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Three weeks later, Annie found herself in first class on a plane headed to Atlanta from Bluegrass Airport. Brian and Leighanne had insisted on paying for her ticket, and even bought Drew his own seat, insisting that they’d done plenty of traveling with a small child and that having Drew in his carseat was definitely the way to go. She looked over at the sleeping baby and thanked her lucky stars that they were able to book a flight during his nap time. Her heart skipped a beat when the pilot’s voice blared over the intercom declaring that they were cleared for takeoff, and as the plane taxied down the runway, her fingers gripped the arms of her chair until her knuckles were white. When the plane picked up speed, she could feel the contents of her stomach starting to rise in her throat and her head started to spin. Hot tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and she gulped in an attempt to keep her stomach under control. In the icy grip of fear, she thought of Andrew, and once the plane had stopped its climb and leveled out safely in the air, she opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Then, Drew started screaming.

A flight attendant immediately jumped into action, bringing him cookies, juice, and crayons, but to no avail. “I guess you share my fear of flying, don’t you, sweetie?” Annie glanced up to make sure the seatbelt light was off, then unstrapped him from his car seat and dug around in the diaper bag one-handed for toys and a pacifier, but he continued to wail for the next hour and a half. He finally quieted down and fell back asleep just as the plane started its descent into Atlanta. Annie was so exhausted that it didn’t even occur to her to be frightened, and when the plane finally rolled to a stop at the terminal, she stayed seated and mumbled about a hundred apologies to the other exasperated passengers who stepped off the plane.

The flight attendant helped her ease Drew into a stroller and collect her carry-ons, and when she finally arrived at baggage claim, Brian who was already waiting with her luggage, stepped into action and took the carseat and diaper bag off her hands. “How was your flight?”

Annie’s eyes shot daggers at him. “I hope you like having house guests, because I’m pretty sure no one is going to be able to convince me to get back on a plane alone with that child before he’s twenty.”

Brian pursed his lips to keep from laughing. “That good, huh?” She literally growled at him. “It gets better. I promise,” he assured her.

“How did you know those were mine?” Annie asked, motioning to the dark purple suitcases at Brian’s feet.

“Well, they were pretty like you, so I took a guess.” She raised an eyebrow. “And...most everyone else had already gotten their luggage, and your name’s on them. At least, I think that’s your name. Annie is short for Andrea?”

Annie laughed. “Unconventional, I know. When I was born, my older brother, who was three at the time, couldn’t pronounce Andrea, so he shortened it to Annie and it stuck.”

“So you and your husband were Andrea and Andrew?”

“That’s why I call this one Drew,” she said, giving the stroller a little shove.

“I see.” Brian ushered her to his car, somehow managing to carry a carseat and diaper bag, and roll three suitcases along, while still opening and holding doors. He installed Drew’s car seat in the back like an expert and made sure Drew was gently secured inside without waking him before he held open the front passenger side door and motioned for Annie to climb in. This was all new territory for Annie. She was used to doing everything by herself, but she had to admit that it was pretty nice. “I hope you’re hungry,” Brian said once they’d gotten on the road. “Because Leighanne is preparing a dinner of epic proportions. You should come visit more often.”

Annie giggled. “For all you know, I could be a terrible house guest.”

“I doubt it.”

Baylee came tearing across the yard when they pulled into the large, circular driveway. “Annie! Drew!”

“Baylee!” Brian scolded as he stepped out of the car. “No running! You have a broken arm! And no yelling. Drew’s asleep.”

“Sorry!” Baylee whispered. “Hi, Annie.”

“Hey, kiddo. How’s the arm?”

“Good. I finally get to move it. See?” He swayed his arm back and forth awkwardly. He had traded the immobilizer sling, which wrapped around his body and kept his arm propped up against a cushion, for a traditional sling. “The bone doctor here says I can get my cast off in twenty-nine days!”

“He’s counting,” Brian, who was pulling suitcases out of the trunk, chimed in.

“I’d be counting, too,” Annie told Baylee. “This place is amazing,” she remarked, looking up at the sprawling mansion in front of her as Baylee ducked inside.

“This is all Leighanne. Speaking of...”

Leighanne pushed open the front door and stuck her head out. “Hello, Annie, how was the-?”

“Don’t ask her about the flight,” Brian interrupted, placing a suitcase on the front steps.

“Okay.... Drew didn’t handle it very well, I take it?”

“No. Not at all,” Annie sighed. She climbed into the backseat and pulled Drew out of his car seat. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at her with a smile. “We’re here, baby boy,” she cooed.

“Oh my gosh! What happened to his hand?!” Leighanne exclaimed.

Annie gently turned his right palm towards her and studied it. The cut was healing nicely. “He was ‘helping’ me unload the dishwasher faster than I could put the dishes up, and threw a glass in the floor. He grabbed a piece before I could react. I felt terrible.”

“You hear that, Leighanne? This one unloads the dishwasher. Maybe we should get a newer model,” Brian jabbed.

“Brian, that’s terrible!” both women scolded in unison.

“I didn’t say we should trade him in. I just said maybe we should get a new one.” He cast a glance in Leighanne’s direction and wiggled his eyebrows.

“Oh, no. This kitchen’s closed, mister,” Leighanne insisted, pointing to her abdomen.

“That kitchen, however...” She gestured inside the house. “Has a pot roast I need you to lift out of the oven.”

“I’m pretty sure that by now, she’s just keeping me around for the free labor.” Brian gave Annie a wink and strolled inside.

Leighanne showed Annie the guest room, where they had set up Baylee’s old portable crib and encouraged her to rest for a few minutes while Brian kept an eye on Drew and she finished dinner. Annie complimented her on her decorating and hospitality, and Leighanne beamed proudly. Just after they’d sat down for dinner about half an hour later, the doorbell rang. “We aren’t expecting anyone, are we, Bri?” Leighanne asked.

“No.” Brian took the napkin out of his lap and placed it on the table. “I’ll go see who it is.” He jogged to the front door and looked out the peep hole. “What the?” He threw open the door and looked at the man in surprise as a taxi cab drove away. “Nick?! What are you doing here?”