Baby Talk Read Free Page A

HOME, LEAVE OUTSIDE DOOR was checked with
one of Grammy’s precise little X’s, but after what had happened
earlier with his baby daughter that morning, Neal wasn’t completely
sure of anything.
    “The Fosters are one of our best customers,
son,” the old man said.
    “I know,” Neal said.
    “I went to school with Dan Foster—he was one
of my fraternity brothers. He’s one of the most successful lawyers
in town.”
    Neal only nodded. He had heard this at least
three times the day before. The whole family seemed to pride
themselves on how many people—
important
people—they knew in
the Atlanta area. Neal found this a bit ironic, because he had a
hard time imagining anyone in high society having much respect for
the Snells, especially the old man. Neal rated himself at least
twenty rungs above Buford Snell in terms of intelligence,
integrity, and overall class. Regardless of Neal’s current dilemma,
he was certain that he would be in charge of something a lot more
significant than a flower shop when
he
was sixty years
old.
    “Here it is!” Grammy said victoriously,
holding the delivery slip in the air. But when the old woman
squinted at the yellow piece of paper through her glasses, her
expression went flat. “Well...I’ll be. I could have sworn I...”
    The old woman glanced at Mildred, miffed,
and then a broad, toothy grin broke across her leathery face. She
beamed at Neal as if he were her own son. “You were just as right
as you could be. I’m so proud of you!”
    Neal forced a smile. They were amazed that
he actually had the brains and reliability of a ten year old
.
What do you expect?
he wanted to say.
I’m not a moron—I can
read English
.
    Old man Snell placed a warm hand on Neal’s
shoulder. “That’s good work, son.” He winked at Grammy, clearly
pleased that his latest U of G hire had proved to be so
remarkable.
    Neal began to load up the van with his
morning deliveries, only vaguely aware of the meaningless chatter
of Grammy and Mildred and the other Snells while he worked. He had
to get another job, a
real
job, as soon as possible. He not
only needed to make some decent money, he needed to be around some
halfway intelligent people. And as soon as he found a better
position and accumulated a little cash, he would start knocking off
some night classes and finish his chemistry degree. Maybe he could
still swing medical school, if he could stabilize life with Annie
and the baby.
    But as he drove to his first delivery, his
optimism faded. He was still troubled by what had happened with
Natasha that morning.
    I love you
, he thought.
    He remembered the long, heated battles he
and Annie had over what to do about her unexpected pregnancy, with
Neal arguing adamantly for an abortion. It was hardly an ideal
solution to the problem, but to him, it was the only one that made
any sense. Neither one of them were prepared to start a family. In
Neal’s mind, it was better for him to finish all his education and
get his medical career started before they had any children.
    But Annie wouldn’t have it. Once she found
out she was pregnant, she seemed hell-bent on giving birth to the
child and keeping it, no matter what the price. She had finally
told Neal that she would have the baby and raise it herself, and he
could just do whatever he pleased. And, if not for his own history,
he might have done just that. When Neal was 12, his older sister,
Rhonda, had gotten pregnant, and he had spent his entire teenage
years listening to what a “selfish prick” the father of the baby
had been, some slick insurance salesman who disappeared as soon as
Rhonda had missed her first period.
    How could Neal do the same thing to
Annie?
    The answer was, he could not, and live with
himself. If his family hadn’t known about the situation, he might
have gotten away with it, but he had made the mistake of consulting
his mother about the matter. “You need to do the right thing,
Neal,” she had told him, and it was quite