“Son, run and get the wagon. We’re taking your sister home.”
Hank looked for a moment like he would argue, but finding the scowls on both Dwight and Doc’s faces, he thought better of it. Then, with a mere nod, he hurried out into the night.
Mary had nearly doubled over with what Dwight thought must have been a fierce pain, but now he felt relieved that she was standing a bit straighter.
Clutching the front of his jacket to steady herself, she reached out with her other hand toward Doc.
“Doc?” she asked, a dozen questions hovering within the one word.
Doc released her elbow and took her hand in his, pressing it to his chest as he reached out with the other to pat her cheek. “Don’t worry, Mary. Everything is going to be fine.”
“B…but, it’s too soon, right?” her voice caught at the last word and she sucked in a breath. Dwight wondered if another pain had occurred.
“A bit, but nothing to worry about,” the older man assured her, his voice exuding a velvety confidence. “Now, all I want you to think about is doing everything I tell you, and concentrating on what this baby of yours is going to be—a boy or a girl. You leave the rest to us.”
Mary closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. At that, Dwight thought it might be a good time to go out and get things ready in the wagon, but as he moved to step away, her eyes flew open. Grasping his jacket, she squeaked, “DJ! Please don’t leave me!”
Several people were gathering around offering to help. Charise sent Finn upstairs for blankets to pad the back of the wagon for the short trip back to Doc’s. Mrs. McKnight asked if there was anything she or the Reverend could do. Doc assured them he had everything under control, but he would appreciate their prayers for a quick and safe birth—they assured him they would without fail. Charise then suggested that the twins stay with them overnight and Pearl gratefully agreed—instructing Livvy to stay behind as well to help supervise.
Before they turned to go, Grace flung herself into her mother’s arms and looked up, sniffling back tears. Then, she turned toward her big brother.
“Dwight…I’m sorry I said the wrong thing and made Uncle Hank and everybody so mad…I wish…I wish I could take it back!”
Dwight smiled at her reassuringly and held his arm out for her. She slipped from Pearl’s grasp and buried her face against his side for a moment and then looked up at him and at Mary. “I’m sorry Mary…”
His wife managed a grim smile for her young sister-in-law and murmured, “It’s all right, honey.”
Obviously relieved, Grace placed a quick kiss on first Mary’s cheek and then Dwight’s; afterwhich, he watched fondly as she hurried over to join her sisters.
Dwight then allowed his eyes to scan the faces of the party-goers nearby, but only saw concern, for which he was thankful. He was sure Mary had had all of the upset she could stand for one day.
Hank slipped back in through the narrow double doors and closed them quickly against the swirling snow as Dwight and Pearl helped Mary back into her outer wrap.
“I’ve got the wagon outside. I’m glad we’re not goin’ far, though—it’s turned into a blizzard out there,” he reported, shaking snowflakes from his hair and coat sleeves.
They made their goodbyes quickly, and Pauline informed her husband that she felt she needed to go with her sister-in-law and brother to help in any way that she could. He nodded in agreement and told her he would hold down the fort.
Mary seemed to be concentrating on simply putting one foot in front of the other, but she cast a worried look at Dwight. He smiled in response. “Don’t worry. We’ll have you home in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.” She smiled back at him in relief and reached out a hand for him to take. The trust in her eyes shot through him like a bolt of lightning. The fact that she didn’t want him to leave her ignited a fire within his heart and he was determined to stay close.
Once out the door, the force of the billowing snow and wind that hit them took their breaths away, but nonetheless the men hustled Mary over to the back of the wagon. As she tried to put a knee up on the back board, she stopped and bent forward again. “Oooh, Doc…it hurts,” she moaned, and they all hovered over her to keep most of the snow off until the moment passed. Doc calmly reassured her again that everything would be fine.
Once they had her up in the wagon, Dwight climbed up and sat down in the center, directing Mary to sit across his lap. Pearl and Pauline fought the snow laden wind to cover them both with blankets before climbing aboard themselves, and Hank set the horse into motion.
Under the dubious cover of the blankets, thankful that they were at least out of the wind, Dwight held Mary close in the chilly darkness, her head nestled in the curve of his neck. He chuckled softly. “Well, wife. I’d say this is a Christmas Eve neither one of us will ever forget, huh?”
She snuggled a bit closer and he heard a soft snicker. “That’s true.” She hesitated and he felt her grip the buttons on his coat. “Oh Dwight…I’m so scared. What if something goes wrong? What if…”
“Sshhh,” he countered, his hands busy gripping onto the blankets against the wind, which tried to jerk them away. He rocked her gently. “Don’t think like that, honey. Like Doc said, everything’s going to be fine.”
He thought she made a sound like she was about to speak, but the wagon wheel ran over something that felt
