Love Promises (Sully Point, Book 4) (20 page)

He decided that this needed investigation so he
got up and headed for the bathroom. After that, he tracked down Maggie in the
kitchen. She was baking something, and dancing to the music. He stood in the
doorway watching her, until she whirled around in a twirl and stopped dead.

"Holy--you nearly scared me to death! How
long have you been there?"

"What? Can't hear you!" he shouted.

She grinned at him and turned the music down.
"Better?"

"Yeah. I was only here for a minute. What's
going on?"

"There are some muffins on the table
somewhere there. Pumpkin spice and some blueberry. I decided to make some
things to take to Frank's house tonight for the carolers. I've already been out
to the store and the Bakery this morning. You were completely zonked out."

"Wow, what time is it? I need to get down to
Julia's--the computers--"

"Are fine. She said they had an abundance of
volunteers. She called here looking for you. When I told her you were asleep
she said to let you sleep in. Most everybody is off work today so they don't
even need you there."

"Still, I should go down there," he
said, feeling a bit guilty.

"Eat a muffin, take a shower. You're the big
man, the guy with the moolah. Those guys never show up early," she said,
and then gave him a big grin.

"You are terrible. And also in a great mood
from the sound of it."

"I feel really good this morning. No nausea.
And I'm so glad we worked things out. Cody is running the food and toy delivery
today, so I'm going in later to help with that. I figured I could get these
thumbprint cookies in the oven and mix up some brownies before I go."

"Well then, I'd better get started if I'm
going to catch up with you today." He reached out and grabbed her and put
his arms around her. "Unless you have time for a little morning
delight."

She pulled back and stared at him in wonder.
"Did you say morning delight?" She burst out laughing.

He didn't think it was that funny, but admitted it
was sort of. He chuckled and said, "Okay then, how about a little sex
before I go?"

"That I can help you with. Just let me get
this pan out of the oven. But we'll have to be fast about it. Too much to
do."

"This isn't very romantic, Maggie," he
protested.

"I'm very into being efficient this morning.
Go on into the bedroom. I'll be there to attack you momentarily."

He walked out of the kitchen feeling bemused. If
there was one thing he could count on with the woman he loved, was that she
would surprise him.

Afterwards, he decided that efficiency had its own
charm.

* * * *

Maggie boxed up the cookies to take to Frank's
house on the way to the food drive. She knew they didn't really need her there,
but like Eric, she wanted to be in on the final day after all the preparations.

Eric. He had really gotten into the spirit of
things once he realized she didn't always need the romance and flowers
approach. "Morning delight," she murmured to herself and laughed
again.

Her spirits were flying. She had her man back
where he belonged. She felt good physically. And all her Christmas gifts were
wrapped and ready for delivery. Her parents were on their way and might arrive
tonight if they pushed it. She was walking out of the Bakery with some treats
for the volunteers, trying to decide if she'd ever been happier in her life,
when a voice called out to her.

"Maggie, Maggie wait."

It was Maelynne, the town's biggest gossip.

"Hi Maelynne. How are you?"

"I'm fine, but the question is, how are
you?"

"Me? I'm fine."

"I heard you were seen leaving Doc Watson's
and I hoped everything was all right. You know, with the...little bundle."

"Little...bundle?"

"You know...the...baby." This last was
said in a whisper.

"What--how do you--who told you--"
Maggie said, heart beating fast.

Maelynne looked quite satisfied with herself.
"I put it together with that confusing message Eric sent you with the
flowers yesterday. I have to say, it was a bit tricky to figure out. Are you
worried about not being married and having a bun in the oven?"

"What?" Maggie felt a rush of rage and gave
in to it. "Maelynne, I have two words for you--butt out! Seriously, what
is wrong with you? Why do you have to gossip about everyone and everything in
this town? Did it ever occur to you that maybe I want to keep some things to
myself in my own life? What is your problem, anyway? You're always poking your
nose into everyone's business and I'm sick of it!"

She paused to take a breath and was shocked when
Maelynne burst into tears.

"I'm--I'm--I'm sorry," blubbered
Maelynne. "S-s-so-s-s-sorry."

Maggie didn't know what to do. She said,
"Come in here." She walked back into the Bakery and set down the box
she was carrying. The two girls working the counter looked on curiously as
Maggie sat Maelynne down at one of the little round tables.

"I didn't mean to yell at you," she
said.

"Yes, yes you did," Maelynne said.

"Okay, yes, I did. I probably shouldn't have
done that. But it is true that you gossip all the time."

"I know!" wailed the older woman.
"I can't help myself. I know it's wrong. But I can't resist figuring out
secrets and mysteries. My husband is dead, my son lives across country in
California, and I'm all alone. When I'm talking about people, I don't feel so
lonely."

Maggie sighed and shook her head. "Listen,
there are lots of other ways to be with people. Ways that people appreciate and
you won't antagonize them. For instance, I'm taking these treats over to the
food drive building for the volunteers over there. It will make them happy and
make me happy too. There will be interaction with people. Do you ever volunteer
to help in this town?"

"Sometimes," she said in a quiet voice.
"But usually only so I can find things out about people."

"Well, I'm suggesting that you change your
ways. Get involved in the community to be with people, to help others, and
you'll find a satisfaction you wouldn't expect."

Maelynne wiped her eyes with a paper napkin from
the dispenser on the table. "You'd be surprised how satisfying it is to
find out things."

"Maelynne!"

"I'm just saying that it's true. But I guess
your way would be better."

"It would if you want to form lasting
friendships. I'm not saying it will happen overnight, but it's worth trying to
change."

"I suppose you're right."

"I need to get going, but tell me--how many
people have you told about me being pregnant?"

"Nobody, yet. You were the one who confirmed
it just now," Maelynne said with a rather smug smile.

"Oh good grief! I'd appreciate it if you kept
it quiet. For a while anyway. See you later." As she left the Bakery, she
wondered if that little talk had done any good at all. That woman could be
tricky, and she couldn't decide if she'd just been played or not. She thought
maybe she had.

The bakery treats were greatly appreciated by the
volunteers. Maggie spent a few hours going out on deliveries and felt enriched
by the experience. Everyone worked hard at not making it seem like a charity
giveaway and more like friends helping friends. Seeing the eyes of the kids
lighting up when the presents arrived at their homes was enough to bring her to
tears.

At one house they were met by some hostility from
the father of a large family. He'd lost his job six months before and the
family was teetering financially. He obviously resented the food and toy gifts.
Maggie took him aside and handed him a piece of paper folded up.

"This is from Cody Grainger. It's the name
and address of a job prospect he heard of and mentioned your name to the owner.
This man is ready and willing to talk to you after New Year's so don't lose
this."

She was startled to be picked up in a bear hug,
which brought on more tears, from both her, and the man's, grateful eyes.
"Good luck!" she told him, shaking his hand.

Walking back to the van, it suddenly came to her,
what she could do that would involve her whole heart. She could work with one
of the foundations set up by members of the family. To work with the goal of
helping others, to see their responses, to know she was making a difference in
people's lives--that would be something she could be passionate about every
day. She couldn't wait to tell Eric.

By the end of the afternoon she was tired again
and ready for a nap. Every box of food, every ham, every gallon of milk, and
most importantly, every toy, had been delivered. She went home and collapsed on
the bed face-down, not even taking off her boots.

Eric's lips on her neck woke her up, and she
rolled over and stretched languidly. "Have a good day?" she asked him
as he stretched out next to her.

"Exhausting, but good. I wish I had time for
a nap, but I need to grab a bite to eat and head out to sing."

Over beef barley soup from the freezer, she told
him of her idea of working for one of the foundations. He beamed at her, lips
curved in a big smile, those dark green eyes staring straight into her soul.
"If it's what you want, then I'm all for it."

She felt surprised. "I thought for sure you'd
say I should still go back to school."

"Why bother with that when you could be doing
something you'd love? The only reason to get another degree or more classes
under your belt would be to help you get a job you'd want to work at. It's just
a tool, a facilitator to get what you want."

"Once we get through this holiday season,
I'll talk with Julia and Cody and the others."

"There is something I wanted to ask you
about, before I leave."

"What's that?"

"Did you scream at Maelynne in the street
today?"

"Oh no! I mean, yes, sort of. But where did
you hear about it?"

He was laughing as he got up and took his bowl to
the dishwasher. "A few people were talking about it. Some of them didn't
believe it, but I wondered."

"She knows about the baby and I'm sure she'll
spread it all over town."

"I figured it was something like that. We can
handle it, right?"

"Right," she said, wishing now that
she'd said even more to Maelynne.

He kissed her goodbye and left to meet the choir.
She finished cleaning up the kitchen and realized she needed to get ready to go
to Frank's house. After some indecision in front of her closet, she chose a
sparkly silver shirt that tucked into a very short black wool skirt. Black tights and knee high black suede boots with heels finished off her look.

When she entered through the back door into the
kitchen at the Grainger house, Frank met her with a wide smile. "Heard you
gave it to her, kiddo. Gave it to her good. You did great!"

"Oh wow--does the whole town know?" she
asked, taking off her black wool coat.

"Yes, pretty much. What the--Maggie, what are
you wearing?"

"Clothes. You said to dress up a little so I
did."

"You're a pregnant woman," he said in
loud whisper. "You can't go around in a skirt that short. And your
top--it's all sparkly!"

She looked at him for a second and burst out
laughing. "One doesn't have anything to do with the other, Frank.
Honestly."

He shook his head and went off to find Betsy,
probably to complain to her about the short skirt. Maggie knew the trick to
wearing a skirt this short--basically, don't bend over at all. Soon enough,
Betsy came into the kitchen. She took one look at Maggie and shook her head.

Maggie frowned, but Betsy said, "I'm not
shaking my head at you. It's that man. He's acting like he's old and crotchety.
Congratulations dear, on the baby."

"Thanks, that's nice to hear."

"You can wear whatever you want, with that
perfect body of yours. But right now, you're the most popular person in town
after your altercation with Maelynne. Everyone is on your side."

"My side? And it wasn't an altercation. Just
a bit of, um, shouting."

"But she cried?"

"Well, yes. Although, I'm still not sure if
that was an act or not."

"She is a crafty one, I'll give her
that," Betsy said. "Come on, let's set out cups for the hot
cider."

It seemed to Maggie as if the whole town showed up
for cider and bowls of chili after the carolers arrived. Her confrontation with
Maelynne was the talk of the night. She couldn't go anywhere without someone
congratulating her or thanking her for what she'd done. The party lasted for a
couple of hours, but then people headed home. Most everyone planned on being at
the church later for the midnight service.

Eric came up to her with her coat. "You're
not wearing that skirt into church are you?"

"Why not?" she asked, irritation flaring
up at the disapproving note in his voice.

"Two reasons. First, I'm tired of everyone
here looking at your legs. It makes me want to punch them all in the face.
Second, I bet you can't sit down in that skirt. I haven't seen you sit once in
the past two hours."

"Yeah, that is a problem. I planned to
change. You really want to punch people in the face?"

"Yeah."

When they were back at her apartment, Eric
proceeded to show her just how the short skirt had affected him. It was an
enjoyable hour, after which they slept for another hour.

"I'm going to be awake all night with all
these little naps," Maggie said.

"It's good for you. I read that--"

"Wait. You read up on pregnancy?
Already?" she asked, delighted and touched.

"Sure, of course. I did a complete search on
my computer and downloaded articles to my tablet to read whenever I have time. I
plan to be fully informed. Anyway, the first trimester of pregnancy usually
makes the mother really tired."

"You are so cute," she said, coming over
to hug him.