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“Buddy, if you want me to go with you, I’m happy to do it.”
“You’d do that for me?”
“Of course! It might be weird for your father, but I could go as your friend and the doctor in the group. He might think we're lovers, though, so that wouldn’t be cool.”
Max laughed. “If Alison came along, and you came as my friend, it might make my dad less reactive.”
“That’s what I think. There’s safety in a crowd.”
“Okay, Will, thank you. I’ll let you know when I’m going to do it.”
They chatted for a while longer before saying goodbye.
“Well, isn’t that nice that you have such a good friend,” Laura said.
Will turned to her, bringing up something that had been on his mind all evening. “Ryan told Lisa that Sandra had heard from you that Max was going to try to adopt Morgan.”
Laura felt like a bucket of hot water had been thrown at her. She tried not to react. This was the first time in their two-year relationship that Will had come close to admonishing her, and it felt terrible. What he’d said was true. Laura had betrayed a confidence when she’d repeated to Sandra that she’d heard Max wanted to adopt all of Alison’s girls except for Diana, because Diana’s father would never allow it.
“Sandra said that?”
“That’s what Ryan said.”
Laura tried to put a positive spin on her indiscretion. “It’s a good thing, then, because it’s clear Ryan is stepping up to the plate and finally being a father.”
“Is that why you told Sandra?” Will asked.
Flushing, Laura disliked being rebuked by the one person who had never spoken harshly to her. “No. Will, I can tell you’re angry.”
“Disappointed,” he said sharply.
“Okay, well, let’s clear this up, then. I’m not your kid, so don’t speak to me in that tone.”
“Gotcha,” he said. “I don’t have anything else to say. I’m embarrassed my wife gossiped about someone I care about, that’s all. I wanted you to know that.”
“I know now, so you can give it a rest.”
“I’m going to bed.”
Laura watched him leave the room. This was unfamiliar territory for her. She didn’t feel like groveling. But she didn’t think the situation warranted a fight. She’d leave him alone and let him cool off.
On the other hand, she was pissed off that Sandra had told Ryan what she’d said about Max adopting Alison’s kids. Alison probably knew, and that meant Lisa knew.
Laura barked out a laugh. It looked like she was going to be a persona non grata, which was fine with her. She hated the clique anyway.
Taking a deep breath, she went to the hall closet where sheets and blankets were stored and grabbed what she needed to make up the guest bed in Randi’s room. It would be the first time in their marriage that they didn’t sleep in the same bed except the night Randi was born.
Lisa and Zach sat on the terrace in the cold, a fire in the fire pit, talking about the crazy day, their first holiday together.
“The strange thing is that those people are new to the family. They are Sandra’s husband’s family. I don’t even know them. I thought it would be easier having a holiday at someone else’s house, and it was awful. Next time, I’ll encourage my mother to do the holiday.”
“We could always go to my family,” Zach said. “It’s low key. Nothing fancy.”
“I’m sure they’d love all the kids.”
“We’ll figure something out. Christmas is just around the corner.”
“My mother will come through for me. If she doesn’t, I’ll just have it here. I never thought I’d miss my mother’s holiday dinner. I must be getting old.”
