“Please, Mom, not you too. Blakely won’t let up about this nonsense either.”
“Well, forgive us if we see something you might not see.”
“You’re coming up with things in your head.”
“Mm-hmm, so this dress you’re wearing has nothing to do with him?” She looks me up and down.
“Can’t I wear a nice dress?”
“Penny dear, you know I love you, but the dress you’re wearing isn’t necessarily something you’d wear while having an intimate dinner with your parents. That’s more of an intimate one-on-one dress, if you know what I mean.”
“Mom, fashion advice from you, the turtleneck queen, won’t necessarily be on point.”
She chuckles and takes my hand. “So you’re telling me those second trimester hormones haven’t kicked in?”
I gulp.
“I, uh, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She just smiles. “Okay, honey.”
And then we walk toward the dining room, where Eli is setting down the breadbasket, and Dad is bringing over the salad.
Like the gracious host he is, Eli asks everyone to take a seat before pulling out my chair and helping me take a seat. My mom eyes me suspiciously, but I just ignore her. It doesn’t help that Eli drags his hand over my shoulder before walking away. Doesn’t help at all.
He takes the next few minutes to retrieve drinks for everyone, rejecting all help and telling us to just relax. He moves around my kitchen effortlessly, serving everyone lasagna with poise and ease, and he waits until everyone has taken a mouthful of their dinner before he starts his own.
“Wow, this lasagna is incredible,” Mom says. “I might have to steal the recipe from you, Eli.”
Eli winks, and my ovaries flutter. “I’ll be sure to write it down before you leave.”
“Is this beef?” Dad asks, jabbing at the meat with his fork.
“Yes, sir.”
“Delicious,” he says before taking a forkful into his mouth.
“And he didn’t burn the garlic bread. He’s a keeper,” Mom says while picking up a piece of bread.
Chuckling, Eli asks, “How long are you both in town for?”
“We leave after tomorrow night’s game,” Dad answers. “We can only catch one game. Unfortunately, I have a knee replacement surgery in a few days I have to prepare for.”
“Oh wow. That seems pretty serious? Old injury?” Eli asks.
“I used to play some hockey back in my day, and I took a stick to the back of the knee during an exhibition game. I have post-traumatic arthritis as a result, and the operation should provide more mobility and less pain. So we’re taking care of that.”
“Pacey mentioned you used to play.”
“Yes, that was back when we didn’t have all the protective gear you have now. We were real men on the ice.”
Mom guffaws. “More like real idiots.”
Eli and I both chuckle at the same time, which of course causes us to glance at each other, and the warmth I see in Eli’s eyes puts a smile on my face.
“What about you two?” Mom asks, butting into something she shouldn’t. “Have you thought about what you’re going to do when the baby gets here?”
“Not really,” I answer. “Still taking this all day by day. Because of the hockey season schedule, Eli hasn’t been able to go to a doctor’s appointment. Granted, I’ve really only had a few, but it’s all still new.”
“Do you have any ultrasound pictures?” Mom asks.
I wince. “I did.”
“You did?” Eli asks, looking surprised.
“Yes, but, uh . . .” I take a deep breath. “God, this is humiliating. I was at the park, looking at the pictures while eating a pretzel, and mind you, I hadn’t really had anything to eat all day because of nausea, and the pretzel was really hitting the spot. A gust of wind hit me, and the picture blew out of my hand and into the bay.”
“What?” Eli chuckles. “You never told me that.”
“Well, for one, it’s embarrassing. How great of a mom will I be if I can’t even keep pictures safe? And two, I didn’t want to disappoint you, so I didn’t mention it.”
Eli turns to me and places his hand on mine, his large palm covering my hand completely. “Penny, you’re going to be an amazing mom.” My mom audibly sighs. “And if you think about it, you kept the pretzel safe, which is most important, because of nutrients for the baby.”