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Chapter Twenty-Four
Steppingout of the bathroom after his shower the next morning, Leo expected to see Lucy still sleeping. When his alarm had gone off, he had reluctantly let her body go so that he could get ready for the day. At that time, she had only groaned a little bit and pulled the overs around her more tightly.
But now she was awake and looking intently at her phone. As he entered the room, her eyes went to him, and she dropped the phone.
“What do I have going on today?” he asked because she knew, and it would take her mind off not going into the office that morning.
Sitting up, she watched as he pulled on pants and a shirt while she listed off the meetings he had scheduled for the day. He didn’t know how he was going to keep track of everything with her not in the office to remind him.
“What are you going to do today?” He sat down beside her.
“TV, maybe a nap. Maby is coming in the morning, and Agatha in the afternoon, so babysitting is covered.” She sighed.
“They are worried about you and the babies. Do you want me to carry you downstairs?” He ran a finger over her cheek.
“No, I need to shower and change. Maby can carry me down,” she said with a straight face. In less than a week, the Lucy he knew had changed completely. No longer was she reserved and nervous. No longer could he call her an ice queen. She was outgoing and funny, and most of their conversations were specked with jokes and teasing.
“I would like to see that since you are the exact same size.”
“But I carry my weight in my thighs, and she carries hers in her head.” She laughed at her joke; she must have told it before. When he didn’t join in, she added, “Because she is smart, and I am not, Leo.”
“You are just as smart as she is,” he argued.
“She’s a college professor, Leo. She got the brains.”
“And you just told me everything on my calendar for the day, and you haven’t looked at it in forty-eight hours.” He tapped her nose.
“Not the same. Maby is getting her doctorate in children’s literature.”
“So, tell me. Who is Lucy Maud Montgomery?” He changed the subject, he had to show her she was smarter than her sister, not tell her.
“Really? Maby would flunk you. She wrote Anne of Green Gables.”
“Then who was Mabel named after?”
“Mabel Lucie Attwell was an illustrator of children’s books around the same time period, and near Beatrix Potter, for that matter. I always thought Mom named us, and Dad named Harper and Agatha.”
“And they are named for?” Leo asked with interest.
“Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Agatha Christie. Dad was a literature professor and Mom was a children’s literature professor,” she said. He had never heard her say a peep about her real parents.
“Where are they, and were they invited to the wedding?”
“Mom is in Chicago now, and Dad is still somewhere in South America. Sera calls Dad, she always does for our weddings. Jonas might tell his father about the wedding, who is married to our mom, Judith. Neither have come to any of the other weddings, not even Jonas and Buzz’s. So, I don’t expect them to come to mine.” She’d said a lot, and some he would have to question later.
“I’m sorry your parents aren’t going to be there,” he said, wishing everyone she wanted there was going to be present. Even if right now, he didn’t know when they were actually going to get married.
“Sera makes up for it. She is the best mom we could have asked for.” Lucy shrugged.
“She seems to be.” He kissed her lips and got up. “I have to get to work. Call if you want something or need anything.”
“I will.” She gave him a half grin that made him want to crawl back into bed and say, “screw work.” But he couldn’t, per doctor’s orders. Last night he had almost ignored that and had sex with her. Her body had been putty in his hands, but he had come to his senses and stopped touching her. Just like now, as he headed for the door, grabbing his suit jacket on the way out.
Being in the office was going to keep his mind off his fiancée and wanting her in bed at least for a few hours. Tonight, he would have to keep his hands to himself.
Backing out of the garage, he slammed on the breaks when he saw Lucy fully dressed and standing beside a Jeep, only to realize it was Mabel. She was wearing a navy sweatshirt that looked exactly like Lucy’s but with no writing on it and blue jeans. Oddly, she even had navy blue tennis shoes on, just like Lucy had worn the night she had brought Aubrey home. It was as if dressing alike was so ingrained in them that they couldn’t stop.
Getting out of the car, he called, “Morning, Mabel.”
