me.”
“You don’t need to be fixed,” Annie said fiercely, trying to combat the note of defeat. “Maybe just a little fine-tuning.”
“You’re a liar, but thanks.”
“Just so you know, I always start out spending time with a client to see what her goals are, so this is just routine,” Annie assured her. Unsure what her old friend’s financial situation might be, she added, “You don’t pay for this session, okay?”
“Money’s not an issue,” Sarah assured her. “I just don’t have time to waste.”
Again, there was a note of hysteria that set off alarm bells.
“We can talk about why that is, too,” Annie told her, leading the way into the spa’s small café, which sold avariety of drinks, smoothies, salads and pastries. The food was supplied by Sullivan’s.
Annie ordered two iced teas, then ushered Sarah out to the patio, choosing a table in the shade of an old oak tree. Two other tables were occupied, but they had relative privacy to talk. “So, you’re obviously married now, since I didn’t recognize the last name when you made the appointment.”
“For the moment,” Sarah said, her expression grim. “Walter says if I don’t get a grip on my weight, he’s through with me.”
Annie stared at her with shock. “Your husband threatened to leave you if you don’t lose weight?”
Sarah nodded, tears gathering in her eyes. “He meant it, too. He’s already seen a lawyer. To tell you the truth, I think he’s been looking for an excuse, and I handed it to him when I gained weight during my pregnancies with our two kids. I kept an extra twenty pounds after each of them.”
Annie was startled. “You have two kids already? When did you get married?”
“The week after we graduated. I was already pregnant with our first. That’s Tommy. That’s why you didn’t get a wedding invitation—his family thought it would be best if we didn’t make a fuss. We had a very small ceremony.”
Annie felt awful for her. She remembered how they used to talk about their weddings. Of all of them—even including Raylene’s social ambitions—Sarah’s dream had been the most lavish.
“You’d hardly be the first bride to be pregnant when she walked down the aisle,” she said, indignant for Sarah.
“Not in their town,” Sarah said. “At least that’s what you’d think to hear them tell it. Me, I think the wholeplace is a hotbed of people sleeping with anyone they can get their hands on. The Prices think they own the whole stupid town, which I suppose they do, if you consider they own the cotton mill that keeps a lot of folks employed.” She waved her hand. “Never mind. I don’t want to talk about them. They’re hateful people.”
“Have you moved back here, then?”
“I’m staying at Mama and Daddy’s place for a few months, while I ‘get a grip,’ as Walter says. It’s akin to hiding me in a closet. Thank heaven, Mama and Daddy had the foresight to see something like this coming and kept the house just in case I ever needed a place to come home to.”
“And your kids?”
“Tommy and Libby are here with me, at least for now. If Walter really does divorce me, it’s going to get ugly. He’s going to fight to keep Tommy with him.”
Annie regarded her with shock, certain she’d misunderstood. “Only your son?”
“Have to have an heir, don’t you know,” Sarah said angrily. “The family barely acknowledges that Libby exists. Seems my second pregnancy was a worse embarrassment than the first, coming so quickly on the heels of Tommy’s birth.” She leaned close and confided in an exaggerated undertone, “It suggests we had s-e-x. ”
Annie had contained herself as long as she could. “Somebody needs to tell Walter what he can do to himself. I recommend Helen.”
For the first time, Sarah’s smile appeared genuine. “I was hoping you’d say that. I want to get fit, but I’m doing it for me, not Walter, no matter what he thinks. Then I intend to hire a lawyer
“You don’t need to be fixed,” Annie said fiercely, trying to combat the note of defeat. “Maybe just a little fine-tuning.”
“You’re a liar, but thanks.”
“Just so you know, I always start out spending time with a client to see what her goals are, so this is just routine,” Annie assured her. Unsure what her old friend’s financial situation might be, she added, “You don’t pay for this session, okay?”
“Money’s not an issue,” Sarah assured her. “I just don’t have time to waste.”
Again, there was a note of hysteria that set off alarm bells.
“We can talk about why that is, too,” Annie told her, leading the way into the spa’s small café, which sold avariety of drinks, smoothies, salads and pastries. The food was supplied by Sullivan’s.
Annie ordered two iced teas, then ushered Sarah out to the patio, choosing a table in the shade of an old oak tree. Two other tables were occupied, but they had relative privacy to talk. “So, you’re obviously married now, since I didn’t recognize the last name when you made the appointment.”
“For the moment,” Sarah said, her expression grim. “Walter says if I don’t get a grip on my weight, he’s through with me.”
Annie stared at her with shock. “Your husband threatened to leave you if you don’t lose weight?”
Sarah nodded, tears gathering in her eyes. “He meant it, too. He’s already seen a lawyer. To tell you the truth, I think he’s been looking for an excuse, and I handed it to him when I gained weight during my pregnancies with our two kids. I kept an extra twenty pounds after each of them.”
Annie was startled. “You have two kids already? When did you get married?”
“The week after we graduated. I was already pregnant with our first. That’s Tommy. That’s why you didn’t get a wedding invitation—his family thought it would be best if we didn’t make a fuss. We had a very small ceremony.”
Annie felt awful for her. She remembered how they used to talk about their weddings. Of all of them—even including Raylene’s social ambitions—Sarah’s dream had been the most lavish.
“You’d hardly be the first bride to be pregnant when she walked down the aisle,” she said, indignant for Sarah.
“Not in their town,” Sarah said. “At least that’s what you’d think to hear them tell it. Me, I think the wholeplace is a hotbed of people sleeping with anyone they can get their hands on. The Prices think they own the whole stupid town, which I suppose they do, if you consider they own the cotton mill that keeps a lot of folks employed.” She waved her hand. “Never mind. I don’t want to talk about them. They’re hateful people.”
“Have you moved back here, then?”
“I’m staying at Mama and Daddy’s place for a few months, while I ‘get a grip,’ as Walter says. It’s akin to hiding me in a closet. Thank heaven, Mama and Daddy had the foresight to see something like this coming and kept the house just in case I ever needed a place to come home to.”
“And your kids?”
“Tommy and Libby are here with me, at least for now. If Walter really does divorce me, it’s going to get ugly. He’s going to fight to keep Tommy with him.”
Annie regarded her with shock, certain she’d misunderstood. “Only your son?”
“Have to have an heir, don’t you know,” Sarah said angrily. “The family barely acknowledges that Libby exists. Seems my second pregnancy was a worse embarrassment than the first, coming so quickly on the heels of Tommy’s birth.” She leaned close and confided in an exaggerated undertone, “It suggests we had s-e-x. ”
Annie had contained herself as long as she could. “Somebody needs to tell Walter what he can do to himself. I recommend Helen.”
For the first time, Sarah’s smile appeared genuine. “I was hoping you’d say that. I want to get fit, but I’m doing it for me, not Walter, no matter what he thinks. Then I intend to hire a lawyer
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