“I hope so,” Sadie said. “Roman wants kids and so do I, but we’re also really happy just being us.”
Rachel closed her eyes. Happy just being us…
She wasn’t even happy right now just being her. How could she be happy as an us?
“That’s the key, I think,” Molly said from Rachel’s left. “The being happy when it’s just the two of you thing.”
“Then Kent and I are screwed; we hit our stride as a couple once we had kids.” April winked at Rachel. “But everyone’s different.”
Rachel turned her head and opened her eyes to see her best friend lying beside her, also studying the clouds.
“Don’t you want to meet someone?” Sadie asked, directing her query to Molly.
“Of course I do. I’m just waiting for perfection in a male specimen,” Molly said.
“In other words, she’ll be waiting for-eva,” Rachel said, refusing to acknowledge the cloud that had an uncanny resemblance to the Blue Wiggle…with that damn Bob Ross extraneous cloud.
“Maybe you can fix me up with one of your male divorcees, Sadie?” Rachel asked, closing her eyes and letting the wind whisper over her skin instead of searching the sky. “Someone with a really awful ex-wife, so he’ll fully appreciate how nice I am to him.”
“You don’t want my divorcees,” Sadie hummed lightly after she spoke. “These days they’re all being charged with one crime or another. You know, since I started working in criminal law, too.”
Rachel cracked an eyelid, watching Sadie as she held baby Luke close to her chest and made the low rolling noise in her throat.
Sadie was so going to let her fiancé knock her up. And soon, by the look of it.
“I’m glad my practice is moving away from family law and into the realm of defense.” Sadie pressed a kiss to Luke’s temple. “Do you know how much easier it is to defend a serial arsonist than an unfaithful husband who will not give up dibs on the VHS player his brother bought in 1987 and left in the attic of the home where he and his ex lived?”
“I literally have no idea, so I’ll have to take you on your word,” Rachel said, crossing her eyes when Luke looked at her. She stayed that way until he laughed.
“Does the VHS guy need me to find him a match?” Molly asked, suddenly serious. “I think I may have a viewer who would be perfect for him.”
“Molly.” Rachel tsked. “No.”
“I’m going to side with Rachel on this one,” Sadie added. “Just say no to men who cannot see the ridiculousness of clinging to a VHS player that stopped working in 2002.”
“Rachel!” an all-too-familiar voice called from behind her.
She knew that voice. Gah. That voice, though only a sound, made a fifty-pound weight settle in her gut.
Rachel closed her eyes. “Oh my gawd, it’s Evelyn.”
“I freaking love this woman,” Molly said, her words giddy. “Two times in two days, it’s my lucky weekend.”
Then Molly could just adopt her as her mother-in-law.
Rachel sat up, adjusting her white cotton button-down shirt so the buttons lined up straight in the middle.
“It’s Rachel,” Evelyn said, like she hadn’t been stalking her to find the Sunday morning mommy group.
“Evelyn,” Rachel said, feigning happiness and pretty sure she was doing a really crappy job of it.
Rachel stood, looking to Sadie, Molly, and April for the reassuring Evelyn’s-out-of-control looks she’d hoped to receive.
None of the women provided such reassurance. Instead, they grinned like they were at a matinee at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts and the show just got started and it was a comedy and they were just oh-so-happy to be there.
Evelyn wrapped Rachel into one of her Estee-Lauder-scented hugs, and Rachel let her. Because, despite everything, Evelyn did give good hugs.
“I stopped by the house to chat about lake plans,” Evelyn said into Rachel’s hair, just above her ears. “You aren’t there.”
