With no appointments or open houses on her agenda, she drew a warm bath, determined to feel better. She slipped into her gorgeous claw-foot tub, closed her eyes, and listened to the soothing sounds of Reneé Michele’s music.
The heat instantly eased her body and calmed her mind.
Inhaling the steam, she focused her thoughts on envisioning the future she wanted. The one she prayed a little patience, understanding, and persistence would attain.
A smile curled the corners of her mouth as she pictured Trip at the end of the center aisle in her church. He’d be dashing, with his jet-black hair and fashionable tuxedo.
She fantasized about the look that would be in his eyes when she walked down the aisle—one of adoration and affection. The same look she sometimes thought she noticed when his guard was down.
Amazingly, what had begun as unbridled lust between them had blossomed into a genuine, intimate friendship. If only he could trust it, or her, or love. She desperately wanted to suppress her misgivings and assure herself that someday he would. If not before the baby arrived, then soon afterward.
The baby. Despite Trip’s conviction they’d have a boy, Kelsey pictured a girl. One with dark hair, green eyes, and a smile as big as a crescent moon, just like her father.
She imagined strolling through town with Trip on a lazy summer day, their daughter on his shoulders, and her own belly distended with another baby. It all seemed so perfect and real, her heart thumped against her chest.
Then, just as she had begun to embrace hope, her abdomen clenched hard. The sudden stab of pain propelled her upright. She opened her eyes and saw pink-tinged water radiating from between her legs.
Stunned, she kicked, as if trying to get away from danger, sending water sloshing over the edge of the tub. Please, not the baby. Please, not my baby. She quickly climbed out of the tub and dried off, reminding herself that a little spotting was nothing to panic about. Then more blood saturated the toilet paper she used to assess the situation.
Oh, God. No!
As if in a daydream, she stumbled into her room. Her limbs prickled with heat, her heart thundered in her ears, her skin broke into a sudden, profuse sweat. The dizzying spike of adrenaline caused her to teeter, so she sank onto her bed and tried to take control of her body.
Calm down. It’s okay. It’ll be okay.
Another cramp struck while she lay curled on her comforter. Warm tears tracked down her cheeks, screams strangled to silence in her ever-tightening throat.
Move, Kelsey! Save your baby.
She forced herself to sit upright. Taking deep breaths, she called Trip but it went straight to voice mail. She hung up without leaving a message, threw on sweats and a turtleneck, and then called Maura.
“What’s up, sis?” Maura’s sing-songy voice rang out.
“The baby . . . I’m bleeding,” Kelsey choked out, unable to stop her tears or sniffling.
“Oh, Kelsey, I’ll be right over! Did you call Trip?”
“He’s skiing. I can’t reach him.” The enormity of what could be happening overwhelmed her once more, and another painful sob escaped her throat.
“I’ll be there in five minutes. Call the doctor. I’ll drive.”
While Trip removed the skins from his skis at the top of his fourth climb that day, he took a minute to soak up the scenery. The snow had finally stopped and the sun was peeking through the clouds. An occasional breeze wafted snowflakes off of fir trees, casting them into the air, where they floated around like glitter.
Grey had quit before lunch, unwilling to push his knee too hard on day one. But he’d been pleased with the joint’s stability, so they’d both considered the morning a success. Trip had then met up with his buddy Jon and continued to shred fresh powder for three more hours. Now his thoughts returned to Kelsey.
He should’ve insisted she go to the doctor earlier this week. But more troubling than her health was the melancholy mood she’d revealed late last night. He’d hated himself for upsetting her. Hated that he couldn’t quite trust his own feelings, allowing past ghosts to spook him. Allowing fear and doubt to intrude.
“All set?” Jon called out from the edge of the cornice where he hovered, ready to huck into the gorge.
“One sec.” Trip returned the skins to his backpack, locked his bindings, and clicked his boots in place. He couldn’t afford to think about Kelsey when avoiding a major accident on his last run of the day required every bit of his concentration.
He edged closer to Jon and gave the thumbs-up. With a quick shout of triumph, Jon shot over the edge. Ten seconds later, Trip followed, a puff of icy powder exploding around him when he landed, snow spray billowing as he descended down the slope, knee-deep in powder.