Spring Fever (54 page)

Authors: Mary Kay Andrews

BOOK: Spring Fever

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Mason took the bottle and popped the cork, which brought a small “mew” from the startled Olivia, who looked around, took in the scene, and then promptly dropped back to sleep. He handed cups all around, and even poured a tiny bit for the children.

“To Pokey and Olivia,” Pete said. “My two favorite girls in the whole wide world.” He went through the motions of touching cups with the grown-ups and the children, and then settled on the bed next to his wife, dropping another kiss on the top of her head.

“Here, here,” Mason said.

Pokey raised her own glass and took a huge gulp of champagne. “Come on, everybody,” she urged. “Don’t make me drink alone. I’ve been waiting nine months for a taste of something stronger than iced tea.”

Denning, the oldest, took a wary sip. “Gross!” he said. “Quixie’s lots better than this.” He took his cup and dumped it into the sink, and Sophie and Petey loyally followed suit.

“Annajane?” Pokey said, pointing at her friend’s empty glass.

“None for me, thanks,” Annajane said, with a barely suppressed grin, looking over at her best friend and sister-in-law. “But if you had some skim milk—and some prenatal vitamins, I could go for that.”

“What!” Pokey screeched. “Seriously? Does this mean what I think it means?”

“Yes,” Annajane said, leaning her head on Mason’s shoulder. “I’m pregnant. We just found out. Can you believe it?”

Pokey looked from her beaming brother to her teary-eyed best friend. “What I can’t believe is that it took you this long.”

Sophie giggled, and Pokey gave her a look of mock outrage. “You already knew, didn’t you? And you kept it a secret from all of us?”

“Yup,” Sophie said. She proudly removed her bulky quilted jacket to display the T-shirt she’d been hiding underneath.
I’M THE BIG SISTER
! was written on the white shirt in glittering silver letters.

Pete was pumping Mason’s hand. “Congratulations. When’s the big day?”

“Fourth of July,” Mason said.

“Give or take a day or two either way,” Annajane cautioned.

“It’ll be the fourth, no matter what, as far as I’m concerned,” Mason said. “The most important day of my life.”

“Why’s that?” Pete asked, looking from Annajane to Mason.

“Because that’s the day Daddy saved Mama,” Sophie volunteered. “It was a long time ago. She was dressed up like a pixie, that’s an elf, kind of, for the Fourth of July parade, and some bad boys pushed her down, but then Daddy rode up in the fun car and saved her.”

“And she saved me right back,” Mason said, wrapping his arms around Annajane’s waist.

“And they lived happily ever after,” Sophie declared. But Annajane snaked an arm around Sophie’s waist and drew her into an embrace that had finally, finally come full circle. “
We
all lived happily ever after,” she said, gently correcting her daughter.

ALSO BY MARY KAY ANDREWS

Summer Rental

The Fixer Upper

Deep Dish

Savannah Breeze

Blue Christmas

Hissy Fit

Little Bitty Lies

Savannah Blues

About the Author

MARY KAY ANDREWS is the
New York Times
bestselling author of
Summer Rental, The Fixer Upper, Deep Dish, Blue Christmas, Savannah Breeze, Hissy Fit, Little Bitty Lies,
and
Savannah Blues
. A former journalist for
The Atlanta-Journal Constitution
, she lives in Atlanta, Georgia. Visit
www.marykayandrews.com
.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

SPRING FEVER. Copyright © 2012 by Whodunnit, Inc. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.