“Alana, are you pregnant?” I blurted out, the wine having loosened my tongue.
Marc moved his hand away quickly, but Alana shot him a dirty look and sat up straight. “What are you talking about? Honestly, I should be offended by that question.”
I gave her a look. We sisters could speak in code and still understand each other. At least she and I could.
She rolled her eyes and shot Marc another dirty look who sheepishly mouthed, I’m sorry.
I chuckled to myself. That guy had it bad for my sister. Always did. Kind of what I wanted.
Foster popped into my head, and I pushed it away. He obviously had his hands full with two little girls. My sister had her hands full with Jilly, never mind two, which circled my mind right back to-Alana. Pregnant. Oh my God.
“Okay, fine. But shhh. It’s too early to say anything.” Alana revealed.
I quickly put my wine down on the table while kicking my feet. I jumped up and clapped. “Ahh! You’re pregnant! I’m going to be an auntie again!” I grabbed her hands and pulled her to a stand, wrapping her in a tight hug. “I’m so excited!”
“Thanks, sis. Me too.”
“And me!” Marc echoed back with laughter in his voice.
“Jilly will be such an amazing big sister. I can’t wait. I hope you get a little girl so they can be best friends like me and you.”
Alana snorted again, and I tapped her arm playfully. “More like we’re supposed to be pregnant together. Remember that?”
I rolled my eyes jokingly. “I know, I know I’m working on it, okay?”
“Maybe I’ll slip a little note in Livvie’s backpack.” Alana mused.
“You wouldn’t!”
Marc laughed. “I don’t want to know what you two are up to.”
But later that night, as I tried to fall asleep, I wondered how long it would take him to call.
Or if he would at all.
The next coupleof days I spent booked with clients from Christmas photo shoots to holiday gatherings. Everyone wanted their hair done.
As I closed up shop on Friday evening, thankful for the early night, a knock sounded on the salon door. I groaned under my breath. I hated turning someone away. Couldn’t they see the sign?
But when I opened the door, it wasn’t a client standing there.
It was Foster McKay. And he had a huge bouquet of wildflowers in his hands. “Surprise.” He grinned and I couldn’t help bursting into laughter.
“Foster? What are you doing here?” I said through giggles. “Come in. It’s freezing out there.” I waved him in and closed the door behind him, blocking out the frigid air.
“I wanted to come by and say thank you. You helped Livvie out and I appreciate it a lot.” Foster handed me the bunch and I immediately smelled them. “The girls and I picked them from our indoor flowering pots. We like to garden all year and keep some inside during the colder months.”
He grows flowers inside with his girls? Swoon.
“Thank you. They smell so good.”
“Of course. Livvie picked them especially for you.”
Double swoon. This guy is killing me.
“Aw she’s so sweet.”
“Thank you. She is. I also wanted to ask you if you could do her hair for our Christmas family photos? Usually, I’d do mybest at pigtails, but now that Livvie is older, she doesn’t care for them. Says they are for babies.” Foster chuckled.
