"She might be a he," Elena said. She was scooping Faith up into her lap as Jenna finally waddled into the kitchen. "Hey! Good morning!"
"Someone let me sleep too long." Jenna shot a fake scowl toward Reece, who was busy with the pancakes and bacon.
Brent lifted his head to grin at her, his ripped arms bulging under the white T-shirt. At the moment, those perfect muscles were being put to good use setting the table. "I'm pretty sure that robe's older than you are," he said. "Didn't your mom used to wear it?"
"No comment." Jenna felt a little twinge; her mom was living in Florida now, but had plans to fly out as soon as the baby was born to help. Jenna couldn't wait to see her again. And hopefully, she wouldn't want her robe back.
"Want me to make you a decaf?" Elena asked as Faith wriggled back to the ground.
"Just juice," she said, taking the one on the counter that Reece was pointing to, already poured and ready for her.
"I'm sorry." Faith spoke in the kind of whisper that carried, her little hand tugging on Jenna's robe.
"What are you sorry for, sweetie?" Elena asked as she stood and walked toward Jenna.
Faith's eyes went wide. Out of everyone in the room, Faith was the only one who knew that Jenna was having a girl. Reece had said he wanted to be surprised, but Jenna had wanted to know--although keeping the secret was ridiculously hard, especially since Reece had told her he was hoping for a little girl.
All of their friends had followed Reece's lead, and Jenna had been about to bust with the secret. Then one night she was babysitting Faith and the little girl asked whether the baby would be a boy or a girl.
They'd entered into a secret pact, involving drinking the sparkling light of the stars (Sprite) and eating the core of the earth (crushed Oreos). And then Jenna had told Faith that the baby was a little girl.
Now, Faith looked about to cry.
"She's not supposed to run in Charlie's halls," Jenna explained, flashing a quick smile to Faith as she tapped the end of the little girl's nose. "But she won't do it again, will you?"
"Nope." Faith shook her head, obviously relieved.
"I think you should tell Elena that she should be the one cooking," Jenna said to Faith, mostly to distract the girl.
"I should? But Uncle Reece always cooks."
"He does. But did you know that Elena is cooking with Tyree now? Do you want to watch later?"
"Is Uncle Tyree coming over?"
Brent laughed. "No, Short Stuff. Some other time. But Elena and Tyree sometimes tape it when they're experimenting with recipes. And then they put it on YouTube."
Faith jumped up and down, clapping her hands. "I wanna watch! Can we?"
Jenna caught Elena's eye. "That cool with you?"
"Sure. I make a fool of myself half the time, but it's fun learning to cook with my dad."
"A fool, my ass," Brent retorted. "She's a natural. Which means I'm going to have to go to the gym twice as much."
Elena moved to his side and kissed his cheek. "Don't worry, baby. If your muscles go soft, you still have your sparkling personality."
He pulled her close and bussed her neck, making her squeal. He peeked over her shoulder at Jenna, then winked. "Ticklish," he said. "My secret weapon."
At the oven, Reece chuckled, then ordered them to get a room.
Faith, looking around at the grownups, appeared uncertain as to whether she should be laughing or leaving. Finally, she went to Jenna and tugged on her robe. "Can I go play in the backyard until breakfast?"
"Sure," Jenna said. She glanced at Reece, remembering that his circular saw and other tools were still set up out there from where he wa
s working on Charlie and Enid's bathroom cabinets. A quick, silent conversation passed between them, then Jenna smiled down at Faith again. "Why don't I go with you? Elena, you want to come too? We can leave the guys to their manly kitchen chores."
"I don't know. If we leave, we might miss Brent in an apron."