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She recalled Merit whispering, “Love you, baby,” to her belly. Where had that guy gone?
“And the great sex,” Honor teased.
“And that.” She squinched her eyes tight. “Wait—are you still at his parents’ house?”
“Yes, but I took a walk down by the stables while Asher’s helping with cleanup.”
“Okay.” She breathed a sigh of relief. Last thing she needed was someone in his family hearing Honor comment about the great sex she and Merit had had.
“What are you going to do?”
She was asking about Merit. Mae opened her eyes to stare at the ceiling. “I don’t know. I guess I’ll see what happens. My doctor appointment is on Tuesday morning, and I sent him the info yesterday, so I’ll give him a couple days and see how he is when I see him then.”
“Is this your first appointment?”
“Yeah. Did you and Asher go yet?”
“Ours is next week. Speaking of which, I’ve been meaning to ask if you got any tips for morning sickness? Roxanna’s oils help some, but I’m still starting to hate saltines.”
“There’s this Pink Stork tea that helps some. I can bring some by the bakery Tuesday after my appointment if you want to try it?”
“Pretty please and thank you.”
She smiled at the relief in her friend’s voice. They chatted a bit more before Honor had to go, and then Mae kept herself busy with household chores until Ian burst through the door about four in the afternoon. Cory’s parents assured her he’d been no trouble at all, and after they left, she faced him and raised her eyebrows.
“So, you had fun? Your swimming lessons come in handy?” He’d only had a few sessions, but it had gotten him far enough to swim across the pool without a life jacket.
“Yep! It was awesome, Mom.”
He hopped up on to one of the dining table chairs and went on and on about the tall, whirly slides, the inner-tube river, and a humongous bucket that dumped water everywhere each time a bell rang.
While he talked, she got dinner going by slipping a garlic and herb marinated pork tenderloin into the oven. The day that had started with so much promise only to be dragged down into gloom was brought back up by the excitement in her son’s voice. It made her heart happy to hear his joy.
“And you know what else? Elliott isn’t so bad.”
She paused mid-reach into the freezer for a bag of sweet corn, her pulse skipping at the mention of Cory’s baby brother. “He’s not?”
“No. He’s kinda cute and makes really funny faces sometimes. And Cory told me he likes him better now, too.”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that.” She kept her response vague, letting him steer the conversation.
He slid off the chair and came over by the counter. “Do you know if I’m going to have a brother or a sister?”
“Not yet, Scoob. I didn’t find out if you were a boy or a girl until the day you were born. It was like Christmas for me.”
His nose scrunched up in confusion. “But I was born in July.”
“I know, but what I mean is the surprise was fun. Like a Christmas present and a birthday present all in one.”
He got an awed look on his face, as if imagining how great that could be.
She poured the frozen corn into a small pot to heat on the stove, then set it aside as she grabbed a box of long grain wild rice to pair with the tenderloin. Casting him a sideways glance, she asked, “Do you want to find out if it’s a boy or a girl before it’s born?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe. When will the baby be born?”
“My due date is January twenty-third.”
“That’s not far after Christmas,” he said thoughtfully.
