The Misadventures of the Laundry Hag by Jennifer L. Hart Read Free Book Online Page B

Whoever she was, she deserved privacy and I turned the knob when she rose from the bubbles and all of my thoughts derailed.
    “Hey there,” Uncaring of her nudity and my open-mouthed gape, she stepped from the tub and reached for a towel, which refused to meet ends over her hugely pregnant belly. “You must be Maggie.” Her voice held the thick syrup of the South.
    Water cascaded down her figure from her wet hair, and she plucked a second towel from the rack to swath her head in, turban-style.
    “Yeah, I’m Maggie. I’ll, uh, wait out there.” Offering a wan smile I slipped out into the hall where my brother stood. Marty wouldn’t meet my eyes. So I got in his face.
    “Care to explain?” I huffed, mortified and out of patience. Neil was gonna shit monkeys.
    “This isn’t how I planned this, you know,” Marty’s tone was belligerent, but laced with guilt. “Penny was tired after the drive and I tried to call your cell, but it kept going to voicemail. So I figured she could clean up while we waited.”
    My temper was at the boiling point and I dragged Marty down the hall to my bedroom so Penny wouldn’t hear me erupt. I needn’t have worried, the drone of the hairdryer filtered into the room.
    “She’s pregnant, Marty! At least five months along! Correct me if I’m wrong but five months ago, you were still living with Dee in the Bronx!”
    “I know that!” Marty huffed and ran a hand thru his hair.
    “Were you cheating on Dee? Is that why you two broke up?” Dee was a zoologist at the Bronx Zoo, and she had been great for Marty. At least until wanderlust had taken hold of him yet again.
    For a moment, Marty looked hurt, much like the sixteen-year-old boy I had raised after our parents’ deaths. I squelched the nurture impulse—he was a grown man now and needed to be aware of the consequences of his actions. “I’ve never cheated on a woman in my life, Maggie. Dee wanted someone steady and dependable.”
    I pointed sharply in the direction of the bathroom. “And this girl doesn’t? Cripes Marty, in a few months she’s gonna have a baby!” “I’m great with kids. Kenny and Josh love me.” “It’s not the same. You’re the favorite playmate, but you get to give them back at the end of the day.”
    My brother raised his chin in a gesture of stubborn defiance. “I can learn how to be a parent, same way you did. It’s not like any of those shmoes crapping out kids right, left and sideways gets an owner’s manual or how to for dummies.”
    The drier cut off and I lowered my voice to a menacing whisper. “This isn’t a game you can walk away from when you get bored, Sprout. Babies especially depend on you for everything. You don’t get vacation or sick days.”
    He opened his mouth to respond but I held up a hand as the front door slammed. I closed my eyes, searching for the right words to explain the situation to Neil. Unfortunately, I took too long.
    “No luck with the camper, Uncle Scrooge. You in here?” His soft footsteps stopped outside of the bathroom. I heard the hinges squeak ominously.
    Oh hell, no. I shoved Marty aside and flung open the door. Neil was struggling to get his T shirt over his head, probably intent on taking a shower, just as I had been. Penny’s towel had been shucked and I caught her reflection in the mirror as she eyeballed the broad expanse of my husband’s chest.
    Neil’s shirt gave way and he took a breath, as if to continue but let it out in a whoosh when he realized he was being ogled by a pregnant stranger.
    “Helllooo handsome,” Penny drawled.
    I shot Marty a death glare and sprinted to close the bathroom door.

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    Chapter Five
    “Sylvie come on, open the door.” I stood outside my friend’s house and begged. Neil had gone to pick up the boys from school and I couldn’t stand to be in my house with Marty and Penny for another minute. Everything about Marty’s Baby’s Mama annoyed the daylights out of me. Her favorite song was Redneck Woman