TITANIC ROSE
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Two Months Later
Rose sat in the waiting room of the doctor’s
office, thinking about that day two months earlier. She had half-expected
Thomas to be angry, to refuse to forgive her for her past, or for keeping it a
secret. But, while he had been angry for a while, he had understood, and had
forgiven her for keeping secrets from him. He had also given up the idea of
selling the Heart of the Ocean, acknowledging that it was Rose’s, to keep or
sell as she saw fit.
That night, after Lora had taken Andrew to
the kitchen to eat, Rose and Thomas had made love, renewing their love and
trust in one another. Rose had sensed that night that they had created a new
life, and as the weeks passed, she became more and more certain of it.
"Mrs. Calvert?"
Rose looked up, seeing the doctor gesturing
to her. Standing, she made her way to the door of the examining room, going
inside and sitting down on the examining table.
"What seems to be the problem, Mrs.
Calvert?"
"I think I may be in the family
way," Rose told her, blushing a little. She’d had two babies before, but
acknowledging that she thought she was pregnant had always been a little
embarrassing for her.
"Well, let’s examine you and see. I’ll
also have a few questions for you."
"Of course." Rose lay back, letting
the doctor complete his examination and answering his questions.
When the doctor was finished, Rose sat up,
pulling her skirt down over her legs. "What’s the diagnosis?" she
asked, looking at him, half-hopeful and half-fearful. What if she was wrong?
"Mrs. Calvert, you are most definitely
pregnant," the doctor told her, washing his hands and writing something on
a piece of paper. "Here are some instructions for you."
Rose smiled, pleased that she had been right,
that there was another baby on the way. "Thank you."
"You’re welcome, Mrs. Calvert. I will
need to see you back here in about a month. You can make the appointment with
my nurse."
Rose nodded, a wave of excitement going
through her. She couldn’t wait to tell Thomas.
*****
As Rose had hoped, Thomas was overjoyed to
know that she was having another baby. He coddled her, trying to get her to
rest, while he did her work for her, amusing Rose no end. Finally, Lora pointed
out that it was better if Rose did her own work and got enough exercise—too
much rest was unnecessary and even harmful for a woman going through a normal
pregnancy.
That night, Rose lay contentedly in Thomas’s
arms after making love. He had been especially careful and gentle with her,
knowing that she was pregnant, and Rose counted herself as lucky to have found
such a loving, caring man.
She snuggled closer against him as she fell
asleep, relishing his warm, loving presence.
*****
"Rose."
Rose turned, her eyes widening in
astonishment. "Jack! What are you doing here?" She looked around,
surprised to find that she was in her suite aboard the RMS Titanic.
"I thought it was time for a
visit." Jack lounged against the wall, his portfolio in his hand.
"Anyway, I have something to tell you."
"What is it?"
"Have a seat."
As Rose sank down onto the couch, Jack sat
beside her, pulling her into his arms. She laughed softly, delighted.
After they kissed for a couple of minutes,
Rose pulled back, looking him in the eyes. "What was it you had to tell
me?"
"It’s about the baby." He
gestured to her abdomen.
"What about it? It’s all right, isn’t
it?"
Jack laughed softly. "More than all
right. In fact, ‘it’ doesn’t describe the baby at all. It’s more like
‘they’."
"They?" Rose’s eyes widened.
"Oh, Jack…you mean…"
"You’re having twins, Rose. A boy and
a girl."
Rose’s hands flew to her stomach.
"Twins!"
"Yes. And our daughter’s spirit is in
the girl. She was too young to come here—but she’s going to have another
chance, being born to you and Thomas."
Rose looked up at him, stunned.
"Jacquelyn is going to be born to me again?"
"Yes."
"But…but, how?"
"I don’t know. That’s up to God. But
I do know that it’s true."
"Jacquelyn…I’ll have a second chance
to raise her, and love her, and watch her grow up…oh, Jack, this is the most
wonderful gift I have ever been given. Thank you!"
"Thank God, Rose, not me."
"Oh, I will…but you told me about it.
You let me know that this is happening." She threw her arms around him,
kissing him soundly.
When they parted, Jack moved away from her
a little. "It’s time for you to go back, Rose."
"Jack, no. Not yet."
"It’s almost morning. Your husband
will be worried if you don’t wake up."
Rose nodded sadly, acknowledging that he
was right. "I’ll miss you, Jack."
"I’ll miss you, too, Rose, but always
remember that I’m watching over you."
"I know." Rose hugged him. Then
she frowned. "I thought I wasn’t supposed to see you until the time was
right."
He laughed softly, a littler sheepishly.
"Well, this came up, and it kind of seemed necessary."
"You’re right. It was." Rose
kissed him one more time. "Will I see you again anytime soon?"
"I don’t know, Rose. But if we don’t
meet again soon, remember that I’ll be waiting for you at that clock when the
time is right."
Rose’s eyes softened. "I know. I love
you, Jack."
"And I love you, Rose."
*****
Rose opened her eyes to the early morning
light. Thomas was standing beside her, watching her with amusement.
"You must have been having a happy
dream, sleepyhead," he commented. "You’ve been smiling so
widely…"
Suddenly full of energy, Rose leaped out of
bed and pulled on her robe. Throwing her arms around Thomas, she told him,
"Yes. It was wonderful." She grinned unable to keep her secret.
Putting Thomas’s hand on her middle, she whispered, "We’re having
twins."
"Twins? How do you know?"
Rose smiled, knowing that she couldn’t tell
him about her conversation with Jack, but wanting to tell him anyway. "The
doctor said so. And, Thomas, I have it on good authority that it will be a boy
and a girl."
He laughed. "Good authority, hmm? That
was quite a dream. And do you have names for them, too?"
Rose stopped. She wanted to name the girl
after her first baby, but knew that it wouldn’t be right. "For the boy, I
do."
"And what is that?"
"Jack Taylor Calvert."
He frowned slightly. "Jack?"
"In honor of my first baby, Thomas, nothing
more. I leave the name of the girl to you."
"Well, then, if you’re honoring your
firstborn, they’ll both hold her name. The girl—if there is one—will be Lora
Jacquelyn Calvert."