Emily squeezed her shoulders when she reached her. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
Tara waved her comment away. “We were just offering to give Charlotte a hand. Anyway, I can see you have it all figured out. We should get going. See you both soon.”
Ruby fell into step behind her mom, and the two of them rounded a corner and disappeared. As soon as they did, Charlotte wheeled around and raised an eyebrow. “What was that about?”
“Addison called and asked me to check on you. She’s still stuck with a client and couldn’t get away,” Emily explained, her eyes moving over the items in the cart. “I was on the way when I saw you go into the store. I see you’ve got an eye for bargains.”
Charlotte sighed. “Not really, but the doctor said I should watch what I eat. It’ll increase the chances of…you know.”
Emily’s eyes flicked up, and she held her daughter’s gaze. “He’s not wrong. Looks like I got here at the right time too. Tara’s like a dog with a bone. I love that woman, but she doesn’t know how to take a hint.”
Charlotte snorted. “I’m sure she’s not that bad.”
Emily fell into step beside her and draped an arm over her shoulders. “She isn’t, but it’s better not to take any chances. You’re still not ready to tell anyone, right?”
Charlotte’s throat tightened. “No…I’m sorry you’re having to keep this from your family though. I know I haven’t put you in an easy situation.”
Emily stopped in front of the frozen food aisle, where packets of food were placed in large freezers. “Sweetheart, you don’thave to apologize. This is your decision to make, so whenever you’re ready, you just let me know.”
Charlotte’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank you. It’s just a big deal, and I don’t want to screw this up.”
There was so much riding on her, not just Addison and Mason’s marital happiness but her own happiness too. Charlotte didn’t want to go back to her old life, going through the motions with one foot out the door. Now that she’d taken the leap, she wanted to freefall through the skies.
Charlotte just prayed she didn’t fall flat on her face on the jagged rocks below.
Swallowing, Charlotte pretended to scan more of the items on the shelf. “How’s Savannah taking it? Is she still pissed?”
Emily blew out a breath. “You know your sister. It takes her a while to warm up to things, and she’s just worried about you, but I’m sure she’ll come around.”
Hopefully, sooner rather than later.
In silence, the two of them wandered through the rest of the supermarket, picking up and setting down several items as they did. The entire time, Charlotte felt like other shoppers were watching her, judging her.
But she dismissed it all as paranoia.
She hadn’t, after all, done anything wrong.
Her mother helped her carry the shopping bags out to the car and insisted on driving her back home. Emily held one of her hands the entire time and wouldn’t leave until the groceries had been put away. Then, she gave her daughter a long hug and lingered. Charlotte didn’t realize she was crying until her mom left, and she was by herself again.
What was the matter with her?
She wanted this to happen, so she couldn’t understand why she was all tied up in knots about it.
Chapter Fourteen
“I’m really sorry, but I don’t want to get anyone sick.” Libby pulled the phone away from her ear and gave another exaggerated cough. “I can work a double shift when I’m feeling better.”
Maggie said something in the background, her fingers moving steadily over the keys. “Don’t worry about it. I got you. Do you need me to bring anything? Some soup or ginger ale?”
Libby faked another sneeze and tacked on a loud cough for good measure. “No, I appreciate this, Mags. You’re the best.”
“Feel better soon, hon.”
As soon as Libby hung up, another surge of guilt made her stomach tighten. She tried not to think about it as she finished the last of her coffee and oatmeal. Then, she stood at the sink, letting the cool water soothe her jumbled thoughts. When she was done, Libby patted her hands dry and glanced around the kitchen.
When she poked her head into Annie’s room, her foster daughter was shoving books into her backpack. “You ready to go?”
Annie grunted in response and gathered her hair into a high ponytail.
