Canon (Klein Brothers 2)

Just then, another deep growl sounded from that direction, making us all chuckle as the high-pitched squeal we’d been hearing more often than not followed it.

“The differences between Jarrod and Katy’s voices are hilarious, but I can’t help but feel for her,” Jacinda murmured, her shoulders shaking again when the high-pitched noise sounded. “That poor woman, I shouldn’t laugh.”

It’s not that we found her pain funny—not even close. It was how high-pitched it was and the fact it sounded a bit like a donkey.

Just then, Mom walked out, looking tired but excited.

“They say she can start pushing soon. Jarrod’s just getting changed into scrubs in case they need to take her to the OR, so I thought I’d come out here and check in on you all.”

A deep roar sounded from the room, making Mom wince.

“Hey, Gloria, a question for you,” Jacinda said, sitting up straight. “How is it that Jarrod’s groan happens before Katy’s scream?”

Mom looked confused. “It does?”

Almost like they were providing proof, it happened again, and then the high-pitched donkey noise followed it.

“See?” Jacinda asked. “Oh, have they chosen the music they’re going to listen to yet? I’m intrigued to see which one of your sons the babies take after.”

We’d all been born to different music stations, and our moods kind of matched them. Jarrod’s had been a gospel channel that the nurse who’d been helping Mom while she was in labor had chosen along with our grandma because it was a Sunday, and they were missing church. Now, when Jarrod needed to calm down, he either listened to Blues or songs much like the ones he’d been born to. I’d been born to classic rock, everyone’s favorite—just like me.

“Oh, no, dear. The deep ones are Katy’s, and the high-pitched ones are Jarrod’s. She won’t let go of her grip on his hand and squeezes down even harder when a contraction hits.”

And with that, she ran back into the room, just as Katy’s family arrived. They’d gotten stuck in traffic on their way back from the airport, so they were only just arriving. Who took a vacation when your relative was about to give birth? Then again, it was the Crews. They were about as normal as the Townsends.

As we sat in the waiting room, listening to the scary noises coming from the room as my nephew and niece were brought into the world, I thought about my brothers' lives with their wives and now their kids. I didn’t know what our future held, but I knew I wanted everything with Jacinda.

So, I needed to go ring shopping.

And when Melody and Baker—not Anakin like Katy had wanted—arrived, I had it all decided. I just didn’t know when I was going to propose. Maybe I’d take us on vacation, somewhere like the Bahamas, and do it then?

CHAPTER 17

Canon

It happened almost a year to the day after we’d moved in with each other, which was four months after my niece and nephews had been born. I’d noticed Jacinda acting weirdly, just out of the norm for how she usually was, but I never expected the scared woman I was met with when I walked through the door after work.

She was curled up on the couch, her arms wrapped around her head.

Dropping to my knees in front of her, I whispered, “Baby, what’s wrong?”

When she lifted her head, the tears in her eyes almost killed me. “I think I’m pregnant.”

Here’s why that might be terrifying. A few months ago, she’d gone for a check-up with her OB/GYN. Apparently, after the news she’d received when she was younger, she’d refused to go back to one, regardless of the multitude of jobs they did for women. But because her periods had gotten heavier, she’d given in and made the appointment.

During it, her doctor had diagnosed her with polyps and endometriosis, not polycystic ovaries, as her previous doctor had told her. Because of that, the risk of miscarriage was higher than usual, and her chances of conceiving were low. Just to add to it, the doctor had advised us that a lot of women with the condition who conceived had ectopic pregnancies, where the fertilized egg embedded itself in the fallopian tube instead of the womb.

So, we had good reason to be scared about this news.

I did everything I could to take her mind off it before we tried to get to sleep, but nothing worked. Even though I’d prepared myself for the blow we got when the doctor fit us in the following day, I wasn’t quite expecting what we were told.

“It’s a false positive,” the doctor said as she looked at the papers on her desk.

“But I did two tests.”

“I know, and I’m so sorry they both misled you. We tested your urine, and we’re testing your blood, too, but it looks like the home tests you took were incorrect. I wanted to make sure, so the nurse did three urine tests. They all said the same thing.” Looking at us over the top of her glasses, she watched sympathetically as I pulled Jacinda onto my lap. “I’m almost certain you can expect the same result from the blood test when it comes back.”