Читать книгу The Consequences - Colette Freedman - Страница 20

CHAPTER 13

Stephanie Burroughs waited for the plus sign to appear.

She sat on the edge of the bathtub with the plastic dipstick held delicately in her hands. She was intensely conscious of the moment. She remembered reading somewhere that in one’s life there were a very few seminal moments—usually no more than five or six. She wondered if this qualified as one . . . or should it have been the moment she made love to Robert, which had placed her in this position?

The house was quiet. Everyone had gone out for a walk. She could hear floorboards crackling and settling, the water tank filling softly overhead, the hiss and thump as snow slid off the roof onto the ground outside. The bathroom was warm, lightly scented with someone’s mint shampoo, and the edge of the bath felt hard and cold beneath her thighs.

If she was pregnant, she would book a flight—no matter how much it cost, no matter what route she had to take—and return home.

If she wasn’t pregnant, she’d borrow a pair of boots and the heaviest coat she could find and run and kick her way through the snow. Then she would lie on the ground, and move her arms and legs to create a snow angel.

A positive sign appeared on the stick.

Stephanie looked at it for a long time and abruptly exhaled. She hadn’t realized she was holding her breath. Her one overriding emotion surprised her: relief. At least now she knew. She then went downstairs, logged onto her father’s computer, and booked a flight back to Boston.