Place Your Betts (The Marilyns) (38 page)

“You think I need to take all those?” Kaitlin nodded to the mountain of tests on the table.

“Nope, those three should do it.” Mama waved her hand over the tests like a game show hostess showing off a brand new Toyota. “The green ones were on special, but the pink ones looked easier, so I got both. The blue ones looked sad and lonely because I’d chosen some of their friends, so I had to take them too. We’ll just keep the others for a rainy day. You never know when you might need them.”

With an armful of tests, Kaitlin stepped into the bathroom and shut the door. A minute later, she lined up her tests on the kitchen table.

“No peeking.” Mama covered them with a towel and set the oven timer for five minutes.

Gently, Betts shoved Kaitlin into a chair because Betts needed a clear aisle to pace. Back and forth…back and forth.

If Kaitlin were pregnant, she and possibly Tom would have to quit school. Of course, Betts would help them out financially, so maybe they could stay in school. She would hire a nanny and buy Tom a house or give him Gigi’s house.

No, not Gigi’s house. It was infested with bad mojo. Only unhappiness and perfect grass grew there. Betts would give them her land and build him a house. That was it. He and Kaitlin could live out here. Betts would hire a nanny so Tom and Kaitlin could finish school.

What if someone kidnapped her grandchild hoping for a ransom? The rich and famous always had to be on their guard. Armed, masked men could bust in and take the child, and the nanny would probably be in on it. Scratch the nanny—Betts could take care of the baby during the day. That’s it. She’d take care of the baby in the daytime and then record at night. Touring might be a problem, but she could take the baby with her. In fact, what if she adopted the baby? Who’s to say it wasn’t hers? A baby of her own. That was the best idea.

Beep. Beep. Beep.
The oven timer went off.

Betts and Kaitlin stood in front of the table as Mama whipped the towel off. The icemaker dumped a new load of ice into the bin, and then the water kicked on, filling up the empty tray. Three sets of eyes didn’t so much as blink but stared at a faint pink plus sign, a very light blue circle, and a faded green check mark.

It was a rainbow of positives.

Betts folded Kaitlin into a hug as tears spilled down the girl’s cheeks.

“What am I going to do? How am I going to tell Tom?” Her thin body clung to Betts like the child she was, not the mother she was going to be.

Betts pulled her in tighter—she knew exactly how Kaitlin felt. It seemed like yesterday when Betts had peed on a stick and gotten the dreaded plus sign. With the patina of years, the memory had moved from the realm of reality into a surreal movie playing in slow motion, but the pale pink tiled walls of the tiny bathroom and the look of dread on Lucky’s and Charlie’s faces were still vivid. The walls had closed in around her while the certainty of total uncertainty swallowed her up. With one little plus sign, the invincibility and freedom of youth had been destroyed by a force she couldn’t see, wasn’t able to feel, had no control over, and didn’t believe could happen to her. Only the hope of a life with Gabe and the support of her friends had gotten her through the rest of that day and had given her the strength to get up the next morning and the next and the next.

“How am I going to tell my mother?”

“Let’s get a blood test before we start spreading the word. Nothing is a hundred percent.” Betts kissed the top of Kaitlin’s head. Three tests couldn’t all be wrong.

At least Betts hadn’t had to tell Mama that she was pregnant because she’d been away. But telling Gigi had been a lesson in pain. Marva Ann wasn’t Gigi, but it was still going to be tough and tearful and ugly.

Betts patted Kaitlin’s back and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I’ll help. I’ll be right by your side. You have Tom and me—”

“And me.” Mama wrapped her arms around Kaitlin and Betts in one big hug.

“You aren’t alone. No matter what, you will never be alone.” Betts would give her son the chance she never had. She would shower him and his new family with love and hope, not rejection and recrimination. It would be a new start for a new life.

“Are you ready to see Tom?” Betts would have been comforted if Gabe had been there for her.

“I love him, really and forever.” Kaitlin sounded so sure.

At one time, Betts had had that same uncompromising certainty that Gabe was “the one” and that they would live happily ever after. The simple joy of being near him had made her whole. And still did.

Betts patted Kaitlin on the back and then released her. “Do you need more time, or are you ready to see Tom?”

Kaitlin pulled up the hem of her tee shirt and wiped her face. “I’m ready. But um…would you stay with me?”

“Absolutely.” Betts caught Mama’s eye. “Mind finding Tom? If Gabe’s with him, find a way to stall him.”

Mama’s perfect black Nike swoosh eyebrows flinched and would have shot up if all those years of Botox treatments hadn’t paralyzed the muscles. “Next to my incredible breasts, stalling is my best feature.”

Mama pushed the button, stepped down the stairs, and disappeared into the night.

The shell-shocked expression on Kaitlin’s face was fading. She was still shaky, but it was plain she was inching her way closer to wrapping her mind around her new state of being. “What…I mean, how do I tell him?”

“The words will come.” Betts slid her arm around Kaitlin and guided her to the kitchen banquette and gently pressed her into it. “Have y’all talked about what you’d like to do if the test was positive?”

“Not really.” The girl swiped at the tears leaking from her eyes. “I can’t…I mean, I don’t think I could abort it. I don’t know.”

Betts nodded. Abortion hadn’t been an option for her either. She slid into the seat opposite Kaitlin and took the girl’s hand. “You don’t need to decide now. Just get through tonight, and we’ll figure it out tomorrow. No matter what, Mama and I are here for you and Tom.”

“Thanks.” Kaitlin nodded, tears streaming down her apple-red cheeks.

“I know it doesn’t feel like it now, but this isn’t an end, it’s a beginning.” Betts squeezed her hand. “Everything will work out for the best.”

Kaitlin nodded, but the look on her face said she wasn’t buying it.

Betts shot Kaitlin a brave smile because she knew it was bullshit too.

Tom polished tack until it shone like glass. What was taking so long? Didn’t those tests only take a few minutes? He checked his watch again. They’d been at it for thirty-one minutes and still no word.

What if she was?

Tears collected in his eyes. How would he tell his dad? Fear grabbed his gut and crunched it up into a ball. The old man would kill him. No…no. His father was fair. Tom nodded as he looped the bridle he’d just polished around and hung it on the hook in the tack room. His father always listened to him and helped Tom reason things out.

If Kaitlin were pregnant, they’d get married. If his father wouldn’t sign off on it, Tom would wait until he turned seventeen and do it anyway. He loved Kaitlin and wanted to marry her; the timetable was just sooner than he’d thought.

He stiffened his spine and wiped his eyes. He was a man, and he loved Kaitlin. Being married to her would be perfect. They’d be together all of the time, he could kiss her whenever he wanted, they would sleep together, and they could…could they do it if she were pregnant? Would the baby fall out? Would Kat want to with something already inside her? Tom grimaced and shook his head. He didn’t want to go there.

Someone touched his shoulder, and he jumped about a foot in the air.

Mama Cherie smiled at him. “Kaitlin is waiting for you.”

“Is she okay? Is it positive?” His hands shook, and every molecule in his body vibrated with worry.

“She’s fine. I’ll leave the rest up to her.” Mama kept on smiling. “Where’s your father?”

“Please tell me. I need to know.” He was begging and didn’t care.

She shook her head. “Not my place. Where’s your father?”

“Are you gonna tell him about the tests?” All the air went out of his lungs, and fear of the future drummed with every heartbeat.

She shook her head again. “Again, not my place.”

“He’s by the creek loading a new salt lick in the trough.” Tom nodded to the back door. “Where’s Kat?”

“She’s with Betts.” Mama walked out the back door.

Tom threw down the rag. He’d love to run to his bedroom, jump in his bed, pull the covers up over his face, and pretend this would all go away, but he wasn’t a child, and this wasn’t a monster hiding in the closet. Kaitlin needed him to man up and be strong. They would get through this together. Slowly, he opened the barn door, stepped out into the night, and walked quietly to Betts’s. With each step, the scared child slipped away, replaced by the man talking himself into shouldering the weight of responsibility.

***

There was a light knock at the door. Kaitlin’s heart rate kicked up a notch. It would be Tom. She loved him so much, and now he would hate her. He’d blame her and probably call her nasty names. She would if she were him. If it were up to her, they’d get married tomorrow, but it wasn’t up to her. Tom said he loved her, but this was more than they’d bargained for.

A baby? It still didn’t seem real…but three positive tests. They couldn’t all be wrong. Still, the faintest hope lodged itself in her brain and refused to leave. She needed to get a blood test—just to be sure—then she could seriously freak out.

Kaitlin folded her arms on the table and laid her head down. Fresh tears rolled from the corners of her eyes. Three tests weren’t wrong. She was pregnant—sixteen and pregnant—and her folks were gonna kill her. Tom would dump her, and her folks would kick her out. She’d have to quit the cheerleading squad, and the school would take away her homecoming crown. How could this have happened? Why her? She’d been pretty good most of her life. She didn’t sleep around. How could one time without protection have ended this way?

Her health teacher’s face popped into Kaitlin’s mind. Ms. Jenkins had started the chapter on sex ed by drawing a giant circle on the white board and then making small dots outside the circle. “See those little sperm? There’s no way they’re missing that huge egg.”

Back then, Kaitlin had laughed…. It wasn’t so funny now.

Boots clomped up steps, and two seconds later, strong arms came around her. Laundry detergent and a tanginess that was all Tom filled her swollen nose. She would be okay because Tom was here. Kaitlin looked up and saw only love shining in his beautiful blue eyes. Everything would be fine.

“Want me to stay?” Betts asked.

Kaitlin kept her eyes on Tom. “I’m fine. Can we have some privacy?”

“I’ll be outside if you need anything.” The door swooshed open, Betts stepped down the stairs, and the door swooshed closed.

They were alone.

Tom kissed her cheek. “I love you.”

“I’m pregnant.” The words jumped out of her mouth.

Tom held her eyes while the meaning sank in. After a full minute, he nodded and pulled her onto his lap. “I had planned on doing this in a few years anyway but…um…”

His eyes darted around the room and finally landed on a black sharpie marker lying on its side in the center of the kitchen table. Tom grabbed it, popped the cap off, took her left hand, and drew a circle around her ring finger. The cold tip of the marker tickled her skin as Tom doodled something right under her knuckle. The squiggles morphed into the shape of a diamond.

“Right now, this is the only ring I can afford.” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as his eyes bored into hers. “Will you marry me?”

The uncertainty disappeared, and she knew everything would be fine. In her heart, she knew it. “I love you.”

She pressed her lips to his and kissed him for all she was worth. Her arms snaked around his neck while his pulled her into him.

Tom kissed his way over to her ear. “You didn’t answer me.”

“Yes, dummy. I can’t wait to marry you.” Kaitlin kissed him again. He’d drawn her an engagement ring. Was he the sweetest boyfriend ever?

Tom let out a long breath. “I was worried.”

“We’re gonna be together always. I don’t ever want to be without you.” Kaitlin laced her fingers through his and gazed down at her ring. It was perfect, just like him. “What do we do now?”

“We need to tell my dad and your folks—”

“How?” Kaitlin shivered as her feelings of hope took a downward spiral. “Think we should wait until we see a doctor?”

“Looks like you took three tests and they were all positive.” Tom pointed to the tests on the table in front of him.

“Yep, every single one of them.”

“Why wait? I’d rather get it over with.” Tom combed his fingers through his hair. “Let’s start with my dad. He’s gonna be pissed, but he’s reasonable.”

Marva Ann would
not
be reasonable. She would yell and throw things and cry and throw more things. At least Kaitlin’s father would listen before he killed Tom. She studied her boyfriend—fiancé. He looked nervous but not scared. If he could be strong, so could she.

Kaitlin took a deep breath. “Let’s get it over with.”

She edged off Tom’s lap, but his arm shot out and pulled her back. He looked her directly in the eye. “I’m glad this happened. I can’t believe I get to spend the rest of my life with you. The prom queen and the nerd—miracles do happen.”

He was so sure. Kaitlin began to believe in miracles.

***

Tom held Kaitlin’s hand as they crossed the yard to the house. His knees were shaking, and his stomach had knots the size of full-grown heifers, but he wasn’t
un
happy. He got to have Kaitlin—the baby part was hard to completely wrap his head around. So what if they were young? That just meant they were luckier than most folks because they’d found each other early and could spend more time together.

His dad wasn’t likely to see it that way. Maybe Betts could calm him down? Surely his old man wouldn’t kick his ass in front of Betts and Kaitlin? He chewed on the inside of his cheek. There was no telling what the old man might do. He’d harped on school for as long as Tom could remember, but it didn’t seem likely he would go to college now. Where would he and Kaitlin live? In his small bedroom? She deserved better. Reality stomped on his euphoria.