Pit Stop: Baby! (Crescent Cove 4)

When I awakened, I’d found a text from Gage.

Just checking on the mom-to-be. Hope you’re resting.

I’d rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help smiling a little too. Probably dopily. And I’d even answered him without much delay, mentioning I was fine and craving a sandwich.

I can go pick it up. Do you like corned beef, ham, turkey? Oh, there’s nitrates. Aren’t those bad for babies? I saw something on the news. Maybe a veggie sandwich is best.

I’d given him a mental middle finger at that one and said no, thanks. Why go for deli meat when I could have my old faithful peanut butter?

At this point, I wasn’t far from scraping the bottom of the jar. I might have to invest in a bulk order of the stuff.

My baby would probably have a nut-shaped head.

Full from my sandwich—okay, two sandwiches—I’d dozed again without incident. It was a damn miracle. Probably even my dazed brain couldn’t marshal enough forces to manage to sleepwalk while in the throes of such life-changing news.

So, now I was pressing my luck at my sister’s place. We were meeting with her friends in a little while to discuss all things baby shower, so what better time to tell Kel that I’d also imbibed the Crescent Cove baby juice?

It probably actually wasn’t a good time. These preparations should be all about her, not me. But I supposed I needed some comfort from someone who understood what it was like to be invaded without an invitation.

Or else attention-grabbing little sister syndrome was kicking in once again. Though I wouldn’t have minded skipping center stage when it came to this.

I played with the donkey-shaped salt and pepper shakers on Kelsey and Dare’s kitchen table.

Rather appropriate, because I felt like an ass.

“Do you want some decaf tea? Oh, no, of course not.” Kelsey thunked herself in the forehead with the heel of her hand. “I forget not everyone is on a restricted diet. I won’t be either soon. Soon as this guy takes flight,” she patted her enormous belly, “I’ll probably drown myself in caffeine.”

“I thought you were iffy on coffee to begin with?”

“Macy taught me her Jedi ways. Or is it Yoda? I never can get that straight.” She waved her hand. “Anyway, her coffee is bomb. Have you tried it?”

I blinked at my sister. “Excuse me, did you just say current lingo?”

Kelsey grinned and lifted the whistling teapot off the stove and poured the tea into a fussy china cup. “The kids say the craziest things. Best part is trying to vex Dare with the newest stuff I’ve learned. He usually adopts whatever it is within a few days.”

Now I knew I was hearing things. “Surly Dare cares about being current?”

“Dare isn’t surly. He just seems that way sometimes. No, he doesn’t care about being current. But somehow it seems to sneak into his vocabulary. Probably the married thing. Next thing you know, I’ll be talking about spark plugs.” She looked over her shoulder and wrinkled her freckled nose. “No, probably not.”

I ran my fingertip over the donkey’s tail. “Do you ever wonder what you missed out on?”

“Huh?”

“Like, you know, in life. You only ever dated that loser Tommy and then you came here, and in no time, you were shackled to Dare and squeezing out a kid. You never got to really party.”

“Me? Party?” Kelsey laughed. “My idea of a party is crocheting baby hats while watching The Great British Baking Show. When I get really wild, Sage and Ally come over to make fun of the show and we drink hot cocoa.”

“You’re pretty tight with them now, huh?”

Kelsey carried her tea cup to the table. “Yeah, I am. It’s awesome. I always wanted girlfriends. The kind who just get you and make you laugh and you can say anything to. You know what I mean?”

I started to answer. I even had a good reply in my head.

Yes. That’s sweet. I’m glad that you have that in your life now. You deserve it.

Instead, I began blubbering.

Kelsey frowned and paused with her tea cup halfway to her mouth. “Ry? What are you—is that—oh my God, you’re crying. I didn’t think you could.”