Page 89 of Sexy as Sin
Brett smiled. It looked painful to Willow, because it was. “You’d know more about that than I would,” he said. Under the table, Willow’s knee touched his, and when he dropped his hand beneath the tablecloth, she took it. “She’s still got some mad.”
His mum didn’t say anything, just handed him his slice of cake. Pam said, “What does she have to be mad about? I’ve never understood that. It was nobody’s fault. I had a miscarriage myself between my two kids. It was awful, but I didn’t beat Steve up about it, or myself, either. Why would I? I hope she’s having an amnio, though. She has to be pushing forty. Chromosomal abnormalities galore once you get up there.”
“Pammy,” her mother said. Just the word, but it was enough. Pam looked confused, but she shut up.
Brett took a bite of cake, then said, “She said they were...” He always remembered everything, but now, he looked blank. He looked at Willow. “She said something about that. What was it?”
“Said they’d done all the testing,” Willow said, “and that they were... monitoring.” Her hand curled around his, and she thought,I’ve got you, boy.And I’m holding on.She decided to add, “Though I can’t see her deciding she’d only take a perfect baby. When she’s holding her at last, she’ll have won the Lotto. That was the idea I got. Pretty rapt about the whole thing, and you can see why.” Brett had brought it up. He wanted it out there. The least she could do was help.
“It’s not about a perfect baby,” Pam said, bristling a little. “I was saying, I hope she doesn’t have to go through that again, because the odds get higher, that’s all. The man’s age matters, too, and I’ll bet she didn’t marry somebody any younger than she was. I’m a teacher. Down’s kids are some of the sweetest people you’ll ever meet, but is it harder? You bet it is. But oh, well. Nobody’s ever ready for kids anyway, no matter what they think. No matter how perfect your baby seems, they’ve all got their challenges. It doesn’t get any easier, either. Jennifer’s going to give me gray hair all by herself.”
Willow still had Brett’s hand. “Oh?” she asked, saving him from talking. He hated not being under control, even with his family. “She’s nineteen, right? Nineteen’s not always easy, hey.”
“Yeah,” Steve said. “But she’ll be all right.” His eyes were on Brett, too. Right now, Willow could tell that all Brett wanted for his birthday was for everybody to stop looking at him.
Pam snorted. “You say that like it’s sure to happen. So far, she seems to be majoring in, ‘All the Fun I Can Have in College.’ We told her, ‘Bring those grades up, sister, or you can just come on home. We didn’t save for twenty years for you to screw it up.’ We’ll see how it goes.”
Brett said, “I wanted to ask you something. Whether it would be all right for me to send her a new saxophone for her birthday.”
“Let me guess,” Pam said. “One that costs two thousand dollars.”
“Something like that,” he said, keeping it calm. “Which isn’t the point. I read up on it, and the quality of your instrument makes a big difference. She’s worked hard, and I’d like to encourage her passion.”
Pam said, “No. Not really OK. She’s acting entitled enough right now.” Andsquash,there went Brett again.
“It’s a great thought,” Steve put in, “if she buckles down. Right now, though? Next thing you know, she’d be wondering why it wasn’t a Mercedes at Christmas. It’ll be better if she earns it.”
“Which means,” Pam said, “that I’ve heard her talk about her rich uncle one too many times with her friends. No. Send her your usual extravagant gift card and fabulous sweater or whatever. Do they have fabulous sweaters in Australia?” she asked Willow. “Or am I thinking of New Zealand? The one you have on is pretty good. Both of them are.”
Willow was wearing the red one, the first she’d bought. Brett liked it, and it wasn’t too sexy for meeting the family. She was also wearing the long coat/sweater thing, because she couldn’t get warm enough here. “Both countries do,” she said, grateful for a semi-neutral topic. “Have merino sheep, that is, because I think that’s what you mean. This one is merino and silk. And, yes, it was a gift from Brett. A sweet one.” She didn’t tell them that it was also true for everything else she was wearing, or that she’d used his credit card for the outing. She had clothes of her own. Heaps of them. Just notwinterclothes. She also hoped they were all as ignorant as she’d been about the price of flower necklaces made of diamonds. She hadn’t wanted not to wear it. That would have been a slap in Brett’s face, and it wasn’t as if it were a ring, after all.
Life was so confusing. Cooking was so much easier.
“A sweater’s better,” Steve said, “for now. Sorry, brother. Nice of you to offer.”
“No problem,” Brett said, inscrutable once more. “That’s why I asked.”
Brett left Willow with his mom and Pam, drinking tea at the kitchen table, shrugged into his coat, and headed outside with King. The air was crisp and frigid, the stars showing bright.
“Cold one for sure tomorrow,” Steve said. He was standing on the porch in the dark, the glowing tip of his cigarette the only thing visible in the shadows. “Makes driving easier, anyway. Going over that pass to Montana in the snow is no fun at all. Although I guess you might be flying out.”
“Yep,” Brett said. Beside him, King came back up the stairs after having watered a tree, and flopped down on the frozen boards with a sigh.I thought we were doing something exciting,his resignation said.This isn’t what I had in mind.
“Your mom liked you coming for your birthday,” Steve said. “That was a good effort. Made her day.”
“She need anything?” Brett asked. Steve was always the one he asked. No prickles. “Time to get that gardening service, you think?”
Steve considered that, which was one of the things Brett liked about him. He’d been flashier once, but he’d always thought things through. In high school, a year ahead of Brett, Steve had caught Brett’s pitches and his passes, but he’d been the one who’d scored the athletic scholarship. When he’d come home again a year later with a blown-out knee and an explanation that “College wasn’t for me, it turned out. Maybe later,” and had gone to work in the mill with Brett, he’d been more philosophical about it than you’d expect.
There was more than one path to a good life, for sure. You could also ask for worse than your best friend marrying your big sister, and having him stick around.
“No,” Steve said. “She’s still liking doing the yard. My dad says you need a reason to get up in the morning. That’s as good a reason as any. I’ll let you know, though.”
“I appreciate you and Pam being here to take care of things,” Brett said.
“Brother,” Steve said, “we appreciateyoushelling out for it.” His teeth flashed in the darkness. “I don’t need to be buying any extra washers and dryers. Had to replace ours a while back. I remember when they lasted twenty years easy. Now, you’re lucky to get ten, and they’re about five times as expensive. What the hell.”
“I’m not saying it,” Brett said.
