The Green Lace Corset, стр. 60
She poured thinset into the bucket and poured water on top. She needed to plug in the mixing drill, so she crossed the space where Karl was manhandling the chain saw and motioned that she needed to access the outlet. He ignored her, so she pulled the chain saw cord from its socket and the saw lost power.
He turned off his music and yelled, “What happened?”
Priscilla’s heels clicked on the floor as she walked toward them.
“My project is pretty cool, isn’t it?” Karl asked her.
“Oh, yes.” She shot him a big smile. “It’s the bomb.”
It certainly was as loud as one. Was Priscilla deaf?
“Obviously, sharing the studio isn’t going to work.” Anne kept her voice calm.
“What do you suggest?” Priscilla twirled a pen.
Anne looked out the sliding glass doors. “How about if he works out on the patio?”
“How about if you work out there?” Karl sneered at her.
“That’s a good idea. Anne, move your things outside, and we’ll send guests to you.”
You kidding me? She glared at Karl, stared aghast at Priscilla, and set her eyes on the concrete stag. How was she supposed to move such a heavy object outside on her own?
40
Three weeks later, Anne lay down on the examination table, curled onto her side, and fell asleep. The door opening woke her.
Lori stepped inside. “Hi, Anne. It’s good to see you. How’re you feeling?”
Anne sat up with a yawn. “Pretty good. I’m just so tired all the time.”
The midwife put a hand on Anne’s knee and looked at her with kind eyes. “That’s to be expected. Have you been taking your supplements?”
“Yes.”
“Any more nausea?” Lori wrote in the chart.
“Nope, thank God.”
“Have you had anything to drink in the last twelve hours?”
“Only vodka,” Anne joked.
“Very funny. Ready?”
“Yep.” Anne lay back down. Please be a girl.
“This will be cold.” Lori lifted Anne’s shirt and spread gooey gel on Anne’s stomach. “Now, this won’t hurt, but you might feel some pressure. Ready?”
Anne braced herself. Lori began to move the wand over the bump. It didn’t hurt, but it was cold.
Ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump. The heartbeat was loud and clear. There really was a baby in there. “Sounds like it’s playing the drum solo for the long version of ‘In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.’”
“Haven’t heard that one before.” Lori laughed as she continued to move the wand and turned the screen so Anne could see it. “Congratulations. You have a big, healthy baby in there.”
Such a surreal feeling to see in black and white something growing inside her, an actual human, sucking its thumb and wiggling, that she couldn’t even sense. Anne had already loved her so much, but seeing the ultrasound intensified those feelings and she started to weep. “I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry for.” Lori handed her a tissue. “Most women cry seeing their baby for the first time.”
Anne blew her nose and stared at the image. “What’s the verdict? Is it a boy or a girl?”
“It appears to be a girl.” Lori pointed at the screen.
A girl! Anne felt as if she were riding in a hot-air balloon up in a big blue sky. No, a pink sunset.
“It’s a pretty clear view, but you never know for sure.”
“Soon you’ll start to feel her kick. I recommend you count the flutterings,” Lori added. She gave Anne a pamphlet with information on how to do so. “Take care of yourself and the baby. Keep your stress to a minimum.”
Lori printed a picture and handed it to Anne. “Check in at the desk as you leave to schedule your next appointment. Keep up the good work.”
Once she was outside, Anne looked at the ultrasound photo and beamed. At home, she made a copy of it, a blurry image of the baby inside a cave, and sat at the kitchenette table. She ripped out magazine pages to make a collage for Sergio. She would surprise him with it when he came to visit next week.
Her phone buzzed.
“How was the appointment? Did you find out the baby’s sex?”
Anne had planned to surprise her mom with a collage too, but she couldn’t help herself. “It’s a girl!”
“That’s wonderful. I’m so happy.” Her mom’s voice broke.
“Me too.” Anne reached for a tissue.
“Has she started to kick?”
“No.”
“Really? Are you sure? By this point in my pregnancy, you were.”
Suddenly terrified, Anne put her hand on her stomach. “I’m sure she will soon. The midwife said it won’t be for a while.”
“Have you thought more about moving here?” her mother asked.
Anne sighed. “Your house is a two-bedroom. There’s not enough space.”
“If you take down the art-making card table, you’ll have plenty of room for the both of you.”
“Where would I do my work, then?”
“I’ll park on the street, and you can use the garage.”
Her mom must not remember Anne had tried that before. With those concrete floors, it was too cold to work in there during winter, even with a space heater.
“I know we don’t have a fancy museum in Oscoda, but you can teach at Crafts and Such on Main Street. I’ll cut back on my Avon parties and help watch the baby for you.”
The idea of being in that small house in that small town made Anne feel claustrophobic. “Mom, that would be such an imposition on you.” Her mother loved those parties.
“Oh, no. I’d love to spend time with my grandbaby.”
Anne finished the call and cut around a magazine photo of a baby girl with a Pebbles Flintstone hairstyle with a pink bow.
Her phone buzzed with a text from Dottie, her former best friend from college. Annie, I miss you. Can we talk?
Anne’s heart sank. She never wanted to speak to Dottie again. She’d erased