She sputters a laugh. “True.” Her focus changes to something else, and she searches my kitchen with her gaze. “Maybe I should try eating something.”
“There are some cookies in the jar over there.” I indicate with my nose. She is quick to lift the lid, but I have to stop her. “Not that one. Those are Jet’s treats.”
Her jaw goes slack before she grins with her soft pink lips. “I thought you can’t stand that dog. Someone mentioned it at the wedding, and then you pointed out to me why there are holes all over the garden when you gave me the grand tour earlier.” I do my best to avoid her gaze. “Ooh, somebody has a soft spot,” Rosie sings and slides the jar to the side. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
I roll a shoulder back. “It’s more to throw over the fence and get him out of my yard kind of thing. He sometimes wanders here.”
“Sure. Keep telling yourself that.” She pops the lid on the cookie jar and then her smile fades to affection as she picks up a cookie. “Pink wafers.”
Scratching my stubble, I try to downplay this. “Yeah, you mentioned the other week about having a craving for them.”
Lines form on her forehead. “For like a millisecond, I mentioned.” She holds up the cookie with a half-smile before taking a big bite. “Thank you. It’s exactly what I need.” Her mouth is full, but I got the gist.
“Just say what you need, and I’ll get it at the grocery store.”
She brushes a crumb from her mouth. “I can handle the grocery store on my own.”
“I know. Just thought with your morning sickness and smells and town gossip that maybe you would want to hide out a little.”
“I think I’ll be okay the next few days. Gracie is living in Everhope now.” My second cousin. “Plus, I’ll head down the street to see Esme and Hailey.” Esme is married to Keats, and she’s also another neighbor on Everhope Road.
“They won’t ask much if I say not to. Then I’m another week gone and almost to the twelve-week mark by the time the town realizes I’m really back, and then give it another few weeks before they discover the baby news. We can handle it all in waves.”
My lips quirk out, and I tilt my head to the side from her logic, and it makes sense. “We can give that a try. It’s just, well, my mom requires a different plan.”
“Ah shoot, you’re right. We need an entire wall to work out a map and project scope of how to handle her,” she teases me. “I’m well aware that Nancy Oaks will be the biggest obstacle of them all. But I don’t want to think about that now. Do you mind if I start to unpack?”
“Sure. I’ll help with the heavy stuff.” I gesture lazily behind me to the living room. “I’m going to take a wild guess that the tea set, incense, pillows, and basket of yoga supplies will find a place in the living room.”
She seems to enjoy the fact that I’m right and grimaces to herself. “It would be kind of odd to bring out the old photos of us, so yes. We will be sticking to simple objects.”
Gently, I shake my head at her humor before we head upstairs.
The moment she’s in the room, she hops onto the bed then feels the duvet with the palm of her hand.
“Comfy.”
Standing in the doorway, I watch her, realizing she’s under my roof but in the wrong bed. I swallow and inhale a long breath because I can’t think that.
“I wouldn’t know. I have a bedroom not so far from here.” And fuck me, I just did what I said I couldn’t think about. Worse is that I had a flirty tone.
Rosie wiggles her finger side to side at me. “I’ll be staying here in this bed for a while.” Her jaw sets to the side when she realizes thata whilecan be perceived as a temporary time.
Neither of us say anything, and we begin to search the room frantically for something to occupy us. Clearing my throat, I step forward and pick up her laptop bag to set on the dresser.
“Just make yourself at home. Do what you want with the room, the kitchen, living room, hell, wherever.”
“Of course.” She grabs a quilt, the one her aunts made for her when she was in college, and throws it onto the bed. “The, uh, other spare rooms. I mean, it’s extra space, and the baby will need to take up residence somewhere. It’s just that it’s a little permanent on the future front. Maybe we can address that issue when it’s time to figure out the living situation and which room to decorate as a nursery, and hopefully a nursery is needed in only one house… mine.” She avoids my eyes.
It's a fair point, even if there is an obvious answer for me. “Don’t worry yourself with it right now. Just take it easy.”
She offers me an appreciative look. “That sounds good.” Rosie kicks her sandals off and crawls back until her head lands on the mound of pillows. “Maybe I’ll take a little power nap before conquering all of this.”
“Good idea. I’ll help you later.”
“Thanks.”
I let her be but return a few minutes later when I realize I forgot to give her towels. I sneak in to set them in the bathroom but pause when I exit. I take a moment to take in the view of Rosie sleeping with one leg bent and her hands by her head. Maybe pregnancy is making her more beautiful, but she has a glow.
