Naked by Francine Pascal Read Free Book Online Page B

bawl him out.
    Kinder, Gentler Heather
    Would I rather be pelted with hot coals?
    Check.
    Would I rather have earphones taped to my head that would play nothing but Barry Manilow and Yanni twenty-four hours a day?
    Check.
    Would I rather be repeatedly hit on the head with a tire iron?
    Actually, that would hurt. Good. Finally he had found something worse than calling Heather. So now he could do it. Besides, he knew that a dinner meeting—alone, face-to-face but in a public setting so as to avoid any violence or major freak-outs—was the only possible way to move past all the lies. To move past the miscommunication. And most important, to move past the money. There was no way to mend their relationship without calling.
    Ed glanced around his empty kitchen. For a second he thought about pulling out his wheelchair just so hecould sit and gather his strength. Nah. Better just to stand, to savor every painful moment. He leaned against the wall on his crutches, then placed the phone to his ear and slowly dialed her number.
    After two rings somebody picked up.
    â€œHello?”
    Heather’s voice was much warmer than Ed had expected. It was more than warm; it was almost. . .
sprightly.
    â€œHey,” he said. “It’s me.”
    â€œI’m sorry, who is this? Is this Ed?”
    Shit.
It wasn’t Heather. It was her mom. Why did they have to sound so much alike on the phone? Ed drew in a deep breath. “Yes, it is,” he said, adding as much polite good cheer as he could muster. “How are you, Mrs. Gannis?”
    â€œWell, Ed, I’m doing great. We’re all doing
great.
”
    Ed knew that Mrs. Gannis had the tendency to accentuate the positive when in public—in other words, to be a complete phony. They were not doing great. They were doing terribly. But pretensions of flawlessness probably went back for generations in the Gannis family. It was a little sad to think of centuries of bullshit smiles and fake laughter.
    â€œWell, I’m glad to hear it,” Ed said, humoring her (and postponing the inevitable). “I was worried about you guys.”
    â€œOh, Ed, there’s no need to worry,” she assured him. “Phoebe’s back home from the center, and she’s doing great. And Mr. Gannis just landed a fantastic new job!”
    Ed blinked. Wow. Apparently Mrs. Gannis wasn’t just pouring on the joy for Ed’s sake. Heather certainly hadn’t mentioned anything about her dad’s getting a new job. But this was fantastic news. If Mr. Gannis was making money of his own again, then Heather wouldn’t need the cash from Ed’s settlement so badly. That would mean that Ed hadn’t destroyed Heather’s life by taking those steps in public. And that would mean maybe, just maybe, that Heather wouldn’t have to hate Ed’s guts. Could he see a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel?
    â€œUh. . . that’s great news, Mrs. Gannis!” he said. “I had no idea.”
    â€œYes, well. We certainly needed some good news in this house.”
    â€œYeah,” Ed agreed. “Is Heather home?”
    â€œShe sure is, Ed. Hold on one second.”
    Ed sat back in his bed. His heart rate finally began to slow, and his chest began to expand more comfortably. For the first time in weeks he felt he could safely unload the enormous guilt he’d been carrying with him. He’d dropit like a sack of bricks. The state of Heather’s family no longer depended entirely on his settlement. His walking was no longer perversely tied toHeather’s survival. He was neither the hero nor the goat. He was just Ed again—plain old Ed. Maybe now he and Heather could just concentrate on salvaging their critically damaged relationship. Maybe this phone call wasn’t going to be such a nightmare after all.
    â€œHello?” Heather asked.
    â€œHey!” Ed blurted out. “Why didn’t you tell me about your dad and