In the last couple of weeks, things were almost normal again. Jeff had heard nothing more from Vida. Was it possible she’d backed off? And while Loften was still at large, it was looking more and more like he’d left the state. Jeff seemed to have gotten a grip on his anger and anxiety. Things between them were civil, tolerable, as they strove to regain a sense of normalcy. Jeff focused on work, talking about their upcoming trip to Europe and possibly squeezing in a few days in Paris.

She’d never been to Paris.

“Lisa Taylor?”

A nurse guided her into an examining room where she took blood, requested a urine sample and recorded vital signs. Then, after asking Lisa a number of questions and noting her answers on a chart, the nurse explained that Dr. Tanaka would examine her. She directed Lisa to get undressed and put on the hospital gown. Lisa braced for the unpleasantness of the examination.

“It’s perfectly natural to be nervous,” the nurse said.

Not long after the nurse left, the doctor entered the room.

She was not much older than Lisa. Her hair was tied back in a neat ponytail. She wore frameless glasses. Lisa thought she had a lovely smile and a calming bedside manner that helped put her at ease.

Dr. Tanaka began by talking to Lisa, addressing any concerns, then moved on to obtaining her health and medication history, taking notes of her responses. She asked about her periods, any fertility issues, her sexual history, then about any discomfort, pain or other gynecological problems, before conducting an abdominal exam, then a breast exam.

“The pelvic exam is last,” Dr. Tanaka said. “I’ll need you to lie back, put your feet in the stirrups and spread your legs.”

The doctor helped Lisa into position, putting a pillow under her head and ensuring she was comfortable before she explained the procedure. She conducted an external exam before concluding with the speculum internally. When the procedure ended, Lisa was given privacy to get dressed.

Lisa was sitting on the exam table when Dr. Tanaka returned. The doctor held a tablet, looked at it and then at Lisa. “Congratulations,” she said. “You’re pregnant.”

Tears welled in Lisa’s eyes. “Really?”

“Yes, really,” Dr. Tanaka said, smiling. “We still need to wait for your blood and urine results, but all signs and indications are good.”

“Thank you!” Lisa hugged Dr. Tanaka, who hugged her back, then gestured to a box of tissues.

In the parking lot, Lisa sat behind the wheel of her car thinking about how her life had suddenly changed for the better.

I’m going to be a mother.

This was a dream she’d had all of her life. She wanted to tell her sister, her parents and her friends back in Cleveland. But she had to wait. She needed to tell Jeff first—but not by text or phone.

She had an idea.