by Judith Keim
“Say,” said Lynn. “Have any of you noticed anything different? See someone strange? Had any creepy calls?”
“No, why?” said Carol Ann, clasping her hands together.
“Are you sensing something , Lynn?” Sukie’s eyes rounded. “Should we be more aware?”
Lynn shook her head. “No, don’t worry. It’s just that this is the longest I’ve ever stayed in one place. I guess we’re in a holding pattern. But if any of you have anything weird going on, you let me know. Hear?”
Tiffany nodded with the others and listened as Carol Ann, then, Sukie took over the conversation.
When it was time to leave, Lynn unexpectedly hugged her. “Good luck, Tiff!”
Sukie gathered her purse and turned to Tiffany with a smile. “Let me know how you do this afternoon. I’ll be thinking of you.”
“Yeah, me too,” said Carol Ann, giving her a sympathetic look.
Tiffany’s eyes filled. The women of Fat Fridays had become so dear to her. She didn’t know what she’d do without them.
###
Tiffany lay on the examination table at the doctor’s office. Watching the ultrasound screen, her heartbeat thumped uneasily in her chest. “Please, God...” she whispered and stopped. She wouldn’t go there. Sukie was right. She just wanted a healthy baby.
“Looks like a beautiful little girl.” The doctor’s voice faded in and out over the humming that broke out in Tiffany’s ears.
“Are you sure it’s not a boy?” said Tiffany, feeling as if she was about to faint.
“Yes, we have a clear shot of her. See? There’s one leg here and another and, there, you can see the shape of her back as she turns over.”
Tiffany tried to take in what the doctor was saying, but the beat of the baby’s heart, combined with hers, sounded like warning thumps of a drum.
“Come into my office. We’ll talk,” said the doctor, oblivious to her emotional pain.
Tiffany nodded numbly. How was she going to break the news to Beau? She could feel his anger already.
After her talk with the doctor, Tiffany left his office and sat in her car, afraid to go home. Beau hadn’t been able to get off from work to accompany her, but he’d be waiting for her now. Muffy and Regard would be there, too. The thought of facing them was too much to handle. She needed to talk to someone. Someone like Sukie.
###
Tiffany found Sukie at her desk, leafing through picture books. “Sukie! Sukie! Thank God you’re here. I just came from the doctor’s office. It’s a girl. What am I going to do?” Tiffany felt the sting of tears.
Sukie blinked in surprise at her, then, drew her eyebrows together. “What are you going to do? You’re going to have a baby girl. That’s what you’re going to do. You do know about X and Y chromosomes, don’t you? It’s the male who determines the sex of the baby, not the female.”
Tiffany clutched her hands together. “Yes, but Beau and his family won’t see it that way. They’ll find some way to blame me. I just know it. It seems so silly, but it’s a big deal to his family.”
“You better sit down and tell me about it, hon.” Sukie’s soft soothing voice caught Tiffanys’s attention. She sank onto a chair and dabbed at her eyes.
“The doctor said the baby seems healthy but she’s on the small side. He wants me to gain a few more pounds.”
Sukie’s eyes bored into her. “Has Beau been watching your weight?”
Misery washed over Tiffany. He’d scolded her the other day when she ate a couple of cookies. “He doesn’t want me to get too fat.”
Sukie slammed her hand down on the desk. “Dammit, Tiffany. He can’t have everything his way. Don’t you see?”
Feeling like a total failure, Tiffany hung her head,
Sukie grabbed hold of Tiffany’s hand. “Oh, hon, I’m sorry. It’s not you I’m angry with. Now, what can I do to help you?”
Tiffany lifted her head and looked at the woman who just might be her best friend. “Will you come with me to my house? I can’t face all of them alone.”
Sukie’s eyebrows rose. “Shouldn’t this be a private moment between you and Beau?”
“It’s not private at all. It never is. Regard and Muffy will be there, too, waiting for the news.” Tiffany held back a sob of frustration. She felt like she was married to three ornery people. Not one.
Sukie shook her head. “I can’t intrude on family matters. It wouldn’t be right.” She stood and wrapped her arms around Tiffany. “You can do it, Tiffany. I know you can.”
Wishing her life was different, Tiffany clung to her.
Resigned to face the family alone, Tiffany gave Sukie a pseudo thumbs up and left the library. She struggled to build her courage as she headed home. A block from her house, she pulled over to the curb and vomited. Resigned to the ordeal ahead, she rinsed her mouth with water and continued down the street.
Pulling into the driveway, she eyed Regard’s black Mercedes and Muffy’s powder blue Porsche and let out a groan from deep inside her. There was no way she could avoid them.
Tiffany entered the house through the back door and found the three of them—Beau, Regard and Muffy—lined up in the kitchen, their expressions eager.
“Well?” A smile spread across Muffy’s face.
Tiffany swallowed hard. “It’s a girl. A healthy girl.”
“Dammit!” Beau’s face flushed an angry red. His eyes shot daggers at Tiffany.
She could feel her knees grow weak. “You’re the one with the chromosomes...” Tiffany began, but Beau had left the room.
Muffy hurried after him.
Regard looked at Tiffany, disappointment stamped on his face.
Bile rose in Tiffany’s throat. “I’m sorry...”
“Don’t you worry, little gal,” said Regard. “We’ll try as soon as we can for our little boy. No stopping ‘til it’s done.”
Muffy returned to the kitchen and faced Tiffany, her hands on her hips. “Why are you so late getting home? Your appointment was for two. It’s after four.”
“I stopped at the library to see Sukie,” Tiffany said defiantly, rebelling against the demanding tone of Muffy’s voice.
“Sukie who?”
“Sukie Skidmore. She’s my best friend. We both belong to the Fat Fridays group and meet for lunch every Friday.”
“Oh, well, that will soon come to an end.” Muffy turned on her heel, leaving Tiffany blinking in shock.
“Now, don’t y’all mind Muffy,” Regard said in his exaggerated drawl. “We’ve had a bit of a shock and she’s upset. We’re tryin’ to get used to the idea of a granddaughter.” He gave Tiffany a meaningful stare that made her skin prickle.
There was no shouting, no screaming—just painful words and pointed looks that pierced Tiffany’s heart. She straightened as maternal juices flooded her body. She covered her rounded stomach with her hands, hugging the baby. We’re going to be just fine, Baby Girl. You and me.
No one, she silently vowed, would be allowed to hurt her precious daughter. Unlike her own mother, Tiffany would make sure this child never knew she wasn’t wanted.
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
SUKIE
After Tiffany left her, Sukie sat at her desk, sickened by all she’d been told. Cruelty was just part of the game played by Beau’s illustrious family. Sukie wondered if they knew how much damage they’d done to Tiffany and to their son’s marriage.
On her way home, Sukie pulled into Betsy’s driveway. She’d never been known to miss a Fat Fridays luncheon and she wanted to make sure Betsy was all right.
Richie answered the front door. “Hi, Mrs. Skidmore. My mom’s not home. She’s gone to New York.”
Sukie blinked in surprise. “New York? I thought maybe she was sick.”
He shook his head. “Her friend Karen won a free trip to the city and they decided to go up there for the weekend.” He gave Sukie a troubled look, one that reminded her of him as a young boy. “What’s going on with Mom?”
Sukie gulped.
No way would she say anything to jeopardize Betsy’s relationship with her son. “I’m just pleased to see your mother so happy. Aren’t you?”
He shrugged. “I have so many problems of my own, I haven’t given it too much thought.”
“Please tell your Mother I said hello.” Sukie returned to her car and let out a sigh. Talk about complications! How could a group of five women have so many problems?
At home, Sukie could hardly wait to get out of her business clothes and into something more comfortable. She pulled on a pair of cut-off jeans and a knit shirt and slid her feet into a pair of sandals, glad it was Friday. The promised rain had fallen most of the week, encouraging growth in the garden. She went out to the back yard and examined the burgeoning blooms and new batch of weeds. Too tired to deal with yard work, she went inside, fighting depression.
Cam hadn’t called her all week. Disappointment ate away at her good memories of the two of them together. Sukie told herself that in today’s world, Cam didn’t owe her a thing and that so-called friends with privileges didn’t have to keep in touch on a regular basis. But it stung.
She plunked down on a bar stool, wondering what she’d gotten herself into. It was driving her crazy that she hadn’t heard from him. She smiled at the imaginary headline she conjured up in her mind. WOMAN ADDICTED TO LOVE SHOOTS OUT CELL TOWER WAITING FOR CALL.
She’d just poured herself a glass of wine when the phone rang. Cam.
“Oh, thank God you’re there,” he said without preamble. “Sukie, I need your help. We’re deploying three new computer applications at work and it’s been a mess, with all sorts of failures. I’m going to have to work all night. Is there any way you could take Chloe for me? Her pre-school teacher is going away this weekend and I don’t trust Emily Warren to babysit her all night.”
Sukie heard the worry in his voice. Still...
“Will you do it?”
She thought of sweet little Chloe alone and frightened, left with a veritable stranger. “Okay, bring her down. She can stay here. We’ll make it a fun sleepover.”
“Ah, Sukie, you’re a doll.”
She grimaced. Right. A babysitter with privileges.
“Sorry I didn’t call earlier, but like I said, it’s been a helluva week. I’m on my way to pick up Chloe from school now.”
“I’ll be right here,” Sukie said, already trying to come up with ideas to occupy an active three-year-old.
Chloe’s look of joy when Sukie answered her soft knock on the door warmed Sukie’s insides. With her bright smile and wide blue eyes, Chloe was as pretty as any of the dolls Elizabeth used to play with. Sukie gave her a big hug.
“Thanks, again.” Cam handed her a pink canvas princess-adorned suitcase, Chloe’s special blanket and her favorite doll, Sally.
Cam’s face was drawn into tired lines. Dark smudges rested below his eyes.
Sukie gasped. “You look awful! Are you sick?”
“No. Like I said, it’s been a bad week. My work is sometimes like this. You think you have everything programmed just right and nasty little surprises pop up. It’s all part of the process.”
“Have you eaten?” she asked him.
Cam shot her the crooked smile she found so disarming. “We’ve ordered pizza for the entire crew.” He reached for her, and she fell into his arms.
He let out a long sigh that told Sukie how much he’d missed her. She settled against his broad chest.
Feeling a tug on her shirttail, Sukie looked down. Chloe held her arms out to Sukie.
Sukie pulled Chloe up into the circle she and Cam had formed, feeling as if all was right with the world once more.
“Gotta go,” said Cam, reluctantly pulling away.
“Don’t worry about us girls,” Sukie said, still holding Chloe. “We’re going to have a fun sleepover.” They made a show of waving goodbye to Cam, and then Sukie and Chloe went into the kitchen.
Chloe’s lips, which had quivered at seeing Cam off, quickly turned into a beaming smile when Sukie suggested a picnic. While Chloe showed her doll Sally around the kitchen, Sukie peeled and cut up carrots and apples and sliced some cold chicken.
Outside, Chloe helped Sukie spread a blanket on the ground and they sat down to their impromptu meal. Chloe pretended to feed Sally while Sukie encouraged her to eat something herself. Sukie liked Chloe. She was a sweet child—imaginative and even-tempered—unlike many of the children she’d observed at the library. Chloe ran around the back yard shrieking with delight as she chased colorful butterflies that fluttered and swooped toward the flowers. Listening to her, Sukie wondered how Chloe’s mother could have given her to Cam and walked away.
The sound of a car pulling into the driveway disturbed the peaceful moment.
Sukie rose and called to Chloe, and led her around the side of the house. Her heart stopped at the sight of Ted’s BMW.
He emerged from the car, his expression dour.
“Ted? What are you doing here?” My God, he’d gone and dyed his hair. He looked foolish.
“We need to talk, Sukie. I’ve just come from the country club and I’ve had it with your behavior. I’ve become the laughing stock of all my buddies!”
Sukie crossed her arms and stood her ground. Chloe hid behind her and clutched her legs. “And just why do you think it has anything to do with me?”
He shook a fist at her. His face turned a deep, angry red. “Because you’ve been fucking some young stud! That’s why!”
At his angry tone, Chloe began to cry. Sukie drew Chloe out from behind her and picked her up. Holding back a venomous reply, Sukie narrowed her eyes at Ted.
“Who’s that?” Ted’s lips thinned. “I get it. It’s his daughter, isn’t it? So where is he, this big stud of yours? Why isn’t he out here facing me?”
“Stop talking like that.” Sukie fought to keep her voice controlled so Chloe wouldn’t become even more frightened. “He’s not here and I’m not discussing this with you. Leave. This isn’t your home any more, and there’ll be no fighting in front of this child. I mean it, Ted.” It occurred to her that in the past, she’d often caved in to Ted’s wishes rather than fight in front of the children.
His face twisted into an ugly expression she found repulsive. He shook his fist at her. “I’ll go, but this isn’t over, Sukie. Not by a long shot. I will not, repeat not, be made a fool of by you.”
“You don’t need me to help you with that.” Her body shaking, Sukie turned on her heel and walked away from him. Didn’t he see how hypocritical the whole scene was? And what was with the dyed hair? She wondered why she’d ever been attracted to him.
“I don’t like that man,” Chloe whispered to Sukie as Ted climbed into his car and roared off.
Sukie hugged Chloe closer. “Neither do I.”
They cleaned up the picnic items and headed back inside. Chloe proudly carried the blanket while Sukie held Sally and their dishes.
Upstairs, Sukie ran a warm bubble bath for Chloe. Giggling, they made a game of forming bubble crowns on Chloe’s head. Most women at some time in their lives had had wishful thoughts about being a real princess. Sukie was no different. Now, this much later in her life, Cam made her feel that way. Maybe that’s why she’d fallen so hard for him.
Sukie dried Chloe with a fluffy towel and dressed her in a soft pink cotton nightgown. Some of Sukie’s friends would call her crazy, but she liked going back to mothering duties. Lynn would probably tell her to get a dog, but Sukie was happy doing this type of thing.
Tucking Chloe in Elizabeth’s old bed, Sukie wrapped Chloe’s blanket around her and placed Sally in her arms. They picked out a storybook together and Sukie read to her until Chloe’s eyes stopped fluttering and remained closed. Then she tiptoed out of the room.
As she was dressing for bed, Sukie wondered as she did so often, just where her relationship with Cam was headed. It was all so confusing—falling in love with a younger man, a single father, someone who could have his choice of many others. From every a
spect, it was so new and not a little bit frightening.
Sukie was deep in sleep when she felt a tug on her arm. Startled, her eyes flew open. Chloe stood next to Sukie’s bed, peering up at her in the semi-dark room. “Can I get in bed with you?”
Sukie glanced at the bedside clock. Six o’clock. She held back a groan. This was one aspect of caring for a three-year-old she hadn’t missed. “Sure, honey. Come on up.”
Chloe tossed Sally up on the bed and Sukie helped Chloe climb in beside her. Her little feet were chilly against Sukie’s warm body. Sukie put her arm around Chloe and drew her close, inhaling the sweet smell of the bubble bath soap on Chloe’s skin. They lay side by side for a few minutes, quietly talking about pre-school.
Chloe turned to Sukie. “Sally’s hungry.”
Sukie yawned and stretched. No more lounging in bed. “Okay, we’ll get up and have breakfast.” Chloe jumped off the bed, and Sukie grabbed her robe.
After breakfast and getting Chloe dressed, Sukie pulled on a pair of jeans, a white tank top and a crisp white shirt. Chloe lay on the bed, watching her.
“Wait!” Chloe ran over to the closet and pulled out a pair of strappy red heels. “Here.”
Sukie laughed, amused Chloe seemed to be into fashion already. “Thanks, but these brown sandals will do.”
They left the house and headed to World Foods.
Sukie walked through the entrance of the market, pushing Chloe in a cart. Debbi Warren looked up from the fresh fruit and wiggled her fingers in greeting. Giving Chloe a meaningful look, Debbi’s eyebrows lifted. She came right over to Sukie. “Emily’s been trying to reach Chloe’s father for some time. She’s hoping for more babysitting jobs for him. I didn’t know you’d gone into the babysitting business, too. I must say, Sukie, you’re very ambitious—working at the library and now this.”
Words tumbled in her brain and got stuck in her throat.
“Wanna go faster!” Chloe swayed in her seat, rocking the cart.
Sukie pasted a bright smile on her face for Debbi’s benefit and patted Chloe on the head. “I guess I’d better keep moving.”
At home, Sukie settled Chloe at the kitchen table with new crayons and a coloring book and put away the groceries. She’d planned a special dinner for Cam—filets of beef, grilled asparagus marinated in a soy-garlic dressing, fresh sliced tomatoes and a gooey chocolate dessert she thought he’d like.
