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Tears filled her eyes yet again, and she had to put her hand up to scrub them away. “Stupid pregnancy hormones,” she muttered.
Izzy glanced away to give her some time to pull herself together, which Beth was grateful for.
“He deserves better too,” she said in a firmer voice. “I want to look after him the way he looks after me.”
“Yes,” Izzy said. “He really does deserve that.”
“You need to talk to him,” Indigo muttered. “Just lay it all out.”
Izzy nodded. “Agreed. If you’re going to be married, you have to be honest with each other. You can’t let this stuff fester, especially when a kid is involved.”
As one, they all looked to where Gus stood, wiping her hands on her jeans, obviously pleading for something from Finn, who was shaking his head.
Chase’s first wife had left Brightwater Valley when Gus was five and she hadn’t been back since. Beth could never understand how a mother could leave her child like that, with not even one visit.
“No,” she said. “You’re right. I can’t. I already told him we need to talk, but I’m not sure how he’s going to take it.”
“And if he doesn’t take it well?” Izzy glanced back at her. “What will you do then?”
Beth’s heart squeezed tight.
“I don’t know,” she said bleakly. “I really don’t know.”
***
Gus, in true Gus fashion, was pleading for a shandy, and since she’d already had one, Finn wasn’t inclined to allow her another, even if the ones Jim made for her were mostly lemonade.
“Please, Finn.” Gus danced around in front of him. “Just one more.”
“That’s a no, Gussie. And I think you heard me the first time.”
Gus scowled. “I’m going to ask Dad.”
“You do that. I’m sure he’ll be much more understanding.”
Gus rolled her eyes, sniffed, then stalked off, the epitome of a young teen in high dudgeon.
“Don’t tell me,” Levi said, wandering over to him, having finished fiddling with the projector. “She wanted another shandy?”
“Of course she wanted another shandy.” Finn put his hands in his pockets and scanned the crowd, his gaze coming to rest, as it always seemed to do, on Beth, who was sitting on the couch from HQ with Izzy and Indigo.
The other two were holding Beth’s hands, obviously in solidarity about something, while Beth looked down at her lap. Her loose ponytail had fallen over one shoulder, a lock of white-blond hair hiding her expression. She was in a loose, white shirt this evening and a pair of worn jeans, simple clothes that nevertheless seemed to highlight how pretty she was, how she glowed like the sun.
“She looks about as happy as she did up at the farmhouse,” Levi observed, picking up on the direction of Finn’s gaze.
“Don’t you have something better to do, Levi?” Chase’s voice came from behind them, and Finn swung around to find his brother standing there.
“No,” Levi said. “I don’t.”
“Are you sure?” Chase did not sound happy.
Levi glanced at him and then at Finn, then clearly deciding discretion was the better part of valor, he said, “Perhaps I’d better start the movie.”
“What is it tonight?” Chase asked, coming to stand next to Finn.
Levi’s wicked grin came out to play. “Die Hard.”
Finn shook his head. “Again?”
