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“Is the pregnancy that risky?” Renia and Tilly’s faces wore matching expressions of concern.
“It’s not the pregnancy.” Karl’s mouth barely opened wide enough for the words to come out. If one of his relatives tapped him, he’d shatter.
“Just because I was fired from Middle Kingdom for cheating doesn’t mean I can’t work a register and remind your mom to take her meds.” Four pairs of eyes blinked rapidly, but Vivian didn’t care. Now that Karl knew her dirty little secret, she didn’t see why the rest of the family couldn’t know, too. Just throw the whole mess—one-night stand, drunken marriage, pregnancy, all of it—out into the light of day and see what happened.
She knew she didn’t deserve the distrust emanating from Karl, especially as she was volunteering to help the family out by taking care of a woman who didn’t even like her. “You wanted me out of the apartment. This would give me a place to live and something to do.”
“But the register…” Karl protested.
“Whatever story your FBI agent cronies told you should at least convince you that I’m good at counting and have fast hands. I worked at that casino for sixteen years, and no one ever managed to pass a cheat by me. I can work a register.”
“Let’s not decide this now,” Renia said. “We can all go home, sleep on it and come to a decision tomorrow. Maybe Mom wants a say in her future.”
Vivian looked at Karl. While it felt like forever ago, it was only earlier this evening that she’d been driving out of Chicago to leave Karl and his suspicions behind. Now she was offering to stay in the city to take care of a mother-in-law who didn’t like her on behalf of a husband who didn’t trust her.
At least there was security in caring for Mrs. Milek, only…where would she sleep tonight?
“Vivian, perhaps you would like to stay at our place tonight?” Tilly offered. “We have a spare room.”
Vivian flashed her blue-haired sister-in-law a grateful look. “I would really appreciate it.”
“No, Tilly, you know you have to get to your restaurant early tomorrow. Vivian can stay with Miles and me in Sarah’s room for the night, and we’ll get her set up in Mom’s house tomorrow.”
The line of Karl’s jaw tightened, as if he was thinking of arguing, but he didn’t say a word in protest.
It was only when she got to Renia’s house that Vivian thought to text Karl a short message with instructions for Xìnyùn’s care.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
KARL SLIPPED THROUGH the church doors and into the end of a back pew right before the priest proceeded down the aisle. Mass was the first time he’d come south of Cermak since his mother’s heart attack.
He’d let his managing sisters get Vivian set up to work at Healthy Food and get their mother home from the hospital. He didn’t want to see his mom shuffling around the house in a robe, maybe with an oxygen tank and definitely surrounded by pills. Nor did he want to be surrounded by the smell of jasmine and its ambrosial lie of a fake marriage and very real baby.
His feeble excuse was that he was swamped with work. After threats and some badgering, the law department had sent another disc—still heavily redacted. Plus, back at his condo there was that stupid bird to take care of. He didn’t neglect his responsibilities, despite the bird being ahead in the H-O-R-S-E basketball challenge, fifty games to ten.
He recited the greetings in unison with the rest of the congregation, as he had most Sundays for as long as he could remember. People around him stood and kneeled and sat, and he used the familiar rhythm to let his mind wander into the thoughts he’d kept at bay all week. Despite his fears—which he knew were irrational—his mother was fine. She was going to survive the heart attack. She was going to learn to eat better food and maybe start walking to work instead of driving the couple of blocks. Another family member he loved hadn’t died on him. He wouldn’t be an orphan; he’d be a twice-divorced man with a child he hardly ever saw and a bird whose name he couldn’t pronounce. Not exactly the future his father had imagined for him.
