Lauren Weisberger - Chasing Harry Winston

Emmy pulled a blanket from the hallway closet and covered her sister. Poor thing must be exhausted! Pregnant and working thirty-six-hour shifts and the excitement of telling your sister the big news. As she snuggled up to Izzie and closed her eyes, Emmy could barely contain her own thoughts. Yes, of course she was so excited Izzie was having a baby. Little Isabelle, who sucked her thumb until she was eleven and was deathly afraid of spiders and was so incredibly, brutally, undeniably tone deaf that the whole family used to beg her not to sing in the shower, was going to be someone’s mother. The little girl who had always mimicked Emmy’s mannerisms and begged to be included in her plans would soon be giving birth to her own child. It was almost too weird to comprehend. And when the thought crept in-however fleeting it was-that her younger sister was having a baby and she, Emmy, didn’t have so much as a boy she liked e-mailing, well, she pushed it right out of her head. There was no place for that kind of selfish thinking, not when you wanted to support your sister and be the best aunt possible. No, she simply would not allow herself to go there, period.

Kevin gently shook them both awake. “Weren’t you two supposed to wake me ?” he asked, switching on a lamp.

Izzie buried her head under the blanket and moaned. “What time is it?”

“It’s almost eleven, and I don’t know about you, but there’s no way I’m motivating to go out to dinner now.” He leaned down and kissed Izzie on the forehead. “Sweetie? You want to come to bed?”

“Aarrgh” was all Izzie could manage.

“Ditto,” moaned Emmy. She spent sixty-five hours a week in restaurants and always welcomed the idea of staying home. It just wasn’t relaxing to walk into a restaurant-any restaurant-as a customer. Her brain kicked into manager mode and she couldn’t help but count the staff-to-patron ratio, observe the efficiency of the bartender, determine how quickly the management was turning over the tables. It was easier just to stay in and forage for something in the fridge. But then she remembered. “Ohmigod, you’re having a baby!”

Izzie laughed and kicked her sister in the ribs. “Yeah, we really weren’t kidding about that.”

“One look at your chipmunk cheeks and it all came rushing back,” Emmy grinned.

“Bitch.”

“Cow.”

Kevin held up his hands in surrender. “I’m out of here. Izzie, just close down the place when you come to bed, okay?”

Izzie turned to Emmy. “Would you hate me for going to sleep now? I know it’s, like, practically noon for you, but the all-nighter last night sort of killed me.”

Emmy sighed dramatically and shook her head in mock disappointment. “Just because you’re pregnant and working round-the-clock shifts delivering babies all night isn’t an excuse, you know. Fine, I guess I’ll survive on my own for the next eight hours.”

Izzie poked Emmy and hugged her. “I’ll be more fun tomorrow, I promise.”

They tossed Emmy a couple of towels and vanished seconds after saying good night, a move Emmy didn’t find entirely unwelcome. She was still a little groggy from her nap, but remembering Izzie’s pregnancy made her jittery with nervous energy. Grabbing her cell phone and the latest Elle , she rode the elevator to the ground floor and exited the back lobby to the building’s dramatically lit and landscaped pool area. Except for two guys in their twenties drinking beer and playing backgammon at one of the far tables, the place was blissfully deserted, so Emmy rolled up her capris and flopped down next to the hot tub, exhaling as she dunked her feet in the steamy water.

She dialed Leigh.

“God, I’m glad to hear from you,” Leigh said after picking up on the first ring.

“Why? It’s a perfectly good Friday night and you’re engaged to one of the hottest guys I’ve seen in the flesh. Don’t you have better things to be doing?”

“Russell’s younger sister-the swimmer-is in New York for the weekend, so he stayed at his place with her tonight.”

“Got it. That’s the one you like, right?”

Leigh sighed. “Relatively speaking, yeah, I guess. She’s adorably sweet and friendly and outgoing and all-around nauseatingly perfect. She’s pretty much exactly like the other one.”

Emmy listened to the familiar sound of Leigh popping a piece of Nicorette from its foil packet and biting into it. She could almost feel her friend’s relief. “Better that than some passive-aggressive bitch who’s going to make your life a living hell. You could do much worse for sisters-in-law than annoyingly friendly,” she said.

“True. But I need something to complain about.” Pause, chew, chew. “What’d you do tonight? Oh, wait, I forgot-aren’t you in Florida?”

“I sure am. It’s Africa hot here.”

“How’s Izzie? It’s been forever since I’ve seen her.”

“Izzie is…” Emmy debated how to tell Leigh. She knew she should sound more excited-hell, she was excited-but something about the late hour and the hot water, combined with the shock of hearing Izzie’s news, had exhausted Emmy. She was genuinely thrilled for Izzie and delighted with the idea of becoming an aunt, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was about to cry.

“Emmy, is she okay? Is everything all right?”

The sound of concern and sympathy in Leigh’s voice triggered something; within moments the tears were coursing down her cheeks.

“Emmy, seriously, talk to me. What’s going on with you?”

“Oh, Leigh, I’m a horrible person,” she sobbed. “Disgusting. Vile. Loathsome. My only sister, my best friend on earth, is pregnant, and I can’t even be happy for her.”

“Izzie’s pregnant ?” Leigh asked in her serious voice.

Emmy nodded and then remembered she was on the phone. “Sure is. Due in February. They find out what it is next month.”

“Oh, Emmy,” Leigh said. “I want to say ‘congratulations’ and ‘I’m sorry’ at the same time, so I can only imagine how you feel.”

“Of course I knew they would start a family eventually; I just didn’t think it would be now. Leigh, she’s my baby sister!”

“I know, I know,” Leigh soothed her. “Just don’t think for a single second that you’re wrong in anything you’re feeling. Of course you’re happy for her, but it’s understandable that you’d have mixed feelings about it. Anyone would, especially in light of everything that’s happened with Duncan…”

This is precisely why Emmy had called Leigh instead of Adriana or-perish the thought-her mother.

“I come down here and spend three straight hours talking about all these stupid failed flings of mine-literally, droning on and on about how I can’t bring myself to sleep with strangers-and Izzie is starting a perfect family with her perfect husband at the perfect age. What’s wrong with me?” The plaintiveness in her own voice made Emmy start crying all over again. This pity party felt good and, if she gave herself a little slack, deserved. She resolved to be nothing but supportive and wildly enthusiastic in front of Izzie, but that didn’t mean she had to fake it for Leigh.

“Emmy, darling, there’s nothing in the world wrong with you. You and Izzie are just at different stages right now. It’s purely a timing thing-it has nothing to do with who you are as people. And of course I have no doubt that you’re going to be a great aunt and sister, but more than that, I just know that you’re going to find a great guy, too. A perfect guy. Okay?”

“Okay.” Emmy sighed. She pulled her feet from the Jacuzzi, rolled her pants up even higher, and plunged them back in. “Distract me. Tell me what’s going on with you.”