If anyone was capable of understanding what it was like to make a mistake, it was Kay. Maybe it was time to allow someone to see him—the good, the bad, and the shameful.

For the first time in a long time, Eli wondered if it was time to come home in more ways than one.

CHAPTER FIVE

KAY WOKE CHRISTMAS morning to soft light coming through the blinds. Hope slept peacefully in the borrowed playpen, her bottom in the air as she clutched her blanket. Kaylee had been worried about how Hope would adjust to a new environment, but it looked like her daughter wasn’t the one she needed to worry about.

Julia had been kind enough to offer her a pair of boy shorts with the tags still on that she’d purchased for herself just the previous week, a pair of pajamas, and a sweater to wear the next day. Kay had taken a shower the night before, so she stripped down to her new underwear and then dressed in the borrowed sweater and her jeans. She was really thankful for everything Julia had offered, but it was a little weird to be wearing Eli’s mom’s clothes.

Yeah, because that’s totally sexy.

She cringed a little at the thought but shook it off. It wasn’t much, but at least Eli hadn’t looked at her the way he usually did, like he couldn’t wait to get away. They’d had a lot of fun last night watching the kids playing with their toys, and she wasn’t going to let anything ruin her holiday spirit. Especially not insecurity about her figure. She got enough of that from her mother—she didn’t need to add to it.

Next week she’d be sure to stop by the mall and buy Julia something really nice to say thank you. While she was there she’d pick up something for herself, too. It was time she started loving the body she was in. It might not be perfect but it was hers.

There was a soft knock at the door. She rushed to answer it before the sound woke up Hope.

Ridley stood in the hall and turned when Kay opened the door.

“Merry Christmas,” she whispered. “I heard you moving around and I wanted to ask what you like for breakfast. I’m trying to surprise Julia by cooking for her. She usually gets up before everyone else and makes breakfast, but I wanted to do it this year.”

Kay stepped out into the hall, pulling the door closed gently behind her. “Oh, I think you’ve surprised her already.”

Ridley flushed with pleasure. “I surprised myself.”

They walked down the hallway and into the wide, open, eat-in kitchen. Raina and Penny sat at the dining table drinking coffee.

“Good morning. And here I was thinking I was up early,” Kay joked.

Raina moved over slightly so she could sit down. “This is my usual hour now that Jada has decided she really likes play time at three a.m. She always goes back to sleep a few hours later, but then I can’t go back to sleep.”

Kaylee winced. “Sorry. Hope went through that phase, too. I think she actually had her nights and days mixed up at one point.”

Penny looked between them uncertainly. “Now you guys are scaring me. I think I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“Me, too.” Ridley pulled out a mixing bowl from beneath the counter. “I feel like I cheated a little bit since I got to be a mom without going through those rough early years. That’ll all be changing soon.”

Kay got up and stood behind Ridley as her friend pulled out pancake mix, eggs, and bacon. “What can I do to help?”

Ridley handed her the carton of eggs. “I’m putting you on scrambled-eggs duty. I would ask Raina, but the last time she made breakfast I think we were in high school.”

Raina didn’t seem offended by her sister’s statement at all. “Hey, I’m good at stuff. Just not things that are useful most of the time.”

“We all have our talents,” Ridley replied, then turned to Kaylee. “So, I noticed you seemed pretty cozy with my buff brother-in-law last night.”

Kay was in the middle of cracking an egg and missed slightly, dumping little pieces of shell into her egg yolks. With a sigh, she accepted the fork Ridley handed her and fished the pieces out.

“We weren’t cozy. He was just keeping me company so I wouldn’t be alone. That’s all.”

Penny and Raina exchanged glances over their coffee cups.

“What? He was keeping me company. There was a lot of family stuff going on and I didn’t want to get in the way. I’m an only child, so I have no idea how this stuff works.”

“We didn’t say anything,” Raina drawled. “But if I had said something it would be girl, are you sure you can handle Eli?”

“No, there’s no Eli and me. There’s certainly not going to be any handling.” Heat rushed to her cheeks as she realized how that sounded. “No handling of anything. Definitely not… that.”

The other girls snickered, and Ridley fanned herself with an oven mitt. “Are you sure? Because it looked like you two spent a lot more time talking than he would bother with if he was just being polite.”

Kay shook her head frantically, trying to get her thoughts together. “If there’s anything there, it’s mostly on my side. Basically our whole relationship is me drooling after him and hoping he doesn’t notice.”

Penny got up and poured herself another cup of coffee. Then she took another look at Kay and poured her one, too. “You look like you could use this.”

Kay took a big gulp. “He picked me up,” she blurted after a moment.

“What?” Raina stood too and leaned against the counter next to Penny.