Linger(48)

“Do it again! Do it again!”

Greer tucked her under one arm and mounted the steps to the porch. Emily looked up and let the pencil

fall from her mouth.

“You’re back!”

The welcome in her eyes never failed to turn Taggert’s heart over in a series of somersaults.

“You must be deep in your writing if you couldn’t hear Macy’s squeals. I’m pretty sure they heard her in

Canada,” Taggert said.

She smiled at the wiggling bundle in Greer’s grasp. “I’m trying to get this song finished today. Words are

coming faster than I can get them down.”

Taggert sat on the swing next to Emily and brushed a kiss across her temple. Then he let his hand slide

over the swollen mound of her belly. The baby rolled, causing a ripple in her dress.

“How is the little one today?”

She smiled and her entire face lit up as she covered his hand with her own. “He’s good. He’s been up all

afternoon. I’m hoping that means he’s getting his days and nights back in order.”

“God, me too,” Greer muttered. “Would be nice to sleep at night.”

Emily leveled a stare at Greer. “I’m the one he keeps up at night, thank you very much.”

Taggert chuckled. “And you, in turn, keep us up, thank you very much.”

She scrunched up her nose. “Sorry. It’s hell being eight months pregnant. I figure if I must suffer then so

should you.”

Greer sat in one of the rockers and plopped Macy into his lap. “You hear that, short stuff? Your mama has

a mean streak in her.”

“Daddy mean, Mama nice.”

Both Greer and Taggert jerked their heads up in surprise at that announcement. Emily had the grace to

flush. Then she laughed and made a shushing sound at Macy.

“You, my dear, have a big mouth.”

“Ah so Mama has been spreading propaganda,” Greer said with a grin.

“It’s never too early to teach them the way of things,” Emily said primly.

Taggert chuckled and pulled Emily into his side. She let the guitar slide forward and propped the end

against her leg. A breeze elicited a shiver from her, and she snuggled a little closer.

He sighed, and it was the sound of a deeply contented man. Life was good. He wasn’t the sort to get all

maudlin, but even he had to stop every once in a while and marvel at the gifts he’d been given.

The rapid bump bump against his side had him looking down.

“Active little rascal isn’t he?”

Macy slid from Greer’s lap and crawled onto Taggert’s.

“His name is Sean,” she pronounced.

Emily, Taggert and Greer all shared a bittersweet smile. There had never been any doubt that their son

would have Sean’s name. Emily had shared the experience she’d had when she’d hovered between life

and death in the hospital as she’d lain recovering from the extensive wounds.

Greer and Taggert both cherished the unselfish gift their brother had given them, and they were eternally

grateful to Sean for loving Emily when she’d so needed support.

“Yes, munchkin, his name is Sean,” Emily said as she reached to pull her daughter onto her lap. “Put your

hand here and say hello to your brother.”

Instead of putting her hand on Emily’s belly, Macy leaned down and smacked her lips noisily against the

mound. Emily’s delighted laughter rang out through the air.

Taggert was enchanted, and Greer was no less so. Yes, life was good. Emily had embraced her singing

career though she didn’t keep the hectic tour schedule she had before. There was no longer a reason to

stay away from the place she called home.

Much of her time was spent songwriting. She recorded most, but other artists also picked up her titles. In

her most recent venture, she’d released an album of lullabies, all of which she’d written when she was

pregnant with Macy.

Taggert’s favorite times, however, weren’t of hearing her songs on the radio, though his pride knew no

bounds over her success. No, the times he cherished the most were when she took her guitar and sang for

her family.

Their songbird had traveled a long, winding road home, but she was here and that was all that mattered.

About the Author

To learn more about Maya, please visit www.mayabanks.com. Send an email to Maya at

maya@mayabanks.com or join her Yahoo! group to join in the fun with other readers as well as Maya.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/writeminded_readers

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