Chapters (48)
- Cover
- Praise
- About the Author
- Also by Tricia Stringer
- Title Page
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgements
- Excerpt
- One
“I’ve got a few things to do.” Natalie gathered her things and pressed a kiss to Kate’s forehead. “You two need some time and I’ll be back tomorrow after lunch. Ring me if you want me to bring anything.” She squeezed Kate’s hand, her gaze piercing. “You need to talk.”
Kate chewed her lip as Sean turned away to wave Natalie off.
The door closed softly behind her and he came back to the bed and took Kate’s hand. “This is not where I expected to find you after two weeks away.”
“It’s not a place I ever imagined I’d be.”
“You’re okay?”
She nodded.
“And…” He glanced in the direction of her stomach. “The baby?”
“Is strong and healthy.” She explained the tests and procedures she’d had and when she finally stopped he let out a sigh.
“I wish I could have been with you. I would have come back sooner if I’d known.”
“You wouldn’t have made it. It all happened so quickly.”
He drew up the chair her mother had vacated and took both her hands in his. “So tell me what happened? It must have been a shock to head to the hospital and be told you were pregnant.”
Kate chewed her lip. She recalled the firm squeeze of her mother’s hand, her knowing look.
“I knew I was pregnant before that.”
Sean frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“It wasn’t much before,” she said quickly. “I hadn’t been feeling well and I went to see my childhood GP. I thought she was going to say I needed a tonic or something and instead she told me I was pregnant.”
“And you didn’t think to ring me with that news?” He looked hurt now.
“Of course I did but you were so far away and my mind was a mess. I didn’t know what to do.”
“Except you could tell your family but not me.”
“I didn’t tell them at first but Dad found me one night. I was miserable, the smell of meat cooking and…well, it all came out and then Bree and Laura knew. I swore them to secrecy though. I was planning on telling you as soon as you got back. I just couldn’t get my head around it. We weren’t going to be parents, Sean. It was all such a shock.”
“How do you feel about it now?”
A lump formed in Kate’s throat. “When I thought I might lose the baby I was even more of a mess. I thought it was because I’d wished it away. I felt so guilty.”
He kissed her softly on the lips. “I don’t think wishing can end a pregnancy, Katie-Q.”