will want something more dignified than ‘Will You Marry Me’ written in shaving cream on the hood of somebody’s car, Lara Jean.”
“Promposals have gotten way more sophisticated than in your day, Gogo,” I say. I’m playing along, teasing her so shecan feel normal again after the bomb Daddy just dropped.
“ My day? I’m only two years ahead of you.” She tries to sound light, but I can hear the strain in her voice.
“Two years is like dog years when it comes to high school. Isn’t that right, Kitty?” I pull her toward me and hug her tight to my chest. She squirms away.
“Yeah, both of you guys are ancient beings,” Kitty says. “Can I be a part of the proposal too, Daddy?”
“Of course. I can’t get married without you guys.” He looks teary. “We’re a team, aren’t we?”
Kitty is hopping up and down like a little kid. “Yeah!” she cheers. She’s over the moon, and Margot sees it too, how important this is to her.
“When are you going to propose?” Margot asks.
“Tonight!” Kitty pipes up.
I glare at her. “No! That’s not enough time to think up the perfect way. We need a week at least. Plus you don’t even have a ring. Wait a minute, do you?”
Daddy takes off his glasses and wipes his eyes. “Of course not. I wanted to wait and talk to you girls first. I want all three of you to be here for the proposal, so I’ll do it when you come back for the summer, Margot.”
“That’s too far away,” Kitty objects.
“Yes, don’t wait that long, Daddy,” Margot says.
“Well, you’ll have to help me pick out the ring at least,” Daddy says.
“Lara Jean has a better eye for that kind of thing,” Margot says serenely. “Besides, I barely know Ms. Rothschild. Ihaven’t a clue what kind of ring she’d like.”
A shadow crosses over Daddy’s face. It’s the I barely know Ms. Rothschild that put it there.
I rush to put on my best Hermione voice. “You ‘haven’t a clue’?” I tease. “P.S., did you know you’re still American, Gogo? We don’t talk as classy as that in America.”
She laughs; we all do. Then, because I think she saw that brief shadow too, she says, “Make sure to take tons of pictures so I can see.”
Gratefully Daddy says, “We will. We’ll videotape it, whatever it is. God, I hope she says yes!”
“She’ll say yes, of course she’ll say yes,” we all chorus.
* * *
Margot and I are wrapping slices of pizza in plastic and then double wrapping in foil. “I told you guys two pizzas would be too much,” she says.
“Kitty will eat it for her after-school snack,” I say. “So will Peter.” I glance toward the living room, where Kitty and Daddy are snuggled up on the couch, watching TV . Then I whisper, “So how do you really feel about Daddy asking Ms. Rothschild to marry him?”
“I think it’s completely bonkers,” she whispers back. “She lives across the street, for pity’s sake. They can just date like two grown-ups. What’s the point of getting married ?”
“Maybe they just want it to be official. Or maybe it’s for Kitty.”
“They haven’t even been dating that long! How long has it been, six months?”
“A little longer than that. But Gogo, they’ve known each other for years.”
She stacks up the slices of foiled pizza and says, “Can you imagine how weird it’ll be to have her living here?”
Her question gives me pause. Ms. Rothschild is at the house a lot, but that’s not the same as living here. She has her own ways of doing things, and so do we. Like, she wears shoes at her house, but we don’t wear them here, so she takes them off when she comes over. And, now that I think about it, she’s never slept over here before; she always goes back home at the end of the night. So that might feel a little weird. Also, she stores bread in the refrigerator, which I hate, and to be quite honest, her dog Simone sheds a lot and has been known to pee on the carpet. But the thing is, since I’m not
“Promposals have gotten way more sophisticated than in your day, Gogo,” I say. I’m playing along, teasing her so shecan feel normal again after the bomb Daddy just dropped.
“ My day? I’m only two years ahead of you.” She tries to sound light, but I can hear the strain in her voice.
“Two years is like dog years when it comes to high school. Isn’t that right, Kitty?” I pull her toward me and hug her tight to my chest. She squirms away.
“Yeah, both of you guys are ancient beings,” Kitty says. “Can I be a part of the proposal too, Daddy?”
“Of course. I can’t get married without you guys.” He looks teary. “We’re a team, aren’t we?”
Kitty is hopping up and down like a little kid. “Yeah!” she cheers. She’s over the moon, and Margot sees it too, how important this is to her.
“When are you going to propose?” Margot asks.
“Tonight!” Kitty pipes up.
I glare at her. “No! That’s not enough time to think up the perfect way. We need a week at least. Plus you don’t even have a ring. Wait a minute, do you?”
Daddy takes off his glasses and wipes his eyes. “Of course not. I wanted to wait and talk to you girls first. I want all three of you to be here for the proposal, so I’ll do it when you come back for the summer, Margot.”
“That’s too far away,” Kitty objects.
“Yes, don’t wait that long, Daddy,” Margot says.
“Well, you’ll have to help me pick out the ring at least,” Daddy says.
“Lara Jean has a better eye for that kind of thing,” Margot says serenely. “Besides, I barely know Ms. Rothschild. Ihaven’t a clue what kind of ring she’d like.”
A shadow crosses over Daddy’s face. It’s the I barely know Ms. Rothschild that put it there.
I rush to put on my best Hermione voice. “You ‘haven’t a clue’?” I tease. “P.S., did you know you’re still American, Gogo? We don’t talk as classy as that in America.”
She laughs; we all do. Then, because I think she saw that brief shadow too, she says, “Make sure to take tons of pictures so I can see.”
Gratefully Daddy says, “We will. We’ll videotape it, whatever it is. God, I hope she says yes!”
“She’ll say yes, of course she’ll say yes,” we all chorus.
* * *
Margot and I are wrapping slices of pizza in plastic and then double wrapping in foil. “I told you guys two pizzas would be too much,” she says.
“Kitty will eat it for her after-school snack,” I say. “So will Peter.” I glance toward the living room, where Kitty and Daddy are snuggled up on the couch, watching TV . Then I whisper, “So how do you really feel about Daddy asking Ms. Rothschild to marry him?”
“I think it’s completely bonkers,” she whispers back. “She lives across the street, for pity’s sake. They can just date like two grown-ups. What’s the point of getting married ?”
“Maybe they just want it to be official. Or maybe it’s for Kitty.”
“They haven’t even been dating that long! How long has it been, six months?”
“A little longer than that. But Gogo, they’ve known each other for years.”
She stacks up the slices of foiled pizza and says, “Can you imagine how weird it’ll be to have her living here?”
Her question gives me pause. Ms. Rothschild is at the house a lot, but that’s not the same as living here. She has her own ways of doing things, and so do we. Like, she wears shoes at her house, but we don’t wear them here, so she takes them off when she comes over. And, now that I think about it, she’s never slept over here before; she always goes back home at the end of the night. So that might feel a little weird. Also, she stores bread in the refrigerator, which I hate, and to be quite honest, her dog Simone sheds a lot and has been known to pee on the carpet. But the thing is, since I’m not
Similar Books
