Starting Now (Blossom Street #9)(26)

Lydia seemed to feel the same way because she asked her sister to help the next customer. “Libby and I are having a bit of a talk here. Could you cover for me?” she asked.

“Sure thing.” Margaret set aside her coffee and headed to the front of the store.

“Okay,” Lydia said, reclaiming her seat. “You were about to say?”

Libby inhaled and briefly closed her eyes. “Dr. Stone asked to speak with me because after meeting the girls in the elevator he was convinced one of them is pregnant.”

“What?” Lydia’s shock echoed through the store.

Margaret stopped short and so did the woman she was helping.

“Everything all right back there?” Margaret asked.

“It’s fine,” Lydia murmured. Her eyes held Libby captive. “This is a joke, right?”

Libby shook her head. The sick feeling in the pit of her stomach returned. “I wish it was.”

“Is … is it Casey?”

“I don’t know if it’s her or Ava.” She wanted to slap Phillip for not being clearer. He had assumed she would remember the girl on his right, or was it her right? Her gut reaction told her it was Ava, just from the way the girl behaved, but she couldn’t be sure. She almost said so but changed her mind. She simply didn’t know.

Lydia had gone pale. She brushed the soft brown hair off her forehead and held her hand there. “Brad caught Casey trying to sneak out of the house the other night … it wasn’t the first time. We don’t know where she goes and she won’t tell us.”

Libby’s stomach twisted into a giant knot. Maybe she was off base. “What about Ava?”

“She’s a sweet girl and all, but from what I’ve seen of her grandmother, well, let’s just say the living situation isn’t ideal. It could be her.”

“Dr. Stone said that Casey or Ava might not even know about her condition.”

“How can he tell? Really, it’s only speculation, right?” Lydia seemed to be clinging to the possibility that it wasn’t true and this was all a big mistake.

Her shock and disbelief mirrored Libby’s own response when Phillip had approached her. Surely this was pure speculation, misguided concern, or misunderstanding. The girls were both so young and naive. Pregnant? At thirteen? It shocked and angered her. Still, Libby couldn’t ignore what she knew, couldn’t pretend he was off base. He was the physician, not her.

“I’m not entirely sure how he knew. Dr. Stone didn’t say, but he was concerned enough to approach me. I wish I could explain this further … Phillip … Dr. Stone and I only spoke for a few minutes before he was called away for an emergency. I haven’t seen him since to ask.”

Perhaps it would have been better to wait, but this entire matter had weighed so heavily on her mind that Libby couldn’t ignore it any longer. Ever since her meeting with Phillip, she’d slept fitfully.

Lydia’s hands started to shake. If Libby knew her better she would have reached across the table and gripped hold of the other woman’s forearm. She wanted to comfort her, to offer Lydia reassurances, but she had none to give.

“Why did he bring this to you?” Lydia asked.

“He assumed the girl was my daughter.”

“Oh.”

The bell chimed as the customer left the store. Within seconds Margaret joined them.

“What’s going on back here?” she demanded.

Libby left it up to Lydia to respond.

Lydia glanced blankly up at her sister and remained silent. “Something I need to look into … I need to talk to Brad.”

With narrowed eyes, Margaret studied Libby suspiciously. After a few uncomfortable moments she left the two of them alone again.

“My husband and I wanted to adopt an infant,” Lydia whispered. “We had a wonderful social worker and then one night we got a phone call. It was an emergency situation and she needed a place for a young girl just for a couple of nights.”

Libby nodded. She remembered Casey telling her that she was adopted.

“We fell in love with Casey. Brad, Cody, and I decided to make her part of our family.” She paused and it looked as if she was about to break down and weep.

Libby wanted to say or do something to help but didn’t have a clue how she could.

“The day we stood before the judge to finalize the adoption, Casey was so happy and excited she ran up and hugged the judge.” A tear spilled out of the corner of her eye and scooted down the side of Lydia’s face. “But Casey came with a lot of baggage …”

Libby could only imagine.

“The last six months haven’t been easy, adolescence, and all the hormones have kicked in … Casey started her period.” Lydia’s mouth snapped closed and she pressed her fingertips over her lips. Her eyelids slammed shut. She inhaled and seemed to be holding her breath. More tears rolled down her face.

“Lydia?” Libby felt helpless. She would give anything to take all this back. The last thing she wanted was to hurt her new friend or bring problems to her front steps.

Lydia swallowed tightly and then whispered. “I … I don’t know if Casey had a period last month.”

Libby’s stomach clenched. “One of the reasons I decided I had to say something is because of the legal issues involved.”