was lovely.”
“Yeah,” Kalen drawled the word out. “They must’ve eaten a
lot because they went running this morning. Of course, my sister
never runs unless I invite her to go antique shopping, then it’s the
other way.”
I bumped Kalen’s chair when Hailey’s face began to flush.
“Where’s Toad?” I asked with a wink at Hailey.
“He’s having a boy’s night out,” Kalen said. “He and his
buddies are holed up in some sports bar eating hot wings and
swilling beer.” Kalen rubbed at her stomach. “I hate beer, but I
have the strangest craving for it now.”
“Do you know the sex of the baby?” Hailey asked.
“No, we want to be surprised. Makes decorating the nursery
kind of difficult, though. I’d love to show it to you if Mom will
allow me to leave my chair.”
Mom looked at me and rolled her eyes. “Five minutes and
dinner will be on the table. That’s all you get.”
Kalen stood and rubbed her butt. “Shannon, you come, too.
You haven’t seen it yet.”
Mom nodded. “Go, I’ve got this. Check the room for snacks.
I found a bag of Cheetos in the baby’s dresser.”
The walls were painted a soft mint green, and most of the
hardwood floor was covered with a rug bearing the alphabet.
“This is the coolest bed.” Kalen patted the blond wood that
matched the floor perfectly. “It folds down into a youth bed when
the baby grows out of the crib.”
I opened the drawers of the matching dresser; they were
empty except for the bottom drawer, which was filled with baby
blankets embroidered with teddy bears, puppies, and kittens. I
tried to imagine my new niece or nephew swaddled snugly in
them.
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Robin Alexander
“Oh, these are so cute,” I heard Hailey say. She picked up
a stuffed giraffe that shared a shelf with what I figured were as
many animals as the New Orleans Zoo.
“Since we don’t know the sex, we decided to decorate in
stuffed animals.” Kalen rubbed her stomach lovingly. “Can’t go
wrong with those. I figure at some point, they’ll all be covered
with slobber, and when Shannon’s through with them, we’ll get
the baby new ones.”
“Ass, I’m gonna tell mom I found a bag of pig skins underneath
the changing table.”
“Oh, don’t you dare.” Kalen grabbed handfuls of my shirt.
“She’s dead serious about the diet. Nothing goes into my mouth
without inspection.” Kalen’s eyes widened. “You have no idea
how bad the cravings are! I’ve been good despite the Gatorade
incident, and for the record, the Cheetos belonged to Todd, but
she won’t believe me.”
“Then I suggest you start being real sweet to me.” I plucked
her fingers from my clothing one by one. “I will be expected to
give her a full report on your diet when she’s gone, and I can
make it real rough on you, sis.”
I kept an eye on Hailey as Kalen and I bantered back and
forth. She seemed to be in a world all her own as she looked at all
the baby things. I left her and Kalen in the nursery when Mom
called for me. Kalen had been friendly toward Hailey, but it made
me uneasy to leave them alone.
“Take the bread out, honey,” Mom said as I walked in. She’d
filled just about all the plates and had the table near about set.
“The nursery is precious, isn’t it?”
“It is,” I agreed. “I’m sure you’ve got the baby shower all
planned out by now.” I was looking forward to the baby, but not
the festivities that always preceded one. I’d never attended a
wedding shower until Kalen’s, and now I’d be expected to attend
a baby shower.
“If you’re over there thinking up ways to skip out on the
shower, give up,” Mom said, knowing me all too well.
“I was thinking about jumping from a fast-moving vehicle.” I
laid the bread out onto the counter and sliced it.
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“I imagine you’ll sneak off to hang out with your father and
Todd anyway.” Mom gave me a playful nudge. “I bet Hailey will
hang out with us girls, though.”
“Judging by the way she’s fawning over the nursery, I won’t
disagree.”
I put the bread into the serving dish and moved it to the table.
Mom gave a nod as she looked everything over. “We’re ready. Go
get the girls.”
When I walked into the nursery, Kalen and Hailey were
teary-eyed and wrapped in each other’s arms. “Kalen, if you’re
jumping the fence, go find your own woman. This one’s mine,” I
said with a teasing grin.
“I hope you can put up with her,” Kalen said as she released
Hailey. “You know she’s adopted, right? My parents found her in
a cabbage patch just outside of Chernobyl.”
“I think I can handle her,” Hailey said with a smile, “but if
not, I’ll call you for backup.”
“Dinner’s on the table.”
“Thank God.” Kalen pushed past me and hurried down the
hall.“You okay?” I asked Hailey as she met me in the doorway.
“Yeah,” she said with a nod. “Kalen and I discovered we had
something in common. I’ll tell you about it later.” I gave her a
quick kiss and led her down the hall.
Kalen had already pulled out a chair. “The bringer of the pie
sits next to me, you and Mom over there.” Mom moved the salt
shaker in front of me. “I wasn’t going to ask for it anyway,” Kalen
said defiantly.
Everyone was quiet as we dug into our salads. Mom was first
to start questioning Hailey. “Where are you from, sweetie?”
“I was born in Louisville, Kentucky, but with my dad in
the military, we didn’t stay there long. We’ve lived all over the
country, but I finished high school in Washington.”
“Any siblings?” Kalen asked. “Like a pain-in-the-ass younger
sister?”
Hailey blotted her mouth with her napkin and smiled. “I wish,
but no, it was just me.”
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Robin Alexander
“You’re lucky then.” Kalen made a face at me. “I had the
world at my tiny fingertips until Shannon showed up and ruined
it all.”
“Don’t let these two fool you,” Mom said. “They’ve been
close since the day Shannon was born. They slept in the same bed
together, even though they had their own. Bathed together and
ate off the same plate until Kalen started kindergarten. It nearly
killed Shannon when we dropped Kalen off each morning.”
“Yes, my loving sister that couldn’t stand to see me go went
home and painted all my dolls green.” Kalen shot me a look.
“And you always left the lids off my Play Doh and dried it
out,” I said.
“Such sweet memories,” Kalen said with a wistful sigh. “I
think my favorite was when we were in college and Shannon—”
“Shut it, Kalen.” I waved my fork at her. “I’ve got a few stories
I could share.”
“Touché. Damn it.” Kalen looked over at Hailey. “How about
you? Are there any humiliating college stories that you’d like to
share?”
Hailey chuckled. “No, you’d find me incredibly boring. I
went to Georgetown on an academic scholarship with dreams of