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Authors: Ann B. Ross
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to see you.” Then his face sobered. “Has the doctor . . . ?”
“Yes,” I said, cutting him off, aware of James standing there, listening. “And it’s nothing but a touch of flu. She’ll be coming home tomorrow for a few days of rest. No visitors and no running around until she gets her strength back. I am so relieved.”
I marched into the big front room that was Sam’s office, waited for him to follow me, then turned to James. “Now’s a good time to rake those leaves.” Then I shut the door.
Sam’s eyebrows went up, as he gave me a questioning look. “Just the flu?”
“That’s right,” I said, slightly louder than usual in case there was an ear pressed to the door. “One of those new strains, it seems.” That would buy us a little time, I thought, as I pressed my own ear against the door until I heard James’s footsteps going into the kitchen. It took some little while since an Oriental rug covered most of the hall. Satisfied that he was gone, I nodded and made sure the door was tightly closed.
“Julia, what are you doing?” Sam asked, torn between laughing and worrying about my unusual behavior.
“Waiting for James to get out of earshot. He’d have everything I say spread all over town by nightfall. And, Sam, we have to keep this to ourselves. Only you and Lillian will know it. Well, and me, too, of course. But nobody else.”
“All right. Come sit down and tell me. I take it, it’s more than the flu?”
“I should say it is,” I said, flopping down on the leather sofa. “I had to beg Hazel Marie to let me tell you and Lillian, because she didn’t want anybody to know. As if,” I continued with a sniff, “everybody in the world won’t know eventually. There’s no easy way to tell you, Sam, so I’ll just say it. Mr. Pickens, that reckless, three-time loser in the marriage market, has put her in the family way.”
“Well,” Sam said, laying his head back on the sofa and gazing at the ceiling. “Well, this is a surprise. There’s no doubt? She really is pregnant?”
I nodded. “As she can be. And even with all that morning sickness, she didn’t have a clue. Although,” I went on, “you’d think she might’ve suspected, especially since, after having Lloyd, she obviously knows what causes it. Although I will admit that because of her age, if nothing else, it didn’t occur to me.” I paused to draw a breath. “And apparently it didn’t to that young doctor, either. A nurse had to suggest it to him and thank goodness she did before he ran up a horrendous bill doing all those tests. And I tell you, Sam,” I went on, right on the verge of outrage at the thought, “it looks like they just turn young, inexperienced doctors loose on the public with their minds so filled with esoteric classroom ailments like parasites and generalized infections that they can’t even think of common, everyday conditions like being with child. Obviously, Dr. McKay knew Hazel Marie wasn’t married, but he should’ve also known that being unwed hasn’t stopped anybody yet.”
“Well,” Sam said again, apparently unable to quickly come to terms with the news. “I would’ve thought Hazel Marie might be a little, well, maybe old to have to worry about such a thing.”
“She did, too! That’s what got her in trouble. But it’s all those vitamins that people take, Sam. Change-of-life babies are quite common these days. Actually, though, I thought she’d passed the danger zone, myself. But,” I sat up straight to look at him, “it was San Francisco that did it. You remember that trip they took with another couple to chaperone? Well, a lot of good that did. I knew she shouldn’t’ve gone off across the country with him, but what could I do? I thought they both had enough sense not to get in this predicament. And, now, it’s left to us to make the best of it. Sam,” I said, grasping his arm, “we’ve got to find Mr. Pickens and get him back here before her condition begins to
“Yes,” I said, cutting him off, aware of James standing there, listening. “And it’s nothing but a touch of flu. She’ll be coming home tomorrow for a few days of rest. No visitors and no running around until she gets her strength back. I am so relieved.”
I marched into the big front room that was Sam’s office, waited for him to follow me, then turned to James. “Now’s a good time to rake those leaves.” Then I shut the door.
Sam’s eyebrows went up, as he gave me a questioning look. “Just the flu?”
“That’s right,” I said, slightly louder than usual in case there was an ear pressed to the door. “One of those new strains, it seems.” That would buy us a little time, I thought, as I pressed my own ear against the door until I heard James’s footsteps going into the kitchen. It took some little while since an Oriental rug covered most of the hall. Satisfied that he was gone, I nodded and made sure the door was tightly closed.
“Julia, what are you doing?” Sam asked, torn between laughing and worrying about my unusual behavior.
“Waiting for James to get out of earshot. He’d have everything I say spread all over town by nightfall. And, Sam, we have to keep this to ourselves. Only you and Lillian will know it. Well, and me, too, of course. But nobody else.”
“All right. Come sit down and tell me. I take it, it’s more than the flu?”
“I should say it is,” I said, flopping down on the leather sofa. “I had to beg Hazel Marie to let me tell you and Lillian, because she didn’t want anybody to know. As if,” I continued with a sniff, “everybody in the world won’t know eventually. There’s no easy way to tell you, Sam, so I’ll just say it. Mr. Pickens, that reckless, three-time loser in the marriage market, has put her in the family way.”
“Well,” Sam said, laying his head back on the sofa and gazing at the ceiling. “Well, this is a surprise. There’s no doubt? She really is pregnant?”
I nodded. “As she can be. And even with all that morning sickness, she didn’t have a clue. Although,” I went on, “you’d think she might’ve suspected, especially since, after having Lloyd, she obviously knows what causes it. Although I will admit that because of her age, if nothing else, it didn’t occur to me.” I paused to draw a breath. “And apparently it didn’t to that young doctor, either. A nurse had to suggest it to him and thank goodness she did before he ran up a horrendous bill doing all those tests. And I tell you, Sam,” I went on, right on the verge of outrage at the thought, “it looks like they just turn young, inexperienced doctors loose on the public with their minds so filled with esoteric classroom ailments like parasites and generalized infections that they can’t even think of common, everyday conditions like being with child. Obviously, Dr. McKay knew Hazel Marie wasn’t married, but he should’ve also known that being unwed hasn’t stopped anybody yet.”
“Well,” Sam said again, apparently unable to quickly come to terms with the news. “I would’ve thought Hazel Marie might be a little, well, maybe old to have to worry about such a thing.”
“She did, too! That’s what got her in trouble. But it’s all those vitamins that people take, Sam. Change-of-life babies are quite common these days. Actually, though, I thought she’d passed the danger zone, myself. But,” I sat up straight to look at him, “it was San Francisco that did it. You remember that trip they took with another couple to chaperone? Well, a lot of good that did. I knew she shouldn’t’ve gone off across the country with him, but what could I do? I thought they both had enough sense not to get in this predicament. And, now, it’s left to us to make the best of it. Sam,” I said, grasping his arm, “we’ve got to find Mr. Pickens and get him back here before her condition begins to
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