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Damn. She was good.
He shoved a hand through his hair. “Okay, so, I had lunch with my third ex-wife the other day and she told me one of the reasons our marriage fell apart was because I couldn’t express my feelings.”
She nodded. “Go on.”
“So it’s important I don’t do that again.”
“Because you’re in a relationship right now.”
“That’s right. And I really need it to work out this time.”
“I can understand that,” she said.
“It’s just that Kitty, that’s my…girlfriend…her dad is getting remarried and while that’s great, it’s sort of put me in the hot seat.”
“Ah. I’m beginning to see your dilemma.”
Okay. Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad after all. Dr. Carson—Joanna—seemed pretty sympathetic.
“Our one year anniversary, which also happens to be her birthday, is coming up this weekend. I think she’s expecting a big gesture, if you know what I mean. So I moved out temporarily. Just to get my head
on straight.”
Joanna stared at him for a moment. “Why don’t we start by you telling me all about your first marriage?”
So he told her the whole story. How as a teenager, he’d rebelled against his dad, started smoking dope, and dropped out of high school. He’d been working construction when he walked into a strip joint and ended up married to one of the dancers a couple of weeks later. “Obviously, it was a huge mistake.”
“For both of you?”
“Well, yeah.”
“What did you do after the divorce?”
“I cleaned up my act. Got my GED. Joined the army.”
She gave him the pleased therapist nod. He’d only been here half an hour but he recognized it already. “So, in some ways, you could say the failure behind that first marriage propelled you into another phase of your life.”
“I guess.”
Then they talked about his second wife, Sarah, who he’d met during his stint in the army when he’d been stationed overseas. They’d both been lonely, never a good reason to get married, but at least they’d parted as friends.
“Let’s talk a little about what your third wife said to you the other day.”
“You mean when she said I had trouble expressing my feelings?”
She nodded. “How did that make you feel?”
He stifled a groan and settled back in his chair. He’d been duped. This was going to be every bit as painful as he’d first imagined.
#
If you’d asked Kitty last week how she’d be spending her afternoon off, shopping with her father would have never occurred to her. Yet here they were at the outdoor mall in Destin, doing just that. They’d picked up Dad’s wedding gear—a navy blue, light wool designer suit with a white shirt and paisley tie—almost two hours ago. That had been the easy part of the trip. It was Wednesday afternoon and everything was ready for the big day. Except Kitty’s best man outfit.
She studied a mannequin wearing a black-and-white polka dot sundress. “I guess that would be too beachy, huh?” This was the fifth store they’d hit so far and her dad was still being incredibly patient. In all her nearly thirty-six years, Kitty couldn’t remember when he’d ever gone shopping with her.
“How about this?” He held up a cream-colored sleeveless silk dress that might work, except…
“Isn’t that too close to what Sharon might wear? I mean, it’s almost ivory.”
