Woven Wishes (Whispered Wishes Book 4) Read Online Free Page A

scream took over her. Ava swiftly followed.
    “Hol, I know what you’re thinking,” she said, grabbing her arm, “but everything Tessa does is for Sophie’s best int—”
    “I was pregnant,” Holly blurted out, interrupting Ava mid-sentence. She didn’t know why she’d never bothered to tell either of her sisters before. How were they supposed to support her fully if they never knew? “Seven weeks along ... until today.”
    Ava wrapped her arms around her. “Honey, I’m so sorry. When you said the in vitro didn’t work, I didn’t realize you meant— Why didn’t you tell me?”
    “I don’t know,” she whispered, wiping away a fresh round of tears. “We were waiting ... and now we have nothing left to wait for. We have nothing at all.”
    “You know that’s not true. You have a lot, and it doesn’t mean you won’t—”
    Holly put her hand up and shook her head to stop Ava. She knew her sister meant well, but she couldn’t bear to hear the speech again. There’s still time ... it will happen ... don’t give up ... you’re still young. She’d already heard it all. None of it was true.
    Ava sighed and gave Holly another hug. “I’m here for you. For whatever you need, Holly. Anything. Are you feeling okay? Any physical pain?”
    “Thank you. I’m fine, just a little cramping.” Holly sat down on the couch, curled in her sister’s arms. “I know I probably surprised you a little there with my announcement, but I kind of don’t really want to talk about it right now.”
    “Okay, hun,” Ava said, straightening up.
     
    ~~~
     
     “So what’s going on these days at work?”
    Holly laughed, appreciating how Ava was trying to make meaningless conversation to take her mind off her bigger issues.
    “Not much. You know how fifth graders can be. The girls look around wondering which boys have a crush on them, while the boys are counting down the minutes until class lets out. Meanwhile, I’m trying to teach them how to solve for “x” so they can all be productive members of society one day. Only eighty-two school days until summer vacation ... not that I’m counting or anything.”
    At first, Holly and Ben had tried to plan their pregnancy around her work schedule. They’d hoped she would be due at the end of June and able to take the summer off to be with the baby so as not to miss any work. After a while, they realized their plans were not quite so easy to plan after all. Eventually, Holly cared less about her due date and more about just getting pregnant.
    Ava laughed. Holly knew her sister was counting down the days, too—only she was counting the number of days her kids would still be in school. She’d never admit it, but she always seemed thankful for the start of school again in the fall. Holly knew having all three kids home full time for the summer was exhausting. Even so, she’d trade with her big sis any day.
    “Any plans for the summer?” Ava asked.
    “Ben’s boss offered him a couple of weeks at his cabin in the mountains in August. We said no at first because we thought I’d be too far along to travel … well, I guess we can go now that there’s no ba—” Holly stopped herself, unable to finish.
    “You should go, Holly!” Ava ordered. Ryan stirred on the other couch, and Ava lowered her voice. “You and Ben deserve a vacation. It sounds perfect. I would love to get away with Max. We haven’t been away alone together in years.”
    “Seriously, with all of the flying Max does, why don’t you just go with him? He could fly you to some exotic island—just the two of you. Or to London or Paris! You know how much you’ve always wanted to go to Paris and see all those art museums you love so much.”
    “We used to talk about taking a weekend trip to Paris all the time back when Max and I were first dating. That was so long ago. Everything is different now. It’s not like I can just get up and go.”
    “Why not? Ava, you know I’ll come watch the kids for