I don’t want him to have that impression because it’s not the full truth. “I’mtheirbaby,” I tell him. “Part of them will always see me as a little kid who needs their guidance. And while I don’t mind them weighing in occasionally, my mother has a hard time not grabbing the reins and trying to take over.”
“What about your dad?” he asks.
“My dad always lets my mom make all the big decisions. He just goes along with things.”
Noah nods his head slowly. “It’s weird growing up and seeing our parents as people instead of just our parents.”
“Tell me about it.” This seems to be the perfect time to share what happened tonight before he picked me up.
After I describe my parents’ attire in detail, right down to the copious amount of baby oil slathered on my father, Noah bursts out laughing. “I have no idea what I would have done if I saw my parents like that. I probably would have turned around and run away like I was being pursued by an army of hungry vampires.”
I snort at the imagery. “Can you imagine what their friends think of this? What must the church ladies be saying?”
“Maybe they’re all in on it,” Noah jokes.
I stare at him like my eyes are lasers intent on cutting him in half. “Can you imagine Reverend Hammond and his wife doing a shoot like that?”
“If they have, I can only hope they don’t allow Finley to display their work. The town would never be the same.”
The waiter stops by to clear our plates, which we take as an opportunity to order our desserts. After he leaves, I confess, “I’m already so full I have no idea how I’m going to eat an entire piece of mud pie.”
“Does that mean you might share it with me after all?” Thelook of raw expectation on his face causes my mind to drift to other temptations. Like kissing him again.
I hurry to change the subject before I start to drool. “Do you think Lorelai and Luke will ever move back to Elk Lake? You know, once she’s done with school?”
“I do,” he says. “My sister is a small-town girl at her core. I don’t think she would have ever left had Luke not come home and lured her away.”
“She didn’t just follow him,” I point out. “She’s going to school, too.”
Noah shrugs his shoulders. “Luke is the real draw for her.” He hurriedly adds, “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that though, do you?”
I pick up my glass of ice water and take a slow sip before telling him, “I went to Madison because that’s where Brett got a job. I had an offer at a New York City publishing house that I would have much rather taken.”
Noah’s brow furrows in question. “Why didn’t you then? I mean, I’m guessing you could have done well for yourself in the Big Apple.”
I consider how to answer this question without making myself sound like a real pushover. Ultimately, I explain, “I was raised in a traditional family,” I tell him. “We all were, right?”
When he nods his head, I continue, “I always assumed that I would stay home with my future children, even if it was just until they went to school. Because of that, I guess I figured Brett’s job held more importance than mine, and that we should make the choice on where we lived based on his opportunities.”
Noah is looking at me with such tenderness, I want to stand up and throw myself at him. It’s clear he’s really listening to me and thinking about what I’m saying. But the most astonishing part is that I don’t feel judged by him. A lot of people our age are in it just for themselves and don’t seem to understand that we have to make compromises in life.
“And now you’ve come home and taken a job doing something you never thought you’d do.Andyou’re going to stay here.”
“So I can have a family,” I tell him. “It all comes down to what’s most important, doesn’t it? Once upon a time, I put my marriage above all else, but now that I know there are no guarantees, I’m hardly going to punish my future child for my mistakes.”
“Getting married isn’t a mistake.” He looks sad for me when he says this.
“It is if you marry the wrong person. And while I realize we can’t always know this upfront, my priorities have still shifted.”
“Having a family on your own is a huge thing to do,” he says quietly.
“Are you insinuating I can’t do it?” There’s more than a little heat to my tone.
“Not at all, Allie. You can do whatever you want. What you heard in my voice was awe, not judgment. I admire the fact that you know what you want so strongly that you’re willing to shift the vision of your entire life to have it.” The admiration in his gaze is nearly my undoing.
“You know what you want, too,” I tell him. “You want to be the head coach at a big deal school that takes number one in state.”
“I do want that,” he says. “I always have.”
