Book: Second Chance Pass
Quotes of Book: Second Chance Pass
He pulled off the gloves and ran a couple of fingers along Mel's cheek, then over the baby's head. She turned her watering eyes up to his face. "You're getting pretty good at this," she said in a weak whisper. "I am, huh. So are you. Mel, she's gorgeous. Positively gorgeous. She's going to look like you." He leaned over the baby to put his lips against hers. He moved over her mouth lightly. "God, I love you." "She's smaller than David," Mel whispered. "She's a good size," Jack said, as if he knew. "God, she's gorgeous." "Jack?" "Yeah, baby?" "You do this to me one more time without my permission, you're a dead man." "Sure, honey. I'll be careful…" "And all those people out there?" "Yeah?" "You get out there and tell them, if they mess up my clean house, they're going to pay. Pay, do you hear me?" He grinned at her. "I hear you, Mel." * book-quoteHey, Jack," John said. "Why don't you go ahead. I'm right here. Go ahead, bring her out." "No way, man," he said, backing away. "Come on-you know you want to. Might as well. You did the hard part. You put up with this for nine months." "Hey!" Mel objected. "Excuse me?" But Jack got a funny, dreamy look on his face and said, "Yeah. Let me bring her out. Let me. Since you're right here…" All these months of insisting this wasn't what he wanted and suddenly it was all he wanted. He'd pulled the last one right out of her body and he felt as if he'd gone to heaven, it was such a trip. He gloved up real fast. "There won't be anyone for Mel's back," he said. "I'll take her back, and I'll coach you," John offered. "But you're okay, you know what to do. Go for it, man. It's your baby." "Okay," he said, getting himself settled on his knees, right at the foot of the bed, and waited through a few more contractions, and then she delivered the baby's head. Without even being told, he checked around the neck for the cord. John left Mel for a second to look over his shoulder to be sure. Then Jack supported the baby's head with a large hand and John told Mel to give them a little push. The baby came out slick and easy, mucky and screaming. Jack held another life he'd produced in his hands. No one should be this lucky, he thought. No man on earth should have all this. John book-quoteWhen they got to the house, he lifted her out of the truck into his arms and smacked her head on the door frame in the process. "Ow!" "Sorry," he said. "You've done this to me before!" she accused. "I know. I've always been real smooth," he said, remembering a time long ago, before they were married, when he was carrying her home in much this same manner, though not pregnant, and while his mind was on sex, he damn near gave her a concussion, which sort of precluded any kind of sex. His mind was definitely not on sex right now. Jack book-quoteBy afternoon Jack found her down on her hands and knees scouring the bathroom floor around the toilet and tub. "For the love of God," he said. "What?" "What the hell are you doing? If you want the bathroom cleaned, why don't you just tell me? I know how to clean a goddamn bathroom." "It wasn't all that dirty, but since I'm in the cleaning mood, I thought I'd whip it into shape." "David is ready for his nap. Why don't you join him." "I don't feel like a nap. I'm going to vacuum the area rugs." "No, you're not," he said. "I'll do that if it has to be done right now." "Okay," Mel said, smiling. "I've been tricked." "Only by yourself, darling," she said, whirling away to get the Pledge and Windex. After that was done-and there was a lot of wood and glass and stainless steel to occupy her-she was sweeping off the porch and back steps. Not long after that, she was caught dragging the cradle into the master bedroom. "Melinda!" he shouted, startling her and making her jump. "Jack! Don't do that!" "Let go of that thing!" He brushed her out of the way and grabbed the cradle. "Where do you want it?" "Right there," she said. He put it beside the bed. "No," she said. "Over there, kind of out of the way." He put it there. "No," she said. "Against that wall-we'll put it where we need it when she comes." He moved it again. "Thank you," she said. The phone rang. "I'll get it," he said. He picked up a pencil and put it in her face. "If you lift anything heavier than this, I'm going to beat you." Then he turned and left the room. He has cabin fever, she thought. Spending too much time at home with me, making sure I don't pick up anything heavier than a pencil. He should get out more, and out of my hair. When Jack was done with the phone, she was on her knees in front of the hearth, brushing out the barely used fireplace. "Aw, Jesus Christ," he said in frustration. "Can that not wait until at least frickin' winter?" She sat back on her heels. "You are really getting on my last nerve. Don't you have somewhere you can go?" "No, but we do. Go shower and get beautiful. Paul and Vanessa are back and after they view the prom couple, they're going to the bar for dinner. We'll all meet there, look at some pictures." "Great," she said. "I'm in the mood for a beer." "Whatever you want, Melinda," he said tiredly. "Just stop this frickin' cleaning." "You know I'm not going to be able to do much of this after the baby comes, so it's good to have it all done. And the way I like it." "You've always been good at cleaning. Why couldn't you just cook?" he asked. "You don't cook anything." "You cook." She smiled. "How many cooks does one house need?" "Just go shower. You have fireplace ash on your nose." "Pain in the ass," she said to him, getting clumsily to her feet. "Ditto," he said. An book-quote
