“That so?” Manning opened an arm to me, and I fit myself to his side.
“I don’t think he minds,” Henry said with a gentle smile.
“I’m not here to force him back to the party,” I promised, sliding one arm inside his suit jacket and around his waist. “I just missed him.”
Manning set his drink on the porch railing and balanced the cigar next to it. I lifted my face when he cupped my cheek for a kiss. “I keep meaning to tell you how beautiful you look,” he said.
“You told me,” I said. “About ten times so far. The last time was thirty minutes ago.”
“Well, I’ve been meaning to say it for thirty minutes.”
I could’ve basked in his adoration all night, and I planned to, but that would have to wait.
“I recognize that look,” Dad said, sounding as if he might be approaching his drink limit. “You two better be careful.”
Manning pecked my forehead, then took his cigar from the railing. “Why’s that?”
I had a good buzz going from the champagne, so I picked up Manning’s drink. “What is this?” I asked, sniffing it.
“Scotch,” Manning answered as I took a sip. “It’s strong.”
Dad blew out a cloud of white smoke, then waved it away. “Kaplan women get pregnant at the drop of a hat.”
I spit out the Scotch and coughed so hard that Manning took the drink away.
“Easy,” Dad said. “That’s three-hundred-dollar liquor, Lake.”
Manning patted my back. “You all right?” he asked.
Eyes watering, I nodded. Then I shook my head. No. Had my father really said that? My dad didn’t bother with things that didn’t interest him. If he took to meddling in my sex life the way he had my education, then I was definitely not all right.
“I’ll get you some water,” Henry said, setting down his cigar to go in the house.
My burning throat kept me from thanking him—and from stopping my dad from making his point, which he always did.
“When your mother told me she wanted a kid,” Dad said, “I wasn’t sure we were ready. Well, damn if we didn’t conceive Tiffany the moment I agreed. Sure felt that way.”
“Dad,” I protested, my voice creaking. “Overshare.”
“It’s basic biology, Lake. It was the same with you.” He turned to Manning. “I told Cathy we ought to give Tiffany a sibling, and nine months later, she had one.”
I hid my face in Manning’s jacket. “Make it stop.”
Manning chuckled. “It’s come up a few times, sir.”
“That’s what I was worried about,” Dad said. “Keep in mind that Lake has a lot ahead of her. Just because she’s done with school doesn’t mean this next part is easy.”
Henry appeared next to me with a water. “Don’t want grandkids?” he asked my dad.
I took the bottle with a “thank you” and gulped water through my embarrassment.
“I do, and Lord knows Cathy does, but there’s a time for that, and it isn’t when she owes tens of thousands in student loans.”
“Students loans are an epidemic in this country,” Manning agreed.
Since Manning was always reminding me when I stressed about money that my loans were the good kind of debt, I knew they didn’t bother him; this was his way of changing the subject. Certainly my dad’s words needled him the way they did me. But then, their meaning started to settle in—and a far bigger, more disheartening realization eclipsed any of my irritation. Kaplan women were actually extremely fertile. In fact, Tiffany had ruined my first shot at a relationship with Manning years ago with her sudden pregnancy. And this time, she hadn’t even been trying with Robby.
Kaplan women get pregnant at the drop of a hat.
Each month I got my period, Manning reassured me it was nothing to worry about. These things took time—they happened on their own schedule. Though pregnancy had definitely been on my mind, Manning’s Zen attitude, and the fact that we’d started a little earlier than we’d planned, hadn’t given me a strong sense of urgency. But now, hours into our marriage, I worried about what lay ahead—and behind us. Tonight, Manning had made me his wife. Beginning with our week in New York, we’d had plenty of conversations over the years about children. I wanted a family, but Manning needed one. A little girl to protect, to right the wrongs of his past and his father. Or a son to spend weekends with, fishing on the lake or building furniture in the work shed. I’d just stood in front of our friends and family and promised Manning a future, a family, a forever. Pressure built each month I missed my period, and I’d definitely considered that there might be an issue, but for the first time I wondered—was there a chance I physically couldn’t get pregnant?
Ever?
“Feel better?” Henry asked.
I blinked out of my daze. “Sorry?”
“The coughing. Went down the wrong tube, eh?”