Carine smiled ruefully. “You men,” she said. “Always so tough.”
He pulled her toward the couch and they sat down. He clicked the TV remote absently and then muted the sound. “Well, this was unfortunately a giant detour to a very simple proposal,” he said. He enjoyed watching her eyes get wide with anticipation. He waited for a moment for maximum effect and then added, “Will you come to Pappy’s house on the Cape with me for Thanksgiving?”
Her body seemed to fold upon itself, and when she looked up, her eyes held an emotion that he could not read. When she spoke, her voice was uncharacteristically low and uncertain. “Sure. If you think it’s a good idea. If they’ll have me.”
He forced a heartiness into his voice that he did not feel. “Are you kidding me? They’ll love having you there.”
He stroked her hair absently as they settled in to watch a Star Trek rerun. After a few minutes he rose to make them a bowl of popcorn. Everything seemed fine and back to normal, but for the first time, he felt at a remove from Carine. He sat back down on the couch and put his arm around her, trying to get rid of this horrible new feeling. He thrust his right hand into his pants pocket, twirling the ring, feeling the cool inner softness of the metal. The future that had seemed so clear just a few hours ago now felt like an endless loop that went around and around and got nowhere.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Anton and David had just finished hammering the shingles that had blown off Pappy’s roof, and despite it being a windy day, they had worked up a sweat. Grabbing two beers from the cooler, they now sat on the two Adirondack chairs on the front lawn, overlooking the ocean.
“Pappy’s looking old,” Anton said.
“He is old.”
Anton gave his father a sly grin. “So are you. But you look pretty good for an old man.”
“Just you wait. It creeps up sooner than you think.”
“Dad. Please. I’m only twenty.”
David glanced at his son appreciatively. “So you are.”
“Everything going okay in the statehouse?”
David rubbed his eyes tiredly. “You know. The same old shenanigans by the Republicans.”
“Don’t you ever just want to quit? I mean, Jesus, it takes forever to make anything happen.”
David stared into the distance. The water today was the color of jade. “Like Pappy, you mean? How he up and quit?”
“I wasn’t thinking of that. I just meant . . . I guess I don’t have the temperament for politics. I’m too impatient, and I’d hate all the compromising.”
David glanced at his son. Anton had changed. He seemed tougher, somehow, more brusque. It was the influence of the girl, he could see that. They had driven from Cambridge to the Cape yesterday, in time for dinner, and although it had been pleasant enough, she changed the electrical field when she was in the room. There was a sharpness to her that he wasn’t sure yet if he liked. Also, none of the deference toward his elderly father that he himself felt and took for granted. She’d spoken to Pappy as if she were his equal. It had bothered David, even though he knew it ought not to. Young people today were different, he knew that. Also, the girl was from a different background. He’d tried talking to Delores about it in bed last night, but his wife had been tired and noncommittal.
“Dad? Where’d you go?”
“Sorry.” David stretched his arms out and yawned. “It’s so wonderful here, even on a cold day. Pappy had the right idea to retire here.”
They sat in silence, sipping their beers, listening to the lapping of the ocean waves. Then David said, “So is it serious?”
Anton gave him a quick look. “I think so.”
“I see.” A pause. “Carine said you guys have been dating for over a year.”
“Something like that.”
“But you never mentioned her to us?”
“Dad—”
David shook his head. “I’m not mad. Honest. Just curious, as to—why not?”
“No reason. Really. I . . . I just . . . wanted her to myself, you know?”
He nodded as if he understood. But he didn’t. He tried to remember if he had kept Delores a secret from his parents, but he couldn’t. He doubted it—the senator had been such a large and looming presence in his life that he couldn’t have kept any secrets even if he’d wanted to. In fact, the first phone call he’d made when he found out Delores was pregnant was to his father.
But he and his dad hadn’t been particularly close, had they? They certainly had not been friends the way he and Anton were. David had always told Anton that he could come with any problem and he would help, no questions asked. He was a baby boomer parent, after all. Drugs, sex, and rock and roll, the three biggies—he had counseled Anton on the first two and shared his passion for the third with his son.
“In any case,” Anton was saying, “Carine and I, we’re so happy to be here. Thanksgiving on the Cape—that’s always special, right, Dad?”
“Somebody say my name?”
Both men turned around to see Carine come up behind them. She wore a white long-sleeved T-shirt and black jeans, and despite the cold, she was barefoot. The girl is beautiful, David thought appreciatively as Carine came around to Anton and leaned over to give him a quick kiss. David caught a flash of her cleavage and quickly looked away. “Hey, baby,” Carine said. “Y’all done with the roof?”
“Yup.”
“So now what?”
Anton pointed to the ocean with his beer bottle. “Just chillin’. Taking in the view.”
“And sharing some quality father-son time.” David regretted the words as soon as he said them, hearing the snippiness in his voice.
Carine’s eyes widened slightly. “Sorry, Mr. C.” She waited a beat and then continued, “But I’m on an errand from your wife. She needs one of you to run to the grocery store before it closes and buy us a bag of potatoes.”
David felt himself flush. He turned to ask Anton if he’d want to run up to the Stop & Shop with him, but Anton was already getting up from the chair. “You wanna ride to the store with me?” he asked Carine, who nodded.
“I’ll go get the car keys,” she said, and left before David could respond.
Feeling foolish, David rose, too. “Well, this was nice,” he said. He pointed to the roof. “Glad we got a chance to fix those shingles for Pappy.”
“Yup.” Anton was looking at him with an expression—bemusement? affection? apprehension?—that David couldn’t quite place.
“Well.” David rocked on his heels. “Guess I better go in and help your mom with dinner. You know how nervous she gets with holiday meals.”
He turned to go, but Anton put out a hand and caught him by the wrist. “Dad.”
David looked at him inquiringly. “Yeah?”
“Nothing. Just . . . I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Carine earlier. I just . . . I can’t explain it. Anyway. I should have. In any case, I don’t want it to spoil our weekend together, okay?”
David raised one eyebrow, puzzled. “Why should it?”