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Jordan didn’t answer, not that she expected he would. He headed for the door, threw it open and stalked outside.
Molly was shaking so badly she had to sit down. She held one hand over her mouth to hold back the anguish. Her stomach cramped and she knew she was going to vomit. She barely made it to the bathroom in time.
Her queasy stomach didn’t go away. The following morning, she woke with a headache and had to forceherself out of bed. By noon she felt well enough to meet her father for lunch.
She arrived at the restaurant to find him seated and waiting for her.
“Molly, sweetheart, I’m so pleased you’re feeling better. Is it the flu?”
“No,” she said, wrinkling her nose. She reached for the menu. “It’s Jordan. We argued and, well, it upset me. I’m fine now.”
“What did Jordan say that troubled you so much?”
“Dad,” Molly chided, loving the way his voice rose with indignation. “It’s over and forgotten. The divorce will be final soon and then we’ll never have anything to do with each other again.” She made a pretense of studying the menu.
The waiter appeared before she could make her selection. Her father, however, had already decided. “I’ll have a bowl of the French onion soup,” he said, spreading the napkin across his lap.
The waiter looked at her expectantly. Molly’s stomach heaved and she placed her hand on her abdomen. “I’ll… I’ll have a salad…a spinach salad.” Her voice quavered and a paralyzing numbness settled over her. She closed her eyes. There’d only been one other time that the mere mention of French onion soup had made her instantly ill. And with her various other symptoms—the dizziness, the exhaustion—she should’ve figured it out much sooner. She was a nurse, after all.
“Molly?” Her father’s concerned voice sounded as if it came from a long way off. “Is something wrong?”
She managed a weak nod. “Something’s very wrong.Oh, Dad, I don’t know what I’m going to do.” Tears flooded her eyes and she hid her face in her hands.
“Sweetheart, tell me.” He gently patted her arm.
When she could, Molly lowered her hands from her face. “I’m…pregnant.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Dr. Doug Anderson, her obstetrician, walked into the cubicle, reading Molly’s chart. She scrutinized him carefully, although she already knew what he was going to say. She was pregnant. Not a shred of doubt lingered in her mind.
“Well, Molly,” Doug Anderson said cheerfully, smiling at her. “Congratulations are in order. Your test is positive.”
“I guessed as much.” She glanced away, fighting back her emotions. Tears were close to the surface, along with the almost irresistible urge to laugh. She knew this hysteria was caused by her growing sense of fear.
“Molly, are you all right?”
She gestured with her hands, not knowing how to answer him. “I’m afraid, Doug, more afraid than I can ever remember being.” She’d lost her son; she didn’t know if she could survive that nightmare a second time.
Doug pulled out a chair and sat down. “You aren’tgoing to lose this baby to SIDS,” he said, sounding remarkably confident.
“You can’t guarantee that.” She was a medical professional herself and knew the statistics well. Crib death was a major cause of infant death in the United States. One out of every five hundred babies died mysteriously, for no apparent reason. She was also aware that the chances of losing a second child to SIDS were so infinitesimally small it shouldn’t warrant her concern. But it did.
How could shenotworry?
“It’s more than that,” she whispered, fighting hard to keep her voice from shaking. “Jordan and I are getting a divorce. It’ll be final very soon.”
Doug looked as if he wasn’t sure what to say. “I didn’t know.”
Molly didn’t want to discuss her marital troubles, especially with someone who knew Jordan. “I realize I’ll need to tell him about the baby.” The prospect filled her with dread.
“He’ll want to know,” Doug agreed. “It could make a difference.”
Molly nodded. Doug seemed to think the news might have some effect on the divorce proceedings, but Molly doubted that. Jordan was involved with Lesley. He was the one who wanted out of the marriage.
This complicated everything.
Doug patted her hand and asked, “Is there anything I can do for you?”
