“And I suppose you assume she’ll get an abortion,” she said, equally nastily, “and oh, thank goodness, Trevor’s off the hook.”
A sob broke from Caitlyn, who spun and raced from the room. The thunder of footsteps on stairs silenced them all until the slam of a door. Richard felt a nerve in his cheek twitch.
Trevor stared after her for a long time. “This can’t be happening.” He sounded like he was talking to himself.
“It’s happening,” Richard said.
Trev turned a look of hate on his father. “Yeah, thanks, Dad. I really needed that.” He spat another expletive and walked out. The slam of the front door was louder than the one upstairs, and it resonated through Richard.
He’d automatically turned to try to stop Trevor. Now he stood with his back to Molly, head hanging again, and pinched the bridge of his nose so hard it hurt. What a mess. And I’m not making things better. It took him a minute, but finally he was able to square his shoulders, lift his head and face her again.
“I’m sorry,” he said simply. “Can we start again?”
CHAPTER FIVE
DEEPLY ASHAMED OF HERSELF, Molly sank back into the chair. “Yes,” she said. “Of course we can. You’re not the one who should be apologizing. I am.” He frowned and she shook her head. “You’re right. I did blindside you.” She hadn’t known she was doing it because she was angry, but she understood now that she’d wanted to see their faces, Trevor’s and Richard’s both, when she told them.
With a sigh, he came back to the sofa and sat, too. “I guess I knew from the minute you called. I could tell Trevor was antsy, avoiding Caitlyn. I worried without quite putting it into words.”
“It would have been better if I’d told you on the phone so the two of you could have some time to absorb the news before we talked. I really am sorry I didn’t do that.”
He nodded. “This might have gone smoother, but maybe not. I can’t say I’m proud of Trevor right now.” His mouth twisted. “Not that I’ve been proud much these past couple months.”
She looked down at her hands, disturbed by how the dark emotions in his eyes affected her. “I don’t think Trevor’s recent behavior has much of anything to do with Caitlyn being pregnant. Nice boys get their girlfriends pregnant, too.”
He made a sound she couldn’t identify. She lifted her head to see a bleak expression on his face. “This is one of the last things in the world I wanted for him.” Then his eyes met hers. “Dumb thing to say. You feel the same. Probably worse.”
“No matter what, Caitlyn will be more profoundly impacted.”
“I guess so.” He hesitated. “How long have you known?”
“Almost a week. Since Halloween.” She huffed a laugh. “Trick or treat. She wanted to tell Trevor her own way. It was only today that she gave up.”
“It’s good she came to you.”
Her laugh was sharp. “She didn’t. I’d like to think she would have eventually, but I don’t know. It was a total mischance that tripped her up.” That made her laugh again, but no more happily. “Believe it or not, I tripped over the kitchen trash and knocked it over. Guess what spilled out?”
“Confirmation from a clinic? No.” He rubbed a hand over his chin. “It’d have to be a home pregnancy kit.”
“Yep. Friday morning was garbage pickup. Neither of us had put anything in the can by Sunday and she was afraid I’d be curious if I saw a teeny tiny bag at the bottom when I took something out. So she stuck the two test sticks and the packaging in the bottom of the kitchen garbage bag, figuring I’d never have reason to dig through it.”
“I searched Trevor’s room the other day.” Richard’s voice was hoarse.
She stared at him.
“Sorry. That’s not exactly relevant, is it? But… It’s the kind of thing I’d have sworn I’d never do. And then there I was, trying to find out whether he’s gotten into drugs.”
“Has he?” Molly sighed. “You don’t have to tell me. I’m sorry.”
“We’ve got to quit apologizing to each other.” A lopsided smile gave her butterflies. “And the answer is no. I didn’t find a thing. Not even cigarettes or a lighter. It was…a relief.”
“You really don’t know why he’s…”
“Not a clue. His mother claims she doesn’t, either.”
Molly nodded, not sure why she was. She wasn’t agreeing with him; he hadn’t said anything that