Page 4 of Asher's Assignment
“It’s fine.”
Something in Edie’s tone told her otherwise. She put the rice pot down and waited, knowing her sister would tell her what was wrong when she was ready.
Edie groaned. “Technically, everything is fine. I’m just—I’m just not—” She stopped again and huffed. “I’m pregnant.”
Esther sagged into the counter. “You’re what?” she squeaked.
“Pregnant. And I’m not sure how I feel about it. I mean, I’m happy,” she hastened to add, “but I’m—scared? Nervous. Nervous is a better word.”
“Does Jordan know?”
“About the baby? Yes. He figured it out before I did. When we sparred the other morning, I just didn’t have the same energy I usually do. Then we made breakfast afterward, and I told him the bacon smelled rancid. After we ate, he disappeared for a bit, claiming he had an errand to run.” A snort came over the line. “His errand was to the drugstore. He came back with a pregnancy test.”
Esther laughed. That sounded like him. She also wasn’t surprised that he’d picked up on the changes in her sister. Jordan was a perceptive man, and he adored Edie. “So, does he know you’re nervous?”
“Probably. I haven’t said as much, but obviously, he can read me like a book, so…” Edie blew out a breath. “I just wanted to talk to someone without any stake in things, you know? You always give it to me straight. Help convince me everything will be okay, Essy. Because I don’t know how to be a mom.”
Esther pushed away from the counter and picked up her saucepot. “Sure you do. You had a great example. Mom’s going to be thrilled, by the way. And you better tell her soon. If you keep this from her like you did your marriage, she’s liable to fly down there and skin you.” She dumped the water out, then tipped the rice from the strainer into the pot.
“Hey, I had a good reason for keeping Jordan a secret at the time. I came clean as soon as it was safe.”
Esther turned on the water and added some to the rice. “Maybe so, but you know you could have told us before. We wouldn’t have said anything to anyone.” The entire family had been a little hurt when Edie broke the news of her nuptials. She claimed it had been to keep them safe from the person terrorizing Jordan, but Esther had a feeling she’d also done it so she didn’t have to deal with the emotions involved. Edie only had so much emotional bandwidth.
“Well, you know now. And yes, I promise I will tell Mom and Dad soon. I just need to get a handle on it myself. It’s only been a couple of days.”
“How far along are you?” Esther shut the water off and set the pot on the stove, turning on the burner.
“We figure about seven weeks. With all the chaos around here lately, I haven’t paid that close attention to my cycle.”
“Chaos?”
“Margot and the twins officially moved down. Her divorce went through, and she finally got her house sold. We’ve been busy getting them settled.”
“Hey, that’s great. Hopefully, she can move on now.” Margot’s story was a complicated one. Her husband left with no warning, leaving her to raise twin toddlers on her own. Thankfully, Edie’s friends had stepped up to help. She wasn’t alone, and the girls would grow up with an amazing group of role models around them.
“Yeah. She already looks more relaxed. I’ve been watching Em and Lily a couple times a week so she and Annabeth can work on the clinic. Their goal is to open right after the new year. I know the locals are ready for them to open. There just aren’t enough doctors here, especially pediatricians.”
“Well, that will be one less thing you’ll have to worry about when your baby comes. There will be two doctors close by.”
“True.” She groaned again. “This is nuts.”
Esther laughed. “You’ll be fine. You’ve done some wild and crazy things in your life, Edie. And you’ve overcome even more. A baby is nothing compared to that.”
Edie scoffed. “Hardly. Because this isn’t only about me. I just found out about this kid and I’m already worried about everything that could happen. Not just in the delivery, but as he or she gets older. Like, what if they’re born with some sort of congenital disorder or they get really, really sick some time?”
Leah flashed through Esther’s mind. That would be rough, definitely. But her sister was the strongest person she knew. “You’ll be fine. And you’re not alone. Jordan will be there through it all.”
“I suppose that’s true.” She sighed. “I’m being a worrywart. That’s new too. I don’t fret like this. I’m a mess.”
“Welcome to pregnancy.” Esther grinned. Her brother-in-law was going to have his hands full over the next few months.
Edie moaned. “Okay, let’s talk about something else. How’s your week going?”
“Fine.” She glanced out the window. The fog had only grown in density since she arrived home. “Wet.”
“It’s the Pacific Northwest. That’s a given.”
“I know. I wish I was down there, though.”
