Laura sat on the exam table, fidgeting as she waited for Victoria. She could hear her talking to other patients, her infectious laughter echoing in the hallway. While she waited, Laura became more and more anxious about the trip tomorrow, about Owen’s withdrawal as the departure drew closer and about what would become of him—of them—if his father somehow walked away without being convicted.

The thought of that last possibility made her shudder with fear.

Since Owen had decided to go surfing, she’d left Holden with Sarah while she was at the clinic. Laura glanced at her watch to see that Victoria was running thirty minutes late, and with everything Laura still had to do to get ready to leave for a week, she hoped it wouldn’t be much longer.

As she waited, the anxiety that had been with her for days now seemed to peak in a maelstrom of worries that involved her health, that of her unborn babies, Owen’s well-being, the pending trial and the impact it might have on him and his mother, leaving the hotel in the hands of Shane and the summer staff as well as Stephanie and Abby, who’d offered to help while they were away, the dreadful way she felt most of the day and how would she ever get through the traveling, let alone the strain of the trial, without adding to Owen’s worries?

By the time a tap on the door preceded Victoria into the room, Laura was about to spontaneously combust. “Hey, there! Sorry to keep you waiting. Things are crazy today.” Victoria took a closer look at Laura. “Feeling okay?”

“Nauseated twenty-four-seven, but other than that, not so bad.”

“Ugh,” Victoria said. “All day every day?”

“Pretty much so in the last week, and we’re leaving tomorrow for Virginia, and I need something to make it stop, if only for the week that we’re gone.”

“I thought you were dead set against medication for the nausea?”

“I was. I am. But there’s no way I can go with Owen on this trip feeling the way I do now, and not going isn’t an option. Desperate times…”

“Gotcha. I’d like to do a quick exam first, just to make sure everything is okay with the babies, and then we can talk about your options for combatting the nausea.”

“Why did I know you were going to say that?” Laura asked as Victoria handed her a gown.

“I’m nothing if not thorough. Since you’re wearing a dress, everything off but the bra.”

When Laura stood up to comply with Victoria’s instructions, the entire room seemed to swim before her eyes. She reached for the exam table to keep from falling.

“Whoa,” Victoria said, taking hold of Laura’s arm. “Has that happened before?”

“A few times.”

“What’s the urine output like? Normal or less than usual?”

“Probably a little less.”

“And is it darker in color?”

“Maybe a little.”

“Hmm,” Victoria said. “Would you mind if I helped you get changed?”

“I don’t mind.”

With Victoria’s help, Laura removed her dress and put on the gown. Once she was covered, she removed her panties as well. Victoria helped her onto the table and made her comfortable with a pillow and light blanket.

Victoria consulted Laura’s chart. “You’ve lost weight since the last time I saw you and your BP is low. Have you been eating?”

“When I can, which isn’t often. Everything makes me sick. Even the smells make me sick.”

“I hate to say it, but I suspect you’re a bit dehydrated. I’d like to consult with David and perhaps start an IV to get some fluids into you.”

“How long will that take?” Laura asked, alarmed by the prospect of being sidelined when she had so much to get done.

“A couple of hours.”

“I can’t be here that long!”

“It’s either that or I’m going to recommend you stay home when Owen leaves tomorrow.”

“That’s not an option.” The thought of not being able to go with Owen had her eyes filling with tears that flowed down her cheeks. “I have to be with him, Victoria. I can’t let him go through this alone.”

With a hand on Laura’s shoulder, Victoria said, “Let’s get you fixed up so you can go, but you need to take it easy.”

“I will. I promise. I’ll do whatever I have to do to be able to go with him.”

“Try to relax. I’m going to talk to David, and we’ll be back to see you in a few minutes.”

“I’ll try. Would you mind handing me my phone from my purse so I can let Sarah know I’m going to be here a while? She has Holden.”

“Of course. Here you go. I’ll be right back.”

She typed the text to Sarah: Apparently, I’m dehydrated, so they’re going to put me on an IV. I’ll be here a couple of hours. Are you okay with the baby? I can try to find Owen if you have somewhere to be.

So sorry to hear that! Holden and I are fine. Take your time.

Okay, thanks. Don’t tell Owen I’m here. He has enough on his mind. I’ll be fine once I get some fluid.

Please don’t ask me not to tell him, honey. He’d never forgive me.

Hopefully I’ll be back before he gets home.

Call if you need a ride home.

I will. Thanks.

Left alone with her thoughts, Laura couldn’t seem to stop the tears from flowing freely. With her hormones all out of whack, the tears had been almost as annoying as the nausea. Dehydration was the last thing they needed with so many other worries to contend with, but she couldn’t deny that she felt awful. Hopefully, Victoria and David could get her patched up enough to travel.

Whatever it took to be able to go with Owen. Staying home was not an option.

---

In need of some peace and looking for something else to think about besides the trial, Owen had taken to the waves. His grandfather had taught him to surf when he was eleven, and it was something the two of them had done together for years until his grandfather reached the point where the risk of injury was no longer worth the thrill of the ride.

Surfing with his grandfather had been among the highlights of a childhood short on happy memories. He and his siblings had lived for their summers on Gansett, the only time all year they were able to escape the horror of their home life. So many times he’d been tempted to tell his grandfather the truth about his father, but he’d always feared what would become of his mother, who had no annual vacation from her hellish marriage. Worries about her safety coupled with his father’s threats of what would happen if they blabbed about their family’s “personal business” to anyone resulted in Owen keeping his mouth shut.

With hindsight, he regretted that now. If only he’d trusted his grandparents, how different everything might’ve been for all of them. Of course he had no way to know if that was actually true, but he liked to think he might’ve changed the outcome somehow.

Watching the horizon, he gauged the swells and bided his time, waiting for the perfect curl. His grandfather had taught him how to tell the difference between a wave that would break too soon and one that would carry him all the way to the beach. With his eye on one such wave, he waited patiently, holding his position as the wave grew and gathered steam.

He paddled into position to grab the wave as it crested exactly where he expected it to, sending him on a wild ride to the beach that ended only when he bailed out. With adrenaline zipping through his veins, Owen reveled in the rush that was second only to the thrill of making love to Laura. Nothing was better than that.

Standing, he pushed his wet hair back from his face and saw Evan standing on the beach, gesturing to him. Carrying his board under his arm, Owen walked out of the water and onto the beach. “Hey, man. What’s up? Can you surf?”

“Not today.”

“What’re you doing here then?”

“Your mom called me.”

Something about the way Evan said that had Owen immediately on edge. What now? “What’s wrong?”

“Everything is fine, so don’t worry, but Laura is at the clinic and they’re putting her on an IV because she’s dehydrated. Your mom thought you’d want to know, and she thought I might know where to find you.”

Owen grabbed his T-shirt and towel from where he’d left them on the beach and put the shirt on without taking the time to dry off. He jammed his feet into flip-flops. “Thanks for coming to find me.”

“Let me take you.”

“I’m fine.”

Evan took hold of his arm. “Owen…”

Owen shook him off. “Let me go. I need to get to her.”

“I’m going with you whether you let me drive you or not, so you may as well let me drive.”

Owen grabbed his board and headed for the stairs that led to the parking lot where he’d left his Volkswagen Vanagon. “On that deathtrap motorcycle of yours? I don’t think so. I’ve got three kids to think about.”

“We’ll take your luxury vehicle. I’ll leave my bike here and get it later.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I’m doing it, so stop being such a pain in the ass. Were you always this much of a pain and I didn’t notice, or is that just a recent development?”

“Recent.”

Evan took the keys from Owen. “I’m looking forward to getting back to normal.”

“Believe me, so am I.” The bickering with Evan helped to take his mind off the unreasonable fear that had assailed him when he heard Laura was at the clinic. What if something was really wrong with her besides the relentless nausea? What if the babies were in jeopardy? What if he had to leave her behind feeling unwell while he went to Virginia? How would he ever do that?

“Stop thinking the worst,” Evan said as he navigated the twisting, turning roads that led back to town. “She’s going to be fine.”

“How do you know that? Do you have psychic powers now?”

“First of all, she’s a McCarthy, and we’re a hardy people. Second of all, she’s in very good hands with David and Victoria. Remember David? You know, the guy who saved my sister’s life when she would’ve bled to death without him?”

“Yeah, I remember.” It did make Owen feel better to be reminded of how highly skilled David Lawrence was, and he knew that Laura had nothing but the utmost faith in Victoria, too. The nurse practitioner-midwife had already seen Laura successfully through one difficult pregnancy. Surely, she’d get her through this one, too.

“I’ve got some news that’ll take your mind off your own troubles,” Evan said.

“What’s that?”

“Apparently, I have an older sister no one knew about until yesterday.”

“You wanna run that by me one more time?”

“My dad has a daughter he didn’t know existed until she showed up at the marina yesterday with a letter from her recently deceased mother naming my dad as her father.”

“Holy. Shit. What did your mom say? What did your dad say?”

“I guess my mom has been pretty cool about it. I mean, what could she say? It’s not like my dad had an affair and fathered a kid while he was married to her. He was with this woman before he ever met my mom.”

“So she’s older than you guys? The sister.”

“Yeah, she’s thirty-nine. Her name is Mallory, and get this—she looks just like my father’s mother did as a young woman. It’s uncanny.”

“Wow, that’s amazing. Are you like…weirded out to find out you have another sister?”

“Just a bit. Wasn’t what I expected to hear, that’s for sure.”

“How did the others take it?”

“Pretty good, overall. Except for Janey. She left before Mallory showed up. She said she couldn’t deal with it.”

“She’s had a lot going on lately. She’s probably on overload.”

“Definitely. But she also loves being the only girl in our family and plays the part to the hilt. If Mallory is going to stick around, it’ll be a big adjustment for her. For all of us, really.”

“Is she going to stick around?”

“I don’t know what her plans are. She’s a nurse in Providence, so I’m sure she has to get back to work at some point.”

“But she’ll be back?”

“I guess. You know my dad. He’s going to want her around. He probably feels guilty that he didn’t know about her before now.”

“That’s not his fault.”

“Still…”

“Imagine having a kid walking around out in the world for almost forty years, and you don’t know about her. It’s got to be pretty crazy to find out about her after all this time.”

“Yeah.”

“You were right,” Owen said.

“About?”

“This took my mind off everything for a few minutes, and I would’ve said that wasn’t possible. Thanks.”

“The sister I didn’t know I had and I are happy to help.” Evan pulled into the parking lot and cut the engine. “I know you’ve got a lot of heavy shit going on right now, but you’re not alone with it, O. I hope you know that.”

“Thanks for the reminder.”

Evan handed him his keys. “I’ll come in to see how my cousin is, and then I’ll leave you alone.”

With Evan following close behind, Owen went into the clinic and asked for Laura.

“I’ll wait out here,” Evan said to Owen as the receptionist led him back to her cubicle.

The first thing Owen noticed was how pale her face was. How could he have failed to notice that before now? Was he so wrapped up in his own issues that he hadn’t noticed such an important thing?

She held out her hand to him. “Did your mother call you?”

He moved to the side of the bed and took her hand. “She might’ve, but I left my phone in the van. She called Evan. He came to find me.”

“I didn’t want to interrupt your surfing time. I know how much you enjoy it.”

“Don’t be silly. I don’t want to be anywhere as much as I want to be wherever you are.”

She blinked furiously but couldn’t contain a flood of tears. “Damn it! Every freaking thing makes me cry, especially you when you’re so sweet.”

Leaning over the bed, he kissed away her tears. “I’ll try to be mean and nasty going forward, then.”

Laura reached up to try to bring some order to his hair. “You don’t have it in you, and you’re all sandy.”

“Sorry.” He tried to pull back from her, but she stopped him. “I came right from the beach.”

“I don’t care. I’m glad you’re here.”

“What’re they saying?”

She gestured to the IV that was releasing a steady drip to a needle in her hand. “They’re rehydrating me, and she’s going to give me something for the nausea.”

“That’s exactly right,” Victoria said as she joined them. “We’re going to get her all fixed up for the trip.”

“Are you sure it’s safe for her to go?”

“As long as she takes it as easy as possible, she’ll be just fine,” Victoria said. “Once we get the nausea under control, she should start to feel a lot better.”

“I thought you didn’t want to take anything,” Owen said.

“I didn’t,” Laura said, “until it got worse.”

“I’d be recommending it at this juncture even if she wasn’t asking for it,” Victoria said. “The complications from dehydration can be far more dangerous for mom and babies than the meds will ever be. You have two options when it comes to meds. One is pretty reasonable. The other will run you about five hundred bucks.”

“Which is better?” Laura asked.

“The more expensive one, of course.”

“Then we’ll take that one,” Owen said. “Whatever she needs.”

“Owen—”

“It’s fine, honey. Don’t worry about it.” To Victoria, he said, “How soon can we get her on that?”

“The pharmacy would probably have to special order it, so we’ll give her a shot before she leaves today and write her a script to fill when you get to the mainland tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Vic,” Laura said.

“No problem. We’ll get you feeling much better soon. I’ll be back to check on you in a few minutes.”

“Shots and pelvic exams and IVs… Not what I expected today.”

Owen winced. “You got the full deal, huh?”

“They’re nothing if not thorough around here.”

“I’m glad you got checked out before we left and that you’re getting something for the nausea. I don’t know how much more of that I could’ve handled, so I can’t imagine how you must feel.”

“Life with me has been a real thrill ride, nothing but nonstop puking, breeding and breastfeeding.”

“That’s not what I meant,” he said with a chuckle as he kissed her. “I couldn’t bear to see you go through that, and PS, life with you is indeed a thrill ride. Every single day.”

“Sure it is.”

“Are you for real right now? Do you have any idea how thrilling it is for me to be able to look at that gorgeous face every day? To know this incredibly strong and resilient woman loves me enough to go through this to give me not just one baby but three? It’s a thrill ride, all right. The best ride I’ve ever been on in my life.”

Once again, she blinked furiously but couldn’t stop the tears.

He laughed as he brushed them away and then kissed her, consumed as always by the sweet taste of her lips. “Do you want me to call your dad and Shane?”

“No need for them to worry when you’re here with me.”

“I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere without you. Evan’s here, too, along with some extremely interesting family news that you’ll want to hear. Want me to get him?”

“Um, yeah. And hurry up about it.”

Cheered by her saucy reply, Owen left her to go get Evan. As long as she was okay, he was, too.