He really wished she would stop with the Mom and Dad stuff because it made them sound like her parents. He could tell by the smirk on Beth’s face that she knew exactly what he was thinking.

Beth took a deep breath as Mindy inserted the probe. He quickly averted his gaze. “Okay, Mom and Dad, if you look at the screen you’ll now see an image of the uterus. I’m just going to get some measurements and then we will continue on.” After declaring Beth’s uterus to be perfect, she continued. “Now, here is the yolk sac and the fetal pole. I’m just going to measure those as well so we can get an estimate of the baby’s approximate age.”

Confused, Nick asked, “What are a yolk sac and a fetal pole? Where is the baby?”

“The baby gets nourishment from the yolk sac at this point. The fetal pole is another word for the baby right now. They go through several different stages in the pregnancy. If we are lucky today, we will see the heartbeat as well.”

Nick watched the screen in fascination as Mindy made her measurements. Beth looked shell-shocked. He took her hand, trying to give her the reassurance that she looked in desperate need of.

“Okay, Mom and Dad, let’s see if we can find the heartbeat. You should see a little fluttering on the screen.”

Suddenly, Nick saw a flickering on the screen and the room filled with a thumping sound. He looked at Beth and she had tears running down her face as they looked at their baby’s heart beating. “Oh, yeah, there it is,” Mindy said. “I thought so, but I wasn’t sure until now.”

“There what is?” Beth demanded. “Is something wrong with the baby?”

“Oh, no, Mom, the babies both look just fine.”

“The babies?” Beth choked out. “You mean baby, right?”

“No, there are two babies in there. I thought I saw two yolk sacs, and there are definitely two heartbeats, see there?” She pointed to the two areas flicking on the screen. “Congratulations, you’re having twins. How exciting!”

Nick didn’t think it was possible for someone to look as green as Beth did at that moment. He should know because he felt the same way she looked. Twins? Heaven help them.

* * *

Oh my God! What have we done? How can we possibly handle twins? One baby kicked our ass last night. This can’t be happening. I’ll be huge. Oh, crap, I cannot believe I’m worrying about gaining weight. Focus on the big picture; you are having twins, with Nick!

“Princess, are you okay?” Nick’s voice pulled her out of the fog that had descended over her after the declaration of twins. She looked around, realizing that Nick and Mindy were staring at her, waiting for a reaction. I wonder what they would think if I passed out right here?

“I . . . I’m fine. Just a little surprised.” Looking at Nick, she continued, “Wow, twins, right?” Why does he look so unruffled and cool? I am practically a stuttering mess and he looks like Mr. Hot Father-to-be. Mindy can’t take her eyes off him. Back off, cougar, he’s with me.

Suddenly all business, Mindy handed them their first picture of the baby—or babies—and helped Beth up from the table. Beth went behind the curtain to get dressed and then met Nick in the hallway. “You can go back to the waiting room now and the nurse will call you back for your first appointment,” Mindy said.

Before she thought about it, Beth blurted out, “Oh, God, there’s more?” Mindy gave her a motherly pat on the shoulder and opened the door for them to the waiting room. She wasn’t sure but she could have sworn that Mindy then gave Nick a not-so-motherly look of female appreciation.

They settled back into their seats in the waiting room. It seemed to Beth like every eye in the room was focused on Nick. Of course, it did not take much to figure out why. Most of the men who accompanied their wives or girlfriends were just Average Joes. Nick, on the other hand, looked like he could pose for Playgirl magazine. She hated to admit it, but she was proud to be sitting beside him. Amazing. I am not jealous of these skinny girls anymore. I have a man beside me that they would all love to have. Score one for all of the former fatties in the world!

Nick wrapped his hand around hers and brought it to his lips. “You know that everything will be okay, right? I know this is a lot to take in, but we can handle it. We need to look for a bigger place soon and we can hire some help if we need to. Claire and Jason will be happy to let us use Chrissy for more training. How about some of those baby classes, too?”

Beth finally put her hand over his mouth and said, “Please stop talking. I appreciate the reassurances, but I really want to make it home before I freak and if you keep talking that isn’t going to happen.”

“But—”

“No! Either you get me a bag to breathe in or we start talking about the weather. I cannot process things as fast as you can. Right now, all I can picture is my stomach dragging on the floor and my ass stuck in the door. You can solve all of our problems tomorrow; for right now just let me finish my panic attack.”

Nick chuckled. “Okay, princess. I’ll just read this breast-feeding magazine and keep my mouth shut.”

Beth thought he was kidding until she caught sight of some pictures. They could put National Geographic to shame. She jerked the magazine out of his hands and muttered, “Just stare at the walls, please.”

All too soon, the nurse was calling them back. Beth was mortified when the nurse stopped at a busy area and thrust a plastic cup in her hand. “Take this in the restroom there and give me a urine specimen. When you’re finished bring the cup out with you.” Then, handing her two packets, she continued, “Please wipe from front to back twice before gathering your specimen.”

Oh, dear Lord. Weren’t there supposed to be medical privacy regulations? Now at least five people standing near her knew that she was going to pee in a cup and how she would be wiping before she did it. Nick leaned against the wall looking at her with amusement. She quickly entered the bathroom and shut the door. How can I possibly pee knowing they are waiting for me? I’m a timid tinkler at the best of times. She finally turned on the water full blast, hoping it would inspire her to go, as well as block out the noise in the hallway. After what seemed like an hour, she managed to collect a small amount in the cup.

The nurse looked at the cup disapprovingly, saying, “I hope this is enough.”

Next, she was told to sit in a chair while the nurse drew three tubes of blood and stuck her finger. Finally, the nurse took a blood pressure cuff and wrapped it around her arm. Beth had so many bad memories about those things. When she was at her heaviest, the regular cuffs didn’t fit. The nurses either tried to hold them on her arm, which ended with them popping open, or made Beth wait while they searched for a large cuff. The indignity of having that happen never got any less humiliating. Beth often wondered why all doctors didn’t just use the larger cuff and save some of their patients from a lot of embarrassment.

Nick reached out to pat her shoulder, obviously picking up on her mood even if he didn’t know the cause. She breathed a sigh of relief as the nurse finally let her up from the chair only to lead her directly to her ultimate nightmare: the scales. Why had she not realized that this would happen? She would have made Nick wait in the other room had she thought about having to weigh in in front of him. She knew the number on the scales was acceptable and in normal range, but it didn’t lessen the nausea she felt every time she stepped on.

She looked wildly around the area, hoping there was a position that would give her some privacy. When she saw the large, digital display on the wall above the scales, she knew it was hopeless. I can’t get on the scales in front of him, I just can’t! The nurse was waving her forward impatiently as she looked at Nick. He raised an eyebrow as if to ask what was going on. She didn’t want to voice her insecurities in front of the nurse, but if she delayed any longer, the nurse was going to forcibly pull her on the scales.

She felt Nick’s hand at her back. “Honey, do you mind if I walk down the hall to the water fountain while you’re finishing up here?”

Beth sagged in relief. She turned a grateful look on him and said, “No, that would be great, thanks.” He gave her a smile of encouragement and walked quickly down the hall and out of sight. She jumped on the scale quickly and, as she always did in a doctor’s office, turned her head to keep from looking at the number.

* * *

Nick quickly walked away from Beth and didn’t stop until he rounded the corner, out of sight. His heart squeezed at the look of pure terror on her face as she tried to avoid getting on the scales in front of him. It had taken him a minute to figure out why she was hesitating, even though the nurse was trying to rush her to step on. When she finally looked at him, he could see the panic in her eyes and it finally hit him. She seemed so confident to him, especially sexually, that it was hard for him to imagine her suffering from confidence or body-image issues, but she clearly did.

Suzy had warned him when he first moved in with them at Gray’s that he’d better never say anything to Beth about her weight. Apparently, at one time, Beth had been overweight and Suzy was fiercely protective of her sister’s feelings. It was a threat that was unnecessary. He had never been one to make fun of other people, even when he was in school, and he certainly would never do anything to upset Beth. She was a beautiful person, both inside and out, and, regardless of her size, she would still be a beautiful person to him. He had dated a variety of women in his time and, contrary to popular belief, not all of them were stick-thin models. He loved women with curves. He hated to take a woman to a restaurant and have them order water and a salad. It made him too self-conscious to enjoy his own meal.

Beth might never finish her meal, but at least she enjoyed all things in moderation. He knew she worked out regularly, which he admired. She had a stunning body and he practically drooled every time she walked by.

How would she be able to mentally handle the changes in her body that this pregnancy would bring? That was something that he hadn’t even considered, but for Beth would it be more traumatic than the baby? He had never given a thought to how scared she might be to gain weight. Was there a way to recommend that she see a counselor without her blowing up at him? The terror in her eyes just a few minutes ago went far beyond the normal aversion that women had to telling their real age or weight. Maybe Suzy could give him some advice. Yeah . . . maybe. Unless she still wants to cut off your penis for getting her baby sister pregnant.

Chapter Fourteen

Nick and Beth drove straight to work from her doctor’s appointment. The drive gave her some time to adjust to the shock of learning she was pregnant with twins.

Nick had been the loving partner that women dream of. When they met with her doctor, who was a very nice middle-aged woman who instantly made Beth feel comfortable, he had asked most of the questions. Since Beth was pregnant with twins, she would need to be more closely monitored as her pregnancy advanced. Nick had been intensely interested in everything the doctor had said. At one point, Beth found her head going back and forth just trying to follow the conversation between them. She had started to remind them that she was in the room, too. Dr. Winters clearly was charmed by Nick and thought Beth a lucky girl.

Ella was standing in the lobby of Danvers when she and Nick came in the front entrance. Beth gave him a quick kiss good-bye and walked over to join her friend. “Hey, Ella, are you just getting in, too?” Ella continued to stare across the room and Beth followed her gaze, curious as to what was holding her friend’s attention. Across the lobby stood Declan with a striking blond woman who looked about Beth’s own age and a very handsome man, wearing what Beth was sure was an expensive suit. Turning back to Ella she asked, “Who are those people with Declan?”

“I don’t know,” Ella whispered. “She’s really pretty and she has her arm through Declan’s. Do you think she’s his girlfriend?”

Beth heard the note of despair in Ella’s voice and wondered again what her relationship with Declan was. She had walked in on them talking frequently. Actually, Ella seemed to be the only one with whom Declan made small talk. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen either of them around here before, but this is a big place so it could be a customer.” As they continued to stand and stare, Claire walked through the door with Starbucks cups in hand. When she spotted them, she walked over with a smile on her face.

“Hey, you two. I was just bringing Jason some coffee. I’ll admit he’s getting pretty spoiled from me dropping in. Thank God Louise is back and was over to get her Chrissy fix early this morning.” Finally noticing that they were looking across the room, Claire turned to look as well. “Hey, Ava and Brant are here. I better hurry up and deliver this coffee. I think they have a meeting with Jason soon.”

Claire now had Beth and Ella’s complete attention. “Who are they?” Beth asked.