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“Stay for coffee. Ryan won’t be home for an hour.”
“I think I will. I haven’t been out of the house or talked to an adult except for my nannies for a week.”
Not thinking of the consequences, Lisa slipped her coat off and joined Betsy in the kitchen, where they talked while Betsy poured coffee.
“What do you take in yours?”
“Creamer or milk and sugar.”
“I have this killer creamer,” Betsy said, getting a container out of the fridge.
They took their prepared drinks to the living room window and chatted, looking across the street at the quaint cottages on the beach.
“Your place is so cute,” Betsy said. “Ryan said you did the restoration yourself.”
“Well, not physically with my two hands,” Lisa said, laughing. “Ryan and the men in the neighborhood did a lot of it, and my mother’s former husband, who was a builder before he died, did the big stuff like the kitchen and the foundation.”
“Do you want to sit?” Betsy asked, nodding toward the dining table that had a good view.
“Sure.”
They walked together, chatting, but it wasn’t until Lisa placed the mug on the table and pulled out the chair that Betsy’s gaze went to her belly.
“Lisa…” she choked out, pointing.
“Oh, God,” Lisa replied, pulling her sweatshirt out. But it was too late. It was clear from her reaction that Betsy had seen her baby bump.
Betsy sat down with a plunk, rubbing her forehead. She peered up over her hand. “Can I ask if it’s Ryan’s?”
“It is, Betsy, but he doesn’t know. I didn’t tell him yet because I wanted nothing to stand in the way of us separating. I’m through with Ryan, but I want to keep things amicable for my children’s sake.”
“That wasn’t fair to him, though.”
“It has nothing to do with him. I didn’t kick Ryan out. If you’ve been told that, you need to know the truth right now. He left because he couldn’t stand the commotion. After Sierra was born, it was too much for him.
“Know that we’ve never been happier than with him out of the house. I’m so thrilled that he has you! You’re delightful, Betsy. My kids, even my daughter Megan, who is a tough one, want to visit Ryan now because of you.”
“What was he thinking?” Betsy asked, not really listening to Lisa.
“It was both of us. Alcohol fueled. I’m not proud of it.”
“He was just talking about us having a baby, and I said not yet.”
“You need to rethink that, Betsy. We can raise them together. It’s why we had Sierra, I thought, so all the neighbors would have babies the same age. And of course it backfired.”
“Right! Randi is Sierra’s age.”
“If you insist, I’ll tell Ryan.” Lisa said.
“He’s going to want you guys to get back together.”
“Betsy, no offense, but tough shit. The door is closed to that. Ryan loves you. We all know that. I thought he might be incapable of real, mature love, and then you showed up.”
“What about Zach?” Betsy asked.
“Zach is a friend. He knows I’m pregnant. We met the day Daniela fell, and the following week we had coffee, and I told him.”
“I guess I’m dreading what Ryan’s response is going to be,” Betsy said.
