“Sophie, that’s expensive china,” her mother said with an exasperated look.
“And it’s fine, Mother. Even if it weren’t fine, this is the most predictable pattern in all of yuppie America and it’s a plate. It’s replaceable.”
Marnie’s mouth dropped open slightly, but Sophie was already moving on to her next target.
“And Brynn? Noooobody cares about the incline of Tiffany so-and-so’s molars. I mean, do you even care?”
Finally, she turned to her father. “Dad, no daughter wants to disappoint her father, and I’m tired of doing it over and over, so let’s just have
it out once and for all. I’m never going to be a lawyer. Or a doctor, or some high-level executive. I appreciate that you gave me the opportunities and education to make those things possible, but it’s just not the path for me.”
“Soph, you say that now, but…”
“I’m almost twenty-eight, Dad. Still young, but hardly some dewy college student trying to figure out what to do with my life.”
“And what are you doing with your life, Sophie?” her mother asked. “Serving cocktails? Now you’re spending your days making copies and fetching coffee…”
Sophie held up one finger. “Actually, that last bit isn’t quite true any longer. I quit.”
The number of stunned silences at this lovely family dinner was starting to get comical, and Sophie almost smiled.
“But why?” her father asked. “It’s only been a few months…”
Sophie shrugged. “Because I was shagging my boss and it got complicated.”
Another of those silences. “You and Gray?” Marnie mused. “I never would have thought…”
“That he’d be interested in me?” Sophie finished for her mother. “Yeah, me neither. Turns out we were both right.”
Sophie’s righteous fury had been briefly exhilarating, but saying Gray’s name out loud had taken the wind out of her sails and she felt her anger slip away to reveal what it had been hiding all along. Pain.
“That’s not what I meant,” Marnie said, her voice uncharacteristically gentle. “I didn’t think you’d ever be interested in someone like him. He was so…formal.”
“Not so much,” Sophie whispered. “Not underneath.”
Brynn came around to Sophie’s side and knelt by her chair, wrapping a comforting arm around her waist. “I’m sorry, Soph. What happened?”
Sophie scanned her sister’s face. “Aren’t you upset? I mean, I slept with your ex. That’s a sibling no-no.”
Brynn rolled her eyes. “Please. The only reason I was even remotely upset when we broke up was because it was an inconvenience. And I think I knew on some level that you two had…well, something.”
Sophie’s eyes watered at the unexpected acceptance. “You’re a better person than me.”
“Never,” Brynn said, squeezing her hand. “Now tell us what happened.”
“About what you’d expect. He just saw me as a temporary toy.”
“And you? How’d you feel about him?”
Sophie rolled her eyes up to look at the ceiling in an effort to keep the tears from falling. “Oh, you know. True love, and all that nonsense.”
The dishes rattled as Chris pushed back roughly from the table. “Where does this guy live? Nobody makes my Sophie cry.”
Sophie let out a watery laugh. “Thanks, Dad, but it wasn’t his fault. Just one of those things that didn’t work out.”
She tried to take another bite, but let her fork drop again. “You know, I think I’m going to go home. Sorry to ruin dinner.”
Her parents nodded, looking uncomfortably out of their depth. She didn’t blame them, not really. The Dalton family didn’t communicate in scenes and tears. But before she let them off the hook, she had one more thing to say.