Page 106 of Misrule
Sighing, Meggie tried to follow the conversation of the other women, but it was so hard. All she thought about was Christopher and the arguments they’d had. She couldn’t understand what was wrong with him.
Did he really want another baby so badly that her response to his question about a vasectomy reversal upset him to the point of resentment that she’d turned him down?
They didn’t handle disagreements through anger. They talked openly and honestly. They didn’t push each other away.
“Why is Christopher walking so weird?” Fee asked, frowning as she watched her brother hobble next to Johnnie behind the bar.
“I don’t know,” Meggie said glumly. “He’s been in a horrible mood for since last night, yelling at me for no apparent reason. I tried to be understanding. I thought maybe something happened at the club…” Voice trailing off, she gasped. “Do you think he’s been shot?”
Despite promising to ignore him, Meggie couldn’t help but glance at her husband. He was leaning nonchalantly against the bar, engaged in conversation, his smile making her breathless.
As if he felt her gaze on him, he looked at her. And frowned.
“What burr is up his dickhole?” Zoann asked, narrowing her eyes at Christopher.
“I don’t know,” Meggie admitted. “Yesterday morning was the last time we made love.”
It was no secret that she and Christopher had a very active love life.
“Dr. Will, I need to come in and talk to you,” Meggie said.
“Are you pregnant again?” Bailey asked.
“No, but Christopher wants me to be,” Meggie answered.
“Wasn’t he the one who said he didn’t want more babies?” Roxy asked.
Meggie nodded. “We had a very long talk last night, then I left him in the kitchen. He never said goodnight to the kids or anything. By the time I got to our room, he’d locked himself in the bathroom. He never does that.”
“I wonder what’s wrong with him,” Bunny said. “That isn’t Outlaw’s style.”
“Maybe, there is something going on at the club,” Zoann suggested. “I’ll ask Val and see what I find out.”
“Thank you,” Meggie responded. “Let me know.”
“Maybe, if you talked to him, Meggie,” Dr. Will suggested. “Mr. Caldwell can be gruff but he stops everything for you.”
“I tried to talk to him this morning. He was so…sodifferent. He wasn’tmyChristopher at all. I got to a point where I had enough, and we argued all over again. As far as I’m concerned our fight was baseless.”
She’d busied herself with preparing the food for their get-together and was sure Christopher would’ve calmed down by the time he returned from the club. He hadn’t.
But, he had been limping. He hadn’t given her a chance to ask him what had happened. Things had spiraled out of control. Now, though, his behavior was thawing slightly.
“Hello, everybody,” Kendall greeted.
The room fell silent. As a whole, everyone glanced in Kendall’s direction. Looking uncharacteristically nervous, she shifted her weight and wrung her hands together.
“Hi, sugar,” Roxy said with a smile.
Relief removed some of Kendall’s uncertainty. “Hi, Roxy.”
Meggie stood. “Come and join us, Kendall. We’ve been waiting for you. Roxy and Bailey want us to pick out the kids’ wedding clothes.” She indicated the two stacks of magazines, where an iPad sat on top. “We’re even going to visit websites.”
“You waited for me?” Kendall asked, sounding unsure and out-of-sorts.
“Of course, Kendall,’ Bailey responded, not unkindly. “You’re part of the planning committee.”
As she walked forward and completely ignored the men, Kendall’s face brightened.
