Free No Defense by Rangeley Wallace Page B

been attractive, but during high school when I’d last seen
her she was still carrying a lot of baby fat on her large
frame.
    “You too,” Barbara said.
    “How kind of you,” I said.
    In fact, I looked dumpy, flabby, and
exhausted. I had on my nursing nightgown, with Will’s spit-up
decorating one shoulder, wore no makeup, and hadn’t washed my
stringy, dirty hair since we got home from the hospital.
    “Buck thinks Barbara’s a dead ringer for
Cybill Shepherd,” Jane gushed.
    Barbara waved her hand dismissively, but
something that flickered in her eyes told me how much she enjoyed
the compliment.
    “Come on in,” I said. “Careful where you
step.” I cleared a path through the boxes. “Y’all sit over there.”
I gestured toward the couch and a chair.
    “Congratulations on the twins,” Barbara
said, sitting in a faded armchair.
    I’d never noticed how ratty the chair and
most of the other furniture in the apartment were until that
moment.
    “Thanks,” I said. “They’re asleep right now,
so we have to be a little quiet. Would either of you like coffee or
something?”
    “No, no. Just relax,” Barbara said.
    I negotiated between a pile of books and
another of records, removed a box of framed pictures from a
comfortable chair, and sat down. I rested my feet on the
embroidered footstool.
    “I get congratulations too,” Jane said
coyly.
    I looked at her, puzzled.
    “I think I’m pregnant,” she squealed.
    “Oh Jane, that’s terrific!” I said softly.
“How long?”
    “Just two weeks since I missed my period, so
I shouldn’t have said anything. Don’t tell anyone,” she said. She
held a finger to her lips. “Mum’s the word.”
    “You didn’t tell Buck?” I asked.
    “Oh, I couldn’t keep it a secret from him. I
know what you’re thinking: If I have another miscarriage it’ll
upset him. But I won’t have one. Besides, he’d figure it out. Every
month we mourn my period, so he knows when I’m even a few days
late. And guess what-I threw up this morning. Isn’t that great?”
She giggled and patted her tummy.
    “It’s wonderful, Jane. What’s Buck up to
today anyway?” I asked her.
    “He’s busy planning some big political thing
for Daddy.”
    “It’s a very exciting time in Tallagumsa,
don’t you think, LuAnn?” Barbara asked. She sat with her ankles
crossed, her hands clasped in her lap. “If your father’s elected
governor, it would be a big boost both to the town and the
college.”
    “If he runs,” I said. “Last I heard, he
hadn’t decided.”
    “He’s close--Buck said so last night,” Jane
said.
    “I almost wish he wouldn’t run,” I said.
“Eddie’s not that thrilled about our moving back, and if we have to
do a lot of campaigning he’ll be even less happy.”
    “Well, maybe he’ll feel a little better
about moving after he and Barbara have their meeting,” Jane
said.
    “What on earth are you talking about?” I
asked.
    “Is Eddie here?” Barbara asked. She pulled a
leather note- book from her handbag.
    I didn’t answer, but I must have given her a
funny look.
    “Don’t you know why I’m here?” Barbara
asked.
    “We’re a few minutes early,” Jane said,
looking at her watch. “Didn’t Eddie tell you we were coming?”
    “I haven’t seen him much since I got home
from the hospital,” I said. “Whenever I’m asleep he’s awake, and
vice versa.”
    Will began to cry. Upon hearing the sound,
milk began leaking through my nursing bra, and two wet spots spread
across my nightgown. “Excuse me.”
    I picked Will up from his bassinet in my
bedroom and nursed him in my bed. Hank continued sleeping quietly
in his tiny bed. After a few minutes Will quieted down, and I lay
him down on the improvised changing table: my vanity with a piece
of foam padding on top. When I took off his diaper, he peed all
over my neck and chest before I had a chance to shield the general
area with my hand. I laughed. I still had not gotten used to this
basic