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"I suppose," hesitated Tyler, "that if God wants me to get married again, then I'd do it-- though it's hard to imagine that there's anyone else I could ever love besides my Jane." Tyler looked about the room, and noticed a bundle of Christmas wrapping paper sitting in the corner. "Have you done all your shopping, yet?" he asked. "If you want, we could stop by the mall. I know you can't drive, and it's probably hard to surprise Abby when she has to be the one to drop you off and pick you up everywhere."

"You don't have to do that," said Jake, surprised by Tyler's invitation.

"I haven't anything else better to do," shrugged Tyler. "Besides," he quickly added, "I feel like I owe you, somehow."

"Why?" asked Jake.

"I don't know yet," replied Tyler, "but, I have a feeling that I'm going back to college."

While Abby climbed out of her red pickup truck later that day, she noticed Tyler's car pulling up to the yellow house. As it stopped behind her, she noticed Jake, sitting on the passenger side, saying something to Tyler.

"Jake?" she breathed, incredulously.

After Tyler waved to Abby, Jake got out of the vehicle and the ex-boyfriend drove away. With a big smile, Jake walked to his wife and kissed her on the forehead.

"I see you did a lot of shopping," he observed, noting the stack of packages she was trying to balance in her arms. "I did a little shopping, myself," he grinned, keeping a large bag hidden behind him so Abby couldn't see.

"You... and Tyler... went shopping?" she gasped in shock. "Why?"

"Because he invited me," replied Jake, rather matter-of-factly. "I like him. It's a pity you two ever broke up."

As he said this, Jake quickly ducked a playful swat from Abby, who was still trying to hold on to her packages. Jake laughed, his eyes twinkling with excitement. By the secretive manner he was keeping his parcel behind his back, Abby became intrigued.

"Is it for me?" she asked, her eyes flashing with curiosity.

"Maybe," was all Jake would answer. By the eager grin on his face, Abby could see that it was. "What about you?" he asked, peering curiously at the boxes in her arms and the large bags hanging from her wrists. "Is there anything for me in all that?"

"After your 'maybe,'" she laughed, "do you really expect me to tell you?"

Then Jake glanced at her belly.

"What am I thinking!" he suddenly cried in self-reproach. Abby's concerned husband pulled the parcels from her arms and shook his head. "You're pregnant, Abby! You shouldn't be carrying all this stuff!"

"It wasn't heavy," she argued, unlocking the front door.

"I don't care," Jake insisted with a frown, "I don't want you taking any chances like that. I mean it, Abby."

"If you say so," she conceded, kicking off her shoes onto the living room floor. "Would you put all that on my bed, Jake? I'll wrap it, tonight."

"Save me some wrapping paper," he requested, taking the parcels to her room. "Wow!" he shouted a few moments later. "Thanks, Abby! I always wanted one of these!" He quickly appeared from the bedroom, deep in laughter, though his ribs hurt for it.

Abby put her hands on her hips in reproof, but she could plainly see that he had only been teasing.

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