lovely.”
“No, they are, actually, but Nick was supposed to get his JD and take over his dad’s firm and marry Julia, his girlfriend from law school, and instead, well, he quit after his second year and married me. It’s a little embarrassing for them.”
Erin cocked her head. “Why on earth would they be embarrassed?”
“Because I’m, you know.”
“What?” she prompted.
“You know.” I lowered my voice. “White trash.”
“Casey, don’t be ridiculous!”
“Says the woman with the Harvard MD. It’s easy for you to laugh, sure, but I grew up in a trailer park with my mom, her assorted live-in boyfriends, no dad, clothes from Goodwill, and a sister who slept with literally every single member of the football team. The Nestor girls are legendary in this town, and not in a good way.”
Erin shook her head. “But you’re not your mom or your sister. Just because they made mistakes—”
“Let me ask you something. You’re a fancy Ivy Leaguer like Nick’s parents; is my family the kind of family you’d want your child marrying into?”
She couldn’t maintain eye contact. “Your family doesn’t make you who you are.”
“But they’re part of the package. You said it yourself—you don’t just marry a person, you marry their whole family.”
“I can see how it would be hard to grow up in a small town like this with a family like that, but don’t you think you’re being a little too sensitive? I mean, look at you now! You’re a pillar of the community! You went to college, you own your own business, you do volunteer work for the local animal-rescue groups—”
“I married a nice boy from a nice family,” I finished for her. “Only problem is, he’s too good for me and everyone knows it. Including him.”
“Is that what you really think?” Erin asked incredulously. “Nick Keating is too good for you?”
“Let’s look at the facts: I initiated moving in together. I’m the one who kept bringing up marriage. I had to…” I wanted to confess that I’d sort of had to propose to him, but that sounded too pathetic, so I said, “I had to buy my own engagement ring.”
She helped herself to a chocolate macaroon and jabbed it toward the tiny diamond sparkling on my left hand. “You paid for that?”
“Pretty much.” I gnawed the inside of my cheek. “He was paying off a lot of debt at the time, and—”
“And he’s too good for you ?” Erin spewed a few cookie crumbs in her vehemence. “Do you hear yourself?”
I started to shake this off, saying, “You don’t know the whole story,” but she was having none of it.
“Casey, I don’t care how hunky he was in high school. That was twelve years ago. He should be down on his knees kissing your feet!”
“We balance each other out,” I insisted. “I’m controlling and judgmental. He’s a free spirit. I’m incredibly hard to live with—”
“And he’s not?”
I thought about the pipe wrench on the rim of the tub.
“I guess,” I said grudgingly. “I just always wanted him so much. He didn’t even look at me when we were teenagers; I was twenty-seven when he finally asked me out—”
“When he finally smartened up, you mean.” Erin snorted.
“He had just moved home after he left law school and happened to be driving by when my truck got a flat out by Waronoke Pond. He stopped to help me change the tire, and he looked at me and I looked at him…it was straight out of a movie, I tell you.” The memory still made me smile. “I knew exactly who he was, of course, but he didn’t remember me. He didn’t realize we’d gone to school together until I told him, on our third date. I was so thrilled to finally be with him—”
“Okay, you need to stop with the hero worship. If you aren’t an equal partner in the relationship, you’re screwed. Reality check: he’s just a guy. A cute guy, I’ll give you that, but a guy. With plenty of faults and questionable commitment to his marriage.”
“Not
“No, they are, actually, but Nick was supposed to get his JD and take over his dad’s firm and marry Julia, his girlfriend from law school, and instead, well, he quit after his second year and married me. It’s a little embarrassing for them.”
Erin cocked her head. “Why on earth would they be embarrassed?”
“Because I’m, you know.”
“What?” she prompted.
“You know.” I lowered my voice. “White trash.”
“Casey, don’t be ridiculous!”
“Says the woman with the Harvard MD. It’s easy for you to laugh, sure, but I grew up in a trailer park with my mom, her assorted live-in boyfriends, no dad, clothes from Goodwill, and a sister who slept with literally every single member of the football team. The Nestor girls are legendary in this town, and not in a good way.”
Erin shook her head. “But you’re not your mom or your sister. Just because they made mistakes—”
“Let me ask you something. You’re a fancy Ivy Leaguer like Nick’s parents; is my family the kind of family you’d want your child marrying into?”
She couldn’t maintain eye contact. “Your family doesn’t make you who you are.”
“But they’re part of the package. You said it yourself—you don’t just marry a person, you marry their whole family.”
“I can see how it would be hard to grow up in a small town like this with a family like that, but don’t you think you’re being a little too sensitive? I mean, look at you now! You’re a pillar of the community! You went to college, you own your own business, you do volunteer work for the local animal-rescue groups—”
“I married a nice boy from a nice family,” I finished for her. “Only problem is, he’s too good for me and everyone knows it. Including him.”
“Is that what you really think?” Erin asked incredulously. “Nick Keating is too good for you?”
“Let’s look at the facts: I initiated moving in together. I’m the one who kept bringing up marriage. I had to…” I wanted to confess that I’d sort of had to propose to him, but that sounded too pathetic, so I said, “I had to buy my own engagement ring.”
She helped herself to a chocolate macaroon and jabbed it toward the tiny diamond sparkling on my left hand. “You paid for that?”
“Pretty much.” I gnawed the inside of my cheek. “He was paying off a lot of debt at the time, and—”
“And he’s too good for you ?” Erin spewed a few cookie crumbs in her vehemence. “Do you hear yourself?”
I started to shake this off, saying, “You don’t know the whole story,” but she was having none of it.
“Casey, I don’t care how hunky he was in high school. That was twelve years ago. He should be down on his knees kissing your feet!”
“We balance each other out,” I insisted. “I’m controlling and judgmental. He’s a free spirit. I’m incredibly hard to live with—”
“And he’s not?”
I thought about the pipe wrench on the rim of the tub.
“I guess,” I said grudgingly. “I just always wanted him so much. He didn’t even look at me when we were teenagers; I was twenty-seven when he finally asked me out—”
“When he finally smartened up, you mean.” Erin snorted.
“He had just moved home after he left law school and happened to be driving by when my truck got a flat out by Waronoke Pond. He stopped to help me change the tire, and he looked at me and I looked at him…it was straight out of a movie, I tell you.” The memory still made me smile. “I knew exactly who he was, of course, but he didn’t remember me. He didn’t realize we’d gone to school together until I told him, on our third date. I was so thrilled to finally be with him—”
“Okay, you need to stop with the hero worship. If you aren’t an equal partner in the relationship, you’re screwed. Reality check: he’s just a guy. A cute guy, I’ll give you that, but a guy. With plenty of faults and questionable commitment to his marriage.”
“Not
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