waiting for their reaction.
Ashley automatically smiles as she looks at the picture, but Mark narrows his eyes, looking as confused as I did when I first viewed it. “She had Josephina at her aunt’s house, in an Amish community.” I clarify to both of them.
Ashley’s smile quickly disappears, her eyes growing wide. Mark does almost the same. “Are you serious? As in the Amish that float around here, the ones that don’t believe in electricity or anything?” she surprisingly asks, just as shocked as I feel.
Ashley isn’t helping with the guilt I’m feeling, but I silently nod my head at her and keep thinking about what she’s said. I hate knowing Kasey had to endure being in that situation while she was pregnant. The realization only makes me angrier by the moment.
Taking in Ashley’s pregnant form, I know women are pretty much miserable while they’re pregnant. I heard about it all the time from my fellow Marines that had pregnant wives, but Kasey never once voiced her complaint of the conditions she was forced to endure. Although it must have been hard on her to go from having all the amenities of a normal life to having limited ones, she seemed appreciative instead, when she explained it to me.
Another thing to blame myself for. I was the one who got her pregnant. It is also the reason why she got kicked out of her parent’s house. Grimacing to myself, I sit there and start to think about the loss when Mark breaks my train of thought.
“See, honey, you should appreciate the things I’ve been giving you during your pregnancy. I bet your complaining about wanting that new Kindle Fire is sounding a bit selfish right now, isn’t it?” he says to Ashley in a sarcastic tone.
From the look on her face, the comment only pisses her off and she elbows him to show it. He lets out a grunt as her elbow makes contact and all I can do is laugh at him. He is always being a smart ass.
Ashley looks down at the photo one last time before slowly handing it back to me. When I grab it, I bring it up to look at it again, smiling as I do. It may only be a photo, but it’s something I will treasure forever.
“So does she still believe in their ways, or is she back to being normal?” Mark asks, the hesitation of the question surprising me. Normally I wouldn’t expect it from him.
“She only went through that because she didn’t have a choice,” I tell him as I put the picture back into the safety of its envelope.
My phone starts ringing, the ringtone tells me it’s Elizabeth calling. Probably to remind me I haven’t called her at all today. I had texted her when I landed in Madison letting her know I had arrived, but I told her I would call her in a couple of hours, and I never did. I’m surprised this is the first time she’s calling. She usually gets upset if I don’t return her phone calls in a timely manner.
Obviously I don’t need to look at the screen to know who it is, but I still do, dreading answering the call. Holding up the phone, Mark nods at me as I excuse myself to their backyard to answer it. “Hi babe, what’s up?” I answer as I’m shutting the door behind me.
“What do you mean, what’s up? I should be asking you that, since you haven’t called me all day and I’m left drowning in wedding plans,” she whines into the phone. She also sounds angry, so I already know this conversation isn’t going to end well. It never does when she’s in this kind of mood.
“I’m sorry, babe. Something came up and I haven’t had a chance to call you.”
“What could have possibly distracted you enough to make you completely forget to call your fiancée ?” she asks, her tone sounding far from being curious.
With that tone, I know I’m not risking mentioning Josephina. I know I have to tell her, but I’m not going to do it over the phone, especially to Elizabeth.
“Nothing much, just something with Mark,” I lie to her.
Knowing it’s best to distract her, I change the subject. “By
Ashley automatically smiles as she looks at the picture, but Mark narrows his eyes, looking as confused as I did when I first viewed it. “She had Josephina at her aunt’s house, in an Amish community.” I clarify to both of them.
Ashley’s smile quickly disappears, her eyes growing wide. Mark does almost the same. “Are you serious? As in the Amish that float around here, the ones that don’t believe in electricity or anything?” she surprisingly asks, just as shocked as I feel.
Ashley isn’t helping with the guilt I’m feeling, but I silently nod my head at her and keep thinking about what she’s said. I hate knowing Kasey had to endure being in that situation while she was pregnant. The realization only makes me angrier by the moment.
Taking in Ashley’s pregnant form, I know women are pretty much miserable while they’re pregnant. I heard about it all the time from my fellow Marines that had pregnant wives, but Kasey never once voiced her complaint of the conditions she was forced to endure. Although it must have been hard on her to go from having all the amenities of a normal life to having limited ones, she seemed appreciative instead, when she explained it to me.
Another thing to blame myself for. I was the one who got her pregnant. It is also the reason why she got kicked out of her parent’s house. Grimacing to myself, I sit there and start to think about the loss when Mark breaks my train of thought.
“See, honey, you should appreciate the things I’ve been giving you during your pregnancy. I bet your complaining about wanting that new Kindle Fire is sounding a bit selfish right now, isn’t it?” he says to Ashley in a sarcastic tone.
From the look on her face, the comment only pisses her off and she elbows him to show it. He lets out a grunt as her elbow makes contact and all I can do is laugh at him. He is always being a smart ass.
Ashley looks down at the photo one last time before slowly handing it back to me. When I grab it, I bring it up to look at it again, smiling as I do. It may only be a photo, but it’s something I will treasure forever.
“So does she still believe in their ways, or is she back to being normal?” Mark asks, the hesitation of the question surprising me. Normally I wouldn’t expect it from him.
“She only went through that because she didn’t have a choice,” I tell him as I put the picture back into the safety of its envelope.
My phone starts ringing, the ringtone tells me it’s Elizabeth calling. Probably to remind me I haven’t called her at all today. I had texted her when I landed in Madison letting her know I had arrived, but I told her I would call her in a couple of hours, and I never did. I’m surprised this is the first time she’s calling. She usually gets upset if I don’t return her phone calls in a timely manner.
Obviously I don’t need to look at the screen to know who it is, but I still do, dreading answering the call. Holding up the phone, Mark nods at me as I excuse myself to their backyard to answer it. “Hi babe, what’s up?” I answer as I’m shutting the door behind me.
“What do you mean, what’s up? I should be asking you that, since you haven’t called me all day and I’m left drowning in wedding plans,” she whines into the phone. She also sounds angry, so I already know this conversation isn’t going to end well. It never does when she’s in this kind of mood.
“I’m sorry, babe. Something came up and I haven’t had a chance to call you.”
“What could have possibly distracted you enough to make you completely forget to call your fiancée ?” she asks, her tone sounding far from being curious.
With that tone, I know I’m not risking mentioning Josephina. I know I have to tell her, but I’m not going to do it over the phone, especially to Elizabeth.
“Nothing much, just something with Mark,” I lie to her.
Knowing it’s best to distract her, I change the subject. “By
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