"Mr. Pryde won't have a problem with it, I'm sure. He's a good man." She drank from her own mug before asking, "Where is he? Out on another fishing trip?"
"Yes. It's getting harder on him I think. He keeps having to go farther and farther out. Before much longer he'll probably have to start fishing at the North Pole."
They both laughed nervously at this. "Joseph keeps telling him to retire, but that's not his way," Samantha said.
After another moment of silence, Rebecca asked, "How long are you and Jackie staying?"
"Only until the morning. We're going over to see the others. I need to talk to Prudence about something. You're welcome to come along if you want."
"No, I'm really not ready for that yet."
"Becky, you can't run from it forever. At some point you have to go back and face it."
"How far along are you?" Rebecca asked to change the subject, motioning to Samantha's belly.
"Seven months. It feels like it's been a year already."
"Did you find out what it is yet?"
"Joseph wants to, but I'd rather wait. Of course he wants a boy. I think that's what Jackie wants too so she'll have a little brother to play with."
"What do you want?"
"A healthy baby. That's all." Rebecca nodded in understanding. They finished their coffee in silence and then Rebecca rinsed out the empty mugs.
"I made up Joseph's room for you. I can get a cot out for Jackie if you want."
"There's no need to go to any trouble. She'll be fine with me," Samantha said. "I better go check on her to make sure she hasn't gotten into any trouble."
In the living room, she found Jackie asleep on the couch, sucking her thumb the way she did as a baby. "Let me," Rebecca said. With expert precision, she picked Jackie up, cradling the little girl in her arms. She carried Jackie up into Joseph's room, easing her onto the bed.
Samantha saw the tears glistening in Rebecca's eyes as she looked down on Jackie, no doubt thinking of the times she had done this with Molly. Then Rebecca brushed past her on her way out, running down the hall to her bedroom. The music came on again, this time a slow ballad played so low Samantha had to strain to hear it. She wanted to go in to talk with her old friend, but knew there was nothing she could say to make the pain go away.
Instead, she lay down next to Jackie on the bed, removing her daughter's glasses and smoothing away her brown hair to kiss her on the forehead, the way she had Molly and Veronica during those three vanished years. Her daughter twitched for a moment, but didn't wake up. Samantha pulled the blankets up to cover them both and then rested a hand on her stomach. The child within her kicked, bringing a sad smile to her face. The pain never went away fully, but life went on and with it another chance for happiness. She hoped Rebecca would see this one day.