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We all start to strut off down the green to take our next shots. Wendell first. He’s the worst among us. “Love isn’t always easy. Especially before a wedding with as quick a turnaround as this one, my goodness,” Dad continues.
I start to respond, but Caroline cuts me off. “But Chase is always self-sabotaging.”
“Excuse me, I’m right here.”
“You’realways self-sabotaging. Better?”
I huff, gripping the neck of my beer.
“Aw, I’ve hit a nerve.”
“You haven’t hit a nerve.”
“You sure about that, Chase?” Caroline smirks.
“Caroline!” Dad scolds.
“I’m just trying to get to the heart of the matter. Chase hasn’t always been good with a velvet glove. Come here,” Caroline says, threading her arm through mine and pulling me down the greenway from my father and uncles.
“Christ, you’re brutal,” I mutter, but don’t draw away. This is what you deal with when you have a little sister who is a strong, independent woman. I wouldn’t have it any other way even though she gets under my skin nearly all the time.
“I know it’s hard to hear someone being honest with you right now. You’re on cloud nine. Hell, cloud ten. You have Jude Parry. She’s the catchiest catch of them all.”
I smile despite myself. She has a point there. The man who ends up winning Jude’s heart will be very lucky.
Too bad it won’t be me.
“I know you have a habit of going through girls like toilet paper.”
I scoff but Caroline doesn’t give me even a moment to respond.
“Don’t argue with me right now. Just listen.”
Sealing my lips together, I grunt in frustration.
My little sister giggles. She knows she has me wrapped around her finger. “You’ve never kept anyone around for very long. That’s what I’m saying. It goes two ways, I know, but… Jude is special.”
“I know she’s –”
“Not just because she’s my best friend. She has a big heart. She’s soft. I mean, she’s a teacher for God’s sake. Of her own volition! You know what kind of heart you have to have for that.”
I nod. Teachers are so underappreciated in every way. Case and point, she was fired just because there wasn’t enough money for her program. I haven’t really considered how she’s been potentially mourning the loss of that part of her life.
We come to a stop and face each other, shaded by a tall loblolly pine tree. “I know you kind of tripped into this engagement by the skin of your teeth, what with Gram’s ultimatum. And I don’t have any information about your relationship before that point to be making any sort of educated guesses –”
“Sorry about that, I mutter.”
“Yeah, you should be.”
I fake punch her arm and we exchange a smile.
“What I’m trying to say is that I don’t want you to get in your head about all of this. If you really love Jude and want to marry her –”
I try not to audibly gulp.
“Then you need to be soft with her and not get in your own head that you might be making some sort of mistake.”
“Well, with Gram’s inheritance on the line, I don’t think I’ll be chickening out, Caroline,” I say with a half-smile.
