Free Tell Me No Secrets by Joy Fielding

asked. Surely, she must have misunderstood.
    “You heard me. And don’t give me that innocent look. You know damn well what I’m talking about.”
    Tyler ran happily between his father and his aunt, dipping his new plane between their hips and the floor, oblivious to the tension in the room.
    Neither Barry nor Jess moved. Both stood in their respective positions, Barry by the sofa, Jess by her chair, as if waiting for something to happen, someone to interrupt.
    “Isn’t the doorbell supposed to ring now or something?” Jess asked, grateful when she saw Barry’s jaw relax into a close approximation of a smile. If there was going to be an argument, and there was always an argument when she and Barry got together, it would not be her fault. She had promised herself that on the thirty-minute drive to the upper-class suburb from her apartment.
    “Oh good,” Maureen said, suddenly appearing in the doorway. “You two are getting along.”
    Barry was immediately at his wife’s side, kissing her cheek. “Nothing to it,” he assured her.
    Maureen gave her husband and sister one of her luminous smiles. Despite the fact that she had to be exhausted, she looked radiant in a crisp white shirt over black wool pants. Her figure was almost back to normal, Jess noticed, wondering if Barry had talked his wife into resuming her strict exercise routine. As if looking after a big house and three small children wasn’t enough to keep her busy.
    “You look wonderful,” Jess told her sister truthfully.
    “And you look tired,” Maureen said, giving her sister a hug. “You getting enough sleep?”
    Jess shrugged, recalling her recent nightmare.
    “Look what Auntie Jess gave me,” Tyler said from the door, proudly brandishing his new airplane.
    “Isn’t that wonderful! I hope you said thank-you.”
    “Your sister doesn’t believe in thank-yous,” Barry said, walking across the room to the wet bar and pouring himself a scotch and water. “Can I get anybody anything?”
    “Not for me,” Maureen said. “That’s a great sweater, Jess. You should wear blue more often. It’s a great color for you.”
    “It’s green,” Barry corrected, lifting his eyebrows toward his sister-in-law. “Isn’t that what you said, Jess?”
    “Oh no, it’s definitely blue,” Maureen said flatly. “No question.”
    “Are the twins asleep?” Jess asked.
    “For the moment. But that never lasts very long.”
    “I bought them a little something.”
    “Oh, Jess, you don’t have to buy them something every time you come over.”
    “Of course I do. What are aunties for?”
    “Well, thank you.” Maureen took the Marshall Field’s bag from Jess’s hand and peeked inside.
    “It’s just some bibs. I thought they were kind of cute.”
    “They’re adorable.” Maureen held up the small white terry cloth bibs festooned with bright red apples and berries. “Oh, look at these. Aren’t they sweet, Barry?”
    Jess didn’t hear Barry’s reply. Could this really be her sister? she was wondering, trying not to stare. Could they really have shared the same mother? Could the woman she’d watched graduate with honors from one of the top colleges in the country be so enthralled with a couple of five-dollar bibs from Marshall Field’s? Could she really be proffering them forward for her husband’s approval? From Summa Cum Laude to Stepford Wife?
    “So, what happened in court today?” Maureen asked, as if sensing Jess’s discomfort. “You get a verdict?”
    “The wrong one.”
    “You were kind of expecting that, weren’t you?” Maureen took Jess’s hands and led her to the sofa, not relinquishing her hands even after they were both seated.
    “I was hoping.”
    “It must be tough.”
    “So’s your sister,” Barry said, taking a long sip of his drink, not releasing it from his lips until the glass was almost empty. “Aren’t you, Jess?”
    “Something wrong with that?” Jess heard the dare escape her voice.
    “Not as long as it’s