Chapter Fifty-Four

Jen

January 2^nd

 

A week in the Bahamas later, I was a little tanner, a little more in love, and my belly had popped—not in an obviously-pregnant way. An I-gained-holiday-pounds way.

Waking up with the pooch kinda freaked me out for a minute, until I put my hand on it and it was firm, not squishy fat. Same morning the morning sickness finally showed up.

Not keeping down anything but plain crackers and water ‘til noon was not ideal on a honeymoon, but Dylan had been as sweet and attentive as always, holding my hair back during that first ill-fated breakfast. We might’ve done a little more island exploring with those hours, but oh well—the point of a honeymoon wasn’t the sex or the vacation.

It was bonding time as husband and wife.

Now we were returning to his apartment, I had a bet to win.

Resist the lure of his body while writing and picking our temporary lease until Mom’s house came available was solely my final decision.

Even if he was on tour and didn’t get to see that house before I picked it.

Yeah, he was that confident about his charms, but I wasn’t going into a wager this big without rules, no sir.

But that was tomorrow, or next week.

A car took us to Beth and Jake’s for our vehicles. The driver dropped us off at the gate, then Dylan keyed in the code. Yet again, he insisted on carrying both suitcases.

Feeling less hearty after a week of morning nausea, I let him. Though at least my body was on Eastern Standard Time, making L.A. daylight less treacherous.

The studio door opened above the garage. “Hey!” Beth appeared and started down the stairs. “Welcome home.”

I’d unlocked the CR-V and opened the back passenger door. Dylan would’ve tossed the luggage in his truck bed, but I didn’t want them sliding and banging about.

She reached ground level and came over to hug me. “So, where’d you go?”

“Bahamas,” he replied.

“Nice. Quiet and warm. I have everything you left behind on Christmas by the door.”

Right. My overnight bag, bridal shoes, the envelopes from the guests…

I started for the front house with her. The lights were still up.

She opened the door. Since it opened straight into a view of the great room, I saw it’d been turned back into a living room and kitchen, though the garland was still on the mantel.

Beth picked up the basket of cards. “I asked everyone on the invitation to donate to the literary charity in lieu of gifts like you requested, but I bet there are still some checks or gift cards in here. People have a hard time not gifting at weddings for some reason.”

“At least we don’t have three toasters to return.”

She laughed. “Did that happen?”

“Not to me, but to a college friend. I got two extra blenders.”

“We didn’t tell our guests it was a wedding, so that helped us. I fit your shoes into your bag.”

“Thanks, that helps.” I slung the strap over my shoulder and held my hand out for the basket. Dylan hadn’t come inside with us for some reason.

“So how was the first week of being married?” she asked at a lower volume.

“Morning sickness and this.” I lifted the hem of my sweater to expose my yoga pants.

Her eyes lit up. “Oh, the cutest bump! Don’t freak out if the size of it comes and goes. It’s normal early on.”

“Yeah, I woke up on New Year’s Eve and here it was. I’ll be happy when it’s actually clear I’m pregnant and not just fat after the holidays.”

She nodded sympathetically. “At least with winter, everyone’s bundled up.”

“True. Well, we better see what state the apartment’s in. His housekeeper is supposed to have brought in the mail and picked up groceries to get us through the weekend.”

“Oh, here.” She pulled her phone out and tapped some buttons.

Mine buzzed in my purse to indicate a text. “That’s the info for Ingrid. She helped Jacob get this property. If you want to find a house to rent fast and discreetly—”

“Thanks.”

“And you can tell her what you want better than Dylan can.”

I chuckled. “We do have different needs in a house, especially now.” I moved toward the exit. “Family still in town?”

“They fly out Sunday, well, Vivian on Saturday night, but it’ll be Sunday for her. We’ve had a great time, especially the girls.” We stepped outside and she closed the door, then we walked back to my Honda. “My husband might’ve kidnapped yours.”

Dylan’s truck was still here, but not him. I put stuff in the CR-V, then screwed up my face in thought. “The farmhouse? They would’ve had to pass us for the basement.”

“I’ll text Jacob. It’s the only way I find him on a property this big.”

“Except when he doesn’t take his phone?”

She eye-rolled. “Yeah.”

We walked toward the white house that still had all its decorations.

Sure enough, we heard guitar music as soon as Beth opened the door. She glanced back at me. “Wanna stay for dinner?”

I shrugged while throwing up my hands. What are you gonna do? “Why not?”

We watched Jake play a line, then Dylan give notes, and turned for the kitchen.

The music went from one guitar to two, and before we knew it, the living room was full of a band writing a new song based upon one little string of notes.

Because this was our family.