“Tell us what? What the hell are you talking about?” Frank was clearly losing patience with his daughter.
“Daddy, we’re talking about the fact that I’m pregnant.” As difficult as it was for her, she looked him in the eyes.
Frank froze for a very long moment, then began to pace back and forth slowly, as he did when he was angry to the point where he could not think unless he was moving. Maggie had seen him like this only a few times in her life.
Finally, “So. Where’s the father?” he snapped through jaws that barely moved.
“He’s out of town.”
“He’s out of town,” he repeated. “How convenient. What a guy, Maggie, to leave town and hide out while you break the news to your family.”
“It’s not like that. And he’s not hiding. He’s in Toronto,” Maggie explained.
“Toronto. How nice for him. Doesn’t have the nerve to come here and face us, so he leaves the country.” Frank’s rising blood pressure was rising his face ever more scarlet.
“Daddy, he didn’t want me to do this. He told me to wait…”
“And I’m sure he’ll be heartbroken when he finds out that he didn’t have to be here when you told us. I’m sure he’ll be very upset.” He paced again. “Who is this person?”
“His name is Jamey Borders.”
“And what does Mr. Borders do for a living?”
Knowing this wouldn’t be the worst news she had that day, she said, “He’s a musician. He sings and plays the piano and makes records.”
“What kind of records?” Her father’s face was immobile. At that moment the back door flung open, and Kevin blew into the room with his usual exuberance.
“Maggie! Hey, Mags is home.” He bent and kissed her head, oblivious to the scene into which he’d walked, and as he did so, he put the items he’d carried under his arm onto the table in front of his sister. On top of the pile was the Monkshood album he’d played the last time she was home.
Picking up the album, Maggie stared at the photograph of the five long-haired musicians on the jacket and in spite of herself started to giggle, then laughed out loud as the irony, the absurdity, of the situation became more than she could bear. Her family looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. She was absolutely out of control, crying at the same time she laughed uproariously as her emotions collided like speeding tractor trailers, pounding her fist on the table, tears in her eyes.
Kevin, who had no idea of what was going on, bent to take the album from her. She shook her head, waving him away as she slid the cardboard envelope across the table until it rested in front of her mother.
“This,” she announced when she could finally sputter a word, her index finger tapping on J.D.’s image, all long hair and cocky nonchalance, “is your future son-in-law.”
No one reacted.
“This is the musician, the piano player?” Her father’s voice rose slowly. “This long-haired punk is the man who’s gotten you—”
“He doesn’t have long hair anymore, Daddy. Mom, he doesn’t look anything like this picture,” she assured them, trying desperately to regain her composure.
Frank wasn’t listening again. “You walk out on a perfectly good husband—for reasons I’ve never been able to understand—and then you walk into this house and tell us that you’ve been fooling around with some wimpy rock-and-roll singer who got you pregnant, who’s not man enough to face your family.” She started to protest and he cut her off. “What makes you think this guy is going to marry you?”
“There’s no question of him wanting to get married. We’d already planned to get married in August, before, well, before I found out.”
“And as soon as he found out, he hightailed it for Toronto.”
“That’s not fair. He’s on tour. The dates were scheduled months ago.”
“Another break for him. What makes you so sure he’ll be back?”
“He loves me,” she said simply, “and I love him. More than I ever thought it was possible to love anyone.”
“And you think that’s enough to justify your behavior? Margaret, to say that you’ve disappointed us is an understatement. I thought we’d raised you with better morals—”
“It has nothing to do with how I was raised. And it isn’t a question of my morals. It happened, Daddy, it happens to lots of people.”
“Lots of people are not my daughter.” He slammed a large fist on the table.
All the while Kevin had stood listening to the exchange between his father and his sister, watching their faces. At first he’d thought Maggie was kidding, that it was all somehow a big, crazy joke.
“Maggie, are you serious?” he asked wide-eyed. “You really know J.D. Borders?”
“Apparently your sister knows him intimately, Kevin.” Frank had stopped pacing and glared at his daughter, making no effort to hide his fury.
“Frank, that’s uncalled for.” Mary Elizabeth spoke for the first time.
“Maggie, are you really, um…” Kevin wavered between embarrassment and curiosity.
“Yes, Kevin.”
“And you’re really going to marry him?”
“Yes, Kevin.” She nodded.
“Wow! This is unbelievable. This is about the greatest thing that ever happened. God, J.D. Borders is going to marry my sister. That’s so cool! Wait till I tell the guys.” Kevin raced in the direction of the phone in the front hallway.
“Kevin, you’re not to discuss this with anyone outside this room.” Frank grabbed his arm, spinning him around.
“Aw, Dad, this is the most exciting thing that ever happened in this family. Probably the most exciting thing that ever happened in this whole town. This guy is the hottest singer. He has the most unbelievable band and he’s—”
“Kevin, I said not one word. I’m not convinced this guy is even going to show up.”
“Frank, that’s enough.” Mary Elizabeth rose to face him, blowing her nose with a cotton handkerchief and stuffing it into her slacks pocket. “This is hard enough for all of us, particularly Maggie.”
“I suppose you think we should greet this little announcement with a toast and a pat on the back for a job well done?”
“No. Certainly not. But I don’t think we need to make this any more difficult than it already is for her,” she said softly.
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. You, of all people, to condone this type of—”
“I’m not condoning it, Frank. I’m saying it’s done, and we can stand here and shout at each other till the moon falls from the sky and it’s not going to change the situation. Maggie will marry him, Frank, whether you approve or not. She’s in love with him and it’s her choice. Please, Frank, this time, let her marry a man she loves.”
Mary Elizabeth was breathless from the control it had taken not to shout. Husband and wife stood and glared at each other.
The phone rang, breaking the silence. Kevin removed the receiver from the wall phone in the kitchen, not wanting to leave the room and take the chance of missing something good.
“Maggie, it’s him! It’s J.D.”
She took the phone from her brother. “Your timing couldn’t be worse,” she said by way of a greeting.
“What the hell are you doing there?” His voice was full of reproach. “I thought we had agreed—”
“How did you know?”
“You’re so goddamned transparent. I’ve been calling your apartment all morning. It didn’t take a genius to figure out where you’d gone. Why are you doing this?” He was clearly angry.
“Because I thought it would be easier for everyone if I got it over with.” She turned her back to the room to spare herself from looking at her parents.
“Well, was it?” he demanded.
“No.”
“Damn it but you’re stubborn.” His annoyed exasperation exploded through the telephone.
“Please don’t be so angry, Jamey.” She was crying again, weary tears, drained of all emotion. “Everyone’s angry. E
veryone’s yelling at everyone else. You were right. I should have waited. I didn’t, and I’ve made things worse…”
“Oh, Maggie, I’m so sorry.” His anger melted away as he realized how distressed she was. “Calm down, now, sweetheart. Look, let me talk to your father.”
“Have you lost your mind?” she whispered.
“Is it that bad then?”
“Yes.”
“Then we don’t have too many choices, do we. Book yourself onto the first flight to Toronto. We’ll get married here.”
“No.”
“Then Philadelphia.”
“Jamey, I don’t want to get married in Toronto. Or in Philadelphia. I wanted to be married here, in my home, with my family.” She started to break down again.
“Sweetheart,” he said gently, “what is the likelihood that that will happen?”
“Not very good,” she admitted sadly.
“Then we’d best make some other plans, don’t you think?”
“Yes,” she reluctantly agreed.
“I want you to think it over and let me know what you want. I’ll do anything you want. I don’t care where or when, Maggie.”
“Jamey, I need to think. Can you call me back tonight at the apartment?”
“Maggie, I’m not so sure you should drive home right now. You’re too upset. And I’m willing to bet you’ve not slept too much these last two nights and you’re tired.”
“I can’t stay here, Jamey.” Her sobs were softer now and came from someplace deep within, the rejection by her father having stung her so.
“That’s quite enough, Maggie.” Her mother took the phone from her with one hand and put the other arm around her daughter. “Jamey, this is Mary Elizabeth Callahan. You’re not going to spirit Maggie away to Toronto or anyplace else. She will be married here if that’s her choice. I’ll not have this go any farther.”
“Mary Elizabeth, have you lost your mind?” Frank exploded.
“Open your eyes, and take a good look at your daughter. Will you be turning your back on her, Frank?” Mary Elizabeth’s lips quivered, but her voice remained firm. “I will be there on her wedding day, and she will be married in this house, Frank, with or without you. If you cannot find it in your heart to attend, you can spend the day in the hardware store with your buddies or you can go play golf. But I will be at Maggie’s wedding, and the wedding will be here.”
No one so much as moved. Neither Kevin nor Maggie had ever heard their mother raise her voice to her husband and had certainly never seen her defy him. Frank studied her face for a full minute and, without looking at Maggie, turned and left the room, headed, no doubt, for the sanctuary of his second-floor den.
“Jamey, I apologize for the outburst. We’d like to have a few days to get to know you before you join the family… That will be fine. Don’t thank me, I couldn’t live with myself if I hadn’t… Yes, well, frankly, I’m not very happy with the situation either, but it’s Maggie’s life and yours, of course. Now say good-bye to her so that we can hang up this phone. We’ve a wedding to plan and we only have three weeks… Yes, I know Maggie said two, but I simply can’t do a proper wedding in less than three…”
Maggie and her mother sat in the kitchen and talked for another hour, Mary Elizabeth having brought out a notebook to make some preliminary lists of guests and things to do. She was a notorious planner, and it was a family joke that she could not function without a piece of paper in one hand and a pen in the other. Mary Elizabeth watched as the light slowly returned to her daughter’s eyes as she spoke of the plans she and J.D. had made, and silently she prayed, Dear Lord, please let her be happy this time. Please let him be everything she believes him to be…
Frank had retreated to his den, still in shock over the whole thing. His Maggie, his precious girl, pregnant by some faceless rogue with an overactive libido and a smooth line. He too had prayed. God, please don’t let this guy be as big a jerk as I think he is.
Around three o’clock that afternoon, Mary Elizabeth had instructed Maggie to go upstairs and take a nap. It would give her father some time to cool down before she spoke privately with him. Tired to the very bone, Maggie had agreed. Unfolding the cotton quilt that lay across the foot of her bed, she lay down and curled up under it. Neither nausea nor emotional turmoil prevented her from falling asleep almost instantly. When she awoke hours later, the room was in shadows, the sun was setting, and she became aware of a darkly clothed figure sitting quietly on the room’s other twin bed.
“Frankie,” she asked drowsily, “that you?”
“Yes,” a soft voice responded.
“Mom didn’t tell me you were coming home.” Maggie sat up and reached her arms out to her sister who had risen and seated herself on the side of Maggie’s bed.
“Mom didn’t know. I woke up this morning and had the urge to come home,” she explained, then added, “I’m glad I did.”
Maggie held onto her younger sister, searching for words. Frankie’s chin rested on the top of Maggie’s head.
“Your hair’s getting long, Mags. It looks great,” she observed.
“Thanks,” Maggie whispered. “Frankie…”
“I know,” she said simply.
“Mom told you?”
“I walked into the middle of a conversation between Mom and Dad.”
“Dad’s livid.”
“He’ll get over it.”
“And Mom’s being really good about it, but she’s upset and I’ve let her down. I let everyone down.”
“Let’s forget about everyone else for a minute. Let’s talk about Maggie. Do you love him?”
“More than I can tell you.”
“Does he love you as much?”
Maggie nodded.
“Then maybe it’s not so much of a disaster,” Frankie said gently, removing her short dark blue veil and running long slender fingers through her straight brown hair.
“Not so much for Jamey and me as it is for the folks, I guess.”
“They’ll come around. You know Dad’s all bluster and blunder when he gets upset.”
“No lectures on chastity?” Maggie tried to smile, wondering what Frankie really thought.
“Margaret, I’m a nun, not a hermit. I know things happen between people.”
“You know what I mean.”
“All I really care about is that you do what’s right for you.” She’d slipped her shoes off and sat cross-legged on the bed, resting her elbow on her sister’s raised knees.
“The irony is that we had planned to get married in August. We were going to drive up here in a few weeks and let Mom and Dad meet Jamey and get to know him a little and then tell them,” Maggie told her. “This changed our plans a little.”
“When will the wedding be?”
“In three weeks. We don’t have the luxury of too much more time before my condition will become very obvious. I’d like to avoid looking pregnant on my wedding day.”
Frankie smiled. “Fuel for the local gossip mill.”
“Well, I won’t be around to deal with it, but Mom and Dad will. I’d like to spare them the embarrassment if I can. I mean, could you hear the gossip, especially coming right on the heels of Kathleen and Tom’s speedy march to the altar.” “Hey, this could be the best scandal we’ve had around here since Mr. MacHroney left town with his secretary nine years ago.” Frankie grinned.
“Tell me the truth, Frankie. Are you upset?”
Frankie paused before answering, then said slowly, “I just don’t want you to be hurt. But it’s between you and him in the long run, Maggie. And between you and God. No one has the right to pass judgment on you. Not Mom. Not Dad. Certainly not me. I love you too much, Maggie.”
“I love you, too,” she whispered, her voice cracking as she hugged the tall lanky figure and rested her head against the thin shoulder. “Pray for me, Frankie.”
“Every day, love. You can bet your life on it.”
Maggie had hoped that her father would emerge from his r
oom by dinner, but when he did not, she went up and knocked on the door tentatively. Facing each other had not been easy, each knowing how much they’d hurt the other, but in the end, he’d reluctantly agreed to give J.D. a chance, though he clearly had no intention of every liking him. He was almost as upset that Maggie would be married by a judge in a civil ceremony as he was over the circumstances. In his heart he still wasn’t convinced that the groom would show for the wedding, but if Mary Elizabeth was willing to take the chance on Maggie making a fool out of herself, he could not prevent it.
“For your sake,” J.D. said when he called the following evening for an update, “I’m glad your family has come around. I know how important this is to you. But you’ve certainly put me at a disadvantage, Maggie. Not only does your father think I seduced you, he thinks I’m a coward as well. I’ve got an awful lot to live down.”
“He’ll be okay. Just keep in mind that he’s determined to dislike you, so you’ll just have to prove to him what a sweet guy you are.”
“Thanks for the tip,” he grumbled. “Is everything set for the wedding? You and your mother get all the details worked out?”
“Pretty much. Actually, Mother has pretty much taken over. I’m still not sure who she’s inviting. I gave her a short list of people I absolutely wanted, but beyond that, I told her to use her judgment, so we could have ten people or thirty or five hundred. Of course, if we let him, Kevin would invite everyone he knows, he’s so excited. He still can’t believe that he’s going to get to meet you, and he’s in an absolute tizzy over meeting Rick.” She laughed. “Rick will be there, won’t he?”
“Certainly. He’s the best man. God, but he’s been unmerciful, Maggie, ball and chain and all that.”
“Well, I hope he and Lindy behave themselves. And I hope Uncle Paul doesn’t get drunk and cause a scandal.”
“Seems to me that it wasn’t only Uncle Paul who got drunk at the last Callahan wedding,” he chuckled.
Mary Elizabeth heard the car pull into the driveway and nervously peered through the kitchen window. She could tell by Maggie’s body language and gestures as she exited the passenger side of the car that her daughter was giving J.D. an earful about something. She went out the side door into the driveway, smiling as she recognized the look of exasperation on Maggie’s face. She hoped her future son-in-law was a man of strong character and unlimited humor.
Moments In Time Page 17
