A grin started on my insides and spread to my face. He was coming! He was coming? He’d just been down here to visit his boys. He rarely left the restaurant. I couldn’t hope... I didn’t expect...
NC is beautiful in the spring,I typed, and held my breath.
I’ll be there. Happy New Year, beautiful Jo.
My whole body suffused with smiles.Happy New Year.
I fell asleep on the couch, covered with a blanket, breathing in the good Christmas-tree smell. Sometime during the night, the dog crawled up on the couch with me, a heavy, comforting presence.
In the morning, the dog slunk down, and Daisy and DJ took her place. “Auntie Jo!”
“Oof,” I said as DJ’s knee found my stomach.
“Sorry.” Meg, flushed and pretty, appeared at the bottom of the stairs. “I told them to let you sleep.”
I cuddled them close, ignoring my queasiness at the faint whiff of diaper. “It’s okay.”
Meg frowned. “Are you all right?”
I reached for my phone under the blanket. Smiled. “Too much ice cream last night.”
Meg nodded. “I’ll make coffee.”
“Coffee would begreat,” I said fervently. “Thanks.”
She laughed and corralled her herd, driving them toward the kitchen.I sat a minute, taking slow, deep breaths. Checked my phone. No text from Eric.
That’s okay, I told myself. At least I wasn’t running away anymore. I was moving forward. Even if I couldn’t quite see my destination yet.
I staggered into the kitchen. The smell of coffee, rich as chocolate, earthy as soil, hit me like a slap.
“Here you go,” Meg said. “Half-and-half?”
I gripped the carton, the sides wet with condensation. Added a dollop to my mug. The cream swirled and sank, dark and light in an acid brew.
Nausea rolled in my gut. I forced it down. Took one sip, and bolted for the bathroom.
Humiliating minutes later, Meg stood in the bathroom door, pity in her eyes. “Oh, Jo.”
I spat into the toilet. “I’m fine,” I said weakly. “It’s just something I ate.”
“Or didn’t eat.” She disappeared. Came back a minute later with a juice glass full of—ginger ale?—and some saltines. “Here.”
I shook my head. “I’m not hungry.”
She set the glass by the sink and handed me the crackers. “Try it.”
Clearly, she wasn’t going to budge. To please her, I took a sip of ginger ale. Took a bite of saltine and let it dissolve in my mouth.
“Better. Thanks.” I smiled, but my sister’s worried expression didn’t go away. “Really, I feel better. It’s probably just a stomach bug or something. I hope the kids don’t catch it.”
“Are you sure it’s a bug?”
“What do you mean?”
Meg bit her lip. “Jo... When was your last period?”
Oh. “I don’t know. Right after Thanksgiving?”
