Just go in, sit down and tell him.

Meg repeated those words all the way into town. Luke helped her down from their buckboard and steadied her as she got her feet under her. "I'll see you in a bit for lunch?"

"Sure thing." She said with a smile. Luke kissed her quickly then headed straight for the barbershop. Meghan turned towards the bank and took a deep breath. "It's got to be today, or I'll never do it." She whispered.

She entered the bank and smiled at Ted. "Mornin' Mrs. Saunders can I help you?"

"Yes, is Walter in yet?"

The man nodded. "He just got here, go right on in."

"Thanks." She gave him a quick wave then approached the office door and knocked apprehensively.

"Come in!" The banker called out and smiled broadly when he saw Meg standing in his doorway. The young woman gave him a weak smile and closed the door behind her. "Is something wrong Meghan?"

She shook her head quickly and sat down in the chair in front of his desk. "Well, actually I'm not sure."

Walter sat down and furrowed his eyebrows in thought. "Is something wrong with your account in the bank or the trust fund?"

"Oh no, no." She replied sincerely then looked down at her lap. "Everything is just fine with my money, it's just that . . .
ummm . . ."

"You're giving me your notice." He stated softly.

Her head snapped up and she nodded. "I'm so sorry Walter, it's just that now the weather is getting bad, and it's getting more and more difficult to get into town and-"

He held up a hand and smiled. "It's alright Meghan. I understand. You did tell me you could only work until December and here we are. My how the time has flown."

She nodded. "Yes, it has hasn't it."

"And I can't very well in good conscience have you coming into town from Willow Manor in your condition, your safety and that of your child comes first."

"Thank you for being so understanding. I will continue to work until you find a replacement of course."

Walter nodded silently. She was a good worker. The patrons who came into the hotel and restaurant liked her, and he was going to miss her. He told her so, then shook her hand and walked her out of the bank and into the hotel.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Did you get everything you wanted to for Christmas?" Luke asked Meg as he glanced over her features.

"I bought some decorations, ordered the rest, and I browsed around for some gifts, but I wanted to talk to you before I bought anything." Meg lifted her glass of milk and smiled at Marta as she placed their orders on the table.

Luke glanced up from his plate to his wife. "Meg is something wrong? You've been awfully quiet."

She shook her head quickly. "No nothing's wrong. I umm . . . It's just that I gave in my notice to Walter this morning."

Luke's eyebrows rose slightly. "And you're sorry about it?"

"No, well not really. I liked this job Luke. I liked the people I worked with and it was fun. I'm going to miss it."

"You can always go back to it after the baby's born."

Meghan smiled broadly. "Thank you but no. I'd rather spend time with our child, besides I'll have to get ready for school, too."

Luke returned her grin. "So, what do you have in mind for gifts?"

"Well, I was thinking that maybe we could get Ian to build Daddy and Serena a cradle and dresser set. He's almost done with our nursery and he'd give us a much better deal than we could find in any catalog."

"Sounds good to me, but it is short notice so let's find one we can order just in case." Luke replied. "What else?"

"I saw a very nice saddle in Cromwell's, and I noticed Ian's is worn."

Luke nodded. "A very practical gift." And not too personal, he thought happily. "What about Corey?"

Meg bit her lip. "Well, I was thinking that we could give her a trip to Omaha. There's a theater there and we could give her a night on the town."

"That's very thoughtful of you Meghan. And me?"

"Well I thought I'd get you - Hey!" She giggled softly. "I'm not saying."

"Well I did try." He replied, he then saw Meg's hand fall to her abdomen. "Is junior moving around again?"

She smiled up at him and moved her chair closer to his. "Yep. Right here."

Luke let her put his hand on her belly as he did every time she felt the baby move. But he still hadn't felt anything. Suddenly he felt movement and looked up at her with wide eyes. "What was that?"

"You felt it?" Luke nodded and she giggled. "That, Sweetheart was our child."

"Oh." He said reverently. "I don't know how I'm gonna go back to work now. I want to keep touching your belly."

She moved his hand to the other side of the mound. "It's moving over here now." Meg smiled at the wonder in her husband's eyes.

They were beginning to get stared at and Luke reluctantly drew his hand away. "So what are our Christmas plans?"

Meg shrugged. "Do you think we should have dinner at our house? We could invite Daddy and Serena, and Corey and Dean to join us."

"You're finally taking Corey's relationship in stride."

"I've come to realize it's none of my business, but if he breaks her heart I want you to kill him."

Luke chuckled softly. "I'd do it without a second thought."