Page 56 of The Homewrecker's Fate

“Sorry, I stumbled on a stupid…” I paused to look down. “What the hell is that?” I shook it off because it didn’t matter. “I really hope it wasn’t petrified dog shit,” I huffed. Mel had been forgotten until I heard her laughter come through the phone again.

“Did you just say you tripped over petrified dog shit?”

“Um, I think so.” It was my turn to laugh. “That would have been just my luck. Can you imagine falling in dog shit and suddenly you go into labor, but no one wants to touch you to help because… You know… You’re covered in dog shit.”

“Oh boy! You’re at the anxious stage where every scenario you come across is like some doomsday movie playing out in your mind for how the last moments of your pregnancy will go.”

“That’s a thing?” I asked her.

“Afraid so.”

“I thought I was one crack shy of blowing my nut and moving to Paris, Texas, too,” I insisted.

Mel chortled on the other end of the line. “Oh my God! Aviva, it hurts to laugh. Stop it! Do you realize you just said you were about to blow your nut?”

“I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore. I need to go home and do some laundry before Janine gets here.”

“Wait!” Mel yelled into the phone, instantly sobering. “You packed a picnic basket for Brax and now you’re going home to do laundry?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Avi, it sounds like you’re nesting.”

“Whatever. I love you, Mel, but I need to get back home so I can get everything done and play Sherlock Holmes and figure out which ‘special lady’ has my boyfriend’s attention the one time I set out to deliver a wonderful lunch to him at work.”

“Okay, if I hear from Brax, I’ll let him know he needs to keep an eye out for contractions soon.”

I didn’t know what the hell contractions had to do with me figuring out who Braxton was spending his time with, but I was on my way home the minute I hung up my cell.

When I pulled up in front of my mother’s house, it was to see Braxton picking some woman up in his arms and carrying her to the porch. He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard my vehicle approaching and I could have sworn I read his lips when he said, “Oh, shit! Busted!”

“You better put me down on the porch and go grab my bags then!”

I recognized the woman’s voice. That was my mother. What in the world was going on?

“Mom?” I called out after throwing my car in park and hopping out with the basket in one hand and my cell phone in the other.

“Aviva,” she replied.

“What are you doing?”

“My boy here took me shopping today.”

“Your boy?”

“Yes, that’s what I said. If you two would get the lead out, I could officially call him my son.” My mother rolled her eyes at me. “I don’t know what you’re waiting on. The two of you couldn’t be more perfect for one another.”

I turned to Braxton then who was holding a bunch of bags with a guilty look on his face. “Mel called a minute ago.”

“Ah,” I said while I waited for him to elaborate.

“I took off to help your mom. Jane wanted to surprise you with…” He waggled the bags around. “Stuff.”

“Some surprise!” My mom huffed before she yelled for Amelia, who wasn’t there because Brax had probably given her the day off since they planned to shop together.

“She’s not here, Mom.”

“Damn.” She turned back to Brax. “Hurry up and dump that stuff in the living room. I’m going to need to ride you into the house.” Mom waggled her brows and giggled like a schoolgirl.

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