The Consequences (Colette Freedman) by Colette Freedman

Author:Colette Freedman
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.
Published: 2013-11-24T22:00:00+00:00

“Dad, phone.” Brendan didn’t move from the couch.

Robert opened his eyes and blinked at the TV. His late night had finally caught up with him in the early afternoon, and, despite Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom blaring from all five speakers, he’d fallen into a deep and dreamless sleep. “You get it,” he mumbled.

“It’ll be for you. It’s always for you.”

Robert rolled out of the chair, moved into the dining room, and grabbed the phone from its cradle before the call went to the machine. He licked dry lips and squinted at the clock, wondering who was calling them on Christmas Day. Julia probably. “Hello?”

The line echoed and popped, ghost sounds clicking and whispering.

“Hello?” he asked again, squinting at the caller ID. Unavailable, it read, so either the call was from abroad or the caller had withheld his or her number.

“You may want to move away from the TV and find someplace private where you can talk.” Stephanie’s voice, loud and clear in his ear, shocked him fully awake.

He swallowed hard. “Sure . . . sure,” he said, forcing a smile onto his face, turning to look at the children, but they were both ignoring him. Kathy was working in the kitchen, and he saw her glance curiously at him, obviously wondering who was calling. “And a Merry Christmas to you too,” he continued. “Let me just step out of the room away from the TV. . . .”

“It’s Jimmy Moran,” he said to Kathy, the phone pressed against his chest, “just calling to wish us Merry Christmas.”

Kathy nodded. Wearing a striped cook’s apron, she was staring into the open oven, slowly sinking a skewer into the turkey. “Don’t talk too long; I’ll be serving dinner soon.”

Robert moved out into the hall. “I’ll be just a minute.” He hurried upstairs, heart pounding, stepped into his office, and locked the door behind him. Then he changed from the portable phone to his office line. “Are you okay?” he asked immediately, slightly breathless from his run upstairs and the shocking surprise of the call.

“Yes . . . no . . . I don’t know.” Her voice sounded strained.

He figured she was probably hung over. No doubt she’d only now gotten around to checking her messages; maybe she was even a little embarrassed about her outburst earlier.

“I’ve been worried out of my mind, and when I couldn’t get hold of you, I didn’t know what to think, and then before, when we were instant-messaging and you said you didn’t want to see me again, I was devastated.”

There was a long pause, then Stephanie said simply, “I think I’m pregnant, Robert.”

There was a moment, a long moment, as the words sank in. Thoughts tumbled through his mind—this was a joke; she was punishing him; she was lying—because he knew that she couldn’t be pregnant. Simply couldn’t.

Before he could reply, she snapped, “What? No quick comment, no witty retort, no congratulations?” She was unable to disguise the bitterness in her voice.

“I . . .

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