“I thought you wanted adventures.”
“I do.”
But the whole thing had become more complicated because now she wanted him, too.
So where did that leave her?
25
Beth
“I didn’t even know Hannah was seeing anyone.” Beth sat on the floor of the bedroom the following morning wrapping the last of the parcels while Jason kept watch at the door for inquisitive children. She’d packed the children’s gifts into separate bags so that she didn’t mix them up. “Why do you think she didn’t mention it?”
“Presumably because she didn’t want to talk about it.”
“But she talked about other things.” And Beth was still stunned by how unusually open her sister had been about their past and her feelings about the children. On the other hand, judging from the look on her face when Adam had stepped out of the car, there was plenty she hadn’t told them about her love life. “We talked about the accident.”
“You’re kidding.” Jason leaned against the door. “You never talk about the accident. Is this because of Luke?”
“I think he was probably the trigger.”
“Did it upset you, honey?”
She looked up at him, warmed by his concern. “No. It felt more like relief, because I got to understand how Hannah was thinking and feeling. Also, I realized the accident is part of the reason I’m so anxious about the children.”
“I know.”
“If you knew, why haven’t we ever talked about it?”
“Because
you hate talking about the accident. It stresses you.” He picked up a roll of tape that had somehow landed at his feet. “But you do worry a lot, and I hate to see it.”
“Do you think I’ve made the children cautious?” That was the last thing she wanted.
“If you’d seen Ruby climbing on the table this morning, you wouldn’t be worried. I’m more worried about you. If you want to see someone—talk to someone—”
Beth took the tape from him and cut another length. “I was wondering that myself. I’ll think about it.”
“I’m pleased you had a good talk with your sisters. Is that why you rescued Hannah downstairs?”
“She looked as if she needed rescuing. I was worried about her.” And she was worried about Posy, too, but she’d stomped off before Beth had found a chance to talk to her.
Presumably she’d wanted some space after Hannah’s explosion. It must have upset her.
Contemplating the complexity of families, Beth stuck tape on the last parcel. “Done. All ready to stuff into stockings. I can’t wait to see the kids’ faces on Christmas morning.”
“All Ruby wants is Bugsy. I’ve been on the internet whenever I can get a signal, and I can’t find anything that looks remotely like Bugsy. There’s a rabbit on eBay, but it looks psychotic and it’s the wrong color.”
“She’s had Bugsy since she was a baby. They’ve probably discontinued it.”
Jason was appalled. “They discontinue popular toys? Where is their sense of responsibility? I feel terrible. Melly says Ruby isn’t sleeping well. I’m the worst father in the world. Dammit, we should have bought five spares.”
“Spares?” Beth stuffed the bag under the bed. “I’m impressed. That’s advanced parenting stuff. A few weeks ago, you wouldn’t have thought of that.”
“I was a different person a few weeks ago. Or maybe I was the same person but with different priorities. From now on, when we buy something that important to the girls, we buy spares. We should have done it with Bugsy.”
“I did.”