Past, Present And A Future. Janice Carter

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СКАЧАТЬ and smiled at one another.

      “You look fabulous,” Clare said. “I would never believe you’ve just had a baby. Have you got highlights in your hair?”

      “Yes. Like it?” Laura executed a dainty pivot. Her honey-blond hair was cut in a shoulder-length bob that swirled around her.

      “I do! You look great!”

      “You have to say that because you’re my friend, but thanks anyway.” Laura’s cheeks dimpled. “Thank goodness for makeup and that stuff that covers up dark circles under the eyes. But look at you! That flaming red hair will never need highlights. You’ve cut it since I last saw you. I like it.”

      “I cut it a while ago, but I haven’t seen you in ages.”

      “True. Come on, Dave’s opening a bottle of wine. I may even get a chance to gobble down dinner before Emma’s next feeding.”

      “How’s the nursing going?”

      “Better. It’s weird, isn’t it? That something so natural should be so damn hard at first?”

      Clare smiled. No doubt her friend was tackling motherhood with the same zeal that she’d shown on the cheerleading squad. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” was all she said as she walked arm in arm with her up the steps.

      Dave greeted them in a small entrance hall. “Congratulations,” he said, hugging Clare. “At last we know someone famous.”

      Clare felt the color rise into her face. “Yeah, right,” she quipped and they all laughed. As teenagers, Laura and Clare had made a bet to see who would become rich and famous enough to move away from Twin Falls. Little did we know, Clare thought, that moving away required neither fame nor money.

      “I like the goatee,” she said, smiling at Dave.

      “Laura hates it, but thanks.” He shot his wife a told-you-so look that had a tinge of reproof in it.

      Clare glanced at Laura’s red face. There was an awkward moment that Laura broke by asking, “Do you want to refresh or something?”

      “No, I’m fine. I stopped a few miles outside of town for a break.” Clare followed Laura into a large living room. “This is lovely,” she said. “You’ve done a wonderful job, Laura.”

      “Sit here, it’s the most comfy chair.” She gestured to a plump chintz-covered armchair next to a sofa where she herself perched.

      “Are things okay between you and Dave?” Clare asked as soon as they sat down.

      Laura gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t be alarmed by the sniping you just witnessed. It’s the usual husband-and-wife tension after the first child.”

      “I would’ve thought a baby would bring you closer.”

      “She has, but there are other things. Dave isn’t happy with his work and we’ve taken a real pay cut since I decided to stay at home with Emma for a while.”

      “Are you getting any help from your folks?”

      “They’re living on a fixed income now so…”

      “How are they, anyway?”

      “Good. They sold their house last year and moved into a new condo on the edge of town.”

      “Condos? God, I can’t believe how much this place has changed.”

      “Believe it. Did you notice the subdivision as you came in?”

      “Yes! And is it my imagination, or are there twice as many cars on the road?”

      “Twin Falls is becoming one of those satellite communities you read about. People working in Hartford want to live in a rural environment.” She laughed. “Can you believe it? Twin Falls as a rural environment? Remember how we used to make fun of the farm kids who were bused into school?”

      Laura glanced toward the doorway. “Dave must be checking on dinner.” She leaned toward Clare. “Your book is fantastic, Clare. I’m almost finished it. But I have to tell you, everyone’s been talking about it.” She paused a beat. “You know.”

      “Know what?”

      “C’mon Clare. This is me, Laura. You don’t have to play dumb. It wasn’t very hard to figure out you were writing about Twin Falls. I mean, except for the description of the town and the name changes, it’s all there.”

      Clare glanced toward the entrance hall, wishing Dave would appear with their drinks. She’d known this moment was going to happen but trust Laura to get to it right away. “It’s not a secret that some of it is gleaned from here.”

      “But how did you get the nerve? I mean, when you and your mother moved away, you swore to put everything behind you.”

      “We both know that none of us can really forget what happened, Laura.”

      “Well, I have. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to live here.”

      “I wondered about that. But then, you weren’t really involved—” Clare broke off when Dave, carrying a tray of glasses and a wine bottle, appeared in the doorway. To her relief, Laura let the subject drop as well, and they made small talk—catching up on the events of the past two years—until dinner.

      When dinner was ready, Clare sat at the dining-room table. She watched Dave and Laura bustle back and forth from the kitchen, realizing that she’d never seen Laura in such a domestic context. After high school, they’d gone on to different colleges and settled in different states, keeping sporadic contact with one another via telephone or e-mail. There was a time, Clare thought with some chagrin, when the idea of her best friend cooking a roast-beef dinner with all the trimmings would have amazed her. And, added to this surprising picture of domesticity, was the whole new dimension of motherhood.

      A sense of being left behind swept over Clare. She had other friends who were married with children, but none who shared the bond of childhood and adolescence with her. Her friendship with Laura had not been a perfect one, but it had been constant.

      Clare was thrilled to see Laura with a new baby and a husband who adored her, but the blissful scene made her own personal life seem so bleak. There was no special man in the picture, much less the prospect of a husband. As for babies…well, maybe in the distant future. Perhaps her life might have followed the same track as Laura’s if only she and Gil Harper had not broken up. That sudden thought made her feel even worse.

      “Dave, can you bring the veggies?” Laura stood in the doorway of the dining room, calling back into the kitchen.

      Clare fixed a cheerful smile on her face, and asked, “Are you sure I can’t help with anything?”

      Laura continued on into the room and set a platter of roast beef on the table. “Thanks hon, but we’re fine. Just plain food tonight, but tomorrow we’ve got a sitter and reservations at the hot new place in town.”

      “You mean there’s another ‘in’ place besides The Falls Steak and Grill?”

      Laura smiled. “Thank goodness. СКАЧАТЬ