Angie looked at him with disappointment. “Is that true, Joe? Were your parents taking money from Valerie’s father? Is that why they got that new car?”
Joe held up a hand and spoke defensively. “Hey. I don’t know what kind of arrangement they had. I only know that you’re getting on a plane back to Nova Scotia next month. You will if you know what’s good for you.”
Valerie laughed defiantly. “You can’t force me.”
He bowed his head. “I’m sorry. That came out wrong. I just mean that the world isn’t kind to single mothers. You should be thinking about your kid. What kind of life is he going to have, and how are you going to support him? Your father certainly won’t help you, not if you disrespect his wishes. You have no family here. If you have that baby, you’ll be up shit creek.”
“I have Maud and Blaine,” she argued.
“Oh, sure. They’re helpful now, when you’re working at the lodge. But they’re not your family, and they’re not going to take responsibility for you and that baby for the next eighteen years. You can’t depend on them for that.”
“I can depend on myself,” she maintained.
He shook his head mockingly. “Sure. A single mother with no education. No husband. You’ll do just great.”
“Joe!” Angie said, scolding him.
He downed the rest of his beer and set the empty bottle on the table. “I’m just being realistic. You ought to give it some more thought, Valerie, and consider what you’ll be giving up—a proper future where you can go to college, find a husband, and make your father proud. Why wouldn’t you want that? And with all due respect, you’re taking a lot for granted—like how fortunate you are to have a father who would pay for you to come here and let you go home with a clean slate.”
Valerie watched him walk to the door and don his jacket. “I honestly don’t think you care what I do with my life,” she said. “I think youjust want the money my father promised in exchange for my return next month—without my baby.”
Angie sat forward. “Joe, tell me. Is it true? Because I never understood why you were always asking about Valerie. I was starting to think you had a thing for her, which wouldn’t have been a big shock. You like other women.”
“Please don’t start that again, Angie,” he said. “I’ve been making changes, and you know it.”
“Do I?” Tears glistened in her eyes. “I’m not stupid. When I was in the hospital giving birth to your son, I know you were out gallivanting. I smelled the perfume on you when you came to the hospital—drunk.”
He pinched his forehead, aggravated. “I wasn’t out gallivanting. I was with my mother.” He went to the door but stopped. “And you’re a fine one to talk, going to the lodge with Jeremy that night after my mom’s party and not coming home at all. He’s obviously in love with you, but you won’t see it, and you keep encouraging him.” Joe opened the door. “I don’t have time for this foolishness now. I need to get back to work. I’ll see you at supper.” He walked out.
Valerie sat in silence while Angie leaped to her feet and ran to the front window to watch. Joe got into his police cruiser and pulled out of the driveway. As soon as he was gone, Angie sank to her knees on the floor and gave in to her tears.
“Oh, Angie.” Valerie knelt beside her and pulled her into her arms. “Everything’s going to be okay.”
“No, it’s not,” Angie replied, crying on Valerie’s shoulder. “He says I shouldn’t be friends with Jeremy, but he flirts with other women all the time. And I think he’s sleeping with that schoolteacher. Sometimes I feel people whispering behind my back on the street. It’s embarrassing. There are days I just want to take Ethan and leave this town.”
Valerie sat back on her heels and wiped the tears from Angie’s cheek. “Where would you go?”
“To my parents in Arizona. But I don’t want to disappoint them. They’ve been through so much already, after Shana died. I just wanted to make them proud and happy, and Joe seemed like the best catch in Valdez. He was so handsome and popular in school. But I know he cheats on me, and I’m miserable.”
Not knowing what to say to make Angie feel better, Valerie pulled her into her arms again. “It’ll be all right,” she said. “I’ll help you. Whatever you need, I’m here.”
Angie’s body shuddered as she cried. Then she fought to recover and sat back, wiping furiously at her wet cheeks. “Remember when we talked about going to Hollywood and becoming famous? I used to dream about that all the time—about leaving Joe and making him regret looking at other women. He’d see me in the movies, and I’d be rich and famous, like Marilyn Monroe. I’d dye my hair blonde and everything. But now I have Ethan, and all I want is to be his mother.”
The sound of Ethan’s cries from the nursery brought Angie to her feet. “He’s hungry.”
Valerie was slower to rise and cupped her belly with her left arm while she pushed off the coffee table.
A moment later, she found Angie in the nursery, pacing slowly about while she cradled Ethan in her arms. “Someone needs to be changed,” she said in a singsong voice.
To Valerie, the change in Angie was like night and day. Suddenly she was joyful and spellbound by her baby. She kissed him on the nose and cheeks.
Valerie watched while Angie changed Ethan’s diaper. She imagined doing the same thing herself in a week or two. The baby kicked inside her belly just then, reading her thoughts, perhaps.
By now, Ethan had a clean diaper, but he continued to fuss.
“I need to warm up a bottle,” Angie said. “Let’s go to the kitchen.”
Valerie followed and helped her fill a pot with water and set it on the stove.
