Chapter 247
1093 Words
Olivia Jameson poured four cups of coffee and handed them over to her friends one by one, watched them prepare their coffees in their own unique ways.
Beth drank hers black with three scoops of sugar, so it was a weird combination of hardcore and sweet as hell. Just like her, with all of her sharp edges and her good heart; with her dark secrets and shining belief in her new life.
Jennifer Sawyer drank hers with skim milk and sweetener, since she was amazingly self-conscious about her weight. Despite the fact that Chris Brooker, her boyfriend, adored every lush curve, Jenny had the occasional crisis of confidence and moaned about the hazards of being a chef: she loved having her own restaurant, loved cooking, but she did tend to nibble on the job.
Emma Cartwright drank hers with skim milk and real sugar, since she was seven weeks pregnant and her doctor had told her to avoid the chemicals in sweetener. Emma was down to one cup of coffee a day and she’d told the girls that she was determined to enjoy it, so worries about sugar calories be damned. She drew the line at full milk, though, for some reason that made Dean Jessop – the baby’s father and the love of her life – laugh at her.
And Olivia? Well, she’d been a professional model for seventeen years and she’d lived off black, unsweetened coffee most of the time. Now that that part of her life was over – her stalker had exploded her career by leaving her face and body covered in scars – she unapologetically drank her morning coffee with cream and real sugar, weight gain be damned. Since leaving modeling, Liv had gained twenty-three glorious pounds… and she’d never looked or felt better. Dallas loved her, he worshipped her body, and he traced every new curve with his fingers and tongue.
“So.” Beth looked down at Emma’s stomach. “You doing OK today, Em?”
“I am now,” Emma said. “But Dean got to enjoy the sights and sounds of me in the bathroom again this morning.” She sighed. “Poor guy. He has to be so tired of seeing me puking.”
The other women nodded a bit at this. Emma had just recently been declared in remission from her leukemia and God knows, they’d all spent plenty of time watching her be violently, desperately sick. They all felt that the woman had had just about enough of that, really, and they hoped hard that the morning sickness was going to pass soon.
“Urgh,” Jenny said. “Does anything help?”
“Not really,” Emma said. “But I have a list of things that don’t help.”
“Yeah?” Liv said as she waved them all over to the living room. “Like what?”
“Oranges. Carrots. Chicken. Apple juice. Green peppers.” She paused. “Mint toothpaste.”
“Really?” Beth said. “Toothpaste?”
Emma shuddered. “Seriously, the second it hits my taste buds, I’m gagging.”
“Huh,” Jenny said. “Never heard of that before.”
“So I use kid toothpaste now.” Emma took a sip of her coffee. “Dean laughs his ass off at me.”
“What flavor?” Liv said as she handed around the basket of croissants that Jenny had baked and brought over.
“Bubble gum!” Emma said. “It’s actually awesome.”
The women laughed, then settled a bit as they ate and drank. Olivia looked on edge, though, so Jenny broached the subject.
“You OK, Liv?” she asked, her blue eyes soft. “Getting nervous about the big day?”
“Oh, God, no.” Liv shook her head, her long red hair brilliant in the morning light. “No. I can’t wait to marry Dallas.”
“So what’s up?”
Liv hesitated. “I can’t say too much… it’s about Dallas’ work.”
“Ah.” Jenny looked serious. “Something’s going on?”
“Yeah, something really – awful. He’s worried about it, I know, and it’s making me worry about him.”
“Why? Does he think someone’s going to get hurt?” Beth asked. “Because from what I understood from his people helping me, they’re really good, Liv.”
“No, I know they are. I got to know most of them when they were guarding me, and I know they’re trained and professional. But it’s not them – it’s the people they’re going after.”
Emma was puzzled. “They’re going after someone? So this isn’t the usual kind of bodyguard thing?”
“Oh, no. Not even close. It’s deep undercover stuff, and the people involved are going to be in contact with some real lowlifes.” She was silent, turning her coffee cup around in her slim hands. “They’re on their way there now, and Dallas is going to follow them in a few days, to act as back-up just in case things… happen.”
“Oh.” Beth set down her cup. “You’re scared.”
“Oh, yeah. I’m scared for all of them.”
“I’m sorry, sweetie,” Emma said softly. “That’s stressful, huh?”
Liv shook herself a bit, tried to lift the mood again. “Well, a bit. But Dallas is great at this and anyway, it’s way less stressful than other stuff in our lives recently, huh?”
The other women nodded: their lives had been rough over the past year in so many ways, and they felt like the worst of it had passed. They were lucky to have had amazing, supportive men to help them through and they never stopped being grateful for that.
“Anyway!” Liv said again, with more enthusiasm this time. “We have the final dress fittings in four weeks, so make sure you mark your calendars.”
Emma groaned and ran her hands through her short, dark hair. “Am I going to fit into my dress on your wedding day in six weeks?”
“Doubtful.” Liv grinned. “We’ll need to do an extension for sure.”
“Or just buy two sizes up!” Beth said merrily. “Just to be safe!”
Emma glanced down at her plate. She had three croissants on it, and she fully intended to eat each and every one of them. “Maybe three sizes.”
- Writer
