Grandma? Joe? Not a chance. At least she didn’t think there was. But who else?
A single name came to mind:Evelyn?
No. Not Evelyn, either. Maddie scolded herself for being suspicious of people who’d done so much for her.
“Maddie? Are you awake?” His voice again. That time, at her closed bedroom door. “I see you didn’t touch the sandwich. If you’re hungry now, so am I. How about if I take you out to dinner?”
She didn’t answer because she didn’t know how she’d react. Maddie had never liked confrontation, had never been good at it, preferring to swallow her anger. She wasn’t sure she could do that now. For the first time ever, she might erupt at her father. So, instead of risking a showdown, she squeezed her eyes shut, pulled the covers up to her neck, and willed herself to ignore the one man on the planet she always had trusted.
More than once, Owen had chided Maddie about being what he called obstinate. The following morning, she decidedto use it to her advantage. Maybe obstinacy would help her sneak out of the cottage, away from her father. Otherwise, she’d be tempted to ask how long he planned to stay now that she was functioning again, her life heading in a new direction whether he liked it or not.
Her unspoken statement, however, went unnoticed; by the time she showered, dressed, and gathered her things, no one else was in the cottage. There was only a note on the kitchen table.
A note!she thought with acerbity. Stephen still hadn’t mastered texting. Or hadn’t wanted to master it. She picked up the scrap of paper and read:Dropping Nancy at Joe’s, then doing errands. See you later—D
Her father had always signed messages to her with a simple “D,” as in Dad. It was cute when she’d been six or seven. But if a note was how he chose to communicate, she could play his game.
Grabbing the pen he’d left on the table, below his message she wrote:I’m out for most of the day. She did not sign it with a “D” for daughter as she’d typically done. Instead, she grabbed the paint chips and stomped toward the door with what she recognized as adolescence at its finest.
Her father’s car was not in the tiny lot behind the house. Nor was it by the bookshop at the harbor, which was Maddie’s first stop. She’d hoped to find Kevin so they could resolve the shades of paint and decide what color should go where. But the shop was locked, the blinds were drawn, and no one answered when she knocked.
Behind the wheel again, she headed to North Road then onto State toward Alley’s in West Tisbury, which was thankfully open year-round; she stopped and grabbed a coffee, yogurt, and a corn muffin because she and the baby were starving.
The baby!she thought with an equal mix of perplexity and terror.
Then she got out of the car, tossed the coffee, and went back inside for a decaf.
Once in the car again, she dove into her breakfast before continuing on her mission. She sat chewing, contemplating, struggling to corral her bouncing thoughts, wondering when she could tell Rex. She slid into fantasy: If Rex was home, she could text him.
I’M HEADING TOCHAPPY, she’d type. I’LL STOP IF YOU’RE AROUND? Just because she was pregnant did not mean she’d take it for granted that she could barge into his place without notice. Any more than she’d done last October. Maddie was good at not being clingy.
Rex would text back: YES, PLEASE! I’VE BEEN THINKING OF YOU. Maybe he’d sign off with three heart emojis, though she supposed he wasn’t that corny. Still, it would be nice.
She would go to his place; he’d make coffee, she’d ask for herb tea; they’d linger at his table. Then she would tell him. And he’d be the one consumed by emotion.
“You’ve made me the happiest man on earth,” he’d say.
Then she wondered if life had been easier when there were unspoken rules about couples being married before babies began to arrive, back when wedding vows were supposedly the key to a happy life.
Now who’s being pathetic?she asked herself.
With a sigh, she swallowed the last crumbs of the muffin and what was left of the yogurt, remembering that none of her daydreams mattered. So she turned on the ignition and drove out of the lot, wondering why she was wasting gas driving to Chappy. Maybe because it was as far as she could get from her father without having to get on a boat.
After what took forever, she arrived at theOn Time. Bythen she was tired again, but perked up when she saw that the captain that morning was Kevin.
Following his guiding gestures, she rolled the Volvo onto the flatbed and turned off her engine. Hers was the only vehicle on board.
“You’re exactly who I’ve been looking for,” Maddie said with a smile. On the way, she’d decided to visit Francine. After all, the young woman had given birth to Reggie while living on the Vineyard, so no doubt she had an ob-gyn.
Kevin’s smile was broad and genuine. “I’m filling in for Joel, who had to make a quick run to the Cape. I’m on duty ’til noon, after which I’ll be up yonder at the bookshop. You need something important?”
Only some advice on what to do about my baby, my lover, my father—and, oh yes, the state of my life, she wanted to say. Maybe she’d have the courage to spill all of that to Francine.
“Actually,” she said, “I was hoping you could help me choose the right shade of blue.”
Kevin blinked. “For the baby’s room?”
Maddie might have laughed if she hadn’t been so startled.
