The Perfect Life by Robin Lee Hatcher

Author:Robin Lee Hatcher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook, book
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2010-03-29T04:00:00+00:00

Nineteen

IT WAS MOTHER’S DAY, BUT I DIDN’T GO TO CHURCH. SINCE the last Sunday I was there—three weeks earlier—our private lives had become public knowledge, unflattering information splashed across television screens and newspaper columns. I wasn’t ready to look members of the congregation in the eye. Not yet.

“I should be able to do what I want on Mother’s Day,” I’d told Emma over the phone on Saturday, “and what I want is to stay home.”

“Jason and I were going to take you and Dad out for brunch after church.”

“I’d rather stay home. I don’t want to risk running into reporters.”

“Hayley and Steve are coming, too.”

“Your sister isn’t up to going out. It’s much too soon after her miscarriage.”

“Didn’t you know, Mom? She’s going back to work on Monday.”

“No. I didn’t know. She didn’t tell me when I talked to her. When did she make that decision? Has she—”

“Her doctor said it was all right. So you see, it won’t hurt her to go out to eat with the family tomorrow. We could all go to second service and then to brunch afterward.”

“Except I don’t want to go. Not to church and not out to eat.”

“But Mom—”

“No, Emma. Not this year.”

She’d tried several more times to convince me, but in the end, I had my way. She’d been none too happy by the time she hung up the phone.

Brad hadn’t been happy either. Only, unlike our youngest daughter, he hadn’t wasted his breath trying to change my mind. I suppose he’d recognized the stubborn set of my chin.

Come Sunday morning, with Brad off to church solo, I wandered around the house, feeling restless and taking no pleasure in the solitude. Maybe I should have gone. Anyone at church who was prone to gossip would gossip anyway,maybe even more when they saw Brad without me.

After walking into the kitchen for the fifth time in half an hour, I poured myself a cup of coffee, then moved to the telephone, thinking I might call Susan. I picked up the cordless handset, set it down, picked it up again. It was early. She’d said I could call anytime, but I knew she liked to sleep in on the weekends. I should wait a while.

Telephone in one hand, coffee cup in the other, I walked to the easy chair in the family room and sank onto it. I blew across the surface of the hot beverage before taking several sips. My eyes went to the face of the phone. Fifty-seven calls in the log, the screen said. With my thumb, I began to scroll through the log in order to clear the screen. Susan’s name and number. Emma’s name and number. Hayley. Susan again. In Step. Emma again. Harvest Christian. Emma. Harvest Christian. Brad’s cell phone. Stan Ludwig’s office. In Step. Susan. Emma.

N Schubert.

I was several numbers past it before the name registered. I moved my thumb and scrolled backward.

N Schubert 10:23A May 6

Nicole called here? I glanced at the calendar. May 6. Tuesday morning, the day after Hayley miscarried.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.