Page 4 of Home Is Where the Witch Is
Maggie twirled, her dusky rose colored dress billowing out around her. “And how doIlook?” she asked her mother pointedly.
“Like an angel,” Rose volleyed back, happy to play the Compliments Game until the cows came home. She nodded at the simple but beautiful braids Maggie had one on either side of her head before sweeping them back into a single ponytail. “I especially like your hair,” she added. “Maybe next time you could do mine for me?”
“Sure,” Maggie chirped, happy to have been asked. Rosie beamed, pleased to have hit upon one of the things that marked her as a good mama. Some days it was a little hit’n miss, what with Maggie’s hormones taking a bigger role in how she acted at any given moment. Rosie didn’t miss it. She remembered her own mood swings well enough. She tried to walk the delicate line between being understanding and having to show Maggie that hormones and mood swings didn’t give you a free pass in life.
Gathering up their things, the girls got into Rosie’s little blue Ford Focus and made their way down The Ridge into town. As ever, the Hayes Sugar and Syrup mill sat sentinel on the corner of the highway. It was such an imposing building, and in its current state of disrepair Rosie thought it was a miracle no one had petitioned the parish council to have it torn down. She supposed it might have had local historical significance. She’d have put money on a lot of the old timers in Mosswood having worked there or perhaps their parents.
They passed the vet clinic. Veronica, the vet, would be at the baby shower and Rosie made a mental note to check in on her and her boyfriend, Joey. She didn’t see them often—the occasional bump-in at the waterfront market or maybe at Granny’s—but Joey was Declan’s familiar. They were bound to each other in that strange way Carol-Ann had also been bound to Rosie’s bloodline.
Mosswood was just as pretty as a picture as they cruised through the now-familiar streets, up past the new Hand of God Southern Baptist Church onto The Crescent. It was where the most influential and affluent citizens of Mosswood resided—Tammy and Myles among them. Rosie was thrilled to already see there were a decent number of cars in the tidy driveway of the white colonial-style house her friends lived in together. Looked like they were right on time.
“Sorry in advance for all the baby-themed games,” Rosie smiled, cutting the engine and throwing open her car door. She wriggled slowly to the edge of her seat, gripping the steering wheel with her right hand and the top of the open car door frame with the other. Bit by bit, she managed to maneuver herself out onto the sidewalk.
“It’ll be fun,” Maggie insisted, scooting around the side of the car like a nimble little mouse to help her mother. Rosie wasn’t sure Maggie knew exactly what she’d let herself in for, but Rosie chose to leave it there.
The house was an explosion of frosted pink and pale yellow, one of Rosie’s favorite color combos. With all the white siding and fresh green shrubbery that typically adorned Tammy’s place, the effect was fresh, summery baby perfection. A sudden chorus of laughter from inside the house made her smile, signaling that the party was already in the swing of things.
They didn’t bother to knock anymore, so they let themselves in through the huge front door and went straight through to the kitchen. Maggie carried the salad in a move oddly reminiscent of Matthew with the salad the night before, setting it on the counter with her eyes so wide Rosie thought she could have knocked them off with stalks.
“This,” she declared, sounding equal parts scared and impressed as she referred to the decorations, “is insane.”
She wasn’t wrong. Tammy’s whole house was like the inside of an infant supply store. There were storks and giant pacifiers, and teddy bears and mountains of gifted diaper boxes. A table nearby was groaning under the weight of presents for both Tammy's and Rosie’s babies, and Rosie took a deep breath. She’d never seen so much fancy wrapping and pretty bows in all her days and given the way Tammy felt about Christmas, that was surely saying something.
“Here they are!” Tammy cooed, putting down the jug of pink lemonade she was pouring when she finally spied the two of them in the kitchen. With one last look at each other, they both prepared to enter the fray.
“Ididn’t getdilated enough until I was already seven hours in!” Sophia, a lady Tammy knew from Bible Study, was saying. The whole group had already played a few games and had some nibbles, and now it seemed like they had gotten down to the business of swapping birth war-stories. “The midwife had to come in eventually with some kinda big metal crochet hook and?—”
“And I bet that sure was just what you needed,” Rosie finished for her, hoping to spare Maggie the rest of what was sure to be a gruesome tale. The woman’s gaze slipped to Maggie, who looked a little green about the gills, and nodded emphatically. Pressing her lips together in understanding, the lady politely excused herself to use the rest room.
And not a moment before time, Rosie thought. She hadn’t been particularly looking forward to hearing the rest of that story, either!
“Well, I just can’t wait for these kiddos to be here already!” Tammy sighed happily, rubbing her hands gently over her rounded belly. “I can’t wait for cuddles, and kisses, and little noises?—”
“—and big noises, and diaper changes, and two-am feedings,” Penny Field grinned at Tammy knowingly. Penny was the local midwife; an experienced mom with seven kids of her own. She was a great mom, so her teasing was all in good fun. Rosie gave her a small smile before nodding at Tammy.
“Don’t you worry now,” she assured her friend. “All of that comes with its sweet moments and memories too. Cherish every single second!”
Tammy’s eyes sparkled as she smiled gratefully at Rosie for heading off more war-stories. “Oh, I intend to!”
“And what about you, Rosie?” asked Maude Merriweather. The plump, elderly woman owned the Beep ’n' Sleep out on the highway and had become a friend over the years. “You lookin’ forward to the whole experience as well?”
“Can’t wait,” Rosie said honestly, before a little cheek crept into her expression. “Mostly ‘cause that means I’ll be able to see my feet and be able to eat salami again.”
“Hear, hear!” Tammy agreed.
“Now y’all,” Sophia began with a coy smile. “It’s time for our next game. A little bit of pin the bow on the baby!”
“What?” Maggie asked, throwing a concerned look at her mom.
Rosie smiled. “It’s like pin the tail on the donkey,” she explained. “People wear a blindfold and take turns pinning a bow on a board. Whether it goes on the boy baby or the girl baby is supposed to be an indication of the baby’s sex.”
“Oooh,” Maggie said, warming to the idea. “Maybe this way we will find out what we’re actually having!”
“Maybe,” Rosie agreed, through privately she didn’t want Maggie to get her hopes up. This kid she was carrying was as sly as Houdini.
It was decided they’d have a guess at the sex of Tammy’s baby first, seeing as she was their graceful hostess. They each took turns putting on the blindfold and pinning their bow to the board. Tammy giggled as she spun around slowly a couple of times, Rosie’s hand holding hers for support as she approached the board with a bow. Rosie held her breath as her friend reached out with her free hand, exploring the wall in front of her, before she stuck the bow to the poster and then immediately took off her blindfold.
“It’s a girl!” Tammy beamed with delight, sending up a cheer from the partygoers.
