The Pregnancy Plan. Grace Green

of them, while Mandy and Lacey played in the shallow end with Todd.

      Felicity turned up after about twenty minutes. She was carrying a tray, with a pitcher of lemonade, a stack of plastic glasses, and the baby monitor. Setting the tray and monitor on the picnic table by the pool, she stood for a moment, adjusting the straps of her amethyst one-piece swimsuit.

      “You’re looking terrific,” Lacey called. “You’ve put on a few pounds with this last baby, but it suits you.”

      “Thanks, Lacey! So…where did Jordan and Dermid disappear to?”

      “I don’t know. I haven’t seen them since you and I went out to the car to get the presents.”

      Just as Felicity made to jump into the water, Todd started to fuss.

      “Want a drink! Want out!”

      Mandy had been holding him; now she carried him to the steps and her mother reached down and hoisted him up.

      “A woman’s work,” Felicity said with a laugh, “is never done!”

      Mandy retrieved her beach ball which had drifted away, and shouted, “Catch, Aunt Lacey!”

      For the next while, Lacey played with Mandy, until Felicity interrupted them.

      “Lacey, can you come out? I need to talk to you.”

      She sounded so serious, Lacey felt a jolt of surprise; surprise that changed to concern when she saw her sister-in-law’s unhappy expression.

      “And Mandy—” Felicity took Todd’s empty glass from him “—will you come out, too, and take Todd over to the cabana and get him changed? I think he’s ready for a nap and I want to have a chat with Aunt Lacey.”

      Lacey climbed up the steps, and wringing out her sodden hair, walked over to Felicity. She waited till Mandy had taken Todd to the cabana before saying anxiously,

      “What’s wrong, Fliss?”

      “Oh, Lacey, it’s so sad. When I tell you, I know you’ll be so upset—” She broke off as Jordan came out of the house. “Shh,” she whispered. “I can’t tell you just now, not till after Dermid’s gone. Please don’t say anything to Jordan. Not yet.”

      The pool area was surrounded by chain link fencing, and as Jordan opened the gate, he called,

      “Hey, Jack, come on out now. You and your dad have to leave in about ten minutes.”

      “Are you going to drive him?” Felicity asked.

      “No, I’m afraid I have to go back to the office…”

      Jordan was manager of one of the North Shore’s top real estate firms, and Sunday, at this time of year, was always one of the agency’s busiest days.

      “…but,” he added, “I said you’d drive him, Lace. Okay?”

      Lacey bit her tongue. “Sure, no problem.”

      Jordan turned toward the house. “Ah, here he is.”

      Jack clambered out of the pool and ran to his father. “Do we have to go now?” he asked. “Can’t we stay for a while longer?”

      “No,” Dermid said. “It’s time we were going.”

      “Aw!” Jack pulled a long face. “I was having a good time…”

      “Why don’t you let him stay for a few days?” Felicity suggested. “You could come back for him on the weekend.”

      Dermid turned to Jack. “Do you want to stay on, on your own?” The child never had before.

      “Sure! Thanks, Dad! Thanks, Aunt Felicity.” And without further ado, Jack tore off and yelling to his cousins, “I’m staying!” he plunged into the water again.

      Smiling, Jordan turned to his brother-in-law. “So Lace will drive you to the ferry, whenever you’re ready.”

      Dermid’s eyes met Lacey’s. His were cool. “Thanks,” he said, “but I’ve called a cab.”

      Lacey lifted one shoulder in a careless shrug. “Fine.” What a boor the man was!

      “Well, guys, I’ll have to go now,” Jordan said. “Thanks for coming over, Dermid. I know this isn’t your kind of ‘do,’ but Fliss and I have always appreciated the effort you’ve made to keep Jack in close touch with his cousins.”

      “We know it must have been hard at first, coming here without Alice.” Felicity patted his arm. “But I hope it’s become easier, with time.”

      Dermid said, “Alice would have wanted it this way.”

      “You’re right, she would,” Jordan said, giving Felicity a warm kiss goodbye. “Okay, folks, I’m off. Bye, all!”

      Once he’d gone, Dermid stood chatting with Felicity for a few minutes, until they heard the toot of a car horn.

      “That’ll be your cab.” Felicity turned to Lacey. “Will you see Dermid out, Lace? I don’t want to leave the children alone in the pool.”

      “Not necessary,” Dermid said quickly. “I can see myself out—”

      “Oh, but I insist!” Lacey said, with exaggerated graciousness. “My list of faults is long enough without adding bad manners to it!”

      And with her nose in the air, she led him into the house and out through the foyer.

      As they passed the hallstand, she noticed, sitting on it, the bag containing whatever it was that Dermid had bought at the Caulfeild Mall. He’d set it there when he’d come in that morning.

      She indicated it, and said, “Is that for Felicity? Did you forget to give it to her?”

      He paused in the open doorway. “It’s for you.”

      “For me?”

      Frowning, she scooped up the bag and looked inside and saw a lovely box of very expensive Belgian chocolates.

      Taken completely by surprise, she said, “Thank you, Dermid! I have such a weakness for chocolate and these are my favorites!” So, the man had a soft spot after all. Teasingly she said, “What is this? A peace offering?”

      His eyes were beautiful and unique in color—the whisky brown of a Highland stream, Alice used to say. But those same eyes which had glowed with love when he looked at his wife, now flattened with denial when he looked at his sister-in-law.

      “It’s a thank you,” he said curtly. “For picking me up at Horseshoe Bay.”

      He could have slapped her and she wouldn’t have felt more wounded. Or humiliated. But gritting her teeth, she swiftly rebounded from his nastiness.

      “Of course,” she said. “I should have known. I feel sorry for you, Dermid McTaggart. What a petty mind you do have! What I did was a favor. And a very small one at that. But could you accept it? Oh, no. No way. It would never do for the almighty McTaggart to be beholden to anyone, and certainly not to me. Well, I’d like to take your fancy Belgian chocolates and shove them…well, you can guess where. But I won’t. Unlike you, I do possess some of the social graces, and I do know how to accept a gift!”

      Before he could stop her, she reached up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

      Then standing back, she said, “Maybe that’s not the way it’s done where you come from, McTaggart, but that’s the way it’s done here. A smile, a thank you, and a friendly kiss. You know the old saying: while in Rome, do as the Romans do. I hope you’ll remember it in future!”

      With that, she whirled away, leaving him to see himself out…and good manners be damned!

      Clouds had drifted in from the west and when Lacey returned to the garden, she felt a drop of rain on her arm.

      Felicity said, “We’re going