Want to Know a Secret? (22)

“I’m sorry! That’s so frustrating. Have you done IVF?”

“No, nothing like that.” God, I can’t even imagine being shot up with hormones. The thought of it makes me ill—I’m afraid of needles. “But we’re off birth-control and… you know, crossing our fingers every month.”

Maria reaches out and pats my hand. “For some people, it can take time. But I’m sure it will happen! You had Bobby, after all. So everything must be working all right.”

“Yes. That’s true.” I sigh. “It’s just that… I know how badly Elliot wants another child. I feel like… I’m letting him down.”

“April, don’t be silly!” She reaches out and squeezes my hand in hers. Her palm is warm and dry. “I’m sure Elliot loves you no matter what. And worst comes to worst, there are tons of fertility treatments out there.”

“Yes, I know…” And now I’m tearing up. “Sorry…”

“Don’t apologize!” She squeezes my hand again. “Do you need a tissue?”

“No, I’ve got one…”

As I rummage around in my purse, looking for a tissue, I hear the jingling of the bell at the door to the store. A customer.

“Do you need to go help her?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “Let her browse a bit first.”

I turn to look at the girl who has entered the store. She’s maybe in her early twenties with white-blonde hair and puffy, sexy lips. She looks very familiar. I keep getting this feeling about people—that they look familiar to me. It scares me a bit, considering my mother has early-onset Alzheimer’s. Am I losing my mind? Is this why I can’t remember anyone?

Oh God, that is not a thought I need to be having right now.

She’s looking at one of the Prada purses. She seems awfully young to be able to afford such a nice purse. I wonder if she has a sugar daddy looking out for her. She can’t possibly think she could shoplift with that big guy at the front.

And then it hits me who she is.

“Maria!” I hiss. “That girl…”

Maria frowns and leans in close to me. “You know her?”

“No, but…” I look back at the girl, just to be sure. Yes, I’m sure. “Do you remember Carrie, from soccer practice?”

She nods.

“That’s the babysitter! That’s the one who stole her husband.”

Maria’s lips form an “oh.” She cocks her head to the side. “Poor Carrie! I can’t even imagine how I would feel if some twenty-one-year-old babysitter stole Sean away from me.”

“I know…”

I wonder if Maria gets jealous about Sean. He does seem incredibly loyal to her. But she must realize how attractive he is. And, if I’m being completely honest, he’s far more attractive than she is. I wonder if she could have landed a guy like him if he wasn’t a single dad.

Then I feel guilty for those thoughts. Maria may not be beautiful, but she’s a lovely person. I’m sure Sean likes her for her inner beauty.

Maria chews on her lower lip, watching the babysitter browse the purses. “Maybe I should throw her out.”

“And miss out on the huge commission? Please. You don’t want to have a Pretty Woman ‘Big mistake’ moment, do you?”

“I don’t care about that. Look at her—she’s probably not going to buy anything anyway.” She narrows her eyes. “But it’s not enough, you know?”

“Well, what else could we do?”

A slow smile spreads across her face. “Watch this.”

I watch the whole thing. Maria picks up a necklace from one of the displays, then she goes over to the babysitter, and sweetly asks if there’s anything she needs. The babysitter shakes her head no. And as Maria walks away, she silently drops the necklace into the babysitter’s purse.

Then she returns to the desk, smiling like nothing happened.

“Oh my God,” I breathe. “I can’t believe you just did that.”

“And it’s about to get better. Just watch.”

She’s right. A minute later, the babysitter attempts to leave the store. The overhead alarm goes off like there was a break-in at the prison. The bodybuilder pops into action, stepping in front of the door to the store and grabbing the babysitter roughly by the arm.

“Miss,” he says. “Do you have any store merchandise in your purse?”

She wrenches her arm free, her expression indignant. “No. Of course I don’t!”

“You set off our alarm. I can’t let you leave without searching your purse.”

The babysitter looks like she might refuse, but she’s obviously in a bind. This big guy is not going to let her leave without checking her purse. So she thrusts it at his chest. “Here. Knock yourself out.”

It’s almost too horrible to watch, because I know what he’s going to find. It takes him all of five seconds to yank out the necklace inside. The tags are still intact. The babysitter’s eyes go wide.

“I didn’t put that there! It… it must have fallen inside…”

The guard shakes his head. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to call the police.” He looks to the back of the store. “Maria? We have a shoplifter here and I’m calling the cops.”