I tried to understand that this was her strange but oddly sincere way of showing love.
She wasn’t content to stop there. “Ani, you’re thirty-three. You’re a busy career woman. Your child-bearing years are ticking away. I just think it might be wise to accept some help once in a while from the people who love you.”
So here's the thing about my mom. She's really bright. She's a go-getter, and she's got her hand in every single charity in the community.
She almost went to medical school—she was even accepted. But she married my dad instead. My dad, who built the local hospital and other regional medical centers, and got very wealthy doing it.
I am an only child. Which means all of that intellectual and emotional energy is often directed solely at me.
Fortunately, Terry came up to us and said it was time to eat. Which probably saved my self-control from breaking.
Dinner was served in the dining room, all the leaves placed to accommodate fifteen guests. I had to say that my mom set a beautiful table, full of fresh flowers and sparkly glassware. And the scallops were to die for.
The good part of the dinner was that I got to discuss the pediatric clinic, especially with Carl Langerman, who had a few million he wanted to spend on a great cause. I explained that many subspecialists traveled from Milwaukee to see children here and from the surrounding rural areas, and that adding on to the clinic was definitely on the administration’s wish list. I hoped that would be like a whisper in his ear or the ear of any of these people who had an itch to donate.
The bad part was that Dr. Hair was a dick. “I’m newly divorced,” he said right off the bat. “I have a one-year-old and a three-year-old. You’re a pediatrician. I bet you’re great with kids. Do you have a profile on Hinge?”
“Um, no.” What a waste of a great head of hair, was what I was thinking as I took a gulp of wine. One glass was definitely not going to be enough to get me through this dinner.
“E-harmony? Bumble? CoffeeMeetsBagel?”
“No, I—Ken, I’m sorry, but I’m not dating right now.”
He flipped back his hair. “You mother said you might be a little reluctant, but that I could probably charm you into giving me a chance. Except sometimes I get a little nervous and my words don’t come out right.”
I wanted to say that yes, there were better words to use than sounding like a man desperate for a woman to watch his children. Forget about Hinge. He should’ve spent his time checking out Nanny.com.
But his comment also made me think of my interaction that day with Adam. I’d been pretty hasty to jump in and start talking to fill the silence. What if he’d been trying to apologize? I’d come in hot and hadn’t given him a chance.
We were able to be frighteningly honest with each other last summer, but that was under dire, anonymous circumstances. So, shouldn’t it be easier to be honest with each other now? Ormaybe not, since this was real life, and there was no airplane to jet us away to our real lives.
I pulled out my phone, hoping for a text from one of my girlfriends. An invite for a drink. Or aHey, call me back. Anything to get me out of this conversation. Hoping for an excuse to leave this party entirely would be too much to hope for.
Nothing.
Guess I would have to make my own destiny.
“But, hey, who needs words when you’re this attracted to someone, right?” Clueless Ken continued not impressing.
Why not make my own destiny? I still had Adam’s number in my phone from the summer. Why not text him? I’d just started typing when my phone vibrated.
My heart gave a thump. A text from, of all people,Adam.I’d summoned him through mental telepathy.
You’re a problem I don’t know how to solve.
Words which, on their own, sounded not very promising. It made me think of pesky medical problems. Constipation. Diaper rash. School avoidance.
But his words were followed by, of all things, heart eyes emoji.
I broke out in a smile. Another heart eyes followed. Oh my gosh, two of them. Be still, my heart!
Ken mistook my enthusiasm for agreeing with his awful comment and leaned in closer.
I scooted my chair back and quickly typed a response.I’m going to go cuddle that baby.
“I’m so sorry, but I just got paged,” I said to Ken.
Want to meet me there?I quickly typed.
