisher” now. Mary Karen had opened her mouth as if she’d wanted to say something then shut it without speaking. Perhaps it was because the waiting room had been full and she hadn’t wanted to make a scene. He hoped it was because she understood that he didn’t want his wife or baby carrying her ex-husband’s name.
“Oh, my.” The tech gave a nervous giggle.
Travis focused on the screen. His heart did a flip-flop in his chest. Dr. Kerns met his gaze, a tiny smile playing at the corners of her lips.
Mary Karen’s eyes moved from the small screen to his face, and he could tell she’d picked up on the strange vibes in the room. “What’s wrong?”
“Everything looks good, Mrs. Fisher.” Dr. Kerns placed a reassuring hand on Mary Karen’s arm then glanced at Travis. “Do you want to tell your wife the news or shall I?”
Travis forced a smile to his suddenly frozen lips.
“I’d like to tell her myself,” he said. “If we could have a couple minutes of privacy…”
The doctor and the radiology technician exchanged puzzled glances but obligingly filed out of the small room, pulling the door shut behind them.
Mary Karen pushed up, her elbows resting on the exam table, her eyes dark with concern. “Something is wrong. I know it.”
“Nothing’s wrong. You heard Dr. Kerns.” Travis knew he should just come out and tell her but he hesitated, trying to think of some way to soften the blow.
“Why else would you want to talk to me alone?” she demanded, her worry turning to anger. “Tell me, Travis. What’s wrong with our baby?”
Her eyes were full of fear, but there was strength in the blue depths. Regret rose to his throat. If only she didn’t have to face this challenge again. If only they’d used a condom…
“Trav?” Her voice broke and when a tear slipped down her cheek he knew he couldn’t put off telling her any longer.
He took her hand, squeezing her fingers tight. “M.K., you and me, we’re not just having one baby. We’re having two.”
With twins in her side of the family and in his, he couldn’t believe he’d never considered the possibility.
“No.” The word came out on a deep moan. Her body began to tremble. “No. Not again. There must be some mistake.”
He pulled her close, ignoring her protests. “Two heart beats don’t lie.”
“I can’t do this again, Trav,” she whispered against his chest, her tears dampening the front of his shirt.
“Ah, M.K.” Travis thought of the hearts he’d seen
beating and a protective surge of emotion rushed through him. He hadn’t been ready for one baby, much less two, but they’d make this work. Somehow. Some way.
“It will be okay,” he vowed.
“You don’t know what it’s like to care for two babies at once.” Mary Karen drew a shaky breath. “You have no idea.”
“But this time you’ll have me. I’ll be there for you and our babies,” he said, his heart clenching at the pain in her voice. “I love you, Mary Karen.”
She lifted her head, tiny beads of moisture clinging to her lashes, her eyes wide.
His words surprised him as much as they did her.
“You—you love me?”
Travis stared into the tear-streaked face of the woman he’d known his entire life. A woman he admired. A woman who could always make him laugh. A woman who was his wife and the mother of his baby, er, babies.
If the emotion welling up inside him wasn’t love, it was pretty darn close.
“I do.” With gentle fingers, he tipped her chin up and brushed a soft kiss across her lips. “And I will take good care of you and our children.”
He wasn’t sure what he’d expected but when she flung her arms around his neck, for that moment all was right in his world.
“I love you, too.” The words tumbled from her lips as if they’d been poised there, waiting for just the right moment. “It took me a while to realize it, but once I did, I realized I’d loved you since I was sixteen and I forced you to kiss me in my backyard. Remember?”
Travis smiled. How could he forget? He’d been twenty-two and in his first year of medical school.
She’d been a junior in high school and determined that he should be the one to give her that all important first kiss.
“I thought you were kidding when you approached me,” he said. “I couldn’t imagine how such a pretty girl had made it all the way to sixteen without being kissed.”
“I wanted it to be you.” Her hand rose to cup his cheek. “Even back then you were the only one for me.”
A knock sounded at the door.
“Is everything okay?” Dr. Kerns stuck her head inside.
Travis looked at his wife and smiled. “Everything is just fine. In fact, it couldn’t be better.”
By the time Travis dropped Mary Karen off in front of the house and sped off to the hospital in response to an urgent page, some of the euphoria over his declaration of love had started to fade and the reality of the daunting task of raising another set of twins hit her.
When Connor and Caleb came running to the door to greet her and her mother appeared with Logan in hand, looking more than a little frazzled, Mary Karen wanted to fall into her mother’s arms and cry.
But she didn’t. Like it or not, she was an adult. She only hoped that Pastor Schmidt had spoken the truth last week in church when he’d said that God never gives us more than we can handle. Because from where she stood, she felt pretty overwhelmed. Thankfully her three boys were getting older and more self-sufficient.
“Mommy, Logan peed his pants like a widdle baby,” Connor said in a taunting tone.
“I did not,” Logan yelled back.
“He did, too,” Caleb said.
Mary Karen held up a hand. So much for self
sufficient. She smiled at her youngest. “Everyone has an accident every now and then. It’s no big deal.”
“I took care of it,” her mother said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Logan was simply having too much fun playing and didn’t think about going potty until it was too late. Next time he’ll remember.”
Mary Karen smiled reassuringly at her youngest son. “Of course he will.”
“We were just having lunch,” Linda said. “Did you have a chance to eat after your doctor’s appointment? If not, there’s plenty left.”
Her mother had assumed this was simply Mary Karen’s yearly exam. Little did she know that today’s visit was anything but routine.