“That’s ridiculous!” Alice was both offended and furious on Nick’s behalf. “I know you’re grasping at straws, but gambling? Seriously? Rick’s in and out of the office and he and Nick meet each week. It would be pretty hard to hide any large withdrawals.”

“He hasn’t been taking any large amounts out of our joint account. I checked at 3:00 this morning. Of course, we both have our own accounts too so I can’t check his … Oh, Alice, I’m going mad. Things have been so great between us lately. I can’t imagine what’s stressing him to the point of a panic attack.”

“You both lost a baby,” Alice said gently, hating raising the painful memory. “A few months after Dom died, you said you didn’t think Nick was grieving properly. Could this be a delayed reaction?”

“Maybe.”

“You don’t sound certain.”

“I thought we’d both found our way through it. He doesn’t act like someone who’s grieving. I mean, apart from this week, he’s been happier and more content than he’s been in months. I’m the one desperate for a baby.”

Alice’s heart cramped for herself and her twin. “Does Nick want it too?”

“Lately he’s been saying the girls are enough and—Oh God!” Libby’s hand flew to her mouth. “Is that it? He doesn’t want another baby.”

Alice shook her head, worried that her normally rational sister was jumping to conclusions based on fear and lack of sleep. “That’s not what I’m suggesting at all.”

“Except we’ve been trying to get pregnant for a year!” Libby wrung her hands. “I dropped my bundle just before Christmas and he suggested we stop trying so hard.”

“Did you?”

“It wasn’t easy but I was in such a state it made a sort of sense. The thing is, after we had sex on Valentine’s night, I told him I was ovulating and I hoped I’d get pregnant. What if he’s freaking out that I’m pregnant and he’s too scared to tell me he doesn’t want another child?”

Alice swallowed hope and regret before steeling herself. “Are you pregnant?”

“I don’t know! I’ve been too scared to do the test.” Libby sucked in her cheeks. “If it’s negative, Al, it means there’s a problem. Both of us would need to have tests. What if he says he doesn’t want them?”

Alice shuddered, unable to shut out her mother’s matter-of-fact words from the day before. “Oh, Libs. You have to talk to him.”

“I need to read the psych report!”

“Libby!”

Her twin sighed and sank into her blanket. “I know. You’re right. Nick and I need to have a long and frank conversation. Get ourselves back on the same page.”