Free Elm Creek Quilts [12] The Winding Ways Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini Page B

told herself firmly. There was no reason to fear that she couldn’t get an additional six months of work in before the baby came, just as she had planned.
    As if she had spoken aloud, the nurse said, “You should also keep in mind that babies rarely arrive precisely on their due dates.”
    “This baby has explicit instructions,” said Matt solemnly. From the look the nurse gave him as she left them alone in the examination room, Sarah knew she didn’t understand his sense of humor.
    Waiting for the doctor, Sarah lay back and rested her hands on her abdomen while Matt perused the brochures about prenatal classes. “We should take this one, Childbirth Preparation 101,” he said. “This one sounds good, too: Yoga for the Expectant Mother.”
    “I don’t think you’re qualified for that one, honey.”
    “I meant for you—” Matt broke off as the door opened and the doctor entered. Sarah sat up and tugged the hospital gown over her knees, sizing up Dr. Jamison as they exchanged greetings. She was of medium height, with a solid build and very short gray hair, although Sarah guessed she was only in her mid-fifties. While she didn’t seem particularly maternal, she possessed an aura of reassuring competence that only years of experience could give.
    Dr. Jamison read over the nurse’s notes, asked a few questions about Sarah’s general health, and proceeded through the checkup with brisk efficiency. Matt stayed in the room the entire time, offering Sarah reassuring glances whenever she looked his way.
    Dr. Jamison pressed down on her abdomen, feeling for the height of her uterus. “When did you say you last had your period?”
    “June.”
    “Not May? Are you sure?”
    “Pretty sure.” Summer months were so packed full of camp activities that she sometimes forgot to mark her calendar.
    “The height of your uterus suggests that you’re closer to fourteen weeks into your pregnancy. The level of hormones in your urine specimen will help confirm that, but I’ll schedule an ultrasound just to be sure.”
    “I’m sure I just entered my second trimester,” said Sarah, although she was feeling less sure with each passing moment. She lay on the table with her feet in the stirrups, running through the dates in her mind. The date of conception should have been…but on the other hand, there was that one night…They had been trying for a baby for so long that she couldn’t remember the dates properly, especially not while lying there in that awkward position, being poked and prodded in places she preferred to keep to herself.
    Just as Sarah thought the examination was nearing its end, Dr. Jamison said, “Why don’t we see if we can detect the heartbeat on the fetal Doppler?”
    “Oh, yes, please,” said Sarah eagerly.
    “Doppler,” mused Matt. “I thought that was for the weather forecast.”
    “Same principle, different device.” Dr. Jamison squirted a cool gel on Sarah’s bare abdomen and pressed a handheld monitor against her skin. A low, steady thudding sounded over the speaker. “That’s your heartbeat,” she said, sliding the monitor lower, listening, moving the monitor again. Suddenly the speaker emitted a soft, rapid pulsing noise, and the doctor smiled. “And that’s your baby.”
    Tears sprang into Sarah’s eyes. “Is it all right? Is it supposed to sound like that?”
    “I hear a good, strong, steady heartbeat,” the doctor assured her. “At one hundred fifty beats per minute, it’s just right for fourteen weeks.”
    “But I’m only twelve weeks pregnant,” Sarah reminded her, but stopped short at the doctor’s sudden, thoughtful frown. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
    Matt reached over and took Sarah’s hand as the doctor slid the monitor around to the other side of her abdomen, pursing her lips slightly, frown lines deepening. Sarah shivered, but not from the cold. She knew something was wrong, but she dared not speak, not while the doctor was listening so intently. She wanted