“Talk to you soon!” I call as I climb into the car. Jessica is already back in the passenger seat, her face like a summer squall.
I start the engine and back out of the driveway. “Before you say anything, let me explain.”
“Oh, please do.”
“I told you Lily had a stomach bug.”
“You neglected to mention you spent the night.”
I put the car into drive and head down the street. “About one in the morning, I told Quinn I’d stay up with Lily and she should go to bed. She was exhausted, and I was worried about her getting sick herself since she’s pregnant. I slept in the living room with Lily.”
Jessica huffs out a harsh breath, then sits silent for a moment, her arms crossed. “So what was all that about being in bed with Lily and Quinn?”
“The next evening, I dropped by after work to see how Lily was.”
“Hold it right there.” She raises her hands. “You ‘dropped by’?” She makes air quotes with her fingers. “You couldn’t have just called?”
“She’s a little girl, Jess! Phone calls aren’t the same as a visit. Besides, I wanted to see her.”
“Of course you did.”
I ignore her icy tone and turn the car onto Magazine. “Lily asked me to read her a bedtime story. She crawled into her bed—it’s big; double- or queen-sized or something—and I got on one side of her, and Quinn got on the other. We each read three little picture books, then we listened to her prayers. It was perfectly innocent.”
“And you’ve done this multiple times?”
“Well, yeah.”
“If it was so innocent, why didn’t you tell me about it?”
“Probably because I didn’t want to go through a scene like this.”
She blows out a disgruntled sigh. “And watching the DVD of Quinn’s ultrasound? When did you do that?”
“One evening after Lily was in bed.”
“So you stay and talk with Quinn after Lily’s asleep?”
“Sometimes. Not for very long.” Even to my ears, my voice sounds defensive.
Tears spring to her eyes. “I wanted to watch our baby’s ultrasound with you.” Her voice is jagged as broken glass. It cuts my heart to hear it.
“I know, Jess,” I say softly. “That’s why I didn’t tell you.”
We drive in silence for a moment. “Was it amazing? Seeing the ultrasound, I mean.”
“You couldn’t really see anything.”
I feel her looking at me. “You’re not a very good liar.”
“Seriously, you couldn’t see much.”
“But you heard the heartbeat?”
I nod.
Her head sinks back against the headrest. “God.”
She knows I hate it when she uses the word like a curse. “It put me in mind of him, yes.”
