Page 57 of When Love Is Unexpected

"She's running a little late," I say. "She should be here any minute."

Before I can shut the door behind them, Laila appears. The first thing I notice is her perfectly straight hair—which is probably why she was running late. She's wearing a white, off-the-shoulder cashmere sweater with a long, delicate necklace, matching earrings, and jeans.

"Come in," I say, giving her a hug. "You take my breath away."

"Sorry I'm late," she begins. "This will be the one and only time I ever straighten my hair. It literally took me hours, so I hope you all appreciate it."

"Your hair looks pretty," Holly says, "and long."

"I think Katherine is the only one willing to invest the time to achieve that polished look on a regular basis," says Loren. "I don't know how she does it."

"I love your curls," says Aaron, taking a strand of Loren's hair and pulling it behind her ear.

"Okay, you two," says Laila. "Knock it off. You're already pregnant."

Loren laughs out loud, and her cheeks instantly turn a rosy pink.

Slipping into my best iron chef persona, I recite the dinner menu out loud.

"Listen up, everyone," I begin. "Tonight, I have mixed olive crostini from the deli down the street as an appetizer. As a main entree, we have spicy lemon chicken kabobs, saffron risotto, and a strawberry salad with poppy seed dressing, all of which were prepared by yours truly. For dessert, I picked up some mini molten cakes from the bakery located next to the deli. To quench your thirst, we have sparkling water, diet soda, lemonade, coffee, and tea."

"Can I have lemonade, Mommy?" asks Holly.

"Yes," says Loren. "You can have lemonade with your dinner."

"Tell us all about your life in Greece," begins Aaron as soon as we sit down to eat.

Loren visited Athens with her parents a couple of years ago, searching for closure after losing her fiancé, Justin. What she found was that she missed and was deeply in love with Aaron.

"Athens is where I fell in love," Loren says, reaching for Aaron's hand. He takes her hand and lifts it to his lips, planting a soft kiss on her knuckles.

We spend the next hour swapping stories about our time there.

I glance at Laila every so often. She's hanging on my every word, and I can tell she's waiting for me to mention Helga. But that's not going to happen.

The mood is light and cheerful, and the food is delicious.

"This chicken is perfect," says Loren, "and you made this?"

"I did," I say. "My best friend taught me how to cook."

"And who would that be?" asks Laila.

"Google," I say, winking at her.

"Aren't you guys dying to know the gender of your baby?" I ask. "Because even I want to know."

"We thought about it for the first few weeks," says Aaron. "But the more we talked about it, the more we realized we wanted to wait."

"What about you, Holly?" I ask.

"I want to be surprised, too," she says. "It's gonna be like opening a good gift at Christmas."

Aaron laughs, "Yes, that's exactly how it'll be." The admiration and love reflected in his eyes when he looks at Loren is tangible.

"We've decided to have Holly in the room with us when the baby's born," says Loren.

"I think that's a great idea," says Laila. "It'll be an unforgettable bonding experience for everyone, especially for Holly and her sibling."

---