Halfway to forever by Karen Kingsbury

Something was wrong.
Jade was utterly nauseous, her headaches more severe than before. And on several occasions her vision had doubled. She did everything she
could to rationalize the way she felt. Her age must be a factor, she told herself, or her hormones. Maybe the baby was bigger than Ty had
been at this point, or possibly the stress of the miscarriage a year ago had strained her system more than she realized.
Maybe she needed glasses.
Jade tried to calmly analyze her symptoms, but each night she
lay down in raw, heart-pounding fear, terrified something was
wrong with the baby Sometimes, after Tanner was asleep, she'd sit
straight up in bed and stare out the window, willing her heartbeat
to slow down, desperate for a grip on her emotions.
Day after day the fear ate at her, but not once did she tell
Tanner. Oh, she told him when she didn't feel well or when she
had to lie down because her headaches were so bad. But she
didn't tell him her deepest fears, that there might be complications
with her pregnancy. She barely acknowledged the possibility
to herself.
But now, six weeks after learning she was pregnant, jade was
worried about more than the baby's health.
She was worried about her own.
That was why, when she awoke at four in the morning one
Monday in June with a splitting headache, she promised herself
she'd make the call. Whatever was causing the pain in her head,
58
and today he was going to the beach with the boy's family Jade
had no plans whatsoever for the day.
Her head throbbed as she eased herself to a sitting position,
careful not to wake Tanner. He would be up in two hours and he
needed his sleep. He'd been coming home from the office earlier
since jade's announcement, but he was so excited about the baby that they had talked until after midnight the past few nights.
Despite her pain, the sight of her sleeping husband filled her with joy. There couldn't be anything seriously wrong with her. Not now, not when
she had everything she'd ever dreamed of with
Tanner. She brushed a lock of hair off his forehead and admired the
angles of his face. He'd been treating her like a China doll since hearing the news, doting on her, bringing her ice water, and encouraging her to
rest whenever possible. Because of the severity of her symptoms, he wanted her home from work, and she agreed. Her last day would be at
the end of the month. She would reevaluate after summer, since the baby wasn't due until December.
Whenever Tanner worried about her headaches and nausea, Jade would lean close and kiss him into silence. "I'm supposed to be sick.
Morning sickness means I'm carrying a healthy baby."
It was enough that she was concerned; there was no point worrying him also. For the most part Tanner was willing to believe her explanations.
She closed her eyes. Mahe it go away, Lord, please. Take the pain from my head so I know there's nothing wrong with me.
61 l
li III I 1
11
Ili
K A R E N K I N G S B U R Y
Her skull ached in response, and images from the night before
filled her mind.
She and Tanner had gone out onto their bedroom balcony to
watch the moonlight glistening on the rolling hills behind their
home. In the shadows they had spotted a pair of deer making
their way to a thicket of oak trees. Tanner came up behind her and
slipped his arms around her still-flat midsection.
"You're beautiful, jade. More beautiful than anything." He whispered into her ear and she leaned her head back against his chest.
"Mmmm." She closed her eyes. "It feels so good to be with
you."
"I'm sorry you're sick." He left a trail of feather-light kisses along her neck. "But I love that you're pregnant. I want to be a part
of everything I missed when you had Ty"
Tears had burned in jade's eyes. "I wish there was a way to get
back the years we lost." She drew a deep breath and savored the weight of his body against hers. "Sometimes I still can't believe
we're together."
The memory faded, and jade stared out the window at the
still-dark morning sky. Her first pregnancy had been marked by
pain and turmoil, all of it orchestrated by Tanner's mother and her
web of lies.
Jade thought for a moment of the girl she'd been when she got pregnant with Ty, the way she'd ached for Tanner, yet wound up marrying