Page 50 of Isla by Any Other Name

“She should be here soon,” he said. “Sit down—can I get you something to drink?”

“Just water. I’ll put this stuff in dishes and turn the stove on warm. It’ll keep until she gets back. We can set the table while we wait.”

Her mom came in like a whirlwind ten minutes later. “Hello dear, how’s work? My, something smells good.”

“Work’s great, Mom,” Isla said. She hugged her. She’d never take that hug for granted ever again. “I love my jobs. Both places are just wonderful. I’d like you to spend the weekend with me soon. You haven’t seen the cottage yet. It’s adorable. I can pick you up on Friday and bring you back Tuesday.”

“That would be wonderful, dear. Now, what’s up? I can tell you have something to tell us.”

Isla felt nervous butterflies in her belly. Then her face broke into a smile. “Mom, it’s good news. You and Dad are going to be grandparents.”

Her mom put her hands to her mouth. “What? Grandparents! How? When? Oh my, start at the beginning and tell us everything.”

She looked over at them both from across the table. They couldn’t be smiling any bigger. One thing that she could say about her folks was that nothing floored them. They never thought that they would have children and then she came into their life, and now a grandchild.

“I fell in love with one of the FBI agents assigned to me in the beginning of this whole mess. I won’t tell you his name, but I will tell you that we were in love and when we had to part it was the hardest thing we ever had to do. I’ll always love him. He made me see that this was the only way to keep me safe when all I wanted to do was stay with him no matter what happened to me. I didn’t think I would get pregnant. He doesn’t know about this—he’ll never know.”

“Oh, dear,” said her mom. “But what if you just—”

“Mom, I don’t exist anymore—he’d never be able to find me. And I won’t put him or you in danger anymore. God gave me the gift of his child. If I can’t have him to love, then at least I have his baby. I hope that you can be happy for me. Out of this whole mess, it’s the one thing that he’s given me they can’t take away.”

Isla’s mom clasped a hand over hers. “Oh honey, we couldn’t be happier. But won’t it be hard for you? Who’s going to watch the baby when you’re at work? Babies are hard work, and you’ll be doing it all on your own.”

“I’m not the first woman to be a single mother. I know it’ll be hard, but I’ll be okay. I can hire a nanny to watch the baby while I’m at work. When the time comes, Leslie can help me choose the right person.”

“If we can help in any way, you know we’ll always be here for you,” Dad said with a smile. “I’m going to be a grandpa!”

Isla giggled at his enthusiasm. “Dad, I can just see you spoiling this little one. He or she will probably have their own fishing pole before they can even walk.”

“Darn right they will!”

They spent the rest of the evening talking and making plans for their new arrival. The ride home was long. She got tired easily now. She knew that tired was going to be the new normal for the next twenty years. After pulling into her driveway, she sat and contemplated her new life. She just wished Mitch were here to share it.

Chapter twenty-six

Isla’s appointment was Monday afternoon. She’d booked it for her lunch hour. Kech looked amused when she walked in the room as a patient, since she’d just been there as his nurse twenty minutes ago. “So, Siobhan, what brings you in to see me today? I’ve just had the chance to look over your medical file. Everything looks good.”

Isla smiled shyly. The fact that she was his employee added a whole layer to this patient-doctor relationship. “Well, now that I’m here, I wanted to get set up with a GP in the area—and that’s you. There won’t be a problem, will there?”

“Well, Leslie didn’t seem to think so when she made the appointment,” Kech said, laughing. “I mean, of course not.”

Isla bit her lip. “Kech, before we even get started, I need to tell you…that I’m pregnant. I took a pregnancy test three weeks ago and it was positive.”

Kech’s eyes softened as he took in the information. He said warmly, “Well, let’s get you up on the table and have a look. Do you know how far along you are?”

“Three months,” she said, lying back on the exam table.

Kech rubbed his hands together to warm them, then touched her belly as she answered him. “How have you been feeling? Any cramping? How’s the morning sickness? Dizziness, anything like that?”

“As far as I can tell, I’m textbook. I was pregnant once before when I was twenty. I had a miscarriage in my first trimester, but my OB/GYN wasn’t too concerned at the time about my chances to carry a healthy pregnancy in the future,” Isla said. Her heart still ached for the baby she’d lost back then, but she had a feeling this baby was sticking around. “I was dizzy a few times in the beginning, but that’s gone away. I was getting morning sickness every day up until last week and now it’s sporadic. I only got sick twice last week.”

“That would explain the club crackers for lunch,” Kech chuckled. He motioned for her to sit up. “Well, you’re definitely about twelve weeks along, let’s get you set up with prenatal vitamins, and I’d like to do bloodwork. The next time you come in, we’ll do a sonogram and we’ll see how the little one is doing.”

“Thanks, Kech,” Isla said, smiling. “I’d appreciate it if we kept this quiet for a few weeks. I’ll let everyone know after we do the sonogram.”

“That won’t be a problem. If you think something isn’t right, you let me know. Don’t hesitate.”

“I will, I promise,” she said.