The Fall - Book 2

268. Baked goods are an excellent form of bribery.

JANUARY 29, 2021 — DELACROIX — RÉA

Bucky and I are in Delacroix; Sarah had called Sam earlier in the week, asking if he could come down to help her work on the boat. She'd insisted he bring me, Bucky, and Conall, and we'd happily accepted the invitation and tagged along.

My husband and Sam have been working on the boat for a couple of hours; while they've been doing that, I've been having an inner debate, and have finally reached a decision.

"Sarah, could we run into town, please? To the grocery store? I'd like to fix supper tonight, if that's alright with you."

"Sure, Réa! You know I won't turn down your cooking!"

"Great! I also thought I'd bake a batch of cookies...figured they might be a good afternoon snack. Plus, it'll give me a chance to try out the Silpat I got yesterday at that baking supply store in Lafayette."

"You're adorable...excited about bakeware," my friend gently teases.

"Let me get Conall ready, then tell Bucky what we're doing, and I'll meet you at your car?"

"Sounds good."

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When we get back from the store, I feed Conall, then get supper—steak chili—going in the slow cooker while Sarah happily holds my son. Once the stew is cooking, I begin mixing up a simple sugar cookie dough, then get Conall down for a nap. While the dough chills in the refrigerator, Sarah and I fix an easy lunch of turkey sandwiches and carrot sticks. It's sunny outside, and even though it's slightly chilly, it's not uncomfortable; I grab the baby monitor, and my friend and I carry plates out to the guys so that the four of us can eat on the dock.

After lunch, Sarah and I get to work on the cookies; for most of them, we just use the scoop-and-roll technique, placing balls of dough on the Silpat-lined baking sheet, but for one of them, I roll out the dough, using the cookie cutter I got—'just in case'—yesterday.

"You come up with the best ideas," Sarah tells me as I slide the baking sheet into the oven. "That's something relatively simple, but so creative and unique."

"Thank you. Let's hope it works out in practical application," I reply.

"It will," she reassures me.

As the cookies bake, Conall wakes up from his nap; I get him situated in his bouncy seat in the living room, and Sarah and I settle onto the couch, falling into easy conversation. She tells me a bit more about her and Sam's childhoods, and what it was like helping their parents with the boat and the business. When she leaves to pick Cass and AJ up from school, I clean the kitchen, then check on the chili, giving it a quick stir before adding the finishing touch to the single cut-out cookie.

I've just finished placing the last of the regular ones on a couple of plates when the front door bursts open, and AJ comes sprinting inside, Cass hot on his heels.

"Mom said you made cookies!" AJ excitedly exclaims.

"I did. Why don't you and your brother sit down and get started on your homework," I nod toward the kitchen table, "and I'll bring you both a couple of cookies and a glass of milk."

"Yes, ma'am," the boys reply in unison.

Once they're settled, I give them their snacks, then strap Conall into the wearable baby carrier and grab the smaller plate of cookies I set aside for Sam and Bucky.

"I can't believe you got them to do their homework on a Friday," Sarah says as we walk to the dock. "I've tried that so many times, telling them that if they just go ahead and get it done on Friday, they won't have anything to do over the weekend besides relax. Well, I mean, obviously their chores, but they knock those out within an hour."

"Baked goods are an excellent form of bribery," I tease. "If you want, I'll make a couple more batches of cookies, and you can freeze them. That way, they'll be on hand. And when you run out, you can always let me know. After all, I'm only a blink away."

As we approach the boat, we see Bucky and Sam sitting on the deck, drinking beer.

"Hey! You two are supposed to be working...this looks like slacking off!" Sarah teasingly calls out.

"We're done for the day. We need some parts, but I'm going to have to go to Lafayette to get them. That's a tomorrow project," Sam tells her as we climb aboard. He looks at me, his gaze zeroing in on the plate in my hands. "Did you make cookies?!"

The excitement in his tone makes me smile. "I did."

He reaches out, making grabby hands.

"Manners, Sam!"

"Réa knows I have impeccable manners," he tells his sister. "She's lived with me for years."

"Yeah, well, so have I...and I'm questioning whether or not you've forgotten them."

As the pair lovingly bicker back-and-forth, I hand Sam the plate, taking the cut-out cookie off.

"Hey, that one's a wolf!"

"It is," I nod.

"What, no falcon-shaped one?"

"But you're not Falcon anymore...you're Captain America."

"But I still have the wings!" He hesitates briefly, catching the pointed look Sarah gives him. "Thank you, Réa, for baking."

"You're welcome, Sam."

Turning to Bucky, I hand him the cookie: a wolf silhouette, that I sketched a wolf on using food-colouring markers.

"Thank you. This is almost too nice to eat," he tells me.

"You're welcome. And I took a picture of it, don't worry."

He's just started to lift the cookie to his mouth when Sam speaks again.

"Wait. That one's a wolf. And you gave it to Bucky."

He leans forward, resting his forearms on his knees, and looks at me with what all of us call his 'thinking face'...squinted eyes, furrowed brow, and a slight frown. Suddenly, his eyes fly open wide, and he sits up straight.

"OH MY GOD, ARE Y—"

"SAMUEL THOMAS WILSON, IF YOU DON'T SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Sarah interrupts him. "Come on, let's go back to the house."

With a broad grin at me, Sam follows his sister, leaving Bucky and I alone on the deck of the boat.

My husband is staring at the cookie as if it holds some sort of secret...which I suppose it does. I see the moment he figures it out, because he looks up at me with a brilliant smile on his handsome face.

"Réa?" he asks, his tone tentative, but full of happiness, as his eyes bounce between me, our son, and the cookie, then back to me.

I smile back at him, my heart so full . "So, just to make this extra-clear.... I'm pregnant!"