hear it.”
That would be nearly impossible in my lifetime, but I stuffed down the immediate pang of longing and pasted on a half-smile. “You’re beautiful and definitely not carrying a freakishly large baby.”
“Says you,” Erica muttered as she finally got free of her special chair.
I waved off Kinleigh who was trying to come forward to help. “C’mon, Ric. Let’s empty the tank, and I’ll buy you a deviled egg.”
Erica bit her lower lip. “You saw deviled eggs?”
“I sure did.”
“Okay, deal.” She slid her arm through mine. It took an extra five minutes to get to the bathroom from her slow shuffle and sea of Ramos relatives.
Finally, Erica held up her arms. “I’m going to pee all over you people if you don’t let me by.”
And just like that, the Red Sea parted. I laughed and followed her into the bathroom.
Erica rushed into the stall and slammed the door. “You finally get out of the sheriff’s bed, hermanita?”
I leaned against the counter. “Oh, don’t you start.”
Erica let out a whoosh of relief. “I swear, if I go twenty minutes between trips to the bathroom, it’s a miracle.” The toilet flushed and she came out, waving me out of the way. She washed her hands and took the paper towels I handed her.
She cocked her hip on the counter. “You look well…rested.” She lifted her chin and narrowed her eyes. “You’re using double protection, right?”
I stared at my toes. “Don’t worry, I’m aware of the baby water in this town.”
And oh, how I wished it would actually happen in my case. But non-fully functional ovaries didn’t work well, especially when they were also getting bombarded by cysts. Luckily, I hadn’t had the cyst problems in almost a year, but a lot of damage had been done.
Maybe too much.
Erica nudged my chin up. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Just a lot of craziness right now.” I definitely wasn’t putting that on my sister. Not when I could see the fatigue lines around her eyes and mouth. So, I went with the default crazy subject—Jared. “Sleeping with your best friend is weird. Especially when he’s the sheriff and people are nosy as hell and insane stuff keeps happening.”
She crossed her arms, resting them on her impressive belly. “Go on.”
I lowered my voice. “We got pulled over by his deputy.” I laced my fingers together. “It wasn’t good.”
Erica tipped her head back and her laughter echoed around the bathroom. “Oh, girl. You will have to get used to that. Do you know how many firemen have interrupted us at this point?”
“This was just Christian, but ugh. So embarrassing, especially since he actually gave me a speeding ticket the same day.”
My sister’s laughter doubled and bubbled up with tears at the corners of her eyes. “No.”
“Oh, yeah. Thanksgiving—that’s why I was late.”
“And you were all hookered up.”
I put my hands on my hips. “I was not hookered up.”
“Nena, you were definitely wearing a ‘Let’s Get It On’ outfit. And if the energy in the room wasn’t lying, I bet you did.”
“Whatever. Anyway.”
My sister snorted.
“Anyway, it’s weird. Intense. Amazing.” I blew out a breath. “But weird. And I don’t know where it’s going and it’s just a mess.”
“Look, we all knew you two would get your shit sorted eventually. Personally, the eventually was way longer than I thought it would be. I lost—”
“You did not put money in that betting pool!”
“Oh, I did. I figured you’d cave on your birthday.” She gave me a little shrug. “Both of you are too stubborn for words.”
“I can’t believe you.”
“I’m not sure you’re aware of the vibe you two give off.”
I held up a hand. I really didn’t need another person speaking to me like I was oblivious. Even if I was. “I’ve been told.”
“Yeah, well, enjoy it. Ride it. Do whatever you want with all that energy.”
“But—”
Erica pointed that finger at me again. I really hated that finger. “You need to learn to have a little fun. Both you and Jared need to loosen up. Enjoy one another, and Dios, wear a condom or seven.” She rubbed the side of her belly. “This Crescent Cove magic is no joke.”
Like that was going to happen.
“Well, let’s get you back to that princess chair.”
She rolled her eyes. “Bless Kinleigh, but that chair is nuts. We’re totally keeping it in the storage room for future parties though.”
I laughed. My sister, ever the marketing queen. “Well, you can park your butt in it first, and then we can open all those gifts.”
Her dark eyes sparkled as