The Detective's 8 lb, 10 oz Surprise by Meg Maxwell Read Free Book Online Page B

to finally be able to help out around here.”
    Over the next few hours, as Gram and Annabel got busy making sauces, from Creole to barbecue to white gravy for chicken-fried steak, and Clementine set up the dining room, Georgia baked two chocolate layer cakes, three pies—blueberry, apple and lemon meringue—and two dozen chocolate-chip cookies. They talked and laughed and reminisced and gossiped and it was as if Georgia had never been gone. Then Gram and Clementine left for the farmers’ market, and Annabel headed to the door to get home for lunch.
    â€œDo you instinctively know what to do?” she asked Annabel, who was stepmother to her husband West Montgomery’s five-year-old daughter. She and West had married back in April in a business arrangement to save both Hurley’s and West’s family—but the two had realized how much they loved each other and their marriage became very real. “Or have you had to learn as you go?”
    Annabel smiled. “I’d say a bit of both. Sometimes I surprise myself. Sometimes I’m so afraid to say or do the wrong thing. But even when I do, it works out because my heart is definitely in the right place. You know?”
    Georgia nodded. “But at least a five-year-old can tell you you’re braiding her hair too tightly or whatever. With Timmy—and with my own baby—I’ll have to figure it out for myself. What if I figure wrong?”
    â€œYou’ll do fine,” Annabel said. “I don’t have experience with babies either, but moms I know always say you’ll just figure it out as you go and you can quickly tell the different between cries. One waaah means hunger, another means pick me up, another means wet diaper.”
    Georgia bit her lip. “Sounds complicated.”
    Annabel dug into her tote bag and handed over a thick book. “I almost forgot! I borrowed this for you from West’s bookshelves. Your Baby 101. ”
    Georgia smiled. “Thanks. I definitely need this.” She slipped the book into her own tote bag. “Thanks for everything, Annabel. And for sending Nick Slater to me in Houston in the first place. I’m sorry I worried you. I wish now I’d just told you what was going on.”
    Annabel nodded. “Well, I understand why you didn’t. But who knew that my sending a detective to check up on my older sister would end up with said sister pregnant with his baby? Not me.”
    They both laughed, but then Georgia’s smile disappeared and she wrapped her sister in a fierce hug. “Thank you, Annabel. And I know I’ve said it too many times already, but I am so sorry. You entered into a business-deal marriage to save Hurley’s.”
    Annabel smiled. “Well, I would have done that if Hurley’s had been in the black too. I really married West to stop his former in-laws from trying to sue for custody of his daughter. Now we’re all one big happy family, in-laws included.”
    â€œI’m so happy for you.” Georgia loved the joy she saw in her sister’s eyes.
    â€œNow our big happy family is going to get one person bigger,” Annabel said, eyeing Georgia’s belly. She glanced at her watch. “I’d better run. See you later.”
    Alone again in the kitchen, except for napping Timmy, Georgia was sliding the last of the pies from the oven when Timmy began to stir and then let out a wail.
    Georgia took off her oven mitts and then rushed over to Timmy, scooping him up from the basinet. “I’m here, sweet boy,” she cooed. “Let’s change your diaper. Hey, I am getting the hang of this.”
    She glanced at her watch. Just after eleven-thirty. She and Nick hadn’t made any kind of plan for today, and for all she knew, he was off investigating Timmy’s mother. Or maybe he was home, reading through the case files and using the internet and phone to investigate. She’d left him a note saying