The Bookshop on the Corner (A Gingerbread Cafe story) by Rebecca Raisin Read Free Book Online

“And that’s why I love you! But truthfully…” her brow furrowed “…do you think we’re too old? Tommy is nearly fifty. Who would’ve thought it would happen this late?”
    Behind the sunny façade Missy had hidden her anguish about not falling pregnant like a pro. Every now and then we’d be lolling on her porch having Friday-night cocktails and she’d confide in me how much she yearned for a child, but almost instantly she’d back it up with a positive spin, and tuck the conversation away for another time. To think her wish would finally come true after all these years made my heart almost burst with happiness. “You’re going to make great parents! And you’re only as old as you think you are, right? Thirty-five is the perfect age for a mom.” I squeezed her hand, before sitting on a stool next to her.
    “I have no idea how it finally happened when we’d put the thought out of our minds for good.”
    “Babies come when they’re ready. Maybe this one—” I patted her still-flat belly “—was waiting for the right time.”
    Her eyes were glassy with tears. “That’s what Tommy says. Maybe we are finally ready. You know me, always a little slower to catch on than most,” she said self-deprecatingly.
    I hugged her curvaceous frame tightly. “This baby is special. She’s been searching for the perfect mom, and now she’s found her.” Missy would make a wonderful mother. I could already picture the baby, dressed in a gorgeous outfit, snuggled up in an elegant fluffy blanket.
    “She?”
    “Of course! You can’t really dress up a boy with bows and ribbons, can you?”
    She wiped her tears away, and laughed. “You know, I thought the very same thing, but I am sure I could work out some way to outfit a boy a little snazzier.”
    “I don’t doubt that for a minute. How far along are you?”
    “Nearly ten weeks.” She placed a hand on her stomach protectively. “We found out for sure yesterday. It was so hard not to tell you, but I didn’t want to make a big deal of it in case it was a faulty test, or something. We saw Dr Lewis yesterday and he confirmed it. I’ll tell everyone else when we get to twelve. I’m not usually superstitious, but, in this case, suddenly I am.”
    “Lil and CeeCee are going to be crazy with excitement. There’ll be parties, baby showers…”
    “I can’t wait!”
    “Let’s find you that book,” I said.
    “Nothing with pictures. I don’t want to be traumatized.”
    I giggled at Missy again, and promised I’d find her a book that guaranteed a smooth delivery.

Chapter Six
    Missy stockpiled books for expectant fathers and one glossy upbeat book on maternity for herself, before heading back to her shop with promises of meeting for lunch. I tried to get back to my novel, but my mind was as scattered as the leaves on the pavement.
    I was overjoyed my best friend had this wonderful news to celebrate, but it did bring me crashing back to earth with an almighty thud. My singledom at almost thirty made me feel like some kind of failure, as if there was something wrong with me. I tried to shrug it off and get back to my book but the text on the page in front of me blurred. It was one of those moments where you knew you were about to have an epiphany, something miraculous, if only you’d listen to your subconscious… I gasped when the words formed in my mind.
    Was I being too fussy about men?
    Only wanting to settle for someone as dashing as a hero in one of my books? I cradled my head in my hands and groaned; maybe that kind of man simply did not exist. Was I expecting the fairy tale, and thus eradicating any chance of love?
    Something niggled at me. What if the fairy tale did exist? A man as buff and suave as any hero, with brains and brawn, and a sexy smile reserved only for me. No; I lifted my head, pulled my shoulders back. I wasn’t going to compromise. I wanted the guy in the books. The book boyfriend must come to life. Otherwise there was no