Page 54 of Baby Me

Chapter 14

Kate

“Good morning,sleepy head. I made youbreakfast.”

I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arms above my head. It had been too long since I’d been able to wake up without stress or worries. My father had been found, Cortez was dead, Mike Donaldson was behind bars, and the FBI director was awaiting his sentence. From the looks of things, he would end up in prison as well. Most importantly, Cameron was awake, and we could finally begin a somewhat more peaceful life together. Maybe less stress would allow us to get pregnant more easily. Cameron certainly seemed to get us off on the right path last night when we’d made love until neither of us had any strength left. And this morning I was paying for it by sleeping in and definitely running late. We had a lot of preparations to get done before Christmasdinner.

“Ahh, coffee. It’s exactly what I need.” I reached for the cup Cameron was holding in his hand, but he pulled it away, saying, “Actually, I have some herbal tea waiting foryou.”

“Herbal tea? You know I don’t drink herbal teas. I need caffeine.” I reached for the cup once more, but he wouldn’tbudge.

“No, you don’t. I have to take care of you, and caffeine is not good foryou.”

“Hah! Tell that to myhead.”

I finally grabbed Cameron’s coffee from his hand and took three long sips. “Perfect. I already feel better. Why are youfrowning?”

“No reason,” he grumbled. “Join me forbreakfast?”

“Of course. You and my parents were chatty last night. What were you talkingabout?”

I hopped out of bed and hurried to the bathroom to pee and brush myteeth.

“Nothing. Just some last minute dinnerpreparations.”

I spat out the frothy mint and turned toward him. “You’re not the one who’s taking care ofdinner.”

I finished brushing my teeth, and wearing my jogging pants, went downstairs to the bustling kitchen before Cameron had a chance to catch up tome.

“Good morning, Kate.” Mary was sitting at the dinette table reading an article on hertablet.

“Good morning, Mary.” I stopped short of bumping into a beautifully set table with everything you could ever want for breakfast and felt my mouthwater.

“Cameron ensured that the whole family was well taken care of,” Mary said withpride.

“Cameron didthis?”

When did he havetime?

“Aha, so Kate.” Mary removed her glasses from her nose and set her tablet aside. “I’ll be honest with you. I’m ready to be a grandmother again, so if you and Cameron are thinking about a baby, there’s no better time than the present. I mean, I’m not sure how long I’ve got left on this ticker.” She pointed to her heart, grinning, guilting me into agreeing with her. But I did want a baby. We would have a baby; it would just taketime.

“I understand what you’re saying, Mary, and it’s not for lack of trying. I would love nothing more than to give you agrandchild.”

“Oh, honey, well, you know, they say that sometimes a little whiskey gets the blood going just the right way and makes everything flow mucheasier.”

Was Mary a little drunk? It was only ten in the morning. And as the thought passed, I watched her reach under the table as if she were doing something illicit and bring out two glasses and a bottle ofwhiskey.

“Have a seat, Kate. The room won’t spin as much if you’re on your bum.” She hummed the last word as if singing. Marywasa little tipsy, and it was the cutest thing in the world. Just as she finished pouring me a glass, Cameron stormed into the kitchen scolding, “Mother!” He grabbed the glass out of my hand. “What do you think you’redoing?”

“I think we’re about to create a new family tradition of whiskey in the morning,” I chuckled, but he looked so serious he could kill. “Cameron, relax, will you? It’s justwhiskey.”

“It’s not just whiskey.” He poured the orange liquid into the sink and set the empty glass on the counter with asigh.

“Was it poison?” I askedjokingly.

“No, it’s not poison,” he sighedreluctantly.

“Well, thank God because you’re certainly acting like it is. Okay, Mary, what’s the cooking plan look like for today?” Iasked.

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