Loving Jack(34)

She'd hugged the knowledge of her pregnancy to her chest like a precious  secret. Until today, the baby was hers and hers alone. Of course, she  knew she'd have to tell Jack eventually, but speaking to him about it  would be painful for them both. She hadn't had any contact with Jack at  all. Jack had tried to get her whereabouts out of Rachel, but Rachel had  promised not to breathe a word. The time to tell Jack had been quickly  approaching, but the events of the day had hurried the inevitable.

Grace just didn't know how to approach Jack. What if he was with  Matthew? She assumed he was. What if Matthew still didn't want a child?  That would make things difficult for Jack, not to mention the baby when  he grew older. How would she deal with that? This was far from a perfect  situation to bring a child into.

She'd known right away she couldn't work with Jack. So once she was able  to gather her wits, Grace had contacted Luke. He would be perfect for  the partnership at Artifex. She'd had him in mind for the position all  along if she turned it down. It was an awkward conversation at best, but  Luke listened to her idea with an open mind, as always. Artifex needed a  CFO with a mind for improving their operations to help grow the  business. Luke was an expert at just that. He also wanted to leave New  York for greener pastures. It didn't get much greener than Washington  State. She pitched the idea to Luke and let it go. He would think about  it and get back to her or he wouldn't. It hadn't taken Luke long to make  up his mind to come out to have a look at the company himself.         

     



 

Within a couple of months Luke was on board at Artifex and Rachel  thanked her profusely and regularly for helping to find the perfect  person to replace her. Not that she'd ever actually gotten her foot in  the door.

The friendship between Luke and Grace had somehow survived Luke's  confession of love and Grace's subsequent rejection of that love. They  were both busy with work but their pattern of weekly dinners and  frequent phone calls had resumed on the west coast. Luke just wasn't  affectionate like he used to be.

Grace was doing freelance consulting from home. She bought a house with a  huge yard in a beautiful neighborhood with top rated schools for her  and the baby. Her plan was to keep working from home for a few years  after the baby came. The baby that no one but Grace knew was coming. She  knew Jack would never want to be parted from his child. Grace wouldn't  want that either. Her son would need his dad. So she didn't even  entertain the thought of moving back home.

When Grace registered at the hospital she'd given Luke as her emergency  contact. So when she lost consciousness while talking to her new  neighbor, 911 was called. When she was still out of it in the emergency  room the hospital had given Luke a call. Luke happened to be in a  meeting with Jack and Rachel when the call came in. So they all rushed  to her side. Unfortunately, Grace had developed gestational diabetes.  The test for that wasn't performed until between twenty-four and  twenty-eight weeks. Grace was just twenty-three weeks and the test was  planned for her next monthly visit. They were keeping her for  observation and education on the necessary diet changes to prevent an  episode like this in the future.

She looked around the room at three of the people that meant the most to  her in this world as she stroked her rounding belly through the  hospital gown. And there they all sat looking shocked and accusatory.  Luke's expression was far more hurt than angry. She'd been hiding her  little belly from Rachel and Luke but it seemed to have doubled in the  last week alone. Jack spoke first. He was staring at her belly warily.

"Whose baby is it, Grace, mine or Luke's?" He got straight to the point, didn't he?

"Jack!" Rachel hissed.

"Wait a damn minute, Landry. Grace and I have never been together," Luke  was explaining, but Grace was too upset for words. Why hadn't she  expected Jack to suspect the baby wasn't his?

"It's my baby, Jack. Get out. All of you." She rolled to her side and  waited for them to leave. She didn't need Jack. She could do this on her  own. She listened to the shuffle of feet move away and the sound of the  door shutting. Grace began to cry then. She'd cried more during this  pregnancy than she had the entire rest of her life. She would be just  fine, she told herself. She could do this. If she had to, she'd move  back home so her family could help her raise the baby.

A hand gently gripped her foot, startling Grace. She looked down to see Jack standing there. "I asked you to leave."

"Why didn't you tell me? How did this happen? I'm in shock here. Don't  you think I deserve some explanation? Luke is your emergency contact,  not me. He moved across the country to be close to you. What am I  supposed to think?"

"I didn't tell you because I was still hurt and not ready. If you don't  know how it happened I'm not going to tell you. Luke is my friend and I  trust him. And he did not move here for me! He moved for the position at  Artifex!" Grace gave him her back again. Jack knew nothing about Luke's  confession of love. It was none of his business.

"Mhm. I see you're still blind to Luke's level of devotion. He's here for you. The job was a bonus and an excuse."

"You can leave now." Grace would have to think about Luke later. Much  later. Like maybe when she wasn't carrying another man's child.

"I'm sorry, Grace. Fuck!"

She rolled over to her back resigned to lay all the cards on the table  and let Jack do what he would. "I was on the shot. They tell you it's  ninety-nine point eight percent effective. In my research since I found  out about my pregnancy I've learned there's a ninety-four percent  success rate. Notice how those numbers don't match? You are the only man  I have ever had unprotected sex with. I'm twenty-three weeks now. So  our son was conceived during that first visit to Seattle. Likely in an  alley. Won't that be a lovely story for the grandkids?"

Jack stepped closer. As she spoke his expression had shifted from disbelief to awe.

"We're having a son?" He asked and looked at her belly like it held the greatest treasure known to man. She knew the feeling.         

     



 

"Yes, it's a little man." She was finally able to smile just a little.  "I have sonogram pictures. I'll give you one." She sighed.

"I came back to Seattle a day early because I thought I would pop if I  didn't tell you right away and I wanted to tell you face to face. I'd  been scared shitless that you would feel like I was only marrying you  because of the baby. But I think we both knew I was going to accept your  proposal. I just needed to do things in the correct order for me to  feel complete."

"I knew. I was just waiting for you to get all of your beans in order."  He smiled but it was a sad smile. She decided not to take offense to the  bean counter reference.

"Then I was terrified that you would want to marry me . . . only because of the baby. You know, after the thing with Matthew."

Jack nodded, seemingly trying hard to understand her dilemma. The baby  kicked and Grace jumped. He was strong already. Jack leapt forward.

"Are you okay? Are you in pain?"

"I'm fine." She smiled. "It's just the baby. He's got a hell of a kick  already. I can't imagine how it will feel when he's bigger." She reached  out her hand for Jack's and placed it on her belly where she could feel  the baby moving. Jack concentrated on her belly looking anxious but  eager. The baby thumped his hand and rolled for good measure. Jack's  face lit up with the joy of discovery.

"Our baby. That's our baby boy." Jack said reverently.





EPILOGUE





Grace lovingly caressed her massive belly as she waddled across the  lawn. She was supposed to be resting but bed rest was enough to make a  woman go insane. Some fresh air would do her good. Grace's toe burrowed  into the cool, thick carpet of grass and she breathed deeply. She had to  lean back slightly and place a hand on her lower back to feel balanced.  The weight of carrying two babies was taking a toll on her formerly  lean frame. She was lucky she hadn't developed gestational diabetes with  her second pregnancy. She suspected the fact that she changed her diet  as soon as she was sure she was pregnant had helped this go round.

After two years of marriage she and Luke decided it was time to have  another child. Fate had stepped in and blessed them with two. A boy and a  girl would be occupying the nursery very soon. Grace was worried about  her ability to care for two babies at once, especially when it came to  feeding, but she wasn't alone in the struggle.

A pair of strong arms wrapped around her rather massive circumference  from behind. Her husband kissed her temple and swayed a little with her.  She was totally busted. Luke had been like a warden since the doctor  told her to stay off of her feet. The babies were nearly full-term now  and they'd be a family of five any day now. Grace had to think about  that for a moment. She supposed they'd be a family of seven including  Jack and Matthew.