‘Why’s that, Rose?’ Evie fixed her with such a sympathetic look, Rose thought she might cry.

‘I don’t know anything about this. Ian keeps saying I’ll be fine. Women have had babies for generations.’

‘And so they have.’ Evie nodded.

‘I don’t even know if I’ll realise when I’m in labour! I don’t know anything, not even about these Braxtons—whatever you just said.’ The anxiety that had been building in Rose over the months finally came to the surface.

‘Oh, you’ll know, all right,’ Evie said dryly as she moved over to the bookshelf and started looking through the battered paperbacks and recipe books. ‘How old are you?’

‘Twenty.’

‘Young and healthy. If you were having one baby, I’d say your Ian is right and you’d be fine. But having two is a whole different thing. You should be close to a hospital. Hasn’t a doctor told you that already?’

‘Last time I saw a doctor was three months ago.’

Selecting the book she was looking for, Evie handed it over to Rose. ‘Here you go, have a read of this.’

Rose looked at the title: All You Need To Know About Being Pregnant.

‘That’ll give you a bit of an idea about what to expect.’ Evie paused. ‘I’d really have a hard think about going out to Jacksonville, Rose. It’s a long way, and it’ll feel even longer when the bubs decide they want to come.’

‘You there, love?’ Ian called out before Rose could speak. ‘Let’s get on the road.’

Trying not to frown, Rose took a couple of final deep gulps of her drink. ‘Well, I guess that’s me,’ she said. She glanced around longingly. ‘You’ve got a lovely home. Who would have thought this would be out the back of a roadhouse?’ she said. ‘I’d love a couch like yours.’ She nodded towards the floral-patterned sofa, then turned to the door, and Ian. ‘Coming!’

Evie put her hand on Rose’s arm as they walked out to the car. ‘Rose, I don’t know you and this is none of my business, but I’m thinking those bubs could arrive very soon. If they’re early, they’ll need medical help.’

‘What do you mean?’ Rose glanced across at her, her eyes wide.

‘Sometimes if babies are born early they need help to breathe. Lungs are the last organ to develop, and if your twins arrive prematurely, they’ll need to stay in hospital for a while. We’ve got a good hospital here in Barker.’