Chapter 8
With Silvy safely off to heaven, I set about getting back to life as best I could. Barbara and Mel climbed into their thirty-six-foot motor home and headed on up to Canada, and Rich worked on fulfilling our mother’s final wishes. Annie hadn’t realized how much she missed her parents until we lost Silvy, so watching them pull away for God knew how long made her cry. For the first time in weeks, I consoled her instead of the other way around. There was more to her tears, but I knew she’d tell me in her own good time.
“Annie, at least you’ll get to see your parents again.” I tried to cheer her up, but it only made her cry harder. “What is it?” When I pulled her down next to me on the bench in front of The Health Nut, the chill of the cold metal penetrated the fabric of my cotton dress, sending a shiver up my spine.
“I—I don’t know.” Her tone told me that she had a clear understanding of what was causing her such pain, just no way of telling me.
“Annie. Come on, honey. Talk to me.” I stared straight into her wet brown eyes, capturing her before she could turn away.
“I’m-, Oh, God, Becka. I think I may be pregnant.”
Fear, sorrow, worry and excitement mixed up inside me. I was silent for a moment, fearing my words would bring more misery than comfort. I shook my head.
“How sure are you?”
“Pretty sure,” she sniffed back. “What am I gonna do, Becka?”
“Calm down. Have you told Steven?”
“God, no. He doesn’t want a baby. He’ll go ballistic.” She turned away from me. The damp, morning breeze blew feathered tendrils of blonde hair from her face.
“Are you afraid of him, Annie?” I hoped she’d confide in me.
She turned back to me, catching her breath before speaking. “I’m not afraid for myself, Becka. I’m afraid for this baby. All those years I gave him the benefit of the doubt. You and Rich told me his heart was no good, but I kept letting him hurt me. I can’t do it anymore.” Tears of relief rolled down her cheeks.
“It’s okay, Annie. You recognize it now. I wish you’d have talked to me before.” I took her hands in mine, reassuring her.
“I tried to in Hawaii, but then, everything happened. I couldn’t after that. You had your own problems.”
“Annie, I’ll always be here for you. You should know that.” She smiled a weak smile, then let it fade. “What do you want to do? Do you want this baby?”
“With all my heart.”
“Do you want to stay with Steven?” I prayed the answer was no.
“I won’t bring a baby into the life I have now. Steven is not equipped to be the kind of father I want for my child.”
“Thank God, you’ve seen the light,” I mumbled to myself.
She looked up at me, pleading for support, then placed her head on my shoulder. “What do you think Steven will do?” After a few moments of silence, she whispered, “He’s not gonna just let me go.”
“He won’t have a choice if you’re really, truly ready to leave him, Annie.”
“I’m ready.”
“Are you?”
Candy poked her head out of the café, telling me I had a phone call by holding her cradled hand to her ear. I waved her away, and she disappeared back inside.
“I’ll tell him tonight.”
“I don’t think so.” I had no intention of letting Annie face an angry, unpredictable Steven alone. “Not without all of us there. No way! I’m afraid he might kick the shit out of you. You have to think about the baby.”
“Okay, okay you’re right.” She seemed frustrated with having to involve us, but resolved that she couldn’t do it alone.
“We’ll just go get your things before he gets home and take you to Silvy’s place. He won’t find you there. I’ll call Rich and tell him what’s going on. He’ll draw up the necessary papers for a restraining order and start divorce proceedings.”
She drew in a deep breath and nodded her head.
I know she thought about backing out, but then her face changed, telling me she’d banished her momentary weakness. I held her shaking hand until it stilled. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not. But I will be.” She flashed a confident smile. Maybe, just maybe Annie would see how wonderful life could be without living under someone else’s thumb.
~ ~ ~
Annie decided leaving Steven a note was better than just disappearing without a trace. I agreed. It might give us a little more time to get her safely away before he realized she was serious. I didn’t really know what he was capable of. I just knew he would be furious about being defied.
Rich was surprisingly calm at the news when I called him from the café, almost as though he’d expected it all along. He was glad that Annie had seen Steven for what he really was—a waste of human flesh. I left the news about the baby for her to share when she was ready.
Before Steven made it home from work, we’d packed her up, moved her into Silvy’s house, and obtained a restraining order. Annie sat stunned in my mother’s rocker trying to stay strong, knowing this was the only way to keep her baby safe.
“You know,” she said as she handed me the empty mug that only moments before contained a good eight ounces of lentil soup, “he’s not an animal. He deserves some kind of explanation.”
I stared at her, watching the process of disconnection find its first weak point. I remained calm even though I felt sick inside at the thought of her backing out. “Are you having second thoughts?”
“Christ, Annie,” Rich broke in, hearing us from the dining room. “You better not be having second thoughts. He’s a prick!”
Annie flinched and looked away, this time without tears.
Rich was harsh, but he was right. “I’m sorry,” he apologized as he came around the chair and pulled her into his arms. “Ah, Annie, I’m so sorry. I love you, you know that. Steven never deserved you. I’ve kept my mouth shut for too many years.”
I backed away, letting my brother and my best friend have some privacy. There was an intimacy between them, something only they understood. I felt strangely like a peeping Tom watching their exchange.
“It’s okay, Richie.” Annie held on tight. “I know you’re trying to help. It’s hard letting go. I’ve been with him a long time.”
“Try to understand.” Rich pulled away to see her face. “He never loved you the way you deserve to be loved. He wouldn’t hurt you if he did.”
My brother can be a genius sometimes. This one sentiment seemed to clear her melancholy, at least for the time being.
“I wish you were straight, Richie. I’d snap you up.” Annie stood on her tiptoes and kissed my brother’s blushing cheek.
“Okay.” She straightened her shoulders. “Show me where to sign. Let’s get this over with.”
Her show of strength was encouraging. Rich led her to the dining table to look over the first of many documents that would legally release her from her vows. I knew the roughest stage was yet to come.
~ ~ ~
By the time I made it into The Health Nut the next morning, George was in his usual seat. Jonathan was at the far table chatting with his father, and Steven leaned awkwardly against the condiment table, rumpled and irritated from no sleep. I considered turning and heading home, but every last one of them stopped what they were doing when I stepped over the threshold, making my escape virtually impossible.
“Where’s my wife?” Steven yelled out, interrupting George’s ornery good-afternoon greeting. Jonathan stopped talking mid-sentence when he recognized the fury in my eyes. He watched me carefully for a second before standing, his father peering cautiously over his shoulder at the rude tone Steven had taken with me.
“She’s safe.” I stared down the building rage in Steven’s eyes.
“She better get home where she belongs!”
“She doesn’t belong anywhere with you.” I wanted to add the word asshole, but decided the orifice was far too functional to befit him.
“Is that so?” Steven followed me behind the counter as I headed to the kitchen. He brushed Candy aside when she stepped to block his way.
“Why don’t you just go home and sleep it off?” Candy asked, putting herself between us.
“Candy, it’s all right. Steven was just leaving. Weren’t you?” I took a deep breath. “Annie doesn’t wanna see you right now, so please, just leave her be.”
“Why don’t you mind your own fucking business?” he shouted, sending a spray of spit over my face. I stared into his hollow eyes, daring him to make a mistake. “Annie is my business!” Jonathan caught my eye when he moved in behind Steven, warning me to step away. “Becka, is everything all right here?” His deep voice was calm and soothing. “Can I help?”
When Steven turned to see who’d dare interfere, Jonathan dazzled us with his disarming smile.
“Butt out,” Steven warned, stepping forward, threateningly. “This is none of your fucking business either.” Jonathan didn’t move a muscle.
“Oh, I see,” Jonathan said. “Well, I wasn’t really talking to you.” His smile disappeared the second Steven took a swing. Jonathan grabbed the fist heading toward his stomach and twisted the wrist back, bringing Steven to his knees. The move was so effortless and quick, it appeared nonviolent, though the cry Steven let out told everyone in the café it hurt like hell.
“Jonathan. It’s okay. He’s just worried about Annie.”
“He should worry a little more politely,” Jonathan replied, loosening his grip a touch to keep Steven from squirming.
“Can I be of some help?” Nathan stood across the counter, taking my shaking hand in his, showing his support in the most gentlemanly of ways. Steven looked around, assessing the situation before trying to break free of Jonathan’s grip. Steven had hopes of coming out ahead in this sticky situation. Jonathan read my concern like a book, tightening the grip again as Steven made a move.
“Why don’t we escort you outside and send you on your way?”
I held the swinging door open, and Jonathan guided Steven quietly into the alley. Nathan came around the counter and patted my shoulder, assuring me that his son had this situation under control. Jonathan’s body language showed he did indeed have control of Steven, and it wasn’t the first time he’d done this sort of thing.
As Jonathan made sure Steven was gone, I ran inside and called Rich, who’d stayed the night with Annie. I warned him that Steven was looking for her. We both agreed she didn’t need to know.
Jonathan was standing barely two feet away from me when I hung up the phone. I knew he’d give his life for mine, without hesitation, just from the look in his eyes.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“You should be careful who you taunt. He’s got some real meanness in him.”
“I’ve been telling Annie that for years.”
“Is she okay?” His concern made me shiver.
“She’ll be fine once she’s rid of him.” I stepped back to gain some space. The heat radiating from his body made me ache to touch him. He smelled of soap, and vanilla mixed with the rich Italian roast of his coffee.
“He won’t be easy to shake, I’m afraid. Those kind usually aren’t.” He brushed a curl behind my ear.
“Neither are you.” My voice shook when I felt his touch, causing a smile to cross his face.
He shadowed my step back with a longer step forward. “I promised you I’d give you space, and I’ve kept that promise. It’s time for us to talk.”
With the slightest brush of his warm lips across my cheek, I was willing to listen to anything he had to say. “Jonathan, I’m not sure what you want from me. I’ll never be who you want,” I breathed out, trying to calm the excitement building between us. I turned my cheek away before he could kiss my lips even though my heart skipped a pleading beat.
“Please, just give me an hour. An hour to listen to me. I mean really, really listen. If you still don’t understand after you’ve heard me out, I’ll leave you alone. I promise.”
I was mesmerized by the way his eyebrows raised when he said the word listen and the way his lips quivered when he pleaded for me to understand. I had no power to refuse.
~ ~ ~
I watched the door for the rest of the day, praying Steven wouldn’t come back for a repeat performance. I’d already planned on calling the police if necessary, but I knew it’d be easier for Annie if he just faded away without incident.
Paulo was genuinely happy to see me when he came by at his usual time. I could tell he searched for a way to show his sympathy for my loss, but he didn’t quite know how. His worried gaze followed me around the back room as I put together his box.
Sympathy turned to excitement when I pulled my version of the flourless chocolate cake from the cooling cabinet and wrapped up two large pieces for him to take home.
“It’s not as good as Silvy’s, Paulo, but it came out pretty well. I hope you and your mother enjoy it.” I accepted his thankful hug and held him there against me longer than usual. The clean smell of his hair reassured me that his mother was still strong enough to care for her son. That gave me hope that she was getting better.
“How is your mother feeling these days?”
He looked up and gave me a timid smile. “She’s—she’s okay. She stays in bed a lot.”
“Well, you call me anytime. If you’re scared or worried, Rich or I will come over and make sure things are okay. All right?” I wrote down my phone number, the number for The Health Nut, and the three numbers for Rich, then poked the paper into the top of the box and handed it to him.
“Thank you, Miss Becka,” he said, accepting the box. “Thank you for everything. I’m glad you’re back. I missed you. I’m real sorry about your mom.” The sweetest expression came to his face.
A tinge of guilt swept through me as I remembered my family owned the factory that was making his mother sick. I felt responsible even though Rich and I had nothing to do with it.
I walked him out the door and waved when he turned to see if I was still there. He’d grown a good three inches since I’ve known him and was becoming quite a little man. Those were healthy signs.
Jonathan, who hadn’t left the vicinity since Steven’s outburst that morning, watched me wave to Paulo from inside the bookstore. Beyond where he stood, expensive bookshelves lined the exterior walls with a huge mahogany center shelf between them standing from floor to ceiling. Boxes of tissue-wrapped rare editions sat along the base waiting to be shelved.
When I approached the door, he opened it silently and moved aside, so I could enter. The boxy cashier counter that once stood at the rear of the store had been replaced by a beautiful antique secretarial desk. The thick wooden legs were carved in the shape of unicorn heads, very much like Daddy’s game table I had at home. The base of the desk lamp was molded from a large piece of green aventurine, smoothed into the shape of an elephant. The oversized lampshade was made of burgundy velvet with tiny blue and gold tassels hanging around the bottom.
I hardly recognized the space. It was so different than when the electronics store leased the store. The plain white walls had been covered by expensive toile fabric with embroidered faces of famous authors. The wood floor, once dirty and scarred, now shone beneath the antique oriental runners that ran the length of the book rows. An elegant Turkish rug lay beneath the desk and matching leather armchair.
“What do you think?” Jonathan leaned back against the polished desk, looking quite at home, his booted heels crossed one over the other.
“This is incredible. When did you do all this? How did you get this lease?”
He cocked his head slightly at the last question. “Well, for your first question, my father and I’ve been working constantly to get this place up and running before the start of the month. If you recall, I’ve had a lot of extra time to work on it. And, for your second question,” he paused now, looking me over. “The property manager said the owner chose us personally.” His words were so matter-of-fact, I knew he had no idea that Silvy was the owner in question.
“Well, you’ve done a beautiful job. I didn’t think this old building could ever look this elegant.” I moved away before he had a chance to ask why I was so curious about how they got the lease.
“We still have a lot to do. I have a man coming out to paint our sign on the front window, and the books still need to be inventoried and shelved. There are a few other things that have to be done before we can open.”
“I take it you’ve already closed your other store.”
“Yeah, my dad is over there now taking care of the last few details. I think he’s a little sad to leave the old location. He started the business there.” He kept talking as I walked around, taking in the nostalgic smell of books. That scent mixed with soap and sex that breezy night in Hawaii will be forever etched in my mind. It transported me instantly back into that moonlit, tropical hut, and into Jonathan’s arms.
“Are you listening to me, Becka?” He came up behind me and put his hands on my hips, startling me back to the present. “What are you thinking about?” His voice intuitively sexy.
“Nothing!” I said too abruptly, giving it away.
“I can’t stop thinking about it either.” He pulled me back against him. “I miss you,” he said, leaning in to smell my hair. I lingered there, hungry for the sweet press of his body against mine, wanting him to take me right there on the antique rug, but then I stopped myself, remembering, and I pulled away.
“Jonathan, I said I’d listen to you. I never said I’d do anything more.” My teeth wanted to bite off my tongue for denying my body’s needs.
“You’re right,” he said, moving away. “You need to understand.” He came around to face me and kissed my lips lightly before I reacted.
“Understand what?” I needed to hear him say it.
“You need to understand our connection. I can tell you feel it, but you’re refusing to believe. I’ve been warned not to blurt out the details, but you’re right on the verge of remembering. I called you Rachel because you are Rachel. Or, more accurately, you were Rachel. My Rachel. The woman who owns my heart.” The tone of heartache in his voice brought tears to my eyes, but his explanation confused me.
I stepped back to look at him.
“Please, Becka, don’t run away,” he pleaded. “Just think about it for a while. Don’t be afraid.” He took my trembling hands and kissed each in turn. “Becka, your mother believed me. She said she knew from the first moment she saw us together that we have an undeniable cosmic connection. We’re soulmates, Becka. We belong together.”
My breathing accelerated as I took in his words. “Jonathan, I don’t, I can’t. My heart wants to believe you, but my brain says you’ve lost your mind. Which one do I trust? Where is the proof?” His eyes dropped to the floor, and then I backed away out the door, reluctantly pulling my hands from his grasp. I had no words to explain how afraid and hopeful I was. I needed to think. I needed to breathe.
~ ~ ~
By the time I got to Silvy’s house to check on Annie, I was breathing normally again. Unfortunately, Rich had already called the police on Steven. We didn’t give him enough credit. He’d remembered how to get to Silvy’s house even though he’d only been there once a long time ago. Shaking that lunatic was gonna be harder than we anticipated.
A tall, thin, hook-nosed officer stood in my mother’s front room, scolding Rich for taking matters into his own hands. A chair was overturned, and a picture was off the wall. A small puddle of blood pooled on the cream-colored entry tile. I found Annie curled up in a ball, crying in Silvy’s room. Once I saw she was safe, I had to make sure my brother wasn’t the one bleeding.
I listened to Officer Burrell tell Rich, the lawyer, how best to handle unwanted visitors if ever this type of incident should happen again. He stood rigid, arms crossed and frustrated.
“First of all,” Burrell said too loud for my taste, “this door should be locked at all times. If it’d been locked, we might’ve gotten here before the altercation happened.”
Rich tried to reason with him, but Officer Burrell didn’t seem to care that my brother had made that mistake because we’d never locked that door in our lives.
“Second, you should never try to apprehend someone on your own. Just call us and leave the premises through another exit, if possible.”
Rich wasn’t sorry for confronting Steven with force. I knew that for sure. Since Rich wasn’t injured, Steven must’ve gotten the worst end of the deal. There was a sick satisfaction in that. I ran back to Annie to learn exactly what happened.
“Oh God, Becka.” She sat up when she saw me enter the room. “Steven was yelling for me. He was drunk. It scared me to death. He had a terrifying look on his face. Rich was so brave. You would’ve been proud. He warned Steven to leave or he’d call the police. Then Steven went nuts and attacked Rich because he was protecting me. Steven was furious. I thought he’d kill us both.” Her words dissolved into tears, and I held her.
“What happened after that?” I asked, unhappy I’d missed my brother beating the shit out of Steven.
“Richie grabbed your dad’s old walking stick and hit him a couple of times. After a few minutes, Steven sat down on the floor calling my name until the police showed up.”
I buried her head in my shoulder so she couldn’t see the smile on my face. “Annie, did you call the police?”
“I had to. Richie was so wired I was afraid he’d kill Steven if he tried to get up.”
“You did the right thing. It’s all over now.” I smoothed her hair down with my hand, feeling the comfort of Silvy’s ring on my finger.
“It’s not over. He swore he’d come back for me. He said he’d kill me if I didn’t get back home where I belong.”
“Good God, Annie.” I pulled away from her to be sure she actually registered the magnitude of his threat. “Has he ever threatened your life like that before?”
“No, not like that.”
“We gotta get you out of here before he gets out of jail. It doesn’t sound like he’s gonna accept this divorce as easily as we’d hoped.”
Rich walked in, pulling a clean shirt over his head, huffing about being reprimanded for protecting his own. “I’m sorry I had to do that, Annie. He would’ve dragged you out by the hair like some caveman if I hadn’t.” He sat between us on the bed and put his hand on her knee. “He’s an animal. I hope you realize that now.”
He stopped when he saw me shaking my head from side to side. She didn’t need to be drilled on the mistakes of her life at this moment. Steven had proven what he was capable of without any help from us.
“I think we need to get you out of here,” I said to her. “Maybe we’ll go up to Grandpa Jack’s cabin until things calm down.”
“Annie, you need to call your parents,” Rich said. “They should know what the hell’s going on. Maybe, they’d meet you up at the cabin?” He helped her to her feet and led her down the hallway. “Let’s get your things in the Cruiser, and I’ll drive you up and get you settled tonight. Steven’ll probably be released by morning. You need to be well away from here before then.”
Annie didn’t say another word until I handed her the phone to talk to her parents. She mumbled the whole story about her situation with Steven, stopping periodically to cry and to listen. When she hung up a look of relief crossed her face. Her parents were already on their way to Grandpa Jack’s cabin before Rich put her things in our parents’ old four-wheel-drive and headed to the safety of the mountains.
I waved as they drove away. Annie’s life had changed so dramatically in the past twenty-four hours she probably didn’t know which end was up. Who knew a baby could make her see how truly wrong Steven was for her?
~ ~ ~
Rich got back to The Health Nut in time for his Thursday morning shift. By the time he and Annie made it to Grandpa Jack’s cabin yesterday evening, Barbara and Mel had already started a fire in the wood stove and heated some of their leftover stew in Grandma’s iron crock.
Mel told them he and Barbara had pulled into an RV park not three hours north of here off Interstate 5, feeling like something was not quite right at home when they left. They were only two hours west of the cabin when they got the call from Annie.
Rich said they just kept asking Annie why, over and over again. Why didn’t she tell them? Why did she let it go on so long? Why did she lie when they asked her how life was going? Why? Over and over. He said he finally had to stop them when Annie broke down and ran off to the bathroom to throw up.
Then she had another ‘why’ question to answer, and with this answer, they apologized for their unsympathetic questions and started celebrating becoming grandparents. Everything was a little easier to understand with a baby on the way.
When Rich got too tired to stay up, he left them smiling and happy, drinking virgin cranberry and orange juice cocktails. Before he headed back this morning, he put a goodbye note on the refrigerator under Grandpa Jack’s fish magnet, pulled the covers up around Annie’s shoulders, and stacked some split almond logs on the embers that still glowed in the wood stove.
“She’s okay for now, Becka,” he said. “Mel and Barbara will stay with her as long as she needed them. I’m going down to the courthouse to file charges against Steven for assault.”
“It sounds like you’re the one who assaulted him.”
“Well, maybe, but he’s the one who broke into Silvy’s house. He trespassed on our property with a restraining order in place. He attacked me, and he tried to physically remove Annie against her will. He won’t serve much time, but maybe it’ll give Annie a chance to get herself together.”
“God, I hope so. I can’t believe she never told me how bad it was.”
“There’s a lot about Annie you don’t know, Becka.”
“What does that mean?” I cocked my head at the odd statement.
He watched me for a moment before continuing. “I told you guys Steven was a prick, way back when she first met him. What an asshole!”
“She said he never hit her.” I sipped my latte.
Rich shook his head. “It would be a damn miracle if he’s never abused her, Becka. Men who live with lies often take their aggression out on those closest to them. He has a lot of pent up hostility, if you know what I mean.”
Rich guided me to the kitchen by the elbow, trying to get away from the perked ears around the café.
“What do you mean?” I stopped to face him.
“I mean, he’s got all this hostility inside because he’s in denial!” He looked around before continuing. “He’s a latent homosexual. One of the boys. It’s so obvious, I’m surprised you can’t see it. You’re usually pretty observant.”
“What?” I blurted out. I wanted to laugh, but Rich was dead serious.
“You can’t tell? He doesn’t hide it very well. Haven’t you seen the way he looks at me and my friends? Creeps me out.” Rich looked at me like I’d been living in a cave.
Had I missed it? All the anger and weird jealousy Steven spewed any time they were in the same room. I always thought he was just an ass, constantly barraging Rich with fag jokes. It made sense. Poor Annie. She couldn’t have seen it either.
“But, Annie always brags about how awesome Steven is in bed. How do you explain that?” I asked, trying to figure out how Mr. Macho could possibly be gay.
“Most gay men are pretty good in bed, darling, especially when they’re trying to prove something.”
“With a woman?”
“I’ve been with a woman before, Becka. And I was pretty damn good, if I do say so myself. It can be done. We do have all the necessary equipment, after all.” Immediately he regretted sharing that tidbit of information, knowing there was no way I’d leave it alone.
“Wait a minute. You’ve slept with a woman?” I nearly tripped over the stool I tried to straddle.
“Ah, geez,” he breathed out a long breath, settling in for an explanation. “It wasn’t something I planned. It just happened. I do love the girl, if that makes any difference to you.”
“You love her? Why didn’t I know about this? Why didn’t you tell me?” I’d nearly forgotten where this conversation started. In a way I was hurt, but I was more curious and confused.
He meandered around to the other side of the turning table, sitting down in front of me and sipping his coffee in long, irritating slurps, calculating his words. “I didn’t want to interfere with your vacation and what was going on in your world with Jonathan. It wouldn’t have been fair for me to get in the way of all that. Then later with Silvy’s accident and all, it didn’t seem very important.”
“Richie, I love you. You’re my brother. Everything going on in your life is important to me. No matter how weird it is.”
His nose crinkled, which told me he hesitated to share a secret I wouldn’t understand. “How’s this for weird?” he asked, watching my eyes. “It was Annie.”
“What was Annie?” I knew exactly what he meant the second it came out of his mouth, but my brain was two beats behind.
He let out a sigh so hard I smelled the coffee on his breath. “God, she’s gonna kill me for telling you this,” he said, “I slept with Annie, Becka. It was Annie!”
All I could do was gulp as the information sank in. I felt totally disconnected from reality. How did I miss all of this? The only thing I could be sure of was my mother was dead, and I was alive, and I had no idea what was going on with the people I loved.
“Breathe, will ya? We didn’t mean for it to happen. It just did.”
“How could something like that just happen, Rich? You’ve known her your whole damn life.”
“I went to her for some research help on a case I was working. When I got there she just fell apart over something Steven had done. I didn’t even want to know what exactly. I knew if I asked, I’d probably kill him, so I took her to my place to calm down. We had some drinks, and things just happened. She needed me, and I love her, so we just—let things happen.”
I stared at him in disbelief. My best friend and my gay brother slept together—made love with each other?
My eyes were wide in surprise. “How did I not see this? Annie never said a word. And you? What the hell?” I shook my head.
“We didn’t want everyone knowing, getting their hopes up. Especially you, Becka. You know I’ve always loved Annie. If I were ever to be with a woman, it’d definitely be her. But, it’d never work.” He said the last words with regret in his voice.
“You were able to—”
“Of course.” He seemed miffed that I’d even question his ability to perform.
“Then, I don’t understand. If you love her, why couldn’t it work?”
“Because eventually I’d have to go back to my true nature. I’d never want to betray Annie. That would make me no better than Steven.”
I nodded, though I felt sure Annie would never expect a traditional union with my brother. “Let me get this straight, then.” I tried to smile to put him at ease, so he wouldn’t clam up. “You slept with Annie before we went to Hawaii?”
“Yeah. It was a couple of weeks before you guys left.”
“And now she’s pregnant?”
“Annie told her parents and me she thinks she’s at least three months along. That would be long before we were together.”
“She told me she thought she just recently got pregnant.” I arched my brow to give him the heads up.
He looked down at the table, and then up into my eyes. “Becka. Is there a chance?”
“Richie,” I said, “Annie could be carrying your baby. I could be an auntie.”
A smile as wide as his face brightened the kitchen. “Why wouldn’t she tell me if she thought she was carrying my baby? I was so freaked at the thought of Steven being a father, I couldn’t even celebrate with them last night. This would be like a miracle.”
“Maybe she doesn’t want to pressure you.”
“Pressure me? Oh my God! Having a baby with Annie would be incredible.” He was so excited he nearly fell off the chair when the angel bell jingled out front. “Do me a favor. Don’t mention this conversation to Annie. I wanna handle it on my own.” He got up and headed through the swinging door to wait on our first customer of the day.
“Good morning, George. How the hell are you?” I heard the social-chameleon tone ring in my brother’s voice.
Then I heard George greet Rich in his usual way. “Kill any bad-doers lately?”
Rich answered with a new bravado, “I haven’t killed any bad-doers lately, George, but I sure beat the shit out of one yesterday.”
When George gave him his exuberant atta-boy and a hearty laugh, it made me smile. I thought of Annie and the baby, and all I could do was pray. Rich - a father? The idea of Annie and Rich having a baby together would be a dream come true. Silvy would never have fathomed that Rich and Annie would be the ones to bring her first grandchild into the world.