Page 145 of Duke
He blinks again. “Whatever.”
I pat his chest. “Good.” I turn to face everyone else. “All right, y’all. Time to eat.”
I look at Wheeler.Ready?
She looks back.Ready.
Everyone serves themselves in the kitchen, and then we head outside to sit at the picnic table. I notice Tim is slapping his leg, a scowl on his face.
“You all right there, Mr. Rankin?” I put my napkin on my lap.
“I’m getting eaten alive out here. Christ.”
I nod at the bug spray on the ledge of the window behind him. “Mosquitoes are starting to get bad. Help yourself to the spray.”
He doesn’t thank me, but he does grab the bottle and spray down his legs. I notice his movements are sluggish. Is he already drunk? He’s still scowling when he turns back to his plate.
Frannie frowns as she sets her plate beside Wheeler’s at the other end of the table. I’m sure she saw Tim’s face. We all have. His bad mood is a dark cloud that hangs over the meal.
I do my best to ignore it, making polite conversation with Haines. The light begins to fade. Dinner is delicious if I do say so myself. But dessert is even better.
“God, that’s good,” Wheeler says, spooning the last of her ice cream into her mouth.
Preston makes a face. “Since when do you have such a sweet tooth?”
She looks at me. My stomach drops.
Time to spill the beans.
Honestly, it’s kind of a relief. I’ve been waiting on tenterhooks for Wheeler to give me the go-ahead.
I clear my throat. “Funny you should mention that.”
“Duke and I have some news.” Wheeler drops her spoon and grabs my hand. It’s the first—only—time her palm’s felt clammy.
Frannie claps. “Oh my God! Are y’all engaged?”
“Mom! Jesus fuck, they’ve known each other for, like, a week.” Preston shakes his head. “Now let her finish.”
I wait for Tim to chastise his son for talking to his mother like that.
Instead, he looks blandly at me, his nose red from the tequila he’s been swigging like it’s his job.
“Preston, have a little respect, okay?” Wheeler says. “Mom’s just excited.”
“For what?” Preston tips back his empty glass, crunching loudly on the ice. “What’s this big news?”
If he was sitting next to her, I can tell she’d give him a hard shove. Is he the type of guy who’d shove her back?
“I’m pregnant.”
Dead silence. Frannie’s eyes look blank in the growing darkness. Preston stares. Haines fights a smile. Tim blinks. Blinks again. The fire crackles behind us.
Then, suddenly, Tim shatters the silence by banging his fist on the table and shouting, “Fuck! You gotta be fucking kidding me! What the hell are people going to say?”
There’s something about the way he spits out the words, his tone suddenly harsh and venomous and loud, that almost makes me jump. I don’t, because I’m not afraid.
But Wheeler is. She actually jumps, her shoulders up by her ears, body stiff, like she’s bracing herself.
