When Girlfriends Step Up by Savannah Page Read Free Book Online

attributed to my lack of inspiration and the temporary withdrawal from the creative world I often enjoyed slipping into. I hadn’t picked up my paintbrush and dabbled in watercoloring, nor had I brought out my sketchbook, since I discovered I was, in fact, pregnant. Normally I found a way to sketch or paint three or four days a week, even if it was just a little doodle here or there. I was starting to feel naked or barren because I hadn’t recently escaped into my personal artistic frame.
    Not that the creative muse was speaking to me lately. If I wasn’t busying my mind with book cover art, or trying to make sure my slate was as clean as possible at work in hopes of earning that raise or snagging that project manager position, I was fretting over Brandon ignoring my call. And I was wondering if I was doing everything right, pregnancy-wise. Make sure you’re at work on time. Oh, and don’t drink that coffee! Wait, I’m getting a call. Is it Brandon? Oh, no. Don’t let your dramatic personal life sneak into your work life. Mock-ups? What? Sure thing, definitely! Wait! Get those eight hours of sleep and meet those deadlines. Life had quickly become a marathon. It was exhausting. No 10k or half-marathon I ran during my track and field days in college could have prepared me for this race.

    ***

    “You think two bags of tortilla chips is enough?” Sophie asked, inching herself through my front door, both arms carrying two overflowing paper bags of groceries. Her chin kept one of the bags balanced. “I didn’t want to go overboard.”
    I laughed as I took a cantaloupe from the top of one bag, letting her relax her chin.
    “Overboard?” I exclaimed. “Honey, I don’t think one more bag of chips would matter at this rate. How much stuff do we need?”
    “Dang it, so I should have gotten three, huh?” I took one shopping bag from her as she followed me into the kitchen. “I knew it. Should have gotten more than two.”
    “I’m not hitting any crazy cravings, yet, Sophie. I think two bags will be plenty.” I started sifting through my bag’s contents. “What on earth did you get?” I pulled out a bottle of Bloody Mary cocktail mix. Wouldn’t be riding that boat for a while. “And what’d you get for me? Some a-ma-zing Ginkgo biloba, gluten-free, lactose-free, tasteless vegetable shake?”
    “Don’t be such a goof,” she said. “Ginkgo biloba isn’t allowed for pregnant women. Not enough scientific research about it. And it could affect insulin and blood sugar levels. Don’t take it.”
    “God, someone’s really been doing their homework. You sure you aren’t pregnant?”
    “Ha-ha. You’re reading that book, right?” She was starting to sound like a mother. That was Lara’s role, generally. Lara, perhaps because she had been our camp counselor back in our first year of college, was always considered the maternal friend. I appreciated her looking out for us, and she couldn’t help her personality or the role she was placed in when we all met one another. But one mom-like friend in the group was enough.
    I told Sophie that relaxing reading in bed meant picking up a Jennifer Weiner book, not Baby Expectations or Expecting the Unexpected or whatever that baby book of mine was called.
    We chatted about work and about how Claire and Conner were doing while we prepared homemade guacamole. The two recently had an ongoing argument about getting married, and about a possible move to Conner’s hometown of Los Angeles. Claire wanted to get married and stay in Seattle, where she had her friends and a great job as a social worker working with elderly and disabled patients. She even made their adorable rented home over in nearby Madison Park a real home for the two of them and their dog, Schnickerdoodle…plus Sophie now.  
    Conner didn’t want to talk about marriage, insisting that he could still be true to Claire and love her with all of his heart without bringing up the dreaded ‘M’ word. But the