Telling him of her father's passing had been painful. It hadn't been that long ago. She even told him of how when she first had grown ill in the mornings her father just smiled wide and looked down at her belly, telling her that she was with child. It had been embarrassing when he asked [i]which[/i] time she thought had done the trick. "He didn't let me work around the house as much." Her laugh warbled a bit and her eyes were watery as she spoke. Edward had been so excited at the idea that his daughter would soon have a child. It was a shame that he'd never get to meet the child growing within her. He'd been there when the little one started kicking, his large had had been splayed across her expanding belly as he told her of how when her mother had been pregnant he used to talk to her and Samuel. 
Keziah told him about Rose Anne and how much she'd learned over the past seven months. "She shall be a year old soon. It doesn't seem like too long ago that she was first brought to me." There was much more she had to tell him, like how much she missed him and even how worried she was that she could have been a widow again. 

Holding him at arm's length, she studied her husband quietly. He seemed tired, more tired than she remembered him being. "Gabriel…go fetch a pail of water and a scrap of cloth." The boy nodded, used to Keziah's demands by now. The boy was a sweet one, always eager to do what was asked of him.
When the boy brought back the water and rag, Keziah simply took Rose Anne from William. "Wash up, then I'm going to look at your injuries." There was something that was nagging at her. If he was free to come home after all of these months, why hadn't he come up the main road rather than through the forest. 

She was happy that he was home, and happy that he seemed excited about her growing belly. For months she had worried that he would be upset or angry, fearful even. She remembered the way he had looked at Elizabeth while she had been pregnant. Her father had assured her that seeing a strange pregnant woman was one thing but seeing your pregnant wife was another. Gabriel ran to fetch another pail for Keziah to sit on. She thanked the boy with an affectionate pat on the shoulder. As her husband was washing up, she looked at him, carefully holding Rose Anne in a way that wouldn't harm the unborn baby. She sent Gabriel on his way, allowing him to take two of their chickens and a basket full of potatoes and other foods. It was the least she could do for him and his family. They had been so kind to her these past months and weekly his mother would come to check on her and help with Rose Anne. 

"So husband…tell me of your travels. And how you managed to get [i]those[/i] kinds of injuries." Keziah said once the boy was gone. Rose Anne fussed until she was set down and she began waddling around. For a moment, Keziah focused on her with a small smile. "She's missed you. For the first few days after you were gone she cried. No matter how much I held her or my father held her she still cried." The little girl waddled around, gipping tightly onto William's pants before holding her arms up to him.