Blossom Street Brides (Blossom Street #10)(4)

“Did Katie tell you how far along she is?” Lauren asked.

“No. When I asked, she refused to answer.”

Lauren suspected Katie might have been pregnant when she was in Seattle for spring break the previous month. No wonder she’d brought Dietrich home with her. Lauren had met the young man only once and had immediately liked him. He was polite and respectful and seemed intelligent. She remembered watching him with Katie and feeling a pinch of envy at the way he couldn’t keep his eyes off her.

All at once it hit Lauren. A double whammy. Her younger sister was pregnant, and now her dearest friend, who was only a few years older than Lauren, was about to become a grandmother.

Without weighing the decision, she retrieved her cell and called Todd. Generally, she avoided contacting him during work hours, but he wasn’t on the set until right before noon. As best she could figure, he would be sitting in a chair in the makeup room.

He answered on the third ring. “Hey, honey, what’s up?” Todd sounded rushed and a bit distracted. She half expected him to remind her that it wasn’t good practice to contact him while he was at work.

“Can you meet me tonight?”

“Tonight?” he repeated. “Can’t. I’m taping a story for the eleven-o’clock report.”

“What about Thursday?” Any night was fine for what she had in mind. Lauren had made her decision.

“Thursday it is,” Todd agreed. “Be sure and watch the noon news. And I’ve got a lead on a great story. I’ll tell you about it later. We’ll talk more about it on Thursday. Gotta go.”

With that, the line was disconnected. It wasn’t until she heard the buzz in her ear that she realized she hadn’t had time to ask where they should meet or what time.

Chapter Two

Bethanne Hamlin Scranton waltzed into A Good Yarn wearing one of the biggest smiles of her life. This happiness felt as if it would explode right out of her if she didn’t share it soon.

“Lydia, oh, Lydia,” Bethanne cried, so full of joy it was difficult to hold still. “I’ve got the most wonderful news.”

“Max is coming for the weekend,” Lydia guessed.

“No, it’s even better than a visit from my husband.” Max was living in California, where his wine-distribution business was located, while she lived in Seattle because of her party company. It meant weekend trips from either him or her, which was a ridiculous way to be married, but Bethanne didn’t want to think about that now, not when her heart was this full.

“Okay, I give up,” Lydia said, laughing. “Tell me.”

Bethanne practically skipped to the front of the store near the display window and gestured toward the baby blanket artfully draped over a bassinet.

Lydia’s eyes widened and she covered her mouth with both hands. “You’re pregnant?”

“Not me. Courtney. I’m going to be a grandmother.”

“Oh, Bethanne, that’s wonderful news.” Lydia laughed and briefly hugged her. “I remember when I first met Courtney and what a shy, withdrawn teenager she was. And now she and Andrew are going to have a baby?”

“Max doesn’t know yet, but I guarantee he’s going to be as excited as I am.” She already suspected what her husband would say. He’d claim she’d be the sexiest grandma he’d ever known. Bethanne nearly blushed at the thought. They’d been married more than a year now, and while it was a strain to live apart, they remained deeply in love. While it sounded like a bit of a stretch for her to be pregnant—an impossibility, since her tubes had been tied—it wasn’t from lack of bedroom activity. Fifteen months out and it was as if Max and she were still on their honeymoon.

Love the second time around had come as a surprise to Bethanne. Grant, her first husband, had been her college sweetheart. They’d married, had two children a year apart, and then, after twenty years, without warning, Grant had left her for a younger woman. As a stay-at-home mom, Bethanne had been sent reeling, facing an uncertain future.

She’d needed to reinvent herself, and with trepidation, she had. Not once did she expect to fall in love again. But then life seemed to be filled with surprises, and some of those surprises, mainly Max, were simply wonderful.

“I want the pattern and yarn for that baby blanket,” Bethanne told her friend. “I can hardly wait to start knitting.” The thought of her first grandchild filled her with excitement and joy. She’d knit the baby blanket, but already she was thinking of two other patterns she wanted to tackle. This child would lack for nothing.

The smile left Lydia’s face. “Oh, Bethanne, I’m sorry. I’ve sold out of that particular yarn, but I have a new shipment coming in on Thursday. I can put five skeins aside for you if you want.”

“I do. I’ll stop by Thursday afternoon and pick it up. Can I come around five?”

“That would be perfect. The shipment is sure to have arrived by then. Lauren Elliott is stopping by around that time, too.”

“Lauren Elliott … Lauren Elliott,” Bethanne repeated. “Why is her name familiar?” She tapped her index finger against her lips. Generally, she was good at remembering names, a necessity in her party business, with so many repeat customers.

“Lauren works at John Michael Jewelers.”

“Oh, yes. I was in the shop not long ago, and she was helpful.”