Christmas Baby. Judy Duarte

a while, something unexpected happens to really throw us off stride.”

      “Like what?” Jillian asked.

      “Well, a couple of months ago, Kaylee came home from school sick with the intestinal flu.” Eva blew out a sigh. “It wasn’t more than an hour later when Kevin’s stomach began to bother him, too. And by morning, both Sofia and Steven had it.”

      “That must have been awful. Passing germs around has got to be the downside of having a big family.”

      Eva chuckled. “You can’t believe what that day was like. Dan and I were moving from one sick kid to the next. And when Shane stopped by the house to check on us, he felt so sorry for us that he spent the morning helping us clean up after the kids and doing tons of laundry. He was amazing. And a real blessing.”

      “I can see how having a second pair of hands would be helpful in a family with two sets of twins.”

      It was also nice to know Shane had gone above and beyond. And that he hadn’t been scared off by sick kids. That had to be a plus, didn’t it?

      “What can I do to help?” Jillian asked.

      “You can peel and slice the apples, if you’d like.”

      Jillian reached for a knife from the wooden butcher block on the counter, then carried the fruit to the sink. Before turning on the water, she said, “Hank mentioned that you and Dan are expecting again.”

      Eva smiled, and her eyes brightened. “We haven’t made an official announcement yet, but it’s true. We hadn’t planned on having another child, but I guess God had other ideas.”

      “You seem happy, though.”

      “Oh, I am. Babies are a gift, especially the unexpected ones.”

      Jillian placed a hand on her tummy. Her baby hadn’t been planned, either, but she considered her pregnancy a blessing.

      Before long, Eva brought the children into the kitchen for lunch. After wiping sticky fingers, she took the little ones off to bed for a nap.

      Kevin and Kaylee went into the living room to watch the DVD they’d been waiting to see, just as the men returned from the barn.

      Lunch was pleasant, and so was the conversation. Jillian was glad that she’d met the Walkers. Shane had been right about them. They were nice people, a loving couple and a wonderful family.

      As Shane drove her back to Brighton Valley, she reflected upon her time at the ranch. “Thanks for bringing me today. I had a really good time.”

      “I thought you would.”

      More than that, Jillian realized that she now had a woman to talk to about pregnancy and babies. Her friend Katie, as sweet as she was, had never been married. So it was nice knowing that she had Eva.

      “The Walkers are sure going to have their hands full when the new baby comes,” Jillian said. “I can’t even imagine what it would be like to have five kids. Wow.”

      When they arrived back at the apartment, Shane parked in back of the diner. Then they headed for the stairway that led to the rear entrance.

      As Jillian made her way up the steps, something pulled low in her belly. Something sharp and painful. She stopped abruptly, gasped and put her hand on her stomach.

      “What’s the matter?” Shane asked.

      “Something hurts.”

      “What?”

      “I don’t know.” She stood there a moment, stroking low on her belly.

      Deciding to continue on, she took two more steps before it happened again. “Whoa.”

      “Was it a cramp?” he asked. “Or maybe a contraction?”

      “I don’t know. I’ve never had a baby before.”

      They stood in the stairway, not moving up or down.

      After a beat—and another painful twinge—Shane clicked his tongue. “That’s it. You need to see a doctor.”

      “But he’s in Houston.”

      “We’re not making a two-hour drive for medical advice. I’m taking you to the E.R. at the Brighton Valley Medical Center.”

      She wanted to argue, to downplay the pain, but the whole baby experience was new to her, and she had to admit she was a little worried herself.

      But was this something that required a visit to the emergency room?

      “We could go upstairs and wait to see if it goes away,” she said.

      Shane reached for her waist. “Don’t take another step, Jillian. I’m going to carry you down the stairs and put you in the truck.”

      She wanted to object, to say that she could walk, but as Shane scooped her into his arms, as she caught a whiff of his musky scent, she let down her defenses for the first time since the night they’d met and let the cowboy have his way.