Too Hard to Handle (Black Knights Inc. #8)(103)

“And scheming,” Becky stressed.

“A lot,” Vanessa said again.

“And to the everlasting exasperation of the men in our lives,” was Michelle’s addition to the conversation.

“And we think you should come to Chicago,” Becky finished.

Penni opened her mouth, but before she could say a word, Becky pointed her sucker between Penni’s eyes. “No. Just hear us out. See, we think it’s unfair to make Dan fly to DC every other weekend to check up on you.”

“That was his decision,” Penni said in her own defense, feeling her cheeks heat. Somehow, with these women sitting in her living room, she felt like she’d done something wrong. Which she hadn’t, but—

“I know,” Becky allowed. “Still, he’s got an important job to do.”

“They all do,” Michelle added.

“And it’d be easier on him…” Becky said.

“On all of us, really…” Michelle contributed. Penni was getting dizzy from the tag-team conversation.

“If you just moved to Chicago,” Becky finished.

For a moment Penni could do nothing but sit there blinking. Of all the presumptuous—

“Not forever,” Becky was quick to point out. Like somehow that concession made her preposterous idea easier to swallow. “But at least for the remainder of your pregnancy. And maybe for a few months afterward as well. When the baby is new and you need help.”

“And you will need some help,” Michelle insisted, nodding knowingly. “Take it from a woman who’s had two. The first three months are the hardest.”

“I—” Penni started, but Becky spoke right over her.

“And I don’t mean you’d have to move into the warehouse. That’s asking too much.” Oh, that was asking too much? Not the thousand-mile move? “But we have a friend, well…” Becky made a face, shoving the lollipop in her cheek. “She’s more of a sister-in-arms, really. Her name is Delilah and her uncle rehabs houses. Last year he redid a three-flat in the Gold Coast.”

“Which is a great neighborhood,” Vanessa insisted. “And only a couple of blocks from Northwestern Memorial Hospital, so super convenient for a woman in your condition.”

“And speaking of your condition,” Michelle said, “there’s a wonderful OB-GYN who works there. You’d love her. She’s this old hippie who has five kids of her own and is totally pragmatic about childbirth. The woman’s a friggin’ rock in the delivery room. Which is exactly what you want.”

“Ladies,” Becky harrumphed. “I’m trying to paint a word picture of Delilah’s uncle’s place here. Stop interrupting me.”

“Oh.” Michelle nodded, rolling her hand. “Proceed.”

“Thank you.” Becky nodded and sniffed like she was auditioning for the role of Queen of England. “See, the three-flat is an old greystone. The top two floors have been rented, but the bottom is free. It’s fully furnished, has these gorgeous dark wood floors, marble countertops, two bedrooms, and a lovely view out the big bay window onto Astor Street.”

“Which is this quiet, tree-lined street right off the Magnificent Mile,” Vanessa added.

“And Delilah’s uncle says you can live there for as long as you need at the family rate,” Becky continued. “Which is free except for utilities.”

Michelle glanced around the condo. “You could easily put all your stuff in storage for a few months. And once you’ve cleared this place out and slapped a new coat of paint on the walls, I bet it’d sell like a hotcake at a hotcake convention. Then, after the baby is born, and when you’re ready to go to work for your uncle—”

“If that’s what you decide you still want to do…” Becky interjected.

“Then all you’ll have to do is pack your bags and call the movers,” Michelle finished.

Penni’s head was spinning. “You guys really have been talking and scheming,” she said, lifting a hand to her throbbing forehead. “But…why would you be willing to do this? Why volunteer to help with—”

“Because we love Dan,” Becky cut her off, her expression plastered with duh. “And Dan loves you and that baby you’re carrying.” When Penni opened her mouth to argue about the first part of that sentence, Becky once again pointed her Dum Dum right between Penni’s eyes. “He’s family, which makes your baby family, and you family by extension. We take care of our family.”

And here Penni had been so scared of what Dan’s friends and coworkers would think of her once they knew. Here she’d thought they’d close ranks around him and push her out. But instead they were opening their arms and offering her a place within the fold. A new family to replace the one she’d lost when—

Oh Christ! Emotions filled her like suffocating smoke, making it impossible to breathe. Her face exploded. Once again it was all tears and snot and deep, racking sobs.

“Hormones,” she heard Michelle say knowingly.

*

303 North Astor Street, Chicago, Illinois

Three months later

Penni was as big as a house, overdue, and on a mission…

Oh, and cranky. She was really, really cranky. In her own defense, carrying around a nearly eight-and-a-half-pound baby—according to her obstetrician’s estimates—who seemed determined to stay inside to practice backflips atop her bladder would put any woman in a bad mood. And have any woman willing to try anything to speed the birthing process along. Hence, the mission.