“Nancy.” I was surprised to see her, the surprise instantly melting to concern. “Is everything okay? Is it Rory?” I’d been trying to get ahold of him since yesterday and was growing increasingly worried by his uncharacteristic silence.
“Everything’s fine.” She gave a little laugh. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I just wanted to have a chat, a little girl talk.”
I exhaled in relief. “I’ve been calling and texting Rory since yesterday. Has he contacted you? He was supposed to find out which residency program he matched with, but I haven’t heard from him yet.” Which was baffling, as the location of his residency would determine our next several years of life.
Nancy hesitated. “I’m sure he’ll call today, Lolly. You know how busy he is right now.”
I nodded, unconvinced. He’d learned Monday that he’d beensuccessfully matched for residency somewhere, but we were on pins and needles to find out where, desperately hoping he’d been matched with the University of Washington program so he could be close to me in Seattle. His residency match was a life-altering slip of paper, a slip of paper he and every other fourth-year medical school student had received yesterday. And yet he had not called.
“I wanted to talk to you about Rory, actually,” Nancy said a little hesitantly. Her tone put me on instant high alert. Something was up. “He doesn’t know I’m here.” She looked nervous, although perfectly appointed as always in her crisply elegant linen pants and tailored blouse. I suddenly wished I wasn’t wearing a butter-smudged kitchen apron, my hair tossed up in a loose bun. Although she’d been my mother’s best friend and had been unfailingly kind to me, Nancy’s understated elegance always made me feel frumpy, like I was never quite polished enough.
“Talk to me about what?” I grabbed a sponge and wiped down the stainless-steel table, sweeping up the raw piecrust trimmings into a little pile. Even though I was curious to hear the reason for her visit, I had to keep moving. Time and kitchen duty waited for no man.
The timer buzzed. “Here, I just have to get these pies.” I motioned her to sit down on a metal stool on the other side of the prep table. She perched gingerly on the stool as I slid on giant oven mitts and opened the industrial-size oven. My six lemon meringue pies sat golden and perfect in neat rows. It had taken me about six months of trying before I’d really gotten the hang of my mom’s recipe. Now the pies turned out exactly right every time. I slid the first one out and carried it carefully to the table. They had to cool for an hour before they could be refrigerated for four hours and then be ready for the lunch seating. I took the rest of the pies out one by one.
“What did you want to talk about?” I prompted, gripping the last pie in my mitts.
“I’m here to ask you to end your engagement to Rory,” Nancy said bluntly.
I dropped the pie. It landed meringue-side down on the tile floor with a splat. “What?” I couldn’t believe my ears.
She clasped her hands in front of her, steeling herself, and repeated her request in the same calm, even tone of voice.
I stared first at her, then down at the smashed pie. Sunny yellow filling was oozing slowly across the tiles. “Why would you ask me to do that?” I was completely stunned. I left the ruined pie on the floor and turned to face her, still wearing the oven mitts.
She twisted the gold wedding ring on her finger over and over nervously. “Now, just hear me out, Lolly, please. We both love Rory. We both want what’s best for him. I know you love him and that he loves you. And I know it’s been so hard for you since Irene... died.” Her eyes glistened with sudden tears, and she blinked and ducked her head, regaining her composure.
I nodded warily. It had been terribly difficult since my mother died, and I was still struggling to manage her responsibilities at the diner. Some days I felt like it would take three of me to replace her. I finished each night far after midnight and drove home with a pounding head and an aching heart. My father was faring worse than I was, however. He was still heartbroken. Daphne, at thirteen, was moody and volatile. It had been a grueling three years, and there was really no end in sight. We were doing the best we could.
“It has been so hard,” I agreed. I took off the oven mitts and waited for Nancy to explain.
“Your mother’s death changed all our lives, none more so than yours. It’s a tragedy in so many ways.” Her voice was compassionate, grieved. “Rory tells me you plan to stay here and keep running the diner?”
“I can’t leave now. Not with Dad needing so much help, andDaphne’s still so young. She needs me too.” I looked down at the smashed pie on the floor. “I’m holding everything together right now. Perhaps in a couple of years...” But I had a strong feeling that it was wishful thinking. My plans for moving to Baltimore and for Toast had been put on hold after my mother’s death. Our wedding was postponed indefinitely. Rory and I still talked about a wedding, but sometime last year we’d stopped discussing the date. The cold hard logistics seemed impossible unless he got a residency spot in Seattle. We’d refused to talk about the alternatives if he didn’t.
Nancy took a deep breath. “Lolly, Rory wasn’t matched with UW for residency. He was matched with Duke.”
“Oh.” A flood of dismay and disappointment in that one tiny exhalation. He would not be in Seattle. And then a flicker of anger. He’d found out about his residency and hadn’t told me? He’d told Nancy, obviously.
Nancy saw my expression. “He hasn’t contacted you because he doesn’t know what to say. UW was his top choice because you’re here, but Duke...”
“Duke is the best fit for him,” I murmured numbly.
Nancy nodded. “Rory has such a bright future ahead of him. He’s excelling at one of the top medical schools in the country. Duke is a brilliant opportunity. It will make his career. You know he’s dreamed of being a physician for a major league sports team since he was twelve years old. It’s all within his reach now.” Her tone was pleading.
“I’ve always supported Rory in whatever he wanted to do,” I stammered, feeling like a trap was about to spring shut. I just couldn’t quite see it yet.
“Yes, I know.” She nodded vigorously, her hairdo still perfect. It was the color of Rory’s, a rich auburn, which she highlighted and styled like Nancy Reagan.
“But, Lolly, how will it ever work?” Nancy gently voiced aconundrum Rory and I had both been too nervous to acknowledge. I’d asked Rory once about what would happen if he didn’t get a residency in Seattle, and he’d refused to discuss the topic, saying only, “I want to be with you, Lolly, for the rest of my life. End of story.”
“Rory will have three years of residency at Duke,” Nancy said. “Then a fellowship in sports medicine somewhere else in the country. You wouldn’t be together for at least four more years.”
“Three,” I corrected her. “UW has a great sports medicine fellowship. He could do that.”
Nancy nodded, her expression sympathetic but firm. “Maybe, if he’s very lucky, he’ll get a one-year fellowship in Seattle. But what then? He’ll need to go wherever he’s offered a job. Seattle has a few major league sports teams, but the odds of him getting a job here are quite slim.” Nancy hesitated. “I’m only telling you what Rory already knows. It’s tearing him apart, the reality of his predicament. He told me... he told me last night that he’s thinking of refusing the residency at Duke. And you know what that means. He doesn’t get another chance for a residency. All his hard work in medical school will be for nothing. He’s strongly considering coming back home and getting whatever job he can find, just so he can be with you, Lolly.” There were tears glinting in her brown eyes, those eyes that looked so like Rory’s. “Don’t let him do that. I’m begging you. He loves you so much he’ll destroy his own future for you. I’m asking you to love him enough to not let him do that.”
I stared at her in horror. “He’s thinking of giving up his residency?”
