The Reunion Read Online Free PDF Page B

hoping her mother would come out to catch a glimpse of them. In Carolyn’s fantasy, Stephanie Cooper-Thomas would casually glance across the street and see them sitting in the car. The quick look would evolve into a stare. After a few moments, her biological mother would run across the street and embrace her, just like all the mother-daughter reunions on
Oprah.
    But the longer she sat in the car, the more her euphoria gave way to a twinge of anger and doubt. By all rights this should have been her house too. The occupants certainly had the financial wherewithal to care for one little girl. The birthday and slumber parties that never were now started to make her temples ache.
    A thousand questions raced through her head. Were there brothers and sisters in the house too? Certainly she’d be the oldest, she rationalized; her mother had been just nineteen and unmarried when she was born. She pictured a half-brother—tall, handsome, with perfect teeth, probably moving up the corporate ladder at one of those downtown law firms. Maybe there was a half-sister too. She’d be spoiled and beautiful, a girl who belonged to the best sorority, drove a sporty convertible, and spent spring break basking in the sun with friends on Padre Island.
    â€œStop it!” she told herself aloud. She had to cast the negative thoughts from her mind. There was a reason for everything. Surely her mother would explain why she had given her up for adoption. Besides, Carolyn was just thirty-six, still young enough to become part of the family—a real family. It wasn’t too late to become the young woman she always knew she could be.
    A policeman drove by, rattling Carolyn out of her daydream. He didn’t stop, but glared suspiciously. A Chevy Lumina wasn’t exactly a common sight on this side of town. Carolyn decided it was time to go home, crawl in between the sheets, and dream about her mother.

6
    Carolyn navigated the collapsible stroller through the oncoming horde of senior citizens. They smiled and waved at Kenny as they continued their daily constitutional down the long corridors of Penn Square mall. The baby raised his little fist and waggled his chubby fingers at the old people. Kenny screeched and gurgled loudly when an old woman blew him kisses. He was such a happy baby.
    She followed her biological mother past the Waldenbooks and through the long lines at the movie theater. She peered out the display window of a pet store and watched as Stephanie Cooper-Thomas strolled to the food court, placed an order at a concession window, and sat down with a foamy latte and a bagel.
    They had made eye contact thirty minutes earlier in the lingerie department at Foley’s. But there was no magical moment, no spark of recognition, when they gazed into each other’s eyes while picking over bras and panties at the sale table.
    Carolyn did, however, recognize the woman’s walk. The swinging arms, the swift, confident stride was her walk as well. Carolyn smiled as she studied her mannerisms, the way she sipped the hot cup of latte and cocked her head as she flipped through a magazine. She was older and more refined, yet it was like looking in a mirror. At that moment, she knew her policeman had found the right woman.
    Her blonde hair was stylish and short but soft and loose, not overly coifed like many women her age. And the fine lines around her eyes and mouth were barely detectable. A little touch-up from a good plastic surgeon, Carolyn surmised.
    Impulsively, Carolyn darted out of the store and headed for the food court. Kenny was asleep in the stroller and didn’t budge as the wheels clacked loudly over the large ceramic tiles. She ordered a large coffee and cinnamon bun and then pushed the stroller to the table adjacent to her mother’s.
    Carolyn nervously flopped down onto the wooden chair, placing the heavy diaper bag and her snack on the table. She strategically positioned the stroller where she could,