Elizabeth laughed. "Craig always has been his own man." She nodded slowly. "You're right, Rebecca. Holly is our first blonde."

Holly held up her hands. "We're just friends. Jordan and I don't date."

Knowing looks were exchanged. Holly felt herself flush. "Sandy, throw me a pillow, please," Jill said. She grabbed the pillow as it flew toward her, then tucked it under her back. "Everything hurts. Little people like me aren't supposed to puff up this much. It's fine for you tall types."

Rebecca tossed her long, dark, curly hair over her shoulder. "Jill is our poor little troll."

"I'm not a troll, I'm short. Something people like you can't appreciate. Do you know what it's like to never be able to reach the top shelf at the grocery store? I have to stand there waiting until a tall person walks down the aisle. It's humiliating."

Sandy leaned back against the sofa and sighed. "I can't believe you've already got Craig's three boys and you're going to have another child."

Rebecca, Elizabeth and Jill stared at her, then laughed.

"You had three kids, then had a fourth with Kyle," Elizabeth said.

Sandy nodded slowly. "I know. I can't believe Jill was as foolish as I was. Four children. Do you know how much laundry that is?"

"I refuse to think about it. Anyway, Louise will come to help." Jill touched her belly. "I know it's going to be a lot of work, but it will be worth it."

Rebecca leaned forward and grabbed a plate of cookies. She took two, then pa.s.sed it on to Sandy. "You don't regret the baby for a minute," she said.

"You're right," Sandy said. "Although four is a handful. That's why this afternoon is so wonderful. In fact-" she glanced at Holly "-you might never get rid of me."

"At first I thought the men taking their children to get Christmas trees and not taking the wives was a bad idea," Jill said. "I thought I might feel left out."

"Don't," Elizabeth told her. "It's cold out. The children constantly have to go to the bathroom, although not at the same time. They argue, they whine, they can't agree on the tree they want. Oh, and the men will come home with huge monstrosities that won't even begin to fit in the house." She took the plate from Sandy and picked out a couple of cookies, then handed it to Holly. "It's much better to stay in here and be warm. We have witty conversation, no husbands, no children. Gee, Holly, Sandy's right. None of us will want to leave."

"You're welcome to stay as long as you like."

Elizabeth winked. "Oh, sure. We believe that."

Sandy started to prop her feet up on the coffee table, then froze and looked at Holly. "Is this a valuable antique?"

"No, it's Jordan's."

"Whew! Okay then, let's trash the place."

Everyone laughed. Holly joined in and felt some of her tension ease away. These women were nice to her, and she appreciated that. She enjoyed their company. By the end of the day she would probably be able to figure out who was married to whom. Except for Rebecca, who wore a dark wool jumper over a cream turtleneck, they were dressed in jeans and sweatshirts. No one had on a lot of makeup or expensive jewelry. They were friends, and they obviously welcomed Holly into their circle. She wished she could tell them how much that meant.

Elizabeth looked at Jill. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired, even though I've been sleeping well."

"It gets worse."

Jill grimaced. "I sort of figured that. When are you going to have another one?"

Elizabeth poured herself a cup of coffee. "We've been talking about it. Little Jessica is nearly two. If we're going to do it, now's the time. I want another baby. Of course, that would mean three girls." She shook her head. "You know what they say."

Holly stared at her. "About having girls?"

Elizabeth nodded. "With boys you just have to worry about one-" she pointed to her lap "-you know. But with girls you have to worry about all of them."

Laughter exploded in the room. When they had quieted, Jill said, "I think you should have another baby."

"We're thinking about it, too," Rebecca said. "Of course, not being married to an official Haynes brother, I have the option of either a boy or a girl."

Jill glanced at Holly. "How long have you known Jordan?"

Holly cleared her throat. She reached for her coffee, then changed her mind. Better to not have something to spill. "A few weeks. After my apartment was destroyed in that last big storm, he offered to let me live here for a while. I'm helping him restore the house in return for room and board."

Jill stared at her. "You're living with him?"

Holly felt color flare on her cheeks. "No," she said quickly, then realized she was.

"They're not living together," Rebecca said.

"What would you call it?" Jill asked.

"Louise is here," Elizabeth said. "I'm sure everything is very circ.u.mspect."

For the second time in ten minutes, laughter broke out in the room. "A Haynes brother behaving himself," Sandy said. "Oh, that's new." Her smile faded. "I suppose out of all of them, Jordan is the most likely to be a gentleman."

"The first time I met Travis, he picked me up and carried me," Elizabeth said. "It was very romantic."

"Fine for you," Sandy grumbled. "The first time I met Kyle after I moved back here, he came riding up on his motorcycle, all tanned and muscled. I couldn't even speak. There I was, a grown woman with three children, and I couldn't form entire sentences. I didn't know whether to throw myself at him or run away screaming."

"I was naked," Jill said brightly. Everyone turned to stare at her. "Okay, maybe not naked, but I was just wearing a skimpy little robe. I thought it covered me just fine, Craig later told me it didn't. He spent our whole first conversation in a very uncomfortable state."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "I believe Rebecca has the best story of all."

"It's silly," Rebecca said, and nibbled on a cookie.

Jill brushed her short red hair off her forehead. "I don't think I ever heard this story. What happened?"

Rebecca waved her hand. "Nothing."

"Not nothing." Elizabeth picked up her coffee and gestured with the cup. "Rebecca had a crush on Austin. It was very tragic. She couldn't even be in the same room with him without knocking something over or spilling. So one day she went to see him."

Rebecca drew in a deep breath. "If the story has to be told, I'll tell it. Although I don't know what purpose it serves."

"Entertainment," Elizabeth said.

"I went to see him at his house. It was raining, and my car got stuck. When the storm got worse, he lost his phone, so we couldn't call for a tow truck." She folded her hands primly in her lap. "There. Are you happy?"

Elizabeth grinned. Her brown eyes danced with amus.e.m.e.nt. "That's not the whole story. Tell us the good part."

"I had to spend the night."