After a while the brunch broke up, each neighbor gathering up her baby and going home to take care of her children and husband. None of their charges, including their husbands, could be trusted at home alone for long before the house became a shambles. The woman who placed her baby in Howard’s charge was one of the first to get ready to leave. She came over and picked up the empty baby’s bottle to put in his diaper bag, then lifted her son from Howard’s lap. Howard got up hospitably and stood by Anita to see the women off. He was slightly surprised by the warm sympathetic maternal smiles he got as the women left one at a time.

Log in with your credentials

Forgot your details?