changing positions reduced the intensity, then they were almost certainly Braxton-Hicks. They’re practice contractions to help your body prepare for the real thing.”
“They felt awfully convincing for practice contractions.”
“Hmm. Well, let’s take a look. We might be able to make out the baby’s gender today.” She squirted cold gel onto Rylie’s stomach. “This is an old machine, so detail won’t be very good. You won’t be picking out Uncle Bob’s nose just yet.”
“Or Grandma Eleanor’s crazy eyes,” Seth muttered. It wasn’t really funny, but Rylie still giggled nervously. “Do we have the blood work back yet?”
“Most of it, and everything looks normal. But I had to send the vial for paternity testing to a special lab, and the results have been delayed. Let’s see what else I can find.”
Stephanie pressed the wand to Rylie’s stomach and slid it across her skin, eyes focused on the monitor. The screen was turned so that only the doctor could look at it.
Rylie held still, unsure if she was allowed to breathe or move during the scan. Seth’s hand squeezed hers tightly, and she didn’t shake him off. She was too scared to be angry.
The silence stretched long.
“Hmm,” Stephanie said.
“That’s a good ‘hmm,’ right?” Seth asked, squeezing Rylie’s hand harder.
“Not quite.”
Oh God, Rylie was going to pass out. “What’s wrong? Is it furry? Does it have four legs?” She was speaking too fast, and her words tumbled over each other.
“Actually, yes,” Stephanie said, and Seth paled. “I do see four legs. I also don’t see much other detail, but that’s because you’re not as far along as I expected. Let me show you what I mean.”
She rotated the monitor. Rylie couldn’t make any sense of the blurry image on the screen. It looked like a big gray cloud, with two black circles in the middle.
“What is that?” she asked.
“This is a placenta,” Stephanie said, pressing a button to make the image freeze. She pointed at a thin line. “That’s a spine. This dot is a heartbeat. We should be able to hear that, too.” She unfroze the image, repositioned the wand in a way that made the image swirl and blur, and turned a dial.
A steady thumping filled the room. It was way too fast, like a humming bird heart.
She moved the wand again. The thumping faded and then returned.
“I’m finding the heartbeat in two places,” Stephanie said. “I think I also see a second placenta, and a second spine. So…yes, definitely four legs, four hands, two skulls…”
Rylie stared at her blankly, but Seth sucked in a hard breath.
“What? What does that mean? Is it a mutant?” she asked.
“No,” Seth said. “It means that we’re having twins.”
Levi returned while Rylie and Gwyn were looking at the printouts from the ultrasound. Rylie heard his car pull up outside the kitchen window, but his voice was too soft for Rylie to understand what he was saying to Pyper. She didn’t care anyway. Even the sound of Levi’s approach couldn’t make her feel any worse than she already did.
Stephanie had managed to capture a great picture of both babies. They looked kind of like gummy bears.
“Twins,” Gwyn said, all but trembling with excitement.
“Twins,” Rylie repeated, dropping her head onto the table. Her forehead thunked against the wood.
There was coffee brewing even though neither of them drank it anymore. Stephanie had officially banned all caffeine in the wake of the contractions, and it wouldn’t do much good for a zombie, either. But the smell should have been comforting.
It wasn’t.
“Oh, pumpkin.” Aunt Gwyn rubbed her arm. “It’s not going to be that bad.”
“It is going to be that bad,” she said into the table. “I’ve never even babysat for an infant before. And now I’m going to have two of them, and they’re going to be werewolves , and I am in so far over my head.”
“But look at them.” Gwyn’s voice was filled with warmth.
“They felt awfully convincing for practice contractions.”
“Hmm. Well, let’s take a look. We might be able to make out the baby’s gender today.” She squirted cold gel onto Rylie’s stomach. “This is an old machine, so detail won’t be very good. You won’t be picking out Uncle Bob’s nose just yet.”
“Or Grandma Eleanor’s crazy eyes,” Seth muttered. It wasn’t really funny, but Rylie still giggled nervously. “Do we have the blood work back yet?”
“Most of it, and everything looks normal. But I had to send the vial for paternity testing to a special lab, and the results have been delayed. Let’s see what else I can find.”
Stephanie pressed the wand to Rylie’s stomach and slid it across her skin, eyes focused on the monitor. The screen was turned so that only the doctor could look at it.
Rylie held still, unsure if she was allowed to breathe or move during the scan. Seth’s hand squeezed hers tightly, and she didn’t shake him off. She was too scared to be angry.
The silence stretched long.
“Hmm,” Stephanie said.
“That’s a good ‘hmm,’ right?” Seth asked, squeezing Rylie’s hand harder.
“Not quite.”
Oh God, Rylie was going to pass out. “What’s wrong? Is it furry? Does it have four legs?” She was speaking too fast, and her words tumbled over each other.
“Actually, yes,” Stephanie said, and Seth paled. “I do see four legs. I also don’t see much other detail, but that’s because you’re not as far along as I expected. Let me show you what I mean.”
She rotated the monitor. Rylie couldn’t make any sense of the blurry image on the screen. It looked like a big gray cloud, with two black circles in the middle.
“What is that?” she asked.
“This is a placenta,” Stephanie said, pressing a button to make the image freeze. She pointed at a thin line. “That’s a spine. This dot is a heartbeat. We should be able to hear that, too.” She unfroze the image, repositioned the wand in a way that made the image swirl and blur, and turned a dial.
A steady thumping filled the room. It was way too fast, like a humming bird heart.
She moved the wand again. The thumping faded and then returned.
“I’m finding the heartbeat in two places,” Stephanie said. “I think I also see a second placenta, and a second spine. So…yes, definitely four legs, four hands, two skulls…”
Rylie stared at her blankly, but Seth sucked in a hard breath.
“What? What does that mean? Is it a mutant?” she asked.
“No,” Seth said. “It means that we’re having twins.”
Levi returned while Rylie and Gwyn were looking at the printouts from the ultrasound. Rylie heard his car pull up outside the kitchen window, but his voice was too soft for Rylie to understand what he was saying to Pyper. She didn’t care anyway. Even the sound of Levi’s approach couldn’t make her feel any worse than she already did.
Stephanie had managed to capture a great picture of both babies. They looked kind of like gummy bears.
“Twins,” Gwyn said, all but trembling with excitement.
“Twins,” Rylie repeated, dropping her head onto the table. Her forehead thunked against the wood.
There was coffee brewing even though neither of them drank it anymore. Stephanie had officially banned all caffeine in the wake of the contractions, and it wouldn’t do much good for a zombie, either. But the smell should have been comforting.
It wasn’t.
“Oh, pumpkin.” Aunt Gwyn rubbed her arm. “It’s not going to be that bad.”
“It is going to be that bad,” she said into the table. “I’ve never even babysat for an infant before. And now I’m going to have two of them, and they’re going to be werewolves , and I am in so far over my head.”
“But look at them.” Gwyn’s voice was filled with warmth.
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