Chapter 4 Good news, bad news

Evelyn felt a tug on her nightdress. "Jeffrey!" She woke with a start. "My baby," she mumbled.

She heard a chuckle and frowned. Looking around she found the child she had been concerned about.

"Are you okay, Mummy?" Hazel eyes begged her to be better. Evelyn smiled brightly as she held her hand out.

"Hey, Peanut! Where's your big brother?" She looked around the room.

Her eyes breezed over her husband and landed on her eldest son. "Hey there, handsome. Too cute to give me a hug?"

"Hey, babe. We were beginning to wonder if you were going to wake up," Michael planted a kiss on his mother's lips and tucked a loose strand of her pitch-black hair behind her ear.

His caramel toned hand rested on her chocolate-coloured skin. "You alright?"

Troy frowned; his 8-year-old son was out of line and flirting with his wife. By the look on her face, she was delighted to see the boys and unaware.

Her ignoring him when she was looking for Michael had been obvious. Shifting uncomfortably, he headed for the door. He'd give the boys time with their mum, he thought as he searched his pockets for cigarettes.

"Do you have to go back to work already, Love?" Her voice stopped him at the door.

Feeling guilty, he closed his eyes in an attempt to rid his face of the guilt before turning around to face his family. He knew that tone. She was hurt but trying to pretend that she wasn't upset.

"No, my darling," he walked swiftly to the bed. Both boys were on either side of her.

Leaning over the three of Troy cupped his wife's face with his left hand and rubbed his thumb across her cheek. When her eyes fluttered closed, he bent down planning to place a chaste kiss on her lips.

The sound of annoyance that escaped her lips and the frown on her face as he pulled away surprised and pleased him. So much so that he bent further down and took her lower lip into his mouth.

Her hand curled against the back of his neck pulling him closer. Smiling he pulled away and kissed her forehead in a silent promise to deepen the kiss later.

"You alright?" Troy's brown eyes locked with his wife's deep brown eyes.

When she nodded, he looked at her trying to decide whether she was lying or not. Aware that both boys were watching them he kissed her forehead again and straightened.

As his hand let go, he realized how much he missed holding his wife. Envying his sons who were both resting their heads on his wife's chest Troy cleared his throat, "What were the test results?"

Evelyn stopped stroking Michael's arm and playing with Jeffrey's hair. She looked down and then up at her husband.

Sensing bad news Troy ordered the boys into the corridor with their grandmother who had been on the phone outside. Troy sat on the bed and pulled his wife into his arms. Rubbing a hand up and down her arm he placed a kiss on her head.

"What did the doctor say?" Troy asked into her hair.

"Troy," his wife sat up and looked searchingly into his eyes.

Troy tensed, she hardly ever called him by his first name. In the 12 years they'd been together he could count the number of times she'd called him Troy.

Trying to calm himself down and prepare for the worst Troy kissed her head again.

"I'm pregnant." She studied his face carefully and saw his eyes widen in shock which was followed quickly by confusion.

"But why aren't they releasing you?"

"My blood pressure was high yesterday and my fall left me with a contusion. With the boys closing school soon Doc figured I could use the rest. In the meantime, he will observe me to figure out if the high blood pressure is chronic or just in the last 48hours." Evelyn visibly swallowed as she watched her husband process the news.

"Troy, are you okay with me being pregnant?"

Troy frowned. 'Was he okay with her being pregnant?' He grinned. Ever since he'd seduced her, he'd intended on getting her pregnant.

While they had children already, this would be their first baby. This was the first time she was pregnant with his baby, and he felt like shouting and dancing. 'Finally!'

He loved his sons, possibly more than anyone could understand but, this baby, he thought, as he stroked her still flat belly, he'd wanted since he'd first laid eyes on her.

Lifting her nightgown, he laid kisses on her belly. Her heavy breathing told him that instead of comforting her he'd managed to turn his wife on. Chuckling he covered her stomach and kissed her cheek.

"How many weeks along are you?" He asked huskily. Clearing his throat and putting her in his arms he realized that he was also aroused.

When she told him how far along she was, he was shocked and concerned. "If you're only two weeks pregnant and you already have high blood pressure, what are we going to do when you're 6/7 months along?"

"Doc says if my blood pressure keeps rising then we could lose the baby," Evelyn's voice was barely above a whisper.

Troy panicked; he wasn't ready to lose his wife. If they had to, he'd convince her to abort. At that point, Troy realized how perfect his life was. If she died-

"Troy, do you think we should tell the boys now?"

"Um, yeah. That way they'll understand why I'm treating you like an egg. Let me go get them," as Troy stood, the door opened, and Jeffrey opened the door and stuck his head through the door.

He had tears in his eyes. Evelyn threw off the sheets and ran to the door and picked Jeffrey up.

Troy couldn't tell what she was saying to him, but the boy clung to her neck and Michael stuck his head through the door. Evelyn held out her hand to him and he quickly grabbed it.

She walked to the bed and sat on the edge cradling Jeff, humming a tune she used to sing to him when he was younger. She kissed both boys and patted the bed for Michael, when he clambered on the bed, she took Troy's hand and squeezed it.

"Boys, I have some good news and some bad news. The good news-"

"Bad news first!" both boys shouted.

"Okay, I have very high blood pressure. Jeff, you remember what that means?"

Jeff nodded. "Please don't die, Mommy. I promise to be good."

Evelyn kissed her son's head. "I should be okay, my baby; I just need to take it easy."

"So, what's the good news?" Michael asked.