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My dad set down the coffee bag, hesitating and deliberating before he spoke. “It’s hard to force myself to see Nathaniel differently. I knew him for many years before you two”–he cleared his throat awkwardly– “got together. And I know that man like the back of my hand. I was there during his younger days. Which weren’t exactly–”
“He’s mentioned before that he used to date a lot.” I hoped my father realized that Nathaniel had changed since his early thirties. “I’m aware that he wasn’t always this mature.”
“Date a lot?” He hmphed. “That’s one way of putting it. He was a total player, Amelia. I might even go so far as to call him a womanizer. And you are my darling daughter. I want to be supportive of you becoming a mother, and I’m trying to be understanding of your relationship with Nathaniel. But he might not be all that you think he is. There were nights I can remember…” He drifted off, recalling memories that seemed to have grown hazy with time.
“I know about his reputation at the country club. A flirt, a ladies’ man; I’ve heard about it. He told me he went through a couple of wild years while he was working through the grief of losing his parents. We don’t have any secrets between us. But that’s all in the past, Dad. Everything is different now.”
He blew out a heavy sigh. “It’s just hard to watch my daughter fall for someone I know so well. Nathaniel has never been the domestic type. Starting a family with someone who never planned on settling down? I don’t know. Are you sure about this, Amelia?”
“Iamsure of it. Nathaniel and I have something special together, and he loves me, Dad. And I love him, too. Deeply.”
He took a deep breath. “OK.”
There was an awkward silence. I wanted my dad to understand how much both he and Nathaniel meant to me, but it was still obvious that he wished I had never gotten involved with Nathaniel. I could only imagine how hard this must be for him, and it broke my heart to think that I had let him down.
I placed a hand on his shoulder. “I know you’re disappointed, and I feel terrible about how everything happened, but Iwillmake you proud. You can count on that. I love you so much, Dad. Your opinion of me has always meant more than what anyone else thinks.”
His eyes took on a softer cast, and his voice grew quieter. “This is still a lot for me. That must be obvious to you, Amelia. Hell, it’s the last thing I expected to happen when I met Nathaniel all those years ago. But nothing will ever change how much I love you. You’re my baby girl, and you always will be.”
My dad pulled me in for a hug. All my life, I had only wanted to make him proud of me. Listening to him tell me how much he loved me, hearing him reassure me that I’d always be his baby… it brought tears to my eyes. I sniffled quietly on his shoulder, and he soothed me, holding me tight.
“Hey,” he said softly, “if you’re crying, how are we going to play Monopoly? Hmm?”
A chuckle slipped out of my chest and put a halt to my tears. “You mean, so you can cheat?”
“No. So Melinda can cheat. She seems nice until you realize she’s got everybody’s number. She’ll probably wipe the floor with us, as usual.”
“You’re probably right. But who knows, maybe I’ll win this year.” I winked, jostling the last tear from my eye.
“Well, Amelia,” he said, handing me a hankie, “you are definitely full of surprises.”
Chapter 40
Nathaniel
Imade my way downstairs to the basement, with instructions to bring back an expensive red, plus another Chardonnay for Colleen.
David owned a massive collection of wine. He was always bringing back cases from his client trips to Napa Valley, and he had excellent taste. I would be switching to coffee soon, but I looked forward to having a few more sips of something plummy and rich.
I had many fond memories of wine-soaked nights with David at the club, as well as meeting up at nice restaurants to celebrate our business wins. Even in this very home, after he had put his kids to bed. We would laugh about the colorful characters at the country club and talk shop about real estate deals or get nerdy about golf and look up player stats, arguing over which golfer played the smoothest putting game. I missed those times with David, but tonight had given me even more of a reason to have faith in my old friend; our familiar rapport seemed to be creeping back, even if it wasn’t quite the same between us.
He just needed time.
Still, tonight had gone even better than I expected. Being at the dinner table with the Weavers was new for me–I had never spent any real time with David’s kids when they were younger, and Colleen was always off shopping or drinking with her friends. Having such a close-knit relationship with his daughters was something David prided himself on, and I could see that tonight in the way he interacted with them. Being a part of this family, even if things with David were strained, felt right to me. This was where I was meant to be.
Scanning the rows of wine bottles, many with their own hand-written tags detailing the tasting notes, I realized I might need a pair of reading glasses soon. Some of the tags looked like Amelia’s handwriting, but the script was awfully tiny, so I couldn’t be sure. I put away one of the bottles, giving up on reading the loopy cursive, and grabbed a different one, holding it eighteen inches away from my face, trying to focus my vision.
The sound of footsteps arriving came from behind me on the stairwell.
Must be Amelia.
I was squinting at the label, attempting to make sense of the faded pencil marks. “This is going so well,” I called to her behind me without turning around yet still trying to read. “I’m really glad we’re being open and transparent like this–”
The scent of heavy perfume suddenly flooded my nose, and before I could turn my neck, I felt a warm breath and heard a whisper in my ear. “You should be with arealwoman, not agirl.”
The voice was Colleen’s.
Oh my God.
