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meant it.  No more giving into Doretta’s appetite.
    Doretta acted like she hadn’t heard by staring up Sunset Hill at Teagan’s condo five blocks away.  “That’s one honkin’ steep walk.
    “I’m going to burn calories.”
    Doretta raised her palms.  “Okay, okay, it’s your swollen ankles.”  Before getting in her Toyota, she tossed one more jab.  “If you can’t make it, call 911.  Those boys in blue are so cute.”
    “ The only boy I want is the one in my belly.”  Without a backward glance, Teagan strolled close to the buildings.  She returned the smile of a woman palming the wheels of her chair; her hands flowed high and she skimmed along.  She ignored the leer of a man half-hidden in the shade of a doorway.  A boy zipped around her on roller blades, his green hair, bare chest and baggy pants drawing stares.  Puffing in controlled breaths, a jogger sped along and disappeared into the crowd ahead.
     
    This sea of people exhilarated Teagan – population on the move, alive and doing.  She released the last residue of stress.  Pai and Jimmy would be just fine.  Erica’s problems and the invasion of Black Blazers were simply things to mull over a cup of hot mint tea.  The solid cloud cover dissolved into spotty holes allowing sun rays through the gloom.
    Teagan stopped by a neighborhood market sandwiched between a novelty store and a beauty salon.  She plucked a basket from the stack and wandered to the fresh produce section along the back wall.  She bypassed a pungent coffee mill and quickened her pace to a new crop of McIntosh apples.  They felt crispy enough to snap when bitten and spray their juices in her mouth.  She put two into a plastic bag.  After that huge Philly cheese steak sandwich, the apples would suffice for dinner.
    “Is that you, Teagan?”
    The voice she dreaded to hear.  Fighting an instant desire to flee, Teagan turned.  “Mrs. Winslow?”
    “After all these years, please call me Joyce.”
    Teagan had tried to imagine the day they would happen upon each other.  Now that it was here the sight of the familiar eyes, perky nose and pleasant smile touched her with pleasure instead of panic.  “How's Bryan?” she asked, no longer afraid to know.
    “He's fine,” Joyce answered, too quickly.
    Teagan reached out and touched her arm.  “I bet you miss him.”
    “What can I say?  I'm a mother.”  Joyce laughed and seemed to relax.  “When is your baby due?”
    Smiling, Teagan’s hand automatically rested on her abdomen.  “Dr. Klassen says I’m going to meet my son any day.”
    “A boy,” Joyce murmured and then sighed, a mournful, little gush of air.  She picked up a head of lettuce, checked it, put it back, and picked up another.  She wanted to say something but was hesitant.
    “ Oh flip,” Teagan said.  “I like you and wanted us to stay easy with each other.  Just tell me what's on your mind.” 
     
    Joyce focused on a head of Romaine and then looked up rather sheepishly.  “I wanted you to have Bryan's children.  When you two broke up, Bryan claimed it wouldn’t have worked.  I didn't believe it then.  Even after nine years, I still don't.”  She shook water from the leaves.  “But we shouldn't talk about this over a head of lettuce.”
    Teagan’s eyes blurred, embarrassing tears rose to the surface.  Her heartbreak over Bryan should stay dormant, not make her blubber.
    “I hope all goes well for you,” Joyce said kindly and then glanced at her watch.  “I really have to run.”
    Teagan recognized the white lie, but let her go – no sense in prolonging an awkward situation.  Pain encircled her lower back.  It seemed sharper than before.  Quickly, she tossed a few more items into her basket, paid, and trudged up Sunset Hill.  Now the crowds were in the way and she anxiously threaded through them, hurrying to be home.  Seeing Joyce brought back memories of the time spent at her home: eating around her table, shooting