Mistletoe and Memories (Evergreen Hollow Christmas #4)

Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Around lunchtime later that week, Caroline was sitting at a table at Rockridge Grill, waiting for Nora and Margo so they could work on planning the scavenger hunt portion of their parents’ anniversary surprise.

She honestly wasn’t sure what she was going to eat for lunch. She’d had trouble keeping anything down until later in the day. The nausea she’d felt drinking the coffee and cocoa had turned into full-blown morning sickness, that she thought should probably be termed ‘afternoon sickness’ as well.

Fortunately, Rhett had been working a lot of long shifts at the fire station, so he’d been too busy to notice that her eating habits in the first half of the day had markedly changed. And she’d been slammed with the holiday chaos of the inn, which had kept them passing like ships in the night as well. Normally she would have been disappointed to have so little time with him, but while she was waiting for the right time to tell him the news, she couldn’t feel anything other than relieved.

She had her planner open and notepad next to her, organizing some of her ideas as she half-looked over the menu and tried to figure out what wouldn’t turn her stomach too much. All of her usual favorites made her feel queasy. The venison burger, the thick-cut ham sandwich with all the trimmings, the homemade chicken salad wrap with apples and grapes—all of it made her have to look away and think about something else for a second.

All of her favorites were off the table, so to speak, so she looked at the soup list, wondering if she could manage plain tomato.

That seemed like a possibility, but Nora and Margo hadn’t gotten there yet, so she nudged the menu aside and refocused on her notes. There was plenty left that needed to be done. So far, they’d ordered the supplies for the renovation of the ‘malt shop room’ in the back of Rockridge Grill, and she had already talked to Melanie about making sure that Rhonda’s favorite drink would be waiting for her at The Mellow Mug for the beginning of the scavenger hunt, with a note that would have a clue to lead her to the next location.

She heard the door to the restaurant open, and she looked up, expecting to see her sisters. Instead, to her surprise, she saw Jay come running in, straight up to the counter where Rockridge Grill served handmade sodas and ice cream to-go.

“Hey there,” she heard the server on duty say brightly, as she twisted around to see Jay digging in his pocket for some of his allowance money. “What can I get for you?”

“An orange cream soda, please,” Jay said politely, and Caroline smothered a smile, pleased with his manners. She waited for him to pay, and then called out to him from the table where she was sitting.

“Jay. Are you getting a soda for lunch?” She asked it a little teasingly, knowing she’d sent a packed lunch with him that morning.

Jay turned to look at her, and she noticed there was a bit of a hesitant trudge in his step as he walked over to where she was sitting. “What are you up to?” Caroline asked, cocking her head slightly as she looked at her stepson. He definitely looked a little guilty—or maybe just embarrassed. She wasn’t sure which.

“It’s lunchtime at school,” Jay muttered, toying with the cords at the end of his jacket. “I wanted to buy a soda for…” He hesitated, then added, “Someone.”

Caroline once again smothered a knowing smile, seeing his cheeks start to turn pink. “Is that someone Whitney?” she asked gently, and Jay’s face burned a little hotter.

“Yes,” he mumbled, twisting around as if to see if the soda was ready yet.

“Hey.” Caroline tapped his arm, and he looked at her again. “Have you told Whitney that you like her, yet? Directly?” she asked seriously.

Jay’s mouth twisted and he shook his head, shuffling his feet a little. “No,” he murmured.

“Why not?” Caroline thought she knew the answer already, but she also thought it was important to talk about it. And she seemed to be the one he was most willing to talk about it with, at least a little. She knew he still hadn’t mentioned it to Rhett at all.

Jay hesitated again, looking back toward the soda counter, and then back at Caroline. “I don’t want to get rejected,” he said finally. “I don’t know what she’ll say. Maybe she doesn’t like me back.”

He shrugged, and Caroline felt her heart squeeze in her chest.

It was a very different situation, but she thought she understood how Jay felt. After all, she still hadn’t said anything to Rhett about the baby, because she was afraid of what he might say. She couldn’t bear the thought that he would be upset or disappointed. And until she said it out loud, there was still the other possibility that he would be happy too.

Once she came right out with it, his reaction would be one or the other, and she would know for sure. That was as terrifying as not knowing at all.

She refocused on Jay, smiling at him as she reached up and adjusted his jacket a little. “It’s very sweet that you’re getting Whitney a gift,” she told him sincerely. “But eventually, it would probably be best if you’re just honest with her. Then you’ll know for sure, and you can find out what comes next.”

Jay chewed at his lip. “Okay,” he said, giving Caroline a small smile as the server called out his soda order. “I’ve got to go.”

She watched Jay scoop up the to-go cup of layered orange and cream soda and then bolt for the door, rushing out. A few minutes later, the door opened again, and she saw Margo come in, holding it open for Nora to follow, holding baby Madison.

The sight of her little niece made Caroline’s stomach twist, apprehension and nervous excitement mingling together and making her wonder if lunch was maybe a completely lost cause. As soon as she looked at Nora, trying to paste a cheerful smile on her face, Nora gave her a knowing look.

Nora walked a little faster, beating Margo to the table as she slid into the chair next to Caroline. “You need to tell Margo the news,” she hissed under her breath, and Caroline gave her a sideways look.

“Do I?” she asked, and Nora nodded emphatically, as she took Madison out of the baby sling strapped to her chest.

“Yes. The more people you tell, the easier it will get. And then you’ll be able to tell Rhett.”

“And if he finds out from someone else first?” Caroline whispered. Nora gave her a narrow-eyed look.

“You really think any of us will spill the beans first?” Nora shook her head. “You know I won’t, and Margo won’t. Mom wouldn’t either. But you’ll have to tell Rhett eventually, so maybe letting the secret out a little at a time will help.”

She clammed up then, because Margo had made it over to the table, sliding into the seat across from Caroline.

“Hey.” She grabbed a menu immediately. “I’m starving. Ooh, they have the venison burger again. And with blue cheese. That sounds really good. Maybe I’ll get th?—”

“I’m pregnant.” Caroline blurted it out in Margo’s direction, and next to her, she heard Nora let out a sigh.

“I didn’t necessarily mean tell her like that ,” Nora mumbled, but Caroline ignored her. Margo’s hands had frozen around the menu, and she was staring at Caroline like she didn’t know what to say.

“You’re…” She pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes at Caroline. “P?—”

“Pregnant,” Caroline repeated. “I found out at that appointment in Burlington I had that day, the same day Dad ended up in the hospital.”

“Were you trying?” Margo blinked at her. “You didn’t say anything about it.”

“We weren’t.” Caroline shook her head. “I didn’t even think about having a baby. We haven’t talked about it at all. I think I just assumed we would always just have Jay. Rhett has never talked about wanting more. So…”

“You haven’t told him yet.” It wasn’t a question. Margo set down the menu, looking at Caroline sympathetically. “I’m sure he’ll be happy. How could he not be? You two are so happy together, and you’re a great stepmom to Jay. And I bet Jay will be thrilled to have a sibling.”

Caroline’s stomach knotted again. “I hadn’t even thought of whether he’d be happy or not,” she murmured. “I’ve been so worried about Rhett’s reaction.”

Nora sighed again. “Don’t worry about it,” she said. “Jay might be jealous at first, but he’ll be happy too, once he gets used to the idea. Everything will be okay.” She shot a pointed look at Margo, which Caroline caught out of the corner of her eye.

“Sorry,” Margo mumbled. “I’m sure it will be fine,” she said, a little more clearly. “But you should definitely tell Rhett soon. He’s going to notice you’re not enjoying all the holiday food the way you usually do. I thought you had the flu or something. This is your favorite time of year, and you’ve been eating like a bird.”

Caroline rubbed her temples. “Let’s just focus on the anniversary plans. Order lunch, and we’ll go over what we’ve got so far.”

When the server came around, Margo got the venison burger, Nora ordered the homemade spaghetti and meatballs, and Caroline reluctantly ordered tomato soup with toast on the side, dry. Margo gave her a knowing look as she put in her order, and Caroline sighed.

“I really do love all the food this time of year. But I can’t keep anything down. What a time to have all-day sickness.”

Margo wrinkled her nose. “That sounds awful, honestly. But I am excited for you,” she added quickly. “Really, I am.”

Caroline managed a smile. “I’m working on the excited versus nervous part still, myself.”

Madison picked that exact second to let out a loud, squalling yell, making several other lunchtime customers turn around and look. Nora picked her up, scattering animal crackers across the laminated top of the table to distract her.

“Okay.” Caroline pushed her notepad to where the others could see. “We have the scavenger hunt. We’ve got the first few parts of that ready—the coffee at The Mellow Mug, to begin. And the scavenger hunt is mostly focused around Mom. And then there’s the malt shop date. Leon said the decorations and such for that should be coming in soon, and we will have a visual then for what we’re doing.”

“I made a layout.” Nora pulled her iPad out, sliding it onto the table next to Caroline’s notepad. “Here.” She pulled up a design program and opened a file, showing the mock-up she’d made of the space. “What do you think?”

“That’s honestly awesome,” Margo said, taking a sip of her diet soda as she leaned in to look at it. “You’re really good at this.”

“Thanks.” Nora beamed.

“They probably really miss you back at the company in Boston,” Margo joked, and Nora shrugged, but Caroline didn’t miss the curious look she gave Margo. She definitely didn’t see any sign of regret on Nora’s face, any hint that Nora missed Boston, but there was something oddly pointed in the way Margo said it—or maybe just nostalgic.

“I want to make this perfect,” Nora said, zooming in on the different spots of the room in the mock-up: the decorations, the setup for the drinks, and the temporary furniture and wallpaper they’d gotten. “It’s really sad that all of this trouble with Dad’s heart might interfere with the Malibu trip. It would be scary and sad no matter when it had happened, but they’ve been waiting for this for so long. And it’s been so long since they’ve had a vacation together. They deserve that trip. So if there’s a chance that it might not happen because of all of this, I especially want to make sure our surprise is the best it can possibly be.”

Margo and Caroline both nodded. That, at least, was something all three of them could definitely agree on.