“Oh my gosh,” Jada said, shaking her head. “Do you have any decency?”
“Nope,” I said, with a pop on the p. “So, anyway, I’m getting married now and you’re having a baby. Let’s talk baby shower.”
She sat her water bottle down. “I don’t want to hurt your feelings or Heather’s or Mandi’s, but I really don’t want one. I’ve talked to Cane about it. We have everything we could ever want and if I need something, I can go buy it. If you want to buy little things or something to celebrate, that’s fine, but I don’t want to register or anything like that. It feels...weird. I know what it feels like to go to those things and be on a budget and now...” She smiled almost sadly. “Now I have money. A lot of it. And I don’t want anyone buying me these expensive things. If they want to send something, they can send it because they saw it and thought we’d like it, if that makes sense.”
I loved her heart. Jada was sweet and considerate and this was exactly the kind of thing I expected out of her, although I was sad I wouldn’t get to throw her a shower.
“I get it. I really do.”
“You can even have them make a donation to a women’s shelter. What about the one Mom volunteered at?”
“That’s a good idea,” I said, shaking my head. “I’ll put something together.” I took a drink of my water. “How are you feeling?”
Her face lit up, making her glow brighter. She was the prettiest pregnant woman I’d ever seen. A part of me hated that I’d never getto see myself all swollen and blimpish, my ankles as big as elephants, like Jada was at the moment.
Stop it. You have more than you could ever wish for.
“I’m really good. I feel great now that the morning sickness has kind of stopped. But I’m ready to see my toes again. I complained about it last night and Cane volunteered to paint my toenails. I told him no way,” she giggled.
“Yeah, let’s go get a pedicure and keep Cane out of it. That’s weird.”
“Right?” she laughed. “Okay, I gotta go. I have a doctor’s appointment this afternoon and you have to go to work, right?”
I nodded and stood, pulling her hand and helping her get to her feet. “Just a few weeks left, sister.”
“Just a few weeks left.”
Kari
“Today’s been one-of-a-kind,”Connor said, pouring himself a cup of coffee.
“It sure has and I’m ready to go home. I’m just exhausted.” I dug through my pocket for some Tylenol. My entire body ached and I wanted to feel good when I got home to Max to celebrate. I opened the pocket of the lining and pulled out a sticky note.
You are my happy.
I giggled and shoved it back inside, forgetting about the pain reliever.
“Want some coffee?” Connor asked, stirring a red stick around in his cup. The corner of his mouth was upturned, making him look young and mischievous. He was incredibly handsome.
I turned up my nose. “That stuff smells rancid.”
He took a big gulp and smiled. “It’s fine by me.”
“If you turn up in the ER, I’ll let them know what happened,” I laughed. I reached for a bottle of water and the light caught the diamond.
“Ah, what’s this?” Connor asked, nodding to my hand. “Someone had an eventful weekend, it appears.”
I blushed, feeling almost giddy. “I did. Max proposed.”
He grinned back, watching me with interest. “I’m assuming you said yes.”
“I did. I finally did.”
“Finally?”
“He’s been asking for months,” I laughed.
“What changed your mind?” He took a sip of his coffee and waited patiently. He was a bit of an asshole, I’d seen that firsthand, but that was usually when someone wasn’t listening or was making a decision that was uninformed. Most times he was kind and he was very smart—we just got along. We clicked like we’d known each other forever. I couldn’t explain it.
