Page 114 of Sharing Shane

“I know.” Wyatt’s voice softened in sympathy. “She loves you, too, you know.”

Shane’s head came up. “She told you that?”

“No,” Wyatt said, and the little flare of hope died. “But I can see it. And you would, too, if you weren’t so busy holding back.”

“Making sure we’re both on the same page isn’t holding back,” Shane told him, fighting to keep the resentment out of his voice. Easy for you to say, he wanted to shout. You already have everything you want.

He took a deep breath and consciously loosened his muscles. “Like I said, I’m just taking it slow.”

“Okay. But you have a chance to have everything you ever wanted right in front of you. Don’t go looking for reasons not to have it, okay?”

“I’m not,” Shane insisted, and to ward off any further argument, reached for his phone. “What do you want to eat?”

Sixteen

“Veronica, wait up.”

Veronica shouldered her bag and turned, smiling at the woman hurrying down the narrow hallway as fast as her hugely pregnant belly would let her. “How can you be this pregnant and have this much energy? Aren’t you supposed to be tired all the time?”

“The benefits of poly.” Cheerful and pretty with glowing olive skin and dark, laughing eyes, Lucy grinned and patted her burgeoning belly. “Jack does all the cooking, and Glory took over the cleaning since I’m not supposed to be around chemicals. All I have to do is sit with my feet up and gestate.”

“Well, you look like you’re doing a stellar job.” Veronica slowed her pace to match Lucy’s waddling gait as they headed for the exit. “When’s the big day?”

“Two weeks.” Lucy pushed through the glass door of the community center where the weekly More to Love support group meetings were held. “If I don’t go into labor naturally by then, my doctor wants to induce me.”

Veronica followed her out into the parking lot, squinting in the bright sunlight. “How do you feel about that?”

“Stabby,” Lucy said bluntly. “I have a birth plan, and it does not include Pitocin. God, it’s hot.”

“I know.” Veronica slipped her sunglasses out of her bag and onto her face. “Michigan in July, mosquitos and all. What can you do?”

“Find air conditioning whenever possible,” Lucy replied. “Speaking of which, are you headed somewhere, or do you have time for a cup of coffee?”

“I’ve got time.” Veronica pointed to the diner across the street. “How do you feel about diner coffee?”

Lucy’s eyes rounded with delight. “A diner sounds perfect. I bet they have milkshakes.”

“I believe they do,” Veronica said with a laugh. “Let’s go get you one, mama.”

They settled in at a table by the window, Veronica with a cup of coffee and Lucy with a peanut butter and cherry milkshake. Veronica watched with amusement as Lucy sucked half of it down in one go.

“Do you always combine peanut butter and cherries, or is this a pregnancy thing?” Veronica wanted to know.

“I don’t even like ice cream,” Lucy told her with an eye roll. “Jack loves it though, and clearly, so does his spawn.”

“Do you know what you’re having?”

Lucy sat back, her belly bumping the edge of the table as she shifted in her seat. “We wanted to be surprised, so no.”

“That’s fun,” Veronica commented.

“I think so, and so do Jack and Glory, but it confuses people. You know, we spent an entire weekend creating a baby registry so people would know what we needed, but apparently, they have to know the kid’s genital configuration before they can buy anything.”

Veronica choked on her coffee as Lucy shook her head, her curly black hair bouncing in its ponytail. “And when you tell them you don’t know, they get hostile. When I told my sister we weren’t going to find out the baby’s sex? She called me an idiot and hung up on me.”

Veronica started laughing. “You’re kidding.”

“Nope. Jack’s mom called me the other day from Target, in a total panic because she wanted to buy some infant pajamas with giraffes on them, but the giraffes were pink and she was worried they’d be too girly for a boy.” Lucy slurped up more of her milkshake. “Like they’ll repossess his penis if he wears pink giraffes.”

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