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“I’m going to kiss her belly.”
“What!” Selina and Leia screech in unison before turning their attention toward Bristol.
“You’ve never let anyone touch your belly before, and now you’re going to let Love kiss it?” Selina mutters, putting her hands on her hips as she narrows her eyes at Bristol.
“Yeah. What she said,” Leia chimes in, causing me to giggle softly.
“She loves me more. Deal with it.” Love sticks her tongue out at the three of us before dropping to her knees and planting a kiss in the center of Bristol’s belly and whispering something softly to it.
“What can I say? She promised me manicotti.” Bristol shrugs her shoulders before pulling Love to her feet and pulling her in for a one-armed hug.
“You know I would’ve made it for you anyway, right?”
“Of course, but I can never say no to this one.” Bristol plants a wet kiss on Love’s forehead before whispering something into her ear.
“Really?” Love shouts before sprinting toward Selina’s dance studio a few doors down.
“You stole my thunder,” Selina grumbles at Bristol before turning toward me. “I have a beginner pointe class starting in about ten minutes and was planning on inviting Love to join—until someone spoiled my surprise.”
“Thank you so much! Love has been a trooper about having to make this move, but she was the most upset about having to stop taking her dance classes.”
“What are friends for?” Bristol smiles brightly before threading her arm through mine and leading me toward the yoga studio. “I need to make sure I remain her favorite.”
“Hey, just because you’re giving her a baby cousin doesn’t make you her favorite!” Leia shouts after us as Selina rolls her eyes.
“Yes, it does, because someone refused to give her a baby brother. A baby cousin is the next best thing,” Bristol comments over her shoulder as I pull us to a stop.
“Did you think about what happens if you have a girl instead of a boy?” I question, wondering the same thing.
Bristol has always wanted a little boy, claiming she has no idea what to do with a baby girl, but she has no say in the matter. The father’s swimmers have everything to do with determining the sex, and if I had to hazard a guess, he probably has more girl swimmers than boy ones. I have no idea if it’s true or not, but I swear I heard someone say that military spouses tend to have more girls than boys. Since the baby’s father is a Marine, I’m making an educated guess. Call it wishful thinking, but when I think of Bristol being a mom, the little one is always a girl.
“Not a darn thing. Love gets a baby to snuggle, and I get free babysitting. It’s a win-win for both of us.”
“She has a point. Looks like we’re going to need to up our game,” Selina replies, pulling Leia in for a one-armed hug before she strolls toward her dance studio.
“I won’t give up my favorite auntie position without a fight!” Bristol shouts.
“Neither of us expected you to,” Leia says as she slides her arm through mine, and we all head toward the door of Nurture Space.
A small bell chimes as Bristol pulls the door open, and we step inside. I gasp in surprise at the breathtaking view in front of me. The entire back wall of the studio iscovered in windows, natural light reaching almost every corner of the room.
“The view is perfect, isn’t it?” Leia bumps her shoulder against mine.
I nod my head, unable to find the words to describe how breathtaking the view is of the same hills I saw coming into town in the background, framing the tiny town perfectly. There are several houses sprinkled in the distance, and I notice a small creek with a wooden bridge leading to another part of town.
“I knew the moment I stepped foot into this place that it was perfect.” Bristol smiles as she grips my hand, pulling me further into the studio. “Let me show you around. I promise you’ll love it here. Sorry it’s so hot. I need to call someone to check the air conditioner.”
“I really should get over to Selina’s studio and check on Love.” I try to pull out of her grasp, but Bristol tightens her grip.
“Love is perfectly fine. Selina wouldn’t have invited her if it was any trouble. I’m sure she’s probably made a few friends by now.”
I pull my bottom lip between my teeth, wondering if leaving Love there is a good idea. Selina and I don’t know each other very well. Yeah, we are friends, but it’s not her job to watch over my daughter. She has a class to teach. The last thing she needs is an excited fourteen-year-old girl asking her a million questions while she’s trying to teach. Love has a good head on her shoulders and is muchmore mature than her age, but when she gets overly excited, she sometimes forgets her manners.
“Are you sure? I just want to pop?—”
“Stop worrying.” Leia cuts me off, placing her hands on my shoulders and giving them a small squeeze. “Love is fine. It will only take a few minutes to show you around the studio, and then Bristol can go over your schedule with you.”
“But…” My eyebrows pull down as all the things that could go wrong filter through my head. My hand itches to grab the worn deck of tarot cards from my bag to see what could happen if I stayed here.
