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“Mark?” Edward was standing in front of them. Laura cursed his rotten timing. Mark turned. “It’s a girl,” he told them both.
Laura jumped up and hugged Edward. “Oh, I’m so glad.” She gave him a huge hug. Edward, surprised, hugged her back. Mark stood, too, and gave his hand for a shake. Edward looked at it, touched. He took it and slowly shook his brother’s hand.
“Congratulations,” Mark said.
“Thanks, man. You don’t know what this means. Thank you.” Edward grinned. He looked at Mark. “Uh, Elle wants to…she wants to talk to you.”
Mark frowned. “About what?”
“I’m not sure. But she asked for you.”
Mark glanced at Laura, who didn’t know what to say. She felt a bit of jealousy in her stomach, but knew she should fight it off. Reluctantly, Mark nodded and then walked down the corridor toward Elle’s room. Edward glanced at Laura, studying her a beat.
“Mind if I sit?” he said, and when she shrugged, he plunked down into the seat next to her.
“How is Elle doing? And the baby?” she asked.
“Fine. They’re both fine and healthy. Baby is eight pounds, one ounce. And she’s got strong lungs—used them right out of the gate.”
Laura smiled. For the first time in a long time, she realized, news about a baby didn’t make her want to cry. Maybe it was because she knew she was carrying one inside her. The hope had already started to take root.
“When are you going to tell him?” Edward asked her, his sharp eyes missing nothing.
Laura turned abruptly. “What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean.” He stared at her for a long beat, his meaning clear. Somehow, he knew about the pregnancy.
“How’d you guess?”
“Well, I didn’t know for sure until just now.”
Laura’s mouth dropped open. “You tricked me.”
“Of course, I did. Didn’t Mark warn you I was the bad brother?” Edward chuckled. “Besides, I already suspected. Elle had all those same symptoms—nausea, fainting. I wasn’t quite sure until you ordered water at the bar, but then, I was pretty confident.”
Laura’s shoulders slumped. “Mark doesn’t want to be a father. How can I tell him?”
Edward nodded. “Mark’s stubborn all right, but eventually he always sees reason.”
Laura shook her head. “What if he doesn’t, though? He wants to sail around the world. He thinks a baby will dishonor Timothy’s memory. How can I disappoint him like this? He’s worked so hard for so long, and against all odds we actually won the damn race, and now I’m going to tell him he can’t go?”
Edward laughed. “I think he’d rather be a father than not.”
“No. He thinks it betrays Timothy. He’s sure of it.” Laura sighed. “And we’ve only been dating a short while, and now a baby? I mean, it’s crazy. It will never work.”
Edward quirked an eyebrow. “Love isn’t a straight line,” he said. “Sometimes we find it in the most unexpected places.” Edward paused. “Says the brother who fell in love with his sister-in-law.”
Laura couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s a terrible example.”
“I know.” Edward shrugged. He patted her on the knee. “Still, you need to tell him. He has a right to know.”
Laura nodded. “I know he does. I just… I need to tell him in my own time.”
“Just make sure that’s before he starts sailing around the world.” Mark shrugged. “He’ll probably want to sail to Bora Bora soon. That’s the next big sailing race.”
“Then I still have some time,” Laura pointed out.
“You do,” Mark agreed. “But not much.” He stared at her. “What’s it going to take to convince you to talk to him?”
A miracle, she thought.
* * *
MARK WALKED INTO his ex-wife’s hospital room and felt an overwhelming sense of déjà vu. In a room just like this a few years ago, he’d met his son for the first time. He’d seen the doctors clean him and wrap him in a blue blanket and hand him to Elle. Elle had smiled then and he’d hugged her and his son together. That had been one of the happiest days of his life. Now, as he stood at the foot of her hospital bed, he felt like an intruder while she cooed to the baby wrapped in the pink blanket in her arms.
She glanced up at him, looking a little startled.
“You wanted to see me?” he asked. “Edward said—”
“Yes. I did.” Elle looked down at her baby once more. The silence felt awkward. Mark remembered why, too. The last time he’d been alone with Elle was more than a year ago, when she’d stood in his living room with a packed bag and told him she was leaving him for Edward. Then his whole world caved in. It felt like yesterday and it felt like a lifetime ago at the same time.
