“Yeah. Yeah. Just…” She pointed emphatically at her belly.
I grimaced. “How, um, how are you feeling these days?”
She blew out a breath. “I’m just trying not to thinkabout how much worse it’s going to get, and I keep reminding myself this heartburn isn’t forever.”
“Heartburn?”
Pointing at her belly again, she muttered, “Comes with the territory.”
“Oh, man. That sucks.”
“Eh. At least this won’t be a summer baby.” She made a face. “Being pregnant when it’s that hot is theworst, especially with twins.”
I grimaced. “I can’t imagine.”
“You have no idea. Let’s go sit.”
I followed her into the living room and took a seat on the couch. It took her some work, but she settled into the recliner, and she sighed with relief as she put up her feet.
I winced sympathetically. I’d never envied my friends’ wives as they’d gone through the latter stages of pregnancy. They always seemed perpetually uncomfortable.
“I was an absolute baby when I had knee surgery,”Astala had once said.“But I had painkillers, and it really only hurt when I moved. She can’t get anywhere close to comfortable at all, she can’t take a damn thing, and she still has six weeks to go.”Shaking his head, he’d added,“I’d be lying on the floor and sobbing.”
“I don’t know how she does it,”Baddy had said another time.“I’d rather have a puck knock out half my teeth than go through that.”
When a reporter asked Eminem if he changed his newborn’s diapers, he’d looked her dead in the eye and said,“I’d have changed his diapers no matter what because I’m his dad. But after I watched my wife power through that pregnancy from hellandan emergency C-section? I’ll walk barefoot over Legos to change him so she doesn’t have to lift a finger.”
Rachel’s first two pregnancies had been pretty rough, too. The twins had been as difficult as carrying twins apparently was, plus the morning sickness that had put her in the hospital for a few days. With Elsa, she’d also been sick, and it hadn’t let up after the first trimester; she’d still been green around the gills right up until the end. On top of that, sciatica had had her in near constant pain for like five months.
“I don’t know how she does it,”Leif had told me more than once.“She’s stronger than I am, that’s for sure.”
I didn’t think he or anyone else had ever imagined she’d have to bethisstrong, though.
From the looks of it, the gods had scrounged up enough mercy on her not to make her as physically miserable this time around. Uncomfortable, yes, but she looked a million times better than she had with the previous two. She’d been through enough in the last year; a relatively easy pregnancy seemed like theleastthe universe could do for her.
Give this woman a break, all right?
I sipped my coffee. “So where are the kids?”
“Out with my mom. The twins’ class had a field trip this morning, and then she took them all to get lunch and to run around at the park.” Rachel blew out a breath. “She’s been a godsend, let me tell you.”
“I bet.”
Our eyes locked, and I suspected she had the same thought I did in that moment—whenever he wasn’t on the road, Leif always took the kids out to play and burn off energy. He was an amazing father, and he also made sure his wife regularly got breaks for hours at a time.
I cleared my throat. “So, anything you need taken care of?” I gestured to encompass the house and the sprawling yard. “I’m all yours for the day.”
“There isn’t a lot that needs doing, to be honest,” she said. “I’ve had more help than I know what to do with.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh yeah. The team has been amazing.” She smiled, absently resting her hand on her belly. “Eminem and Baddy have been doing a ton of yardwork. I mean, not that much needs to be done this time of year, but they’ve trimmed back some of the trees and the rosebushes. Ziggy put up the Christmas lights, and Eminem took them down. You’ve all been such a huge help.”
“You know we’re always here,” I said. “Anything you and the kids need.”
Her smile turned a bit sad, and she nodded. “I know. Believe me, I appreciate it. The wives even threw me a little baby shower. I don’t need a thing—we held on to everything from the other babies—but it was nice, you know? That they’re thinking about me?”
“Of course they are. You and the kids are family.”
