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“But—“
“Come on, Mam, it’s like you’ve just said; you’ve been married to Dad for twenty years, and that hasn’t stopped him from forgetting about you every time he strays.”
“So, this way of thinking is because of our marriage?”
“Maybe?” I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“I hope not.”
“But even if it is, I’m glad because it prepared me for the inevitable. Don’t catch feelings and you won’t get hurt.” I smiled. “Simple.”
“So, you’re saying that you never want to fall in love and get married?”
“It’s not like I’m one hundred million percent opposed to the idea of marriage and motherhood. If the right guy came along and proved me wrong, then sure, I could do it,” I admitted. “But I could never cope with the crap you’ve had to deal with. I could never do that, Mam. And certainly not with your grace. If I loved a man, and I mean truly, madly, deeply loved him, then I could never handle knowing that he was with another woman. It would destroy me. I would go insane. I could never forgive that level of betrayal. Hence why taking that chance seems too risky to me. So yeah, I’m probably going remain ring-free for the foreseeable forty plus years.”
“So, you wouldn’t care if say Paul went off with another girl?” Mam questioned. “You know, since you don’t love him and all?”
“Honestly, I’d probably be pissed off, but mostly relieved.”
Mam gaped. “Relieved?”
“Yeah,” I replied. “Because he would have proven what I’ve known all along; that no man can be trusted.”
“Oh, I don’t know, Aoife, love,” Mam said, worrying her lip. “That’s an awfully cynical way of thinking.”
“Practical.” I winked. “It’s apracticalway of thinking – and clearly the right way of thinking, considering the rumors I’ve heard.”
Mam gave me a disconcerting look. “Whatkindof rumors?”
I arched a brow and gave her awhat do you thinklook.
“Hecheatedon you?” she demanded, immediately catching my drift. “Then what are you doing with him?”
“Ha!” I folded my arms across my chest. “Pot, meet kettle.”
She sighed heavily. “Aoife, love, you don’t have to put up with that sort of thing.”
“I know that I don’t,” I agreed. “And don’t worry, I’ve confronted Paul about the rumors.”
“And?”
I shrugged. “He says it’s all a pack of lies.”
“But you don’t believe him?”
“Would you?”
Mam gave me a sympathetic look.
“I don’t believe a single word that comes out of a single boy’s mouth,” I told her.
That’s not technically true.
You believeoneboy.
“And how long have theserumorsbeen circling?”
Longer than I cared to admit to my mother. “A while.”
