Page 89 of The B!tch List

Come to think of it his stethoscope didn’t look real and how many ER doctors do house calls wearing scrubs and Crocs? Ultimately, I knew that Bronte had possibly tricked me twice in one day.

When I walked in and saw that Lily was there, talking to her mom, I felt a little better. I wouldn’t have to talk babies all night with Bronte and Ellie or avoid looking into Shaw’s eyes in case he realized I had grown the biggest of crushes on him. I stopped at the bar to get myself a drink and then made my way over to the cluster of tables and stools that had been pushed close to each other.

The usual crowd were there including, I was surprised to see, Jacob Crowne looking miserable nursing a bottle of beer. He was in his early thirties and so a little older than Ellie, Hunter and crowd. That, along with being a single dad meant that he didn’t really hang with us. To be fair he didn’t get out much at all unless Lily sat with his son JJ for him. Seeing as she was there, I wondered how he’d managed it. He didn’t look particularly happy that he had though. The fact that he kept looking at his watch made me think he was ready to make his own getaway.

“Hi Nancy,” Melinda said as I approached. “Good to see you again.”

“Hi Melinda. Where are the two guests of honors?” I looked around but couldn’t see either Bronte or Ellie.

“They’re in the bathroom making sure that they look okay.” Melinda rolled her eyes. “Seriously, who needs a special outfit to celebrate getting pregnant?”

“I’m guessing Ellie and Bronte do.”

Melinda nodded. “They went shopping together and both bought from the same collection.” She leaned closer to me. “Seriously they look like a younger version of the Lynn-Ann and Janice-Ann.”

I burst out laughing starting to feel glad that I’d made the effort to come out. “No way. They’re wearing the same outfit?”

“No. The same color and fabric pattern but different outfits. You’ll soon see.”

“Oh my god, they’re becoming a nightmare.” I held up my hand in apology. “Sorry I know that they’re your daughter and daughter in law, but I think this race to get pregnant and now being pregnant has sent them a little crazy.”

“Sweetheart, don’t apologize,” Melinda replied. “I’m with you one hundred percent. Ellie even bought one of those donut cushions with her tonight, just in case she had hemorrhoids.”

“She doesn’t though?”

“Nope. But like I said, just in case.”

As Melinda and I looked at each other in wonderment, I felt someone pull up a stool beside me. I turned to see Darcy who looked a little frazzled.

“You okay, Darc?” Melinda asked.

“Sure.” She took a huge drink of the wine that she was holding and then wiped her mouth. “I’m not sure I can stay okay for the next seven months though. Bronte is driving me crazy. This is not her first baby, yet you’d think she was pregnant with the next Messiah.”

Melinda held up her hand for a high-five. “Tell me about it. Ellie is so precious now that by the time the baby comes, I’m sure Hunter will have her in bubble wrap twenty-four hours a day.”

“Whatever made us think it would be lovely for them to be pregnant at the same time?” Darcy sighed and took another long slug of her drink.

I told them both I’d seem them later and made my way over to Lily who was now sitting alone and nursing what I thought was a glass of soda. She looked pretty miserable too, even though I knew she’d love the fact that she’d been allowed to join the party for once.

“Hey you,” I said, pulling her in for a side hug. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she sighed, flipping one of the beer mats.

“You don’t look it. What’s wrong?” I pushed her pink hair from her eyes and then flicked her long braid over her shoulder.

“Jennifer is thinking of leasing out Cake Heaven.” She stared up at me with a slight pout to her lips. “And she thinks the guy who is interested wants his daughters and wife to work there.”

“Which means you’d be surplus to requirements?”

“Yep. I love working there you know.” She looked over in the direction of Jacob who was now looking happier as he chatted to Jefferson and Henry. “JJ won’t need me for much longer. In fact, Jacob has already said it might be best if I find myself something else.”

“Wow, bummer. You potentially lost two jobs in one day, huh?”

“Yeah.” Lily’s gaze snapped back to mine. “Real bummer.”

“Okay,” I said, pulling out the stool next to her and sitting down. “How would you feel about coming to work for me?”

Her mouth gaped and her palms slammed hard on the table. “For real?”

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