Linda Wisdom - Pregnancy Countdown

“I give you a compliment and this is what I get in return?” Mark grumbled.

“Be grateful you didn’t get worse.” Abby stared him down.

“Fine, you’re an old crone.”

Which everyone knew was untrue. Not when Abby was blessed with California-blonde good looks. As a mother of three small children, she should have looked tired and worn out. Instead, she was the picture of energy and health in a pair of pink floral-print capris and a solid-pink tank top that bared her flat midriff. Her sun-golden blond hair was pulled back in a complicated braid he knew Ginna had created that morning. At the moment, Abby looked more like a college cheerleader than a thirty-something mom of three young children who kept her constantly running.

Until recently, Mark hadn’t bothered to consider how lucky his older brother was. Now he looked at Jeff and saw more than a guy who had lost his freedom on his wedding day. Now he saw the father of twin girls and a boy who was starting to walk, a loving husband to a woman who was drop-dead beautiful. He remembered when his brother seemed to have a girlfriend for every day of the week. Then Abby flew into Jeff’s life with hurricane force and Mark’s big bad brother had fallen like a ton of bricks for the energetic blonde.

Mark watched Brian on the other side of the yard talking to their dad. Brian had been something of a party animal too. Then Nikki, their baby sister, put Brian’s picture and personal information on the Steppin’ Out’s Blind Date Central bulletin board and Dr. Gail Douglas chose him to accompany her to a dinner. Instead, they were carjacked, kidnapped, dumped in the middle of nowhere, caught in a rainstorm and, after spending the night in an abandoned house, almost arrested for trespassing.

Gail was an uptight, no-nonsense pediatrician and Brian was a laid-back, easygoing guy. Who knew they’d end up together along with a baby girl conceived on that memorable night?

Mark suddenly felt a tightening in his throat as he looked around at his family that seemed to be growing at a steady rate.

His oldest brother had the kind of family Norman Rockwell painted.

His other brother was well on his way to having Hallmark’s idea of a perfect family.

One sister was now married with two stepchildren who fit right in with the Walker clan.

His parents and grandparents were perfect examples for their children.

Then there was Mark and Nikki. He knew his younger sister was safe from family hopes of her getting married since she was premed and had long years in medical school ahead of her.

Mark was in his thirties and his family expected him to start adding to the Walker family tree.

He didn’t think that was possible. Not that he thought he couldn’t have children. Just that he wasn’t sure his adding to the Walker population was a good idea.

Mark was convinced that when the fatherhood gene was passed out to the Walker brothers, he was off somewhere else.

He made a great uncle and knew it was a job he could easily handle. He just couldn’t see himself as a dad 24-7.

“Mark!”

He jumped. “What?” He glared at his sister-in-law. He was positive Abby’s shout just took out an eardrum. “Are you trying to make me deaf?”

She rolled her eyes. “As if! You were already impervious to your surroundings.”

“Impervious. Wow, the kids teach you that ten-dollar word? Storybooks have come a long way since we were kids.” He pretended to cower under her look of outrage.

“You know, I really pity the woman who ends up with you,” Abby told him.

Mark looked to his brother for moral support, but Jeff’s broad grin told him he’d find no sympathy there. He leaned forward and pushed himself out of the chair.

“You are an evil woman,” he told Abby with as much dignity as a man wearing a wild fuchsia and green flowered shirt and baggy stone-colored cargo shorts could give. He walked away with her laughter ringing in his ears. He didn’t mind. He knew he would get even with her later on. Abby and Ginna giving him a bad time was nothing new to him.

Mark didn’t have to go far to find someone to talk to.

He hung out at his parents’ house on most of his free weekends, as did many of his friends. They brought their wives or girlfriends and treated the place like a second home the way Cathy and Lou Walker liked. Mark couldn’t remember the last time he had brought a date with him.

This was the first time he’d spent time looking for Nora. And the first time it really mattered that she wasn’t there.

Nora couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so terrible. For all she knew, she had never felt this bad before. If she had the strength she’d beg someone to put her out of her misery.

She sat on her bathroom floor with her back against the wall and held a wet washcloth against her forehead.

A faint snuffling sound came from her left as a cold nose pushed against her leg.

“Oh, Brumby, I feel horrible,” she moaned, keeping her eyes closed. She was afraid if she opened them her stomach would resume its acrobatics. She wasn’t used to getting sick just by looking at her bathroom tile.

She’d woken up that morning feeling as if her stomach was turning itself inside out. She’d spent the next hour in the bathroom and vowed never to get takeout at that new Chinese restaurant again. By the time her stomach settled down she’d vowed never again to eat Chinese food, period. The following hour, she was starving. By then, she’d even felt well enough to fix herself a big breakfast and eat every bite. Afterward, she took Brumby for a long walk, which pleased the bulldog to no end since he loved nothing more than patrolling the neighborhood.

That afternoon she’d settled down on the couch with a book and had fallen asleep before reading three pages. The activity wasn’t a usual occurrence for her, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

When Nora woke up a couple of hours later, the open windows invited in the rich aroma of steaks cooking on a grill at a neighbor’s house. Her stomach rolled over as if she’d just stumbled off the fastest roller coaster in the world. She barely made it to the bathroom in time.

Thirty minutes later, she was still in the bathroom because she was afraid of straying too far. She feared she was in for a repeat of that morning. Which meant it wasn’t last night’s Chinese food. Then she remembered several people at the salon had come down with a nasty flu virus.

“How could I catch the flu?” she mumbled. “I take just about every vitamin I can imagine.” She smiled at the dog’s muffled snore. Her smile took a downturn and her voice turned to a groan when she heard the doorbell chime. “The last thing I want right now is company!”

Nora remained seated on the floor. Whoever was at the door could assume she wasn’t home and leave. Even Brumby didn’t stir. Except the melodic summons didn’t stop, it turned downright annoying. She knew that only occurred if someone was keeping a finger on the button. She didn’t care. She wasn’t budging.

“Come on, Nora! I know you’re home. You better answer before I call 911!”

Nora muttered a curse that was very unladylike.

“What is he doing here? There’s no reason for him to be here,” she muttered, slowly rising to her feet. For a second, the world swayed around her. Nora held on to the sink until everything settled into place.

She paused to see if her stomach would give her the excuse she needed to ignore the doorbell. The traitorous part of her body decided to behave. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Skin white as paper. Eyes dark and sunken in her face. Her hair was sticking out every which way. She couldn’t look any worse if she tried.