Babycakes

by Donna Kauffman

  Birdie’s expression took on a pensive look and her gaze drifted out past the pool, toward the pergola and the dunes that backed the property.

  Sensing Birdie’s nerves were getting the best of her again, Kit said, “Don’t worry about Lilly. She’ll come around. I think today will be a big step in that direction.”

  “If the dear thing isn’t completely overwhelmed. I still feel like a complete boob for all but scaring the poor child off at our picnic. I—”

  “You were understandably excited, and she was understandably nervous. She’s a great kid, though, and she’ll come around. Just give it time. Even if it’s not today—”

  “Oh, I don’t plan on pushing things at all today. I thought it would just be good for us to be in the same crowd together. No pressure that way.”

  “I’m glad it’s working out for you both to be here.” Kit had a very good feeling about it. She just wasn’t sure how things would go between her and Morgan. She’d worried the intensity of the chemistry between them, now that they’d given in to it, would be all but impossible to hide. After their last conversation, she prayed being together wouldn’t be awkward.

  She knew she’d disappointed him, but having thought it all over . . . she’d make the same choice again. Yes, they shared something unlike anything she’d experienced before. But that didn’t make it automatically worth taking such a big risk. There was a lot at stake. She was just getting to level ground with herself. He was embarking on a whole new life as a parent. And there was Lilly. Kit couldn’t begin to know the impact it would have on the child if Morgan started sharing his time, love, and attention with someone new, especially as they were just beginning to establish a new life in a new place.

  She sighed and stared into her mulled cider.

  “My, my. Whatever is going on?” Birdie wanted to know, shifting around in her chair. “There seems to be some excitement—”

  Kit pulled herself from her thoughts and looked toward the house. Everyone was clustered just inside the open French doors off the kitchen and Birdie was right—they were quite animated. Kit wondered if Riley had burned something again, but didn’t see any smoke. An exuberant, happy person, Riley was tall and blond and gorgeous and very outgoing, but, as Franco had mentioned, something of a klutz.

  A moment later, it was Lilly worming through the throng of adults who raced straight toward her.

  Kit was out of her chair in a heartbeat. She knelt down to catch the out-of-breath child in her arms. “What’s wrong? Has something happened? Is Morgan okay?” Her mind was racing to a million possible scenarios, so it took a moment for her to realize Lilly was smiling. Bursting with it, actually.

  “The turtles,” she said, almost completely breathless. “The baby turtles.”

  Kit rubbed Lilly’s arms and smiled at her, her own heart still racing, but everything else in her calming down. “What about the baby turtles?”

  She thought Lilly was talking about the small Hawksbills they’d brought back from Jekyll. Compared to the loggerheads in residence, they looked like babies. “Did Morgan take you to see them this morning?”

  Lilly shook her head, still vibrating with excitement, so much that she could hardly speak. “The babies . . . are coming . . . through the sand!”

  And then Morgan was there, smiling and handsome and far too sexy for his own good. “Hello, Birdie,” he said, bending down to buss her on the cheek. “Happy Thanksgiving.”

  “And a Happy Thanksgiving to you. What’s all this about baby turtles?”

  Kit was still crouched down in front of Lilly, who had grabbed her hand and was tugging. “Come on, we have to go help them!”

  Kit looked up just as Morgan crouched down beside Lilly and made direct eye contact with her. She’d worried—a lot—about that moment, and whether he’d still be upset with her or put off because she’d chosen not to pursue a relationship with him. But he was grinning and it was as if nothing had happened and everything was as it always was with him. Easy and natural. And right.

  “The nest is hatching,” he said, almost as excited as Lilly.

  Kit’s eyes widened. “I thought they hatched at night?”

  “They started coming out last night, but they’re still coming. Gabe got hold of me early this morning. They’re kind of popping up one here and one there. All of his volunteers and students are with their families today, so it’s just he and Anne acting as shepherds, so to speak.”

  “We have to go,” Lilly was saying, still tugging. “Dr. Langley needs us to help.”

  Kit glanced from Morgan to Lilly, then back again, a questioning look on her face that she hoped he’d understand, as she didn’t want to have to spell it out. Would Lilly be okay if anything happened to any of the babies as they made their dangerous first trek?

  “Gabe said they’re doing okay,” Morgan put in, understanding her question without her having to speak. “Not much interference. But they’re a little disoriented because it’s daytime, and they could use some help.” He glanced down at the top of Lilly’s head, then back to Kit and said, “We’ll make it work.”

  Morgan stood and hoisted Lilly into his arms, and Kit stood, too. “So, you’re going out there now?”

  He nodded. “We don’t want to mess up anyone’s dinner or hold things up, so we swung in here first.” He grinned. “Canned cranberry sauce is on the counter.”

  She couldn’t help it, she laughed. “And here I was hoping for fried rice stuffing.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind for next year,” he said, holding her gaze.

  Before Kit could figure out what he meant by that, Birdie had gotten up from her chair. “Would more people be helpful? Or just get in the way?”

  They all turned to look at her.

  She shrugged. “Sounds exciting.”

  Lilly held on a little more tightly to Morgan, but her gaze was riveted on Birdie. “Do you like turtles?” she asked tentatively.

  Kit and Morgan went still, aware of the significance of Lilly speaking directly to her grandmother.

  Birdie’s face split into a wide smile. “I’ve never met one, but I would very much like to. Would you introduce me?”

  Lilly turned to Morgan. “Can I, Moggy? The babies need help getting borned.”

  A bit of a shimmer shone in Morgan’s eyes. “Of course. I think that would be great.”

  “Can Miss Dre come, too?” Lilly asked, looking from Morgan to Kit and back to Morgan.

  No sooner had she spoken than Dre, Lani, and Franco joined their little poolside cluster. “What’s this I hear about le petite tortues making their grand debut?” Franco asked.

  “We have to go,” Lilly whispered, scrunching down a little in Morgan’s arms now that a crowd had gathered around them.

  “Alva and Baxter said they’d stay and keep watch over the turkeys and all,” Lani said. “Want some help?”

  Kit’s eyebrows lifted. “You’re all coming?”

  “Dre just called Gabe on his cell and he said they could use volunteers. I thought it sounded like the perfect thing to do on Thanksgiving.”

  “We could be out there for some time,” Morgan cautioned. “Of course, you all could come back whenever you wanted.” He smiled at the small group, clearly surprised, and just as clearly touched. “The more help the better.”

  “Did you get the chance to meet everyone?” Kit asked him.

  “I did. Thank you all for such a generous welcome. It means more to us than you could know.” He turned to Birdie. “So much more.”

  Her eyes took on a suspicious glimmer then, too.

  Franco clapped Morgan on the back and did his best British Baxter imitation. “Off to the turtle races, then, my good man?”

  “I believe so.” Morgan chuckled and turned to Kit. “Will you ferry some of the group over? I can take three in addition to Lilly.”

  “Quinn has an SUV, too,” Lani said. “We’ll figure it out.”

  And just like that, the caravan of turtle shepherds trekked thr
ough the house and out to the rows of cars and trucks. They ended up taking whichever ones were easiest to maneuver onto the loop road, which landed Kit in Morgan’s vehicle with Lilly and Dre.

  “Thanks for doing this,” Morgan said to Kit as he climbed in the driver’s seat after getting Lilly settled into hers.

  “Of course! I wouldn’t miss it.” She fumbled with her seat belt, excited by the adventure ahead and feeling silly for being nervous with Morgan. It wasn’t like they were alone. “I can’t believe we’re getting to see them come out.”

  Morgan took the buckle out of her hand and clicked it into the slot, smiling and catching her gaze as their hands brushed. But he immediately settled back in his seat and maneuvered the car out onto the loop road, leaving her feeling more discombobulated.

  “We don’t know how many we’ll get to see or how many more will hatch,” he said. “Gabe told me they started emerging around three this morning, and there had already been several dozen out by the time we spoke, possibly more by now. He said, even with the sun up, they’re still coming out, which is why he called me. Things have slowed down now, but, overall, he’s hopeful for a really decent hatch from the nest.”

  Kit glanced back at Lilly, who was talking to Dre, then said in a quieter voice only Morgan could hear, “What happens to the ones that don’t hatch? Can we be sure the ones that do will make it to the water?”

  “Gabe and Anne will take care of the unhatched eggs later. They’ll want to examine them, see how far they developed, and find out if there were any issues that prevented them from reaching maturity. Today we’ll just help the ones who dig out find their way to the water and keep the birds and crabs away. With as many people as we’ll have now, I doubt the birds will be a problem. It will just be shooing away whatever crabs scuttle in, then watching until the turtles get past the waves.”

  He led the caravan the short distance to the research center. Once there, they piled out of their cars, and he corralled everyone together at the trailhead that led to the beach. “The nest is up the beach a bit and situated back by the dunes. It takes the babies a good while to navigate all the way to the water, and they’ll probably be more disoriented than usual because it’s daylight. Gabe will tell you what to do; just be careful when you approach and don’t get too close. Apparently they feel the vibration through the sand and if it’s too strong, it might discourage them from coming out, as they’d sense predators. We’re just here to keep the crabs and birds away and to make sure the turtles head in the right direction. Once they find the water, we’ll watch until they make it out past the waves. They might get tossed back a few times, but that’s normal. It can be quite a process.”

  He scooped Lilly up and led the group down the short path to the beach. Kit fell in behind him with Dre and Birdie. Franco, Lani, Riley, and Quinn brought up the tail end.

  “Man, wait until I tell Charlotte what she missed,” Lani said, rubbing her hands together. “This is so exciting!”

  “I know.” Riley took Lani’s and Quinn’s hands and swung them. “I’m so glad we made it back. This is so cool!”

  “And I’m so glad we dressed for the occasion,” Quinn said with a chuckle.

  Kit heard that and shot him a smile over her shoulder. Everybody had dressed up for the holiday meal, but once on the beach, shoes and heels came off, pant legs got rolled up, and scarves were tied around heads to keep those with longer hair from having it tossed about in the ocean breeze.

  It was a very warm day, well into the upper seventies, but the sand was cool underfoot. “We have mud boots in the research center for anyone who needs them, if your feet get too cold,” Morgan called out, but everyone was laughing and gabbing and seemed perfectly fine without them, so down the beach they went.

  As they rounded the shoreline and came into view of the nest, Gabe and Anne spied them and their faces lit up. They began to wave, encouraging them closer.

  Gabe made his way up the beach and met them a distance from the nest, his face more animated than Kit could ever remember seeing it. “What a great surprise. Welcome to all of you.”

  Hellos and introductions were made, then Gabe settled in to give them instructions. “We have one hatchling on the beach right now . . .”

  Every one of of the volunteers drew in a breath of excitement.

  “. . . And I think now that enough tunnels have been made out of the nest, we should expect a few more quite soon.”

  Lilly squealed at that, which made everyone laugh.

  “I think we can all identify with her,” Gabe said with a chuckle. “Predators haven’t been too big an issue today, but orientation is. The babies are wandering a bit, but they’re getting to the water eventually. When they get a good distance from the nest, we’ll have a pair of you chaperone each one, keeping it protected until it finds it way to the water. Once there, keep a vigil until the little one makes it past the waves. This usually takes several efforts.”

  As Kit looked around, the group’s anticipation was palpable.

  “Lived here all my life and never once have done this,” Birdie said as they neared the nest. She looked over at Gabe and smiled. “But, if you can use a volunteer who might be a bit more . . . seasoned I believe I will from now on.”

  “We never turn away any volunteers,” Gabe happily replied. “It’s a pleasure to have you.”

  Introductions were made with Anne, who was, more or less, a female version of her husband, not only in occupation, but in appearance. Other than the beard, of course.

  “Thank you all for coming,” she said, clearly grateful for the impromptu support. “You’re about to experience a very special day.”

  “Look!” Lilly squealed, pointing to a small spot on the sand. A small spot that was moving. “There he is!” She squirmed to get down out of Morgan’s arms.

  “Hold on there, tiger.” Morgan set her down, but took her hand firmly in his.

  Lilly surprised Kit by turning to her and reaching for her hand. “Come on!” she urged. “We have to go help him!”

  Everyone laughed, following the threesome as they caught up with the newly hatched turtle.

  “Oh,” Kit gasped. “Look at him. He’s so tiny!” She crouched down next to Lilly, still holding her hand, as the turtle, a half-dozen yards away, continued his determined trek. “I’ve seen pictures, but . . . he’d fit on the palm of my hand.”

  Privately, looking at the wee fellow, she thought it was a miracle any of them made it to the water. He was so tiny, and had to navigate so much beach with clumsy flippers. But he sure was gung ho about it. “You can’t help but cheer him on. Go, turtle, go!” She realized she was grinning like . . . well, like five-year-old Lilly.

  “Go, turtle, go!” Lilly called out, crouching down, too, which was equally adorable.

  “Moggy,” Lilly whispered, when he stood next to her. “He’s going the wrong way. Maybe he’s ’fraid of the water.” She squinted up at her uncle, the sun in her eyes. “Can’t he see the ocean?”

  “He’s got pretty low ground clearance there. But he’ll figure it out.”

  Anne had posted herself on the far side of the baby, keeping watch on his progress. Gabe had herded the rest of the crew up the beach toward the nest, prepping them for the next hatchling.

  Lilly held on to Kit’s hand fiercely as if the tighter she gripped, the better chance the little turtle would have. Kit understood the emotion entirely and wished she had Morgan’s hand so she could squeeze her anxiety out, too. She felt a need to be connected to him as they shared this experience.

  “Can’t we pick him up and put him in the water?” Lilly asked as the baby continued to meander along the shoreline instead of toward the water.

  “He needs to figure it out. It’s part of getting his navigation system set up,” Morgan said. “We won’t let anything happen to him.”

  “What’s a nagavation system?” Lilly asked.

  “You know how a car has a steering wheel we use to make the car go where we want
it to go?” Kit said.

  Lilly nodded, never once looking away from the baby.

  “Well, the baby turtle has to figure out how to steer himself to the water. That’s called navigation.”

  “He has to make sure his steering wheel works right?” Lilly asked.

  Morgan chuckled, Kit smiled, and their gazes tangled up again over Lilly’s head. “Exactly,” Kit answered, her smile including Morgan.

  Lilly looked up at Kit then. “What if it doesn’t?”

  Kit pulled her gaze from Morgan’s and reached over with her free hand to brush Lilly’s hair from her face. It had come loose from the pigtails someone had braided that morning. Morgan? she wondered She tried to imagine those big hands of his weaving Lilly’s silky hair and . . . and she really needed to stop thinking about all the things his big hands could do.

  “It will work,” Kit told Lilly. “Some just take a little longer to set up than others.”

  Lilly held her gaze a moment longer as she appeared to gauge the believability of such a statement, but then there were squeals from up the beach and they stood up again and looked toward the nest.

  Riley turned around, blond curls bouncing, and waved to them. “Another one!” She threw her arms around Quinn, jumping into his arms, which sent them laughing and staggering back a few steps, and almost straight down to the sand before he managed to get them righted again. As soon as he set her down, she disengaged from him long enough to perform an elaborate curtsy for the crowd, which made everyone laugh. “Enjoy the show, I’ll be here all week.”

  Laughing, she tucked herself back under Quinn’s sheltering arm.

  Kit watched the two of them, warmed by how natural and good they were with each other, and without thinking, her gaze shifted toward Morgan. Realizing what she was doing almost the same instant she did it, she would have jerked her gaze right back away again, only . . . he was looking at her, too.