“I’m fine, I promise. You saw my apartment and approved of it, remember?” At their nods, she continued. “Actually, I have some news on that front.”
“Are you seeing someone?” Iris asked immediately.
Luna blushed and looked at the cookie she was trying not to crumble. Why was she suddenly nervous? “Yeah, you could say that.”
“Too bad, honestly. That Davis fellow is head over heels in love with you. Never did understand why you didn’t go with him.”
Luna stared are her father’s back as he poured hot water into cups. The scent of peppermint tea brought back childhood memories. She wondered why he hadn’t made marigold tea, since it was his favorite. “What makes you say that?”
“You’ve always said you had a reason not to date him, but he’s the perfect man for you. Has he gotten the job at his parents’ company?” Iris asked.
“Yes, Mom, he’s working there.”
“And is he liking it okay?”
Luna smiled at their interest in Davis. “Yes. I see him all the time, and he says it’s okay after some initial bumps.”
“You know what I always liked about him?” Chester asked, bringing the tea to the table and having a seat.
“What?” Luna inhaled the steam as she lifted her cup, enjoying the aroma.
“He’s rich as they come but doesn’t act like it. He’s the type of person you’d think a consummate hippie like myself wouldn’t like. But he’s generous, thoughtful, he helps charities. And he works hard at that company, I bet; doesn’t slack off.”
Luna stared at her father. “Yeah, he works hard.”
Iris rested her hand on her daughter’s forearm. “Luna, why didn’t you ever give him a chance? It seems wrong to judge him that way for something he can’t control. Hardly his fault he was born to wealthy parents, and look at the way he treats you. Like a queen.”
“I don’t think I know what to say to that.” Luna sat back, took a sip of tea.
“The truth has always worked best, Lulu,” Chester said.
She sat forward. “Okay, you want the God’s honest truth? His mother, Sophia Healy herself, told me on our first meeting that I am nothing but a gold digger and that I better not be setting my sights on Davis. She doesn’t approve of me, and she swore she’d disinherit him if I so much as went on a date with him.”
Her admission was met with silence for several long moments. The cuckoo clock that once belonged to her great grandmother on her mother’s side ticked loudly in the lack of noise.
“And you’ve decided to let her tell you how to live your life? Have you told Davis she said this?” Chester demanded.
“What? No! Why would I force him to choose between me and his own flesh and blood?”
“Because he loves you, and while a man has to respect his parents, he isn’t supposed to live with them for the rest of his life. He has to go out on his own, make his own decisions. If every man let his mother pick his wife, there’d be a hell of a lot of unhappy marriages in the world.”
Iris nodded. “Mm-hm.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“No. Why would I kid over something this serious?”
She was incredibly frustrated with her father. “Why didn’t you give me this advice sooner?”
He leveled her with a look. “We’ve discussed Davis enough times over the years that you had every opportunity to tell us what his mother said to you. And yet, you didn’t.”
Quietly, she admitted, “I am so terrified he’ll pick them over me. I couldn’t give the two of you up for a man so why should I ask it of him?”
“That would be disappointing if his parents couldn’t see what a wonderful young lady you are. But I wouldn’t want you to choose misery over my advice on any day of the week. I wouldn’t cut you out of my life for any reason whatsoever.”
“And it would be she that lost if that was what she decided to do,” Iris pointed out.
“What do you think I should do, then?”
