Stan spent the next hour being driven around by Driver. The prospect of a baby was just too much for him to handle. He'd done kids, that was all in the past. He never expected to be doing it all over again with Karen. She had never struck him as the motherly type. Babies to Karen meant her miniature bottles of liquor, or so he had assumed, until now. When did she suddenly start wanting kids? She never really bonded with Olivia and Mason, preferring to throw money at them rather than spend time with them. She'd seemed so defensive when he brought up the idea of abortion, maybe she really did want it. He decided to return back to the penthouse, they needed to talk.
"Hello?"
There was silence.
"Hellooo?"
"Grace?" She barely heard the small whisper from the other end of the line.
"Yes, this is Grace Adler. Who's calling?" she said, feeling slightly puzzled.
"Grace…it's Karen…"
"Oh, hey Karen. Are you ok? You sound a bit…" She didn't even finish her sentence before Karen interrupted her in the same low voice.
"He doesn't want it, Grace. He just left…he left…"
"You mean Stan?"
"Yeah…I told him, I just came right out and said it but…but…he just…"
As Karen's voice began to break, Grace had heard all she needed to hear. "Ok, stay right there. I'm coming over."
She put down the phone and grabbed her jacket.
"Grace? Where are you going?"
'Oh, shit' she thought as Will came out of his bedroom. Why couldn't she leave the house without people questioning her anymore?
"Erm…I'm going to Karen's."
"You…are going to Karen's penthouse?"
"Yeah." She replied as casually as she could. "See you later." She tried to leave but Will stopped her.
"Grace! Wait a minute! What's going on with you lately? You're being so…cagey and secretive. I mean, one minute you're complaining that Karen never does any work, the next you're going round for a girl sleepover! What's the deal?"
She sighed, how was she going to get round this?
"Look, it's just…I…me and Karen…we're friends, ok? Now, I need to go. Please, Will, I'll talk to you later."
She left Will standing puzzled in their apartment, hating herself for keeping things from him. Oh, how she wanted to tell him what was really going on. But she understood why Karen couldn't tell him, not yet.
Karen's Apartment
Grace knocked on the door; worried about the state Karen would be in. She hoped, no, she prayed that Karen wouldn't have done anything stupid. Despite her consistent complaining, she knew Karen loved Stan and therefore she knew how much his dismissal of their baby would hurt her.
"She's upstairs."
"Thanks, Rosario."
Grace quietly walked upstairs and towards Karen's bedroom, where she suspected she'd be.
"Karen?"
"In here, Grace."
Karen was sat at her dressing table, staring at her reflection in the lit up mirror before her. Grace was unsure of what to do; Karen seemed to be in a trance of some sort.
"Erm…so, how are you feeling?"
Karen nodded her hair and faked a smile. "I'm good. Good." Then she stopped. "As good as someone can be whose husband's just told her he doesn't want their child."
"Oh, Karen." She didn't know what else to say. She couldn't say it would all be ok because quite frankly, she didn't know if it would. Slowly, she lowered herself onto the long stool Karen was sat on and placed her hand upon Karen's, which was resting on the table. "He won't abandon you. He loves you."
Karen scoffed. "Hmm. Yeah."
"No, he does. I just think this whole baby thing was a shock for him. You weren't planning it or anything."
Karen rose from her seat. "Grace, I know my husband. That wasn't just surprise. That was disappointment, frustration, anger…" her voice started to raise, "…He doesn't WANT it!" She sat down on the bed. "He doesn't want our baby." Her voice now barely a whisper, a huge contrast from her previous shouting.
Grace, once more, couldn't think of anything to say. She was beginning to question her presence in Karen's company. She didn't seem to be helping her at all. Suddenly, without really thinking about what she was doing, she walked over to where Karen sat and wrapped her in a hug. To her surprise, Karen responded positively and she seemed to find direct comfort in Grace's small act of support. They stayed there for a few minutes until a knock at Karen's door caused them to break apart.
"Karen?"
She gasped, Stan was back.
"Do you want me to go?" Grace asked her.
"No, honey. You can stay." She walked to the door but paused before she opened it. "Please stay." Grace smiled and nodded her head, preparing herself for what she knew would be a heated confrontation between Karen and Stan.
Karen opened her bedroom door and allowed Stan to enter the room.
"What do you want?" She asked him, walking back into the room so she could face him.
He looked nervous. Grace's presence was a definite intimidation for him and she could see his head begin to sweat.
"We need to talk."
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