“How are you feeling?” I asked her. “Besides excited-slash-nervous, I mean.”
She smiled. “I feel great, actually. I’m ready. Ready to have this little girl in my arms and ready to be not-pregnant anymore. I can’t wait to meet her.”
“Awww,” Brooklyn and I cooed. The feeling was mutual.
“And how was St. Barts?” Brooklyn asked, turning to me. “I want all the details. Especially the sexy ones.”
Her baby bump was more noticeable now, and like Tori, she seemed to constantly, reflexively touch her stomach.
“It was love at first sight,” I sighed, the memories coming back full force. “So pretty, and so relaxing—way less of a party vibe than our Bahamas trip. And the beaches areincredible. White sand, clear water, and we had the most amazing weather. Did you know they have wild iguanas just crawling around everywhere?”
“That is so cool,” Tori said. “Did you take advantage of the touristy stuff? Snorkeling?”
“Yep,” I said. “And we went windsurfing almost every day. And the food!”
“Maybe Luka and I should plan a trip there before the baby comes,” Brooklyn mused. “I heard there are nude beaches. Did you two check any of those out?” She winked at me.
“Um, and our private villa was the best,” I said, anxious to change the subject. “Here, I have tons of pictures saved on my phone. You can see for yourselves. Look at that infinity pool.”
As they oohed and ahhed, the waiter returned with our food. Just as we started to dig in, Brooklyn’s phone buzzed in her purse.
“I’m so sorry, let me just check that real quick,” she said. “I’ve been waiting to hear back from the caterers for Tor’s baby shower.”
Jumping on the opportunity to get their minds on something besides my personal life, I finished chewing a dreamy truffle and beef dumpling and said, “Speaking of, we should probably talk logistics for the party, yes?”
With that, the conversation completely moved away from me. There was plenty to discuss—who was doing what, where it would be, who was invited.
It seemed almost as involved as planning a wedding.
We spent the rest of the lunch focusing on making a list of all the things we needed to do, dividing responsibilities between myself and Brooklyn, and picking a theme.
“Something cute,” Tori said. “Colorful. And not just pink everywhere. Are there any more tofu and mushroom?”
I passed her the requested dumplings, took out my phone, and began browsing Pinterest for ideas.
“Winnie the Pooh?” I suggested.
Tori wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “I feel like we should avoid anything involving ‘pooh’ for as long as we can.”
We all laughed.
“How about a woodland theme?” I suggested as I continued scrolling. “With animals.”
“That’s cute,” Tori said. “I like that direction.”
“I love that,” Brooklyn agreed. “And I’ll bet one of the botanical gardens has a pretty tea room type space we can rent, with lots of plants and greenery. It will be adorable.”
“Oooh, look at these cute fox face cupcakes!” I said, showing them my screen. “And these porcupine cheese logs.”
Brooklyn was writing everything down. “I know exactly the right bakery to call,” she said. “We can get the decorations on Etsy. Maybe lean into theFantastic Mr. Foxvibes?”
“Yes!” Tori’s eyes were sparkling. “Just don’t go too crazy—I’d love something small and intimate, maybe a dozen or so guests.”
“Not me,” Brooklyn said. “When it’s my turn, I want the biggest, loudest, most Instagram-worthy baby shower ever. Piles of confetti and flowers and balloons. Hint, hint.”
I laughed. “We can make that work. One baby shower at a time, though.”
She and Tori exchanged a look, and then smiled at me with a conspiratorial gleam in their eyes. My stomach sank a little.
