One
“Right there. Oh, that’s the spot.”
“Okay.” Pause. “Am I doing it too hard?”
A moan of pleasure was the first response before, “No. It’s perfect. Just like that.”
Violet Drake wasn’t sure where to look or what to say and was beginning to feel mildly uncomfortable. “Um…”
“Just…a little…more…”
“I’m starting to get a cramp. Maybe I should…”
“Oh, my God! Whew!” With a smile of pure relief, Violet’s best friend Katie turned to her and smiled. “Thank you! You have no idea how much I miss being able to scratch my own back!”
“I’m sure.”
“And seeing my feet.”
Unable to help herself, she laughed. “You’re not that big.”
“Oh, please. I have eyes,” Katie said with a small sigh as she got comfortable on her sofa. “And yesterday, Kira said I looked like one of those big Thanksgiving Day parade balloons.”
For a moment, Violet tried to think of something to say to make her friend feel better. “She’s only four. Maybe it was a compliment.”
The bland look her friend gave her spoke volumes.
Sitting at the other end of the couch, Violet relaxed. “Okay, I’m here, I’m unpacked, and settled in. What can I do to help?”
“Believe me, you’re already doing it.”
“All I’ve done is eat the sandwich you made for me and scratch your back.”
“It’s what Brian would be doing if he was here.”
There was a sadness to Katie’s words and Violet had to remember that she was here for a reason–because Brian was a Marine who was deployed and not going to be home before their baby was born. It was the main topic of conversation during every phone call they’d shared for the last six months, and once Katie started talking about how much she was struggling as the pregnancy progressed, the more Violet realized this was where she needed to be.
“Well,” she said after a minute, “I hope he’d be doing a little more than that for you.” Laughing, she nudged Katie’s foot. “You said married life was so much better than being single, but if all your husband was going to contribute was eating and the occasional back scratch, I’ll gladly stay single, thank you very much.”
Luckily, that made Katie smile. “I just figured I’d spare you the more intimate details of what Brian and I would be doing.”
“And I appreciate it.”
They smiled at one another before Katie reached for Violet’s hand. “You have no idea how much this means to me. I’ve made a lot of friends with military wives, but most of them live closer to the base. I was the one who insisted on moving further away.” She sighed happily. “There was just something about Magnolia Sound that just drew me in.”
“From what I’ve seen so far, it’s a cute town.”
“Oh, it’s more than that. Just wait until I give you the grand tour. There are so many fantastic little shops and restaurants, the beach is amazing, and it just seemed like a great place to raise a family.”
“You’ve made friends here too, though, right?”
“Absolutely. And the fact that I do childcare here in the house has been such a blessing.”
“How many kids do you watch?”
“Total? Four. Three of them are part-time, one is full-time.”
Violet looked around the house as if she might have missed them. “Where are they now?”
“You happened to arrive on a rare day when I only had one kiddo in the morning.” Sighing, she rested her head back against the sofa cushions. “It doesn’t happen often, but only because one family–my full-time one–has a different schedule every week.”
“Well, that’s just crazy. And a little inconsiderate of your time, isn’t it?”
Katie shrugged. “Not really. I get their schedule two weeks in advance, so I always know what to expect.” She paused. “I feel bad how they’re all going to be scrambling once this baby is here.” Rubbing a hand over her swollen belly, she smiled. “But if everything goes smoothly, I’ll just need four weeks before they all come back.”
“Four weeks? Are you crazy? You can’t open your door to all those kids a month after giving birth!”
This time Katie gave her a patient smile. “Vi, trust me. I can. I’ve sat down with all the parents, and we’re going to modify the schedules a bit, but I will be fine. Plus, you’ll be here until Brian gets back, so…”
Inwardly, she sighed. Violet had no problem being here to help her friend and her godchild and the new baby, but babysitting for a bunch of strangers’ kids wasn’t something she’d given too much thought to.
And now probably wasn’t the right time to say anything.
Or change her mind.
“What if they all find alternative childcare while you’re on maternity leave and don’t come back?”
Shrugging again, Katie replied, “It’s a possibility, but I’m not overly worried. I don’t really need to work right now; I just happen to enjoy it. You know I went to school for early childhood education and always dreamed of working for a preschool. This was a great way to help Kira socialize and to meet some new friends without overly stressing myself.”
“Still, I’m sure it hasn’t been easy while you’re pregnant.”
“Actually, it’s been a wonderful distraction. I miss Brian so much and I think it would be so much harder for me to cope if I didn’t keep busy.” With a smile, she reached for Violet’s hand and squeezed it. “And now you’re here and everything is going to be even better!”
With a smile of her own, Violet knew there wasn’t anything in the world she wouldn’t do for Katie. They were more than best friends, they were sisters. They had met thanks to the foster care system–both of them had been placed with the Michaels family. Violet had been twelve, Katie was thirteen. A bond had been formed from the moment they met and had yet to be broken.
Getting placed in foster care had been devastating.
Meeting Katie had pretty much saved her life.
The sound of Katie hissing as her hands flew to her belly snapped Violet out of her reverie. “Are you okay?” she asked, mildly panicked.
“Yeah…just…give me a minute.”
There were a dozen questions on the tip of her tongue, but as she watched her friend silently count backward from ten, Violet knew the best thing she could do was stay quiet.
Finally, Katie’s eyes opened, and she smiled. “That’s the third time it’s happened today.”
“The third time what’s happened?”
“Contraction. It’s no big deal.”
“Are you sure? Should we call someone? Where’s your doctor’s number? I should have that, right?” Frantically, Violet looked around and wondered just what she was supposed to do when Katie went into labor.
“Okay, first of all, relax. I’ve got another six weeks to go, so there’s nothing to worry about. There’s a paper on the front of the refrigerator with all the important phone numbers on it. I had to put it up there when Brian’s mom moved here to try to help.”