Shelagh comes home from the hospital after her fertility diagnosis.

Patrick hovered over Shelagh as she embraced Timothy.

“I missed you,” Timothy told her.

“Missed you, too,” she answered. She glanced back at Patrick as he reached for her coat.

“Let’s get you settled. Tim, take this,” he handed his son her coat, “and I will help you up the stairs.”

Shelagh balked. “No, Patrick. Not upstairs. I’ve missed you both so much, I don’t want to be away from either of you anymore. I’ll stay down on the sofa, please.”

Tim nodded, understanding exactly how she felt. “I’ll make tea. And I have a surprise for you!”

Shelagh smiled at his enthusiasm and moved slowly towards the sofa.

“Sweetheart, you’ll be much more comfortable upstairs in bed. Tim and I will visit you. I’ll bring my work up there and sit with you while you rest.” Patrick’s forehead was furrowed with concern.

“I’ll be fine, Patrick. I’m quite used to the sofa, remember?”

“You are not sleeping down here. If I have to carry you up those stairs, you are sleeping in our bed tonight. I need to hold you,” he whispered. His hands moved to gently cup her face. “Our bed was unbearable without you.”

Shelagh slid her hands to cover his.  She sighed brokenly as her eyes filled with unshed tears. “You’re so good to me, Patrick. I’m not sure I deserve it.”

He bent down and placed a tender kiss on her lips. He needed to lighten her mood. “I’ll be the judge of that,” he declared.

Tim returned, bearing a flat box. “I found a new puzzle for us to do, like when you used to visit me in hospital. It’s the beach, because you always say you love the beach.”

Patrick smiled at his son’s kindness. “Good man,” he told him. “Don’t forget the biscuits.”

A few hours later, Shelagh dozed comfortably on the sofa. Patrick sat at one end, her legs across his lap. Timothy sat at the table working on his new Spitfire model. The puzzle was spread out on a tray, half finished and placed out of the way.

Patrick looked up from the novel he was reading, sighing quietly. Everyone was just where they should be, he thought. If this was to be their family, he was more than content with that. He knew just how close he had come to not having this at all. This life with Shelagh was more than anything he had ever dreamed, and longing for more felt greedy.

He understood Shelagh’s melancholy. When she had taken the leap to change her life, she had imagined her life would take a certain path, and carrying a child had been part of that. His heart clenched when he thought of how many times she had been forced to change direction in this past six months. Christ, he thought. Six months. That day on that misty road was only just over six months ago. They had lived through so much in that short time.

But he knew she had depths of strength he couldn’t imagine. Shelagh would rise from this, and they would be even stronger. It would just take time.

Shelagh stirred, waking from her nap. She smiled, and he handed her glasses back to her.

“Shelagh, I have a very important question for you. I’m speaking as a doctor, now. Scientifically, based on observation.” Might as well begin by teasing, he thought.

“What’s wrong?” The tiny lines on her forehead appeared, and Patrick had to smother a grin.

Patrick put his book down and slid his hand over her ankles. “Your feet are the smallest I’ve ever seen on a grown adult. How on earth do you stand up on these things?”

Shelagh rolled her eyes as Timothy joined in. “He’s right, Mum. My feet are bigger than yours, and I haven’t even started growing!”

“Oh, you two think you’re so very funny, don’t you?” Shelagh’s eyes gleamed with mischief. “ Well, laugh away, gentlemen. They might be small, but don’t think I can’t give you a swift kick if I need to!”

They would be all right.