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She had been so small. He almost groaned with the memory of his intrusion into that smooth sheath. He had loved her tightness then, but now it worried him. What if she had difficulty delivering the baby?
His eyes wandered up to her breasts. They weren't noticeably larger, but there was a ripe fullness to them. They were round and maternally plump and he wanted nothing more than to caress them softly and cover them with adoring kisses.
"Your parents will have to know."
Reluctantly Cage pulled his eyes away from her breasts and his mind from its fantasy. "Would you like me to tell them?"
"No. That responsibility falls to me. I only wish I knew how they are going to take it."
"How else can they take it? They will be delighted." It cost him tremendously to say it, but he added, "They'll have a living legacy of Hal."
She fiddled with the wet napkin. By now it was almost shredded. "Maybe. Somehow I don't think it will be that simple. They're very moral people, Cage. I don't have to tell you that. For them the boundaries of right and wrong are clearly defined. To their way of thinking, there are no gray areas of morality."
"But my father has preached Christian charity all his adult life. God's grace and loving forgiveness have been the topics of many sermons." He covered her hand with his. "They won't condemn you, Jenny. I'm certain of that."
She wished she could be as confident, but she smiled at him as though she were.
Before they left he made her drink a chocolate malt, saying that it was more important than ever that she gain weight and keep up her strength. They toasted the oil well and the baby with their glasses.
"I might have to share my teddy bear with the baby," she said as they walked outside, hands clasped and swinging between them.
"Put up a good fight," he said, smiling down at her. "For a long time, you'll be bigger than the baby." He walked her to her car and unlocked the door for her. "Go home and take a nap."
"But I've only put in half a day," she objected.
"And it's been a bitch. Rest this afternoon. I'll call and check on you tonight."
"Sometimes between now and then, I'll have to break the news to Sarah and Bob."
"They'll be as thrilled about the baby as I am."
That was impossible. No one was as thrilled about the baby as he was. God, he was bursting at the seams to decl
are how happy he was, how much he loved her, how much he loved the child they had made.
He was forced into silence, but he yielded to the temptation to hold Jenny. He drew her against him. She went into his arms willingly, and they held each other close in broad daylight, unaware of everything around them, prying eyes included.
His heart beat steady and strong beneath her ear. She drew warmth from his body. Cage had become important to her, almost unnervingly so. But she desperately needed a friend and he hadn't failed her. So she clung to him for strength and support. And while she was at it, she enjoyed the blended fragrances of sun and wind and spicy after-shave, scents that belonged so uniquely to Cage.
Cage cradled her against him, loving the feel of her lush breasts against his chest. He pressed his lips to the crown of her head for a prolonged kiss that really wasn't a kiss at all. It hurt like hell that he couldn't thank her for blessing him with a child. He couldn't lay his hands on her tummy and foolishly talk to the baby nestling inside. He couldn't fondle her breasts and tell her how he longed to see his baby suckling there. Worst of all, it hurt to have to let her go.
But eventually he did.
"Promise me you'll lie down as soon as you get home."
"I promise."
He tucked her into the front seat of her car and made her fasten the seat belt. "To protect you and baby from drivers like me," he said with a self-derisive smile.
"Thanks for everything, Cage."
He watched her drive away, wondering if she would thank him if she knew he was responsible for the predicament she now found herself in.
* * *
Cage arrived at the parsonage shortly after seven o'clock.
After sending Jenny home, he had spent the remainder of the afternoon at the drilling site. Busy as he was, she was never off his mind. He was worried about her, her mental state, her physical condition, her anxiety over telling his parents about the baby.
