She was glad that Ellie Mae was gone from the waiting room when she left. As nosy as she was, Ellie Mae would have wanted to know the gender, and Paula wanted to hold that secret awhile longer. She craved a big waffle cone of soft ice cream, but butterflies were having a party in her stomach. Once she’d told her mother the news, she’d have something to eat.

She drove from Greenville to Celeste slowly. She’d gotten finished earlier than she’d thought she would, so the girls wouldn’t have had time to drive to her mother’s place just yet. To keep her mind off the fit Gladys was going to throw, she thought about the dilemma that Jody was in. Paula had never had to go through that time of wondering if she was pregnant or not. She’d never had regular periods and had taken the pill to regulate her cycle. Even that didn’t work most of the time, and she’d gotten the news sprung on her when she went in for her yearly physical.

Thinking that she should buy Jody a pregnancy test, she almost stopped at Walmart but decided against it. Maybe Jody wouldn’t even need it. After all, she and Lyle had had sex only once in the past month. That sorry bastard Lyle should be shot.

Chapter Ten

With trembling hands, Jody pulled the pregnancy test out of its box. She’d bought one of the most expensive—one that promised a true reading as early as two weeks after conception. Tomorrow was the actual day for her period and she was usually regular, but she’d been under a lot of stress. Following the directions to the letter, she did what it said and then laid the stick on the counter.

Her chest tightened, making it hard to breathe. She watched the time tick away on her phone. She couldn’t look at the results. If she was pregnant, she’d rather let everyone believe that she really was having an affair like Lyle had said. The shame would be on her, and her baby wouldn’t have to grow up in the shadow of Kennedy’s.

Finally, she inhaled and looked at the test. Exhaling loudly, she looked up at the ceiling. “Thank you, God.”

When she returned to the sewing room, she found Mitzi putting the last touches on Ellie Mae’s hat. “I just took a pregnancy test,” Jody whispered. “It was negative.”

Mitzi laid the hat aside. “Don’t you have to wait ten days after a missed period?”

“I got one of those fast ones. It’s been close to a month since Lyle and I had sex, so I figured it would show, and it’s negative.”

“How do you feel about that? Are you a little disappointed?”

“Not one bit.” Jody shook her head. “The way Lyle’s gone all paternal, he would insist on visitation rights. Can you see little miss Kennedy having to care for two babies? Who do you think would get the better care? And as they got older, who would be shoved into the shadows?”

“I think I understand Paula not wanting to share with Clinton a little better. Her baby would be the same as what you said,” Mitzi said.

“Besides”—Jody shivered—“I’d hate to tell my mama. Gladys is going to throw one big hissy fit.”

“That’s why we’re going with Paula. Growing up, I had no idea that y’all’s mamas treated you the way they did. I didn’t even think about the fact that we always spent time at my house and never at one of y’all’s.” Mitzi’s eyes rolled up toward the twelve-foot ceiling. “You ever wonder what kind of stories the walls of a house would tell if they could talk?”

“My mama’s house would shock most people in town.” Jody picked up her needle and started basting a bodice together. “Everyone thinks she’s so godly, but . . .” She glanced over to find Mitzi staring off into space without blinking.

“Are you sleeping with your eyes open?” Jody giggled.

“What? I’m sorry. I was thinking about this house. Remember when we were kids and Miz Ellen entertained us in this room? What were you saying?” Mitzi asked.

“I always loved coming here for that Sunday School Christmas party she hosted.” Jody remembered that sweet old lady’s floral perfume and the sugar cookies that she served them about once a month.

“Ever wonder what really went on in this house before she died and we bought it?” Mitzi asked.

“The hallway would probably recite Bible verses to us. And I’d be willing to bet that the pregnancy test in the bathroom trash can is the first one these old walls have ever seen,” Jody giggled. “Paula should be getting her ultrasound about right now. Want to make a bet on whether it’s a boy or girl?” Jody finished the basting job. She picked up a bead with a pair of tweezers, dipped it into a small cup of fabric glue, and laid it on a veil that she’d started working on.

“Which would you want if you were pregnant?” Mitzi asked.

“A girl,” Jody said without hesitation. “I wouldn’t want to be a boy’s mama if he treated a woman like Lyle has treated me. I’d think I’d failed at teaching him how to behave. If I had either one, no matter what the circumstances, I’d never make the child feel unwanted.”

“We’ll all make sure Paula’s baby doesn’t feel like that,” Mitzi said.

“What was that about a baby?” Fanny Lou breezed into the sewing room and sat down in Paula’s chair. She removed a straw hat with a wide brim and laid it on the table. That day she wore a T-shirt with Minnie Mouse on the front, faded jean shorts that barely reached her bony knees, and cowboy boots. “Thank God for air-conditioning. Lord, it’s hot out there. If it feels like this in June, it’ll only be three degrees cooler than hell when July and August get here.”