Free She's Having a Baby by Marie Ferrarella Page A

delivers your baby—”
    MacKenzie knew exactly where Dakota was going with this. “It’s a woman. And she’s married,” she added for good measure. She sighed haplessly. “Doesn’t your plane ever land?”
    Dakota slipped her arm from MacKenzie’s shoulders. “I could remember a time when yours didn’t.”
    â€œThat was before I took on extra luggage.”
    Dakota kissed the top of her head, giving her a quick, warm squeeze. “We’ll get through this,” she promised softly.
    MacKenzie was grateful for the unquestioning show of support. It helped her rally. Wiping away one stubborn, wayward tear with the back of her hand, she straightened and began to cross to the door.
    â€œI’d better get back to the reptile search before the show’s called off on account of snake.”
    With that, she left the room before Dakota had a chance to say anything else to her. Right now, MacKenzie was feeling very, very fragile. Damn those stupid hormones anyway.
    She was going to get through this, MacKenzie told herself, just as Dakota had said.
    She had no choice.
    Â 
    They finally found the snake. The reptile was curled up in Dakota’s chair on the set. Nora quickly returned the offending snake to its cage just in time for the show. Things went more smoothly after that, but there were still a thousand details to see to before the tape was wound up and then another thousand details to address regarding the next day’s show.
    It felt like forever before MacKenzie could finally go home.
    She was definitely dragging by the time she got into her Mustang. The only bright spot was that one of thestaff gofers had gotten her car an oil change. At least she didn’t have to worry about suddenly breaking down before she got to her complex the way Quade’s expression seemed to prophesy that she would.
    As she pulled into her parking spot that evening, MacKenzie felt as if all the energy had been siphoned out of her body. She’d turned down Dakota’s invitation to join her and her brand-new husband for dinner. She didn’t much feel like company.
    Until she saw the car parked next to hers.
    She didn’t recognize the vehicle, but it was in the space assigned to the apartment next to hers.
    Which meant it belonged to Bare-chested Man, she thought.
    MacKenzie glanced at her watch. It was just before seven. Her new neighbor had reminded her of the type who left early for work and stayed late.
    Wrong again.
    â€œBatting zero, aren’t you, Zee?” she murmured to herself as she got out of her car. She certainly hadn’t been able to read Jeff well, had she?
    With a sigh, feeling as if she weighed a thousand pounds instead of someone who had actually lost three pounds since the onset of her pregnancy, MacKenzie shrugged to herself. These things happened. If she were being utterly honest, things between her and Jeff probably wouldn’t have worked out. She’d sensed that even before he’d sprung the news about his reconciliation with his wife on her.
    There’d just been something missing in their relationship, that x factor she knew was necessary. The onethat kept turning your knees into Jell-O even beyond the first few dates. The kind of feeling that Dakota had confided to her she had whenever she saw Ian.
    That was what she wanted.
    â€œGood luck,” MacKenzie muttered under her breath. Oh, she fell “in love” fast enough, but she never stayed there emotionally after the initial shine began to wear off.
    Which meant that she was probably going to die alone.
    No, a small voice inside of her contradicted. Not alone. You have a baby .
    Oh God, how was she ever going to be a mother?
    As she approached her apartment, she saw that there was something taped to the door. To make the day perfect, that would have to be an eviction notice. Or a raise in rent.
    God, when had she become this pessimistic?
    Coming closer, MacKenzie