“I’m sure you’re right on both counts. This has probably just come as a shock to her. She’ll be on board as soon as the news sinks in,” Luke said confidently. “Laila’s one of the most unflappable, levelheaded women I know.”
“A description she abhors, by the way,” Matthew said. “She loves me because I see her as spontaneous and unpredictable. I don’t think she was quite ready to be this spontaneous, though.”
“Does anyone else know?”
“God, no,” Matthew said. “Can you imagine the fuss this news will stir up? O’Briens go nuts over baby announcements. Laila is so not ready for that.”
“She will be,” Luke said again. “How long have you known?”
“Two days. The at-home test confirmed it a week ago, but she refused to believe that, so it was only the day before yesterday that she got undeniable proof from her doctor. She’s been ranting and raving ever since.”
“Don’t women’s hormones go a little crazy when they’re pregnant?” Luke asked.
“I mentioned that and nearly got my eye poked out by a flying plate,” Matthew said.
Luke started to laugh, but managed to choke it back at Matthew’s expression of pure misery.
“You could send flowers,” Luke suggested.
“As an apology?” Matthew asked incredulously. “I am not sorry about this.”
“Just as a token gesture,” Luke said. “Or candy? How about that? Women love chocolate.” He was struck by a sudden inspiration. “No, wait, I’ve got it. Go out and buy some teeny-tiny little baby romper thing.”
“That could be rubbing salt in the wound at the moment,” Matthew argued.
“No, it won’t. Don’t you remember how Bree and Abby and all the other women in the family got all teary-eyed and sentimental when they saw all those itty-bitty clothes? It’ll make it real for her. She’ll start thinking about this wonderful little human being you’ve created together and forget all about it being the wrong time, or whatever it is she’s thinking.”
Matthew nodded slowly. “I suppose it’s possible.”
“If it doesn’t work out, you can always sleep on my couch for a couple of nights till she calms down.”
His brother scowled at the suggestion. “We won’t work this out by my hiding out at your place.”
“And yet here you are right now,” Luke commented.
“I needed neutral territory to get my thoughts in order before the next round,” Matthew said. “Is it so wrong to want to be excited about this in front of her and have her share that feeling?”
“Of course it’s not wrong, and eventually she will,” Luke said yet again. “Give her a little time to get used to the idea. Tell her whatever she needs to hear to believe this isn’t the end of life as she knows it.”
“But it is,” Matthew said seriously. “It’ll be a whole new world from here on out. We won’t just be a rather unorthodox couple no one expected to hook up. We’ll be a family. I think that scares Laila to death. I have a feeling that she thought as long as it was just the two of us, if things didn’t work out, it would be no big deal. Now, with a baby, we’re in this forever.”
“Weren’t you always?”
“I was. And on most levels I think she was, too, but the conservative part of her brain needed an out just in case she was right about us being a terrible match.”
Luke smiled, thinking of how difficult it was to read between the lines with women. “If you’ve figured that much out, you’re halfway to solving the problem.”
For the first time, he managed to coax a smile from his brother.
“You know,” Matthew said. “If all your advice is this good, bartending may be the best decision you ever made. And Will’s likely to try to convince you to get a degree and join his practice, after all.”
“Not a chance of that,” Luke said. “I’m perfectly content being a sounding board. The advice is a bonus just because you’re family.”
“Thanks,” Matthew said. “I’d better get to work.”
He was almost to the door when Luke called out to him. Matthew turned back.
“Congratulations!” Luke said, grinning. At least his brother had one person in the family who could share his excitement. It wouldn’t make up for Laila’s reservations, but Luke was confident she’d come around before long, too.
Taking Nell’s advice first thing in the morning, Moira grabbed her camera and left to go exploring. Though she usually preferred taking pictures of people to taking shots of scenery, she wanted to have her images of Chesapeake Shores captured in a way that would allow her to glance through the reminders once she was home.
After placing a note on the kitchen table for Nell and her grandfather, she left the house before the sun was fully up. Two hours later, she found herself in front of The Inn at Eagle Point, Jess’s pride and joy. Sitting on a cliff overlooking the bay, she thought it was stunning.
And, she remembered with delight, it had a kitchen. She was starving.
Inside she found a young man behind the reception desk, his nose buried in a book. “Is Jess O’Brien around?” she asked, startling him so badly he nearly fell off his stool. He promptly winced at having been caught.
“She’s in her office,” he said. “Please don’t tell her I was half-asleep on the job.”
She laughed. “I never tattle,” she promised. “Shall I find her office, or will you tell her I’m here?”
“I’ll call her,” he said.
“I’m Moira,” she told him.
He grinning. “Oh, I know. There are few secrets in this town, and we’ve all been hearing about the visiting Dubliners. I’m Ronnie Foster. I’m training to be a chef so I can work in the kitchen here full time, but for now, I help out taking reservations and carrying bags.” He shrugged. “At least that’s
