“Yes I do, but more importantly, if it gets you to shut up...” MacKenzie shook her head, suddenly fed up with the direction the conversation was going. “Oh, just lead the way!”
“MacKenzie is going to take a bath before she gives...” MacKenzie slapped Aviva hard on the back to suppress the completion of her sentence. “... out her presents,” Aviva finished lamely. Out of the corner of her mouth, Aviva whispered, “Good save, right?”
Poor thing, MacKenzie thought. Everyone was looking at Aviva as though she had lost her mind, everyone except Jake.
MacKenzie thought, Jake needed to pay more attention to his family and the Christmas festivities and less to her. It appeared that every time she looked around he was staring at her. Just like he was doing now; his gaze seeming to say he knew what she was thinking and feeling. However, thankfully he said nothing.
Holding his stare, MacKenzie projected her thoughts: Stay out of my damn business, Jacob! He gave her a knowing smile, and before she could think better of it; she poked her tongue at him. MacKenzie was stunned when he licked his lips in return.
It took her a few moments, but she finally rolled her eyes at him in dismissal. Throughout their exchange, both had been totally unaware that they had become the center of attention. Still blissfully unaware of anyone’s scrutiny, MacKenzie stuck her nose in the air and allowed Aviva to lead her out of the room.
~~~~~~~~~~
Once they were in the hallway, Aviva snaked her arm around MacKenzie’s back for support as they walked toward the sweeping staircase. The broad smile on her face showed that she was amused by what had just taken place. Aviva was also positive that MacKenzie was completely unaware that she and Jake had just been the object of everyone’s curiosity.
“What are you smiling about?” MacKenzie demanded.
“Nothing,” Aviva smirked.
“Well, stop it, you look like a damn fool!”
“Am I to take it that labor turns one into a prize cow?” Aviva teased.
“One can take whatever one likes and suck on it!” MacKenzie returned tartly.
“Geez, don’t take it out on me because you can’t keep your eyes off Jakey darling.” Aviva knew she was perhaps pushing too far, but she couldn’t help herself. The dynamics between MacKenzie and Jake were just too delicious to bypass an opportunity to tease her.
“You don’t know shit. All that man does is irritate the hell out of me. He did it the first time I met him, and he’s doing it now.”
Aviva’s snort of derision caused MacKenzie to snap her focus toward her and frown.
As MacKenzie’s sherry-colored eyes settled on her with genuine irritation, it took all of Aviva’s willpower to hold back her laughter. She didn’t know what was going on between MacKenzie and Carlos, but she knew by Carlos’s absence on Christmas Day, that the situation between them was rocky at best.
She also recognized that now was not the time to seek answers about the state of MacKenzie’s relationship. Aviva made a mental note to find out what was going on between her friends once they got MacKenzie through the birth of her goddaughter. Aviva had no doubt that the baby was a girl. She already had the baby’s layette ready, and it contained a lot of pink.
Chapter 2
As Aviva steered her towards the staircase, MacKenzie became worried. She had been having pains on and off all day. She knew she probably shouldn’t have gotten on an airplane, but there was no way she was going to miss Aviva’s wedding.
Now that she was in New York, MacKenzie was worried. On her drive over to the Kingdom residence, she had been glued to her cell, checking the weather forecast every couple of minutes, just in case she needed to get to the hospital on short notice. It now seemed all her concerns were warranted. The contractions were still far apart, but she knew with certainty that her baby was going to make an appearance very soon.
Standing at the foot of the stairs, MacKenzie had an overwhelming urge to confirm the weather forecast. Pulling away from Aviva, she made her way to the large double front doors and turned the handle. Nothing, it was stuck. MacKenzie looked over at Aviva, confusion written across her face; MacKenzie tried again. As she struggled with the door, Aviva came to her aid, placing herself behind MacKenzie, they both struggled to open the door. Even between them; the solid wooden doors remained tightly closed.
Suddenly, in a complete reversal of suction, the door was released. The sudden force of the movement pushed the women back with more power than either of them expected. Aviva staggered backwards, unable to support MacKenzie’s body against the sudden ferocity of the elements they had unwittingly unleashed into the foyer.