Gloria went into her kitchen, filled a glass and brought it to the living room. Joni had taken a seat on her sofa. When she handed her the tumbler, she saw that the other woman’s hand shook visibly.
Joni took a small sip and then wrapped both hands around the glass. “Chad doesn’t know I’m here.”
Gloria would have been surprised if he had.
“He told me he was stopping by later today. His shift doesn’t end until five, so he won’t be here until almost six and I thought… I hoped maybe the two of us could talk before he arrived.”
“Okay.” Gloria tried to look relaxed, but the tension between her shoulders held her rigid.
“I understand Chad told you about us?”
“He did.” Gloria didn’t elaborate.
“He told me about you, too.”
Gloria nodded.
“And about the baby,” Joni added.
“He’s going to be a good father,” Gloria said. He’d been so caring and thoughtful, and made it clear how much he already loved their baby.
“I think so, too.” Leaning forward, Joni put her glass on the coffee table, taking a moment to position a coaster first. Now that her hands were free she didn’t seem to know what to do with them. She clasped them in her lap and stared down at the carpet.
“Do you love him?” Gloria asked. She wanted to know where the other woman stood before they continued this awkward discussion.
Joni looked up and her eyes filled with tears. “I’m afraid so.”
Gloria felt like crying herself, but struggled to maintain her poise. “I’m afraid I do, too,” she admitted. Funny that she was so willing to tell the other woman how she felt about Chad, but couldn’t tell him. It’d taken her a long time to recognize the depth of her feelings. Now it might be too late.
“You’ve hurt him badly.”
“I wasn’t in a good state of mind… . I regret what happened.”
“The baby, too?” Joni asked.
“No,” Gloria answered. “I’ll never regret the baby.”
Her answer made Joni frown. If anything, it appeared to affect her even more strongly. “I… Chad loves the baby. That’s all he talks about when we’re together, and I suspect he loves you. No, I don’t suspect. I know he does.”
Gloria wasn’t sure how to respond. “Chad and I met when I was at a low point in my life,” Gloria began, feeling she needed to explain. “I’d just lost my adoptive parents. I was an only child and they were both only children, so I had no one. No aunts, no uncles, no cousins. No family. We… Chad and I felt an immediate physical attraction and, well…”
Joni looked away and seemed to be studying the view outside the window. The Bremerton shipyard showed clearly in the distance, with the mothballed aircraft carriers and submarines against the backdrop of a metallic gray sky.
Gloria found her own attention wandering and forced herself to focus on her guest. “I’m not sure why you’re here,” she said.
“I came because I need to know how you feel about Chad.”
“Does it matter?”
“Yes, it matters a great deal.” Joni picked up the water glass and took one long swallow. “I know what I have to do now.” She set the tumbler down in a decisive movement.
“And that is?”
Joni wiped the tears from her cheeks. “I’m ending my relationship with Chad.”
“Ending it,” Gloria repeated. “But…you just finished telling me that you’re in love with him.”
“I am…but I know the odds and they aren’t in my favor. Chad loves you and pretty soon you’ll give birth to his son. I care enough about him to bow out now.”
Gloria had trouble believing the other woman was sincere, but the tears streaking Joni’s cheeks told her she meant every word.
“The only thing I need from you,” Joni said, then paused to gather her composure. “All I ask is that you love Chad. He’s a good man, and a caring physician. I just hope you appreciate what you’ve got. If you don’t, trust me, some other woman’s going to do her best to steal him away and that…that other woman might well be me.”
Gloria flattened her hand over her heart. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything. Remember what I told you. If you hurt Chad again, you can’t claim I didn’t give you fair warning.” Reaching for her purse she walked to the door.
Gloria followed her. “You really love him, don’t you.” It was a statement rather than a question.
“More than either of you will ever realize. It’s only because I love him that I’m willing to give him up. Don’t think I’m doing this for you or the baby. I’m doing this for Chad. Just make him happy.”
“I…will.”
The apartment seemed to vibrate with the shock of Joni’s declaration. Gloria stood by the door, hardly able to absorb what had happened. Chad loved her. She’d sensed that he did, even though he’d kept his distance, emotional and otherwise, since their last breakup.
Chad showed up at the apartment three hours later. Thankfully that meant she’d had time to think about Joni’s visit and analyze her own feelings.
“Hi,” he said as he came in. He appeared ill at ease, not quite himself.
“Hi,” she returned. They’d planned to go Christmas-tree shopping. Chad didn’t want her hauling in a tree and decorating it while she was pregnant. She guessed that his offer was really an excuse to see her again. Not that she was complaining; she welcomed any and every opportunity to be with him.
“Do you mind if we don’t go shopping for a tree today?” he asked. “I’m not in the mood.”
“That’s fine. We can do it another time.”
He walked over to the window and stood there, gazing into the night. Lights blinked out at sea.
“Is everything okay?” she asked, wondering if he’d lost a patient. He took any death personally, especially a child’s.
“I had a visitor this afternoon,” he said.
Gloria walked toward him until they were only a foot or so apart, both staring into the darkness. “Interesting, because I did, too.”
“Anyone I know?”
“Joni.”
Chad nearly dislocated his neck as he jerked toward her. “Joni came to see you?”
Gloria clenched her hands and nodded. “She needed the answer to an important question.”