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All in all, the afternoon was reasonably pleasant--to use Reese’s word--despite Jacqueline’s dire predictions Dinner consisted of a delightful guacarilled brisket and potato salad, which was surprisingly good The jalapeno cornbread was a bit spicy, but Jacqueline had a small piece Reese raved about the meal, and Tammie Lee beamed with pleasure at his endless cohter-in-law had tiThese days, her interest in cooking was nil
On the drive home, Reese and Jacqueline were silent Most of the dinner conversation had revolved around family traditions Apparently Tammie Lee’s family had quite a few, and she happily described each one in lengthy detail, frequentlyAunt Thelma and Aunt Frieda, as well as "Mairl was hos and go visit her mama With his wife out of the house, perhaps Paul would come to his senses
"We didn’t have a lot of traditions with Paul, did we?" Reese said as they pulled out onto the freeway entrance
"Of course we did," she countered, although she’d been hard-pressed to think of any over dinner "We erbread houses with hio, when he was a kid"
"And there was always the Easter Egg hunt at the country club"
"Yes, and Paul and I used to bring you breakfast in bed every Mother’s Day"
"That’s right," Jacqueline said, instantly feeling a sense of relief She hadn’t failed completely as a mother "Just because we didn’t dress up in those dreadful white seersucker suits and Panama hats to watch the Kentucky Derby doesn’t ful traditions with our son"
Reese took his eyes off the road long enough to glance at her "Do you res Benedict?"
"Oh, et the stovetop clean"
"But you ate every bite You were such a trouper," Reese said "I don’t think I ever loved you more than I did that day"
Jacqueline’s serThey had loved each other, and in their oays, they still did All this talk about traditions and fa a storm of happy
"I’lad Paul and Tahter," Reese said as they neared the house "Aren’t you?"
"Yes," Jacqueline answered softly She very irl, dark-haired like Paul, her sht not be her first choice of a wife for her son, but Paul seerandmother Yes, there were a few coe
Whatever the reason, Jacqueline felt better than she had intoo hard on the girl
CHAPTER 15
CAROL GIRARD
C arol had been in a good one out for a wonderful Thai dinner last night, she’d had soroup, and her knitting skills were i forward to her class the following day, the fourth in the series In the last three weeks she’d begun to really enjoy knitting and tackled it with the sa in her life Her first blanket had been a bit flawed; it had a few uneven stitches, so she’d donated it to the Linus Project and bought the yarn for a second one She had much better control of the yarn’s tension and was pleased with how this new blanket was turning out
Carrying in the mail, she set it on the table An envelope addressed to her was on top and Carol recognized the e friend who’d moved to California She tore open the envelope, excited to hear fro to discover that it wasn’t a letter as she’d hoped, but a birth announceood ht her breath and sank into a kitchen chair as she read the details about Christine’s infant born just teeks earlier on May 27th A baby boy, the card said
Christine was the kind of wo to a predeteretting pregnant exactly when she’d planned to, and then delivering a healthy baby
Carol sed hard Few people would understand the depression she felt at that moment Only her online friends could fully appreciate her feelings
Carol sat staring at the wall as she tried to overcoenuinely happy for Christine and Bill Yet at the same time, she wanted to pull her hair out and screanant Why her body didn’t function the way other women’s bodies did These were all questions she’d asked herself dozens of times, questions she’d asked every expert she’d met, and still she had no answers
Eventually she would have a baby Carol had to believe that But it was taking sowas theShe had to wait for the medical appointments with the specialists Then she had to wait for the tests, wait for the treatain for additional treatet about privacy andexcept this compulsion to have a child
Carol’s periods had become far more than a monthly nuisance; it was as if her whole world centered on her menstrual cycle And when they did start, her heart broke and she struggled with the bitterness of disappointment