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I return to the living room and drop them on the floor. “Come and practice your boxing skills on these.” I turn to my sister, who looks at me with amusement. “I promise the next time you guys come around I’ll have real toys.”
“Let’s go warm the pie and bring some plates,” she says. “That will keep them busy for a few minutes.”
I get the plates out in the kitchen and place them on the counter while Molly warms up the pie in the microwave.
“Where’s Peter?” Molly asks.
“At work. He won’t be back for a week or so.” Peter is a photographer, and he’s sometimes sent on weeklong assignments. “He’s in Alaska.”
“How fun for him,” Molly says.
“Yeah, it is,” I said, then remembered that I hadn’t told Molly about his crazy proposal. I giggle a little at the memory. “He proposed to me before he left on assignment.”
She stops what she’s doing. “Marriage?”
I nod. “Yeah, he wants to be there for me and the baby, and the only way he can do that is to marry me.”
“That’s crazy. Why would you marry someone if you’re not in love with them?” A thoughtful expression comes over her features. “But wait, Peter’s always been kind of half in love with you.”
“More of a crush, and I thought he had gotten over that,” I say. “Anyway, I said no, of course.”
“Of course,” Molly says as she slices up the pie and serves it onto four plates. “It’s so hot, or is it just me? Can we eat out on the porch?”
“Sure. I thought it was hormones making me feel so hot.”
I grab two plates, Molly gets the other two, and we head out. She tells the boys to follow us out as we pass the living room. We settle down on the two rocking chairs, and the boys sit on the steps. Molly cuts up Liam’s pie into smaller pieces, but James turns down the offer and says he’s a big boy and can cut up his own pie.
“This is nice,” I tell her as the chicken and vegetable flavors burst in my mouth. “Food tastes so good these days.”
Molly grins. “That’s why pregnant women become so fat. Everything tastes so good.”
“Thanks for bringing me lunch,” I tell her.
“You’re welcome,” she says and then turns to me. “I wanted to share some news too.”
“Oh,” I say, my stomach muscles tensing. I hope everything is okay on Molly’s home front. Despite the way I’d voiced my opinion that she and Jeff should separate if things are not well between them, I really don’t want them to. Before pregnancy, things were black and white to me, but now gray areas are forming. I’d rather they figured things out and found a way to make their marriage work. I look at James and Liam, and my heart squeezes. Children need both parents around.
Gratitude fills me that Alec disclosed to me that he was the father of my baby. He could have chosen not to, and I’d never have known.
“I’m going back to college,” Molly says softly.
I’m confused at first, and it takes a moment to switch from her and Jeff, which was what I was expecting her to tell me, to college. “Oh?”
“You know I used to dream of being a fashion designer?” she says.
I smile as a memory of Molly sewing all our doll clothes springs to mind. “You even used to have fashion shows with our dolls. That used to be so fun.”
She grins. “Yeah, and I still love making clothes for these rascals. I wish I had a daughter. Girls’ clothes are so much fun to design. Anyway, seeing you go after your dream the way you have, even sacrificing your body to have a chance at following your dream of being a writer, well … it’s inspired me.”
I reach out and take her hand. “That’s so cool, Molly.”
At college, she had wrestled with following her dream of studying fashion design. Precaution had prevailed, and she had opted to take a course where she was sure she would get a job. I hadn’t blamed her. Our parents had worked blue-collar jobs all their lives, and they had struggled to earn a living and educate us.
Molly wanted better for herself and her family, so she chose to get a degree in business administration. After college, she had worked for two years before settling down to be a stay-at-home mom.
“I’m so excited for you, Molly,” I cry. “Finally, you get to do what you’ve always wanted. When do you start?”
Molly takes a deep breath. “In two weeks’ time. I’ve lined up childcare for these two. That makes me feel guilty, but I have to do this. For them too.”
