35. Ivy
THIRTY-FIVE
Ivy
Slinging my purse over my shoulder, I head out the front door, calling out to Xaden, who is giving Daisy a bath upstairs.
“I’m out of here, hun! I’ll see you in a few!”
“Love you!” He calls back.
“Love you, too!”
The door closes behind me, and I see Sam’s car in the driveway. I head down the porch steps with a smile, waving.
As I get inside the warm car, I buckle up after a quick hug.
“There’s Momma. You ready for some pampering?” Sam is all grins, and I can’t help but laugh.
“I’m only six or so weeks pregnant. It might be a little early for some pampering.”
She shakes her head, turning the car around and getting to the top of the driveway, where she flicks on the turn signal.
“No such thing.” Sam giggles, and I shake my head with a grin. “This is going to be a fun night out with your bestie, who you haven’t seen in way too long.”
“I’m sorry. It has been a minute. Well, regardless of timing, I am excited. I haven’t really gotten all gooey about baby stuff yet.”
“Oh, well, I have you covered then, Momma.”
I cock my head, putting a hand on her shoulder as she pulls out into traffic, and we start into town. “You’ve been incredible to me, Sam. I truly appreciate it.”
“Any time, chica. What’s the man up to?”
Snuggling into the seat, I think back to Xaden at the house. “Giving Daisy a bath. She managed to spill like an entire cup of maple syrup on herself. He shouldn’t have let the four-year-old pour it herself.”
Sam barks out a laugh. “Oops! Ha! That’s awesome. Well, he can deal with that while we get you a mani-pedi.”
I will admit to being very about that life, but then I remember one of the numerous things I’ve been told about by my doctor.
“Oh, did you mention that I’m?—”
“I already told them you’re pregnant and early. No ankle or wrist pressure points for you.”
I relax as Sam smiles over at me. “I always forget that you’re a big sister and have seen this a bunch.”
“I’m practically a midwife at this point. I can even tell you about cervix shit if you ask.”
I grimace slightly, laughing as I wave her off. “No! No, thank you! I’ll be keeping that information for later.”
Sam chuckles, certainly at me, but I don’t stress about it.
I’ve been trying that a lot lately. When you’re growing a person—and stress is particularly bad for you then—it really sets your priorities straight.
Soon enough, we get into Red Lodge proper, and Sam drives us to the nail salon. The smell is a little intense at first, but the very nice technician moves us near a window since she knows I’m preggers.
“What are you going with?” I ask, looking over the colors as we wait for the foot tub to fill.
“Black. It’s what I always get. Why mess with a good thing?” She smirks. “You?”
“Well, considering it’s going to be the holidays soon, I was thinking red. Maybe a sparkly white one, like snow?”
“Cute!” She nods, the corners of her mouth turning down. “You’ll be all Suzie Santa for Xaden.”
I pat my belly. “And soon, I’ll be looking like Mr. Claus himself, too.”
We laugh, and the nail session goes by in a flurry of conversation and jokes. We finish up, our nails looking sparkly and new, and Sam takes me to a baby clothing store not far from the salon.
It’s so close, in fact, that we can walk. And I’ll admit that even though it’s a bit chilly outside the fresh air and movement feel good.
Plus, it gets that acrylic smell out of my nose.
As we step inside the store, the bell above us jingles happily. I am immediately overwhelmed by the sheer volume of baby items scattered about on the shelves.
“Hi, welcome in!” A woman calls out from the counter as she circles around it and comes to greet us. “What are we looking for today?”
“My friend here is expecting, and she hasn’t bought a single onesie. Can you believe that?”
I flush, a bit embarrassed, but I still manage to chuckle at the entire situation.
“Well, that won’t do. Let’s find you something.”
The woman is warm and gives off those “I’ve been there and done that vibes.” I appreciate that instead of just going for the sale, she steers me away from a few things that aren’t practical once she explains them.
“No, honey. It’s cute, so maybe a few. But you’ll want the majority of the pajamas to have feet—socks don’t stay on—and a zipper. The snaps are just too much to deal with when the kiddo has had a blowout.”
I raise my brows. “I’m sorry, a what?”
Sam laughs. “I thought you said you worked with kids?”
Making a face a her, I shrug with just my hand. “I do, but they’re usually potty trained by the time I get to them.”
“Sometimes,” the attendant speaks up, “babies manage to fill a diaper past capacity. If they’ve just pooped, or if the diaper was already a bit too full and then they poop, it can go, well, basically everywhere. And they will do it in a store or restaurant. Or in the car seat on the way to a doctor’s appointment.”
Chuckling again, which I’m sure is both related to the story and the face I’m making, Sam pats me on the shoulder.
“Kids are very messy.”
I turn to her with my brows raised, hanging the onesie with snaps back up on the rack and going for a similarly designed one that has a zipper.
“You know, I had a feeling, but I’ll hand it to you. That sounds…gross.”
Both the women just nod, and then we’re all laughing about the “messy” realities of rearing a child that often get glossed over or only played for laughs on sitcoms.
We peruse the shelves a bit more, and I decide on two more zipper onesies and a stuffed bear that is just so damned soft. Even I wouldn’t mind cuddling with it.
After I’ve settled on the items and paid, Sam and I both agree that it’s time for lunch. My stomach rumbles to make its point even more, and we exit the shop to stop at the café just down the street.
“God, I’m beat already. I don’t feel like it’s been too long, and I’m already looking forward to a nap.”
Sam giggles lightly as she holds the door open for me. La Pomme Rouge is a sweet little café that fully leans into the red apple theme.
From the floors to the ceiling, the happy orbs are everywhere, and yet, somehow, it isn’t cheesy or overdone. I admire how they were able to accomplish that.
“Good afternoon. Table for two?”
The hostess asks, and Sam and I nod in unison. “Yes, please.”
With a gentle smile, she looks down at her seating chart and then back up at us. “There is a table available inside just there,” she points to the back corner, “or there is one available on the patio near the outdoor fireplace.”
Sam gestures for me to be the deciding factor, and I consider the options. It isn’t too cold out yet, and with a fireplace going, it could be very quaint to eat out there.
“Let’s do the patio, please.”
“Very well, right this way.”
We follow the woman out toward the back of the building, where a beautiful patio has been created with brick walls that encircle the area. There is a massive fireplace built into that surround, and we are shown to a table for two right in front of it.
Sam and I take our seats, and we each put in an order for drinks. I get a hot cider, and Sam gets a cold brew with an “extra fatty” cream cap, as she calls it.
Conversation starts up quickly again after that.
“So, how are you doing? Not just the generic ‘I’m fine and so excited.’”
I laugh, feeling a bit called out. “I am fine, and I am excited. Extremely. But…”
She stares me down, and I can’t help but let a bit of the complaints I’ve been harboring silently rush out of my mouth.
“I’m so damn tired all the time. And this nausea? No joke, dude. I am very ready to be done with this part, and I’m only like halfway! On average!”
Sam chuckles, reaching across the table to take my hand. “I get it. I haven’t been there, but I’ve seen my mom struggle, so I know it’s real. She’s that never let ‘em see you sweat type, so I know if even she looked a bit rough, that pregnancy isn’t for the weak.”
Slumping down briefly, I close my eyes with a heavy sigh. “It’s really not. But you know, I am actually excited. I want to see whoever this little person is going to be. I want to…you know, meet them. Does that sound stupid?”
She shakes her head. “Not at all. They may be living in there, but you still don’t know them. They’ll be a tiny little stranger when they arrive. Your stranger, sure, but it’ll be a whole getting-to-know-you process.”
“That’s exactly it! Ugh, thank you.”
The server comes out with our drinks, and we place our orders for food. I go with a classic turkey club, a favorite of mine, and Sam gets a blackened shrimp salad with guacamole.
“I’ll have those right out,” our server says politely, and then they’re off to deliver our order to the kitchen.
“And what about you? Has anything exciting happened?”
I raise my brows as I smile at Sam, and she just shrugs.
“Not much on this end, I’m afraid. I work basically all the time, so there’s not much of an opportunity to do much else.”
“Oh, Sam. You need to take a break. Today is wonderful, but you need to do something for just you, too.”
“Yeah, I’m…I’m working on it.” Her eyes fall down to the table. “It’s a lot to be the main breadwinner for my little squad. My sisters try to help as best as they can, but I’ve always been the ‘reliable’ one out of all us kids.”
I reach across the table and take her hand. “Hey, I get that. That’s been my role with my sister for our entire lives, but it’s crucial to do something for yourself every now and then. You don’t want to resent them, and you don’t want to burn out.”
“You know,” Sam grins, flipping her hand over so that she can squeeze mine, “you’re going to be just fine at this mom thing.”
Smiling, I give her another squeeze and then take my hands back to sip at my cider. “Thank you, Sam.”
“And hey, you know Xaden is already a great father. So that’s a win. How’s he handling the new pregnancy?”
“He’s doing really well, actually. I was so nervous, as you know, but he’s been nothing but supportive. I…I really love him. So much.”
Sam smiles, but I can see her tense up a bit. “That’s awesome, Ivy. I’m so happy for you.”
“What is it? You’re making a face.”
“I am not!” But after a moment, she gives in. “Oh, fine. I’m…a little jealous. I wish I had someone to spend my nights with. But all I do is work. And I ain’t finding anyone there. No sir-ee."
I laugh. “Not a lot of eligible bachelors at the coffee shop?”
“That’d be a no,” Sam offers. “You know, unless I’m looking for a seventeen-year-old or a fifty-five-year-old divorcee.”
“Oof, slim pickings for sure.” I sigh, thinking back to the move and landing my job with Xaden. “Well, don’t give up. I didn’t plan on finding the love of my life right next door or becoming his nanny first, but here we are. Life’s funny like that.”
Sam nods slowly. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. We’ll see, I suppose.”
I’m about to rattle off some more words of encouragement when my phone buzzes on the table.
“Oh, it’s probably Xaden checking in.”
Cocking her head at me, Sam turns the corners of her mouth down. “He do that a lot?”
“No, no. It’s not like that. He gets worried because of his past experiences. I don’t mind reassuring him.”
Picking up my phone, I swipe it open to see I have a text message from an unknown number. It’s not the same one as before because I took Xaden’s advice.
I blocked that number, and I even sent an email to the non-emergency services account the Red Lodge police offer. It’s not a restraining order or anything yet, but it’s a start.
“Everything okay?” Sam furrows her brow at me when I look up.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s just spam or something.”
I go to the message to block this new number and then delete it when I finally see the contents of the text.
“What the…” My words trail off, and unable to stop myself, I stand up in my chair.
Scanning the patio and what I can see of the street through the gaps and the gate that leads back here, I look for those familiar eyes that have haunted me for years.
As far as I can tell, there’s nothing, but my pulse won’t stop racing and goosebumps have rippled over my entire body.
All I can hear is the furious pounding of my blood in my ears as I turn back to my phone and reread the message.
Peek-a-boo, Vivi. Looks like your time’s up. Better say goodbye to your friend.