Perfect Partners

that it was time to learn the fine art of making vegetable purees.
    The clatter of utensils and the rise and fall of the voices of the other students filled the classroom. The instructor, a short, energetic woman named Dr. Humphries, was a noted expert in early childhood nutrition. She began moving from station to station giving advice and encouragement in a raspy, high-pitched voice.
    Stephanie was, as usual, concentrating intently on the task at hand. She wore an apron over her red smock, and her short hair was covered with a net. She bent over the cookbook that lay open on the classroom counter.
    “First peel and chop the carrots,” Stephanie read.
    “I guess I can handle that.” Letty picked up a carrot from the small pile on the counter and started to wield the peeler with swift, efficient strokes.
    Stephanie watched in horror. “No, not like that. Be careful, Letty. You mustn’t take off so much of the skin. You’re removing the most important nutrients.”
    “I don’t think so. I read an article once that said the nutrients in vegetables lie just under the skin, not on the surface,” Letty said patiently.
    “I don’t care what you read. It’s obvious you’re stripping off far too much of the carrot. Here, let me do that.” Stephanie grabbed the carrot and peeler from Letty and went to work.
    Letty stepped back out of the way and wondered why she was feeling irritated. It was not as though she actually wanted to peel the stupid carrot. “How did your appointment with the doctor go today?”
    “It went very well, thank you.” Stephanie worked intently on the carrot. “She says everything is right on schedule.”
    “You don’t sound convinced.”
    “Well, it’s just that there are so many unknowns, aren’t there? Everything can look perfectly normal at this stage, but something could go dreadfully wrong at the last minute.”
    “Not likely, Stephanie.” Letty watched as her stepmother finished peeling the carrot and began chopping it up into perfect disks. “I’m sure everything is fine. Just as the doctor says.”
    “She is one of the finest obstetricians in the city. Board certified in two specialties.”
    “So you’ve said.”
    “She’s written several papers on the special problems of women who get pregnant after thirty-five.”
    “You gave them to me to read,” Letty reminded her.
    Stephanie examined the precision-cut carrot. “I wonder if the slices are thin enough.”
    “They’re going into a blender, Steph. It won’t matter if one is slightly larger than the others. They’ll all be turned into mush.”
    Stephanie’s mouth tightened. “I’m sorry if you’re bored. You don’t have to come with me to these classes, you know.”
    “Yes, I do. Dad would be hurt if I didn’t. We’re doing this for his sake, remember.”
    “Yes. Yes, I do remember.”
    Letty closed her eyes briefly. “Stephanie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound rude. I’m not bored, really. Your classes are very interesting. It’s just that I’m exhausted from that trip to Echo Cove, and it was upsetting to find Philip in my office this afternoon. I think I need a good night’s rest.”
    “You needn’t apologize. I realize you’re still having difficulty handling the fact that your father has remarried and is starting a second family. If you feel you can’t overcome your hostility, you may have to consider counseling.”
    Letty gritted her teeth. Everyone was suggesting therapy lately. “I am not hostile.”
    “Denial is never a helpful approach.” Stephanie spooned the carrots into the small steamer. “How long does it say to cook them?”
    Letty glanced at the cookbook. “It says twelve minutes. Personally I never cook carrots that long. Why don’t you try five or six minutes and then check them?”
    “This is for an infant,” Stephanie said. “The food needs to be thoroughly softened.”
    “If you say so.”
    “Watch the time.” Stephanie turned on the heat under the carrots. “Twelve minutes, exactly.”
    While the carrots cooked, Dr. Humphries gave a short lecture on the nutritional value of homemade baby food. When the twelve minutes had passed, Stephanie jerked the lid off the steamer and ladled the cooked carrots into the blender.
    “They’re well done, all right,” Letty observed.
    Stephanie shot her a chilling glance. “How long does it say to blend them?”
    “One minute. Then stop, stir, and blend for another minute.”
    “Time me.”
    “I don’t