Hopes face did not read as anxious or scared, and her next words sent his heart leaping. HIs mouth dropped open and he grasped her hands in delight. 'You are pregnant!' Samuel's cheeks hurt and he thought his heart would burst with joy.

'Oh my darling' he pulled her to him, but then stepped back holding her hands gently 'and all else is well? you are well?' he asked, an obvious concern in his voice. His own mother had survived childbirth 3 times, but his brother Roscoe had not been so lucky, his mother had died on the mothering bed, and it haunted his step-father. He wasn't sure how he could cope with losing Hope.

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