Chapter 3 - WHEN THE JOKE WENT TOO FAR“Go on,” Corinne said.
Maren stared at her.
“My brother already provides for you. The least you can do is clean up after dinner.”
The words hung in the air.
Even the children stopped laughing for a moment.
Matthew stepped into the doorway.
“Corinne.”
She ignored him.
“She can carry a few plates.”
“She’s pregnant,” Matthew said.
“So was Mom.”
Maren looked toward Helena.
Please.
Just once.
Say something.
Tell your daughter this has gone too far.
But Helena simply folded her napkin.
That silence hurt more than anything Corinne had said.
Maren lowered her eyes.
She could feel the baby moving again.
Her wrists were trembling.
Her back hurt.
She knew she should put everything down.
But she also knew exactly what would happen.
Helena would say she was dramatic.
Corinne would say she was manipulative.
Someone would tell Graham that Maren had caused another scene.
So she kept holding the plates.
Then the front door opened.
Nobody noticed.
Not immediately.
A man's footsteps crossed the foyer.
Slow.
Heavy.
Familiar.
Maren looked up.
Graham stood in the doorway.
His tie was loosened.
His face was exhausted from work.
But the exhaustion disappeared the instant he saw his wife.
His eyes went to her stomach.
Then her trembling hands.
Then the plates.
His expression changed.
“What is she doing?”
Nobody answered.
Graham walked toward her.
Quickly.
He took the entire stack from her arms and placed it on the table.
Then he took her wrists gently.
“They're shaking.”
“I'm okay,” Maren whispered.
“No.”
His voice was quiet.
“You're not.”
May you like
For the first time that evening, Maren felt safe.
But what happened next would change Graham's family forever.
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