Now you listen to me. Miss Maybelle took Nora's hands firmly. You're not Sarah. Every pregnancy is different and modern medicine has come a long way. We'll get you to a proper doctor, make sure everything's monitored but you can't live in fear of what might happen.
You'll drive yourself mad. I know. I just I need to tell Elias and I don't know how. How do I tell him I'm carrying his child when the last time You tell him straight. Give him credit for being strong enough to handle it.
That man has been through hell and come out the other side. He can handle joy too, even if it comes with fear attached. So that evening, after Tommy was in bed and Elias was going over the ranch books, Nora approached him with her heart in her throat. Elias, I need to tell you something. He looked up, immediately alert to the seriousness in her tone.
What's wrong? Nothing's wrong. At least I hope it's not wrong. I'm She took a breath. I'm pregnant.
About 2 months along, I think. The color drained from Elias's face. For a long moment he just stared at her and Nora's heart sank. This was what she'd feared, that the news would bring back all his trauma, all his loss. Then he stood, crossed to her and pulled her into his arms with desperate intensity.
You're pregnant, he voice muffled against her hair. We're going to have a baby. Yes. Are you Is this okay? I know after what happened with Sarah.
Don't. Elias pulled back enough to cup her face in his hands. Don't compare this to that. This is different. You're different.
We're different. And yes, I'm scared half to death but I'm also His voice cracked. I'm happy, Nora. Terrified and happy and I can't believe we get this chance. Relief flooded through her.
I was so afraid you'd I won't lie and say I'm not worried. The memories are there and they're hard. But this baby, our baby, deserves better than a father paralyzed by fear. So we'll be careful. We'll get good medical care and we'll hope.
That's all we can do. Hope? Nora repeated. I can do that. They told Tommy a few days later and his reaction was pure uncomplicated joy.
A baby? A real baby? That I can play with? Eventually, Nora said laughing. Babies are very small at first.