“You are such a brat.”
“What was that about high school?” Jess asked Emery.
Em didn’t smile. “We can invite Ivy to our lady gatherings. I’m being selfish.”
“Let’s just see what happens,” Jess offered. “Let things take their natural course.”
Emery relaxed and we stood in comfortable silence, enjoying the way the sun glittered over the water, the waves lapped at the shore, the laughter of kids as they ran circles around their parents on the soft, hot sand.
Gulls cried overhead while the sounds of arcade games played somewhere in the distance.
“I’ve been here almost ten years,” I said. “And I’ve never been happier than I am right now.”
Bailey slid her arm around my waist and gave it a squeeze. “It feels like things are falling into place.”
“Yeah,” Jess said. “About that …”
We turned to her expectantly.
Tears shone in her eyes. Happy tears. “I’m pregnant.”
I was sure our squeals of delight scared the absolute crap out of anyone in our vicinity, but we didn’t care. We crowded Jess, taking turns to hug her and pepper her with questions.
“Yes, of course, Cooper knows.” She laughed at Bailey’s query.
“How, why, when?” I blurted.
“Well, we’ve been trying for a while, and I was starting to worry that I couldn’t. But then it happened.” She looked relieved. “Coop’s hovering because he didn’t know that once a woman hits thirty-five, it’s considered a mature pregnancy, and there are more tests involved.”
“Are you too hot?” Emery asked. “Maybe we should get in the shade.”
“I’m fine,” Jess assured her. “Please, don’t you guys start hovering too.”
“How far along are you?”
“Twenty weeks. We wanted to keep it quiet. Miscarriages are common in those early weeks.”
As we strode toward Main Street, we planned our future as aunts.
“Everything is falling into place.” Bailey sighed in contentment. “All we need now is for Emery to meet a guy.”
“Yes, I’m sure I’ll snag a fine eligible bachelor with my witty repartee and finely honed seduction skills.”
I snorted at Em’s sarcasm.
Bailey rolled her eyes. “Now, what kind of attitude is that?”
“An honest one.” Her gaze turned melancholy. “Let’s focus our wishes on something that might happen. Say …” She turned to me. “You and Michael getting engaged.”
I grinned not only at her using me to take the heat off her but at the thought of being Michael’s
fiancée.
“One day.” I was confident of that.
* * *
That evening I let myself into the apartment with takeout in hand. Michael had called to let me know he was finishing up at the station and he’d agreed to Chinese food. He was a health nut, but I’d persuaded him that one treat a month would not kill him.