The Weight of Small Things Read Online Free PDF Page A

tuition-free.”
    “Cool,” he said. “What did he teach?”
    “History. He loved history, especially East Asian history. He was fascinated by China. He always wanted to go there.”
    “Maybe someday you’ll go for him.”
    “I doubt it,” she said, smiling. “I’ve never been out of the States. I’ve never even been on a plane.”
    “Seriously? You’ve never been on a plane?”
    “Seriously,” she said. “It’s way too expensive.”
    “Well, someday you will definitely fly.”
    “Oh, and you’re sure about that?”
    “Yeah,” he said. “I have a feeling you’re going to go lots of places.”
    She laughed and took a sip of her soda.
    “Well, right now, I’m going back to my room. I really do have a lot of homework.”
    “Okay,” he said, standing and offering his hand to help her up.
    They walked back to the dorm in silence. At the door he leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Do you want to go to a movie on Friday?”
    “Sure.”
    “Cool. I’ll come by at six and we can get dinner first.”
    And just like that, they were dating. Bryn had teased her endlessly about how quickly she had “taken herself off the market.” But Corrie was happy to be with Daniel. He knew about her mother, about her past, and it didn’t seem to matter to him. He accepted her just as she was. She, in turn, admired his drive to help others, his idealism, and his seemingly endless energy.

    “What are you doing out here?”
    Corrie spun around, finally spilling tea on her robe, to see Mark in the doorway, shifting from one foot to the other. He had forgotten his slippers. She smiled.
    “I was just coming in,” she lied. “I thought I’d have a cup of chamomile.” She walked inside and closed the door behind her. “I couldn’t sleep.”
    Mark slipped his arms around her waist and rubbed his lips against the auburn hair that hung, straight and shining, halfway down her back. “You should’ve gotten me up,” he whispered.
    Corrie pulled away from him slightly. “I didn’t want to wake you. You know the kids will be up early tomorrow, and I didn’t want both of us to be tired and cranky.”
    She dropped her robe onto a chair and slipped into bed. “I’m really tired now. The tea did it. I think I’ll be able to sleep.”
    She turned her back to him and pulled the covers up to her chin. She felt him lie down next to her, hesitate, then sigh and roll over. After a few minutes, he was snoring softly.
    Corrie rolled toward him, propped on her elbow, and watched her husband sleep, moonlight from the window casting shadows on his face. He looked so young when he slept. His cheeks were slightly burned from an afternoon in the sun. He really was so handsome. Why would she waste her time thinking about Daniel? She shook her head and leaned back into her pillow. Daniel and she had been over ten years ago. He had moved on, and so had she. So why was she lying here beside her perfect husband, wondering if her ex had gone to the reunion?
    Mark sighed and rolled onto his side. She pulled the blanket over his shoulders and kissed his cheek softly. Probably she should have responded to his kiss before. She hated to disappoint him. But it was too early in the cycle for her to be ovulating. And somehow it seemed wasteful to have sex when there was no chance of getting pregnant, as if it might hurt their chances later in the month. Why couldn’t she just get pregnant like everyone else?
    She’d watched Mark earlier with his sister, offering his hand to help her out of a chair, carrying Laurel to the bedroom so Sarah didn’t have to lift her. On the patio, Corrie saw him rest his hand on Sarah’s stomach and grin widely when he felt the baby kick. The man was made to be a father. Only Corrie couldn’t make him one.
    She chewed her lip, thinking of all the attractive young women at Mark’s office—the pretty receptionist, the striking redhead in accounting, the busty blond who’d just made partner. Any one of them could