“Let me at least get a start on these dishes while you finish up,” he said to his father.
“Now that is an offer I won’t argue with.” Howard laughed.
Doug made some headway on the counter and loaded up the dishwasher by the time his father had transferred the paella to a large serving bowl. Doug grabbed two bottles of wine—one white, one red—and carried them into the dining room, just in time to hear the tail end of a conversation that was unabashedly about his true reasons for coming back.
Or at least, part of them. Still, he knew that if he and Lisa had stayed together—if their four-year relationship hadn’t come to an abrupt end—he probably wouldn’t have been so willing to pack up his belongings and move back to his hometown.
Silver linings, he told himself. Or fate. Either way, the message was clear. He was single, and he was staying that way.
“We’re just worried about you,” his mother said, reaching out to squeeze his hand.
“Nothing to be worried about here.” He forced a smile as he uncorked the first bottle. “I’m happy to be back. When was the last time I got to spend your birthday with you like this?”
Too long, that much was true. He came back at least once a year, usually around the holidays, sent lavish gifts when he couldn’t, but there was always his work to keep him busy, and his paid vacation days usually went towards just that—vacation. He’d thought they’d had fun, he and Lisa, on their ski trips and beach getaways. Had the fun just ended, or had it never been there at all?
He swallowed hard, thinking of the final conversation he’d had with Lisa when she’d made everything so shockingly clear that there was no room for conversation. Nothing to do but walk away. Or in his case, move away.
“Besides,” he said, jutting his chin at his kid brother. “I haven’t heard anything exciting about your love life in a while.”
His brother just shook his head. Like Doug, he’d been quiet in school, focused on his studies, but he was also shyer by nature and somehow that gave him a free pass when it came to conversations like this. Besides, he hadn’t just ended an engagement either. Doug supposed it was inevitable. It was a hot topic. Eventually, it would fade away, and sooner rather than later.
“At least I’ll have someone joining me at the singles table tomorrow,” Justin said, helping himself to a glass of Cabernet. Their mother poured white wine for herself.
Doug stifled a groan. He’d nearly forgotten about the wedding he’d agreed to attend tomorrow. Was it late June already? Strange to think he’d been back in town a full month now. In some ways, it felt like he’d just returned, and in other ways, like he’d never left.
“Now don’t groan,” his mother said, as she spooned some of the rice onto her plate. “You always loved weddings. And the Donaldsons were such nice people. You boys looked forward to them renting out the cottage down the street every single summer. Of course, I did always think it might be one of you who ended up with their daughter, but… Well.”
Doug and Justin exchanged a glance. “I’m not much of a wedding person these days.”
“Shame. I seem to remember you looking so forward to my brother William’s wedding…”
“When I was eight,” Doug replied, remembering his uncle’s reception, where he’d first discovered the joy of a DJ and a dance floor. Now the thought of dancing appealed to him about as much as the thought of the singles table.
“Well, don’t get mad, but when I knew you were coming home, I RSVP’d for all of us to attend the Yates wedding next weekend.” She paused when she caught the sharp look he gave her. “They’ve been our neighbors for all our married life. You boys used to go swimming with Anthony! Besides, we were all on the invitation.”
“What am I, twelve?” He shook his head. He should have known that this was what came with returning to his hometown.
“They were just being inclusive,” his mother insisted. “And invitations are expensive. The bride’s family is paying, and I know they’re on a budget.”
Yes, invitations were expensive, and he knew that from firsthand experience.
“Fine,” he said, seeing little room for argument. That would make three weddings in a row when he factored in the client who had invited him to his nuptials two weeks from now. He was hardly in a position to say no, especially when he was trying to build his law practice in this town from scratch.
“And keep your calendar open for three weeks from tomorrow.”
Make that four weddings in a row. “Who is it this time?”
Across the table, he heard Justin laugh, but his mother just pressed her lips together. “You remember my friend Dorothy. It’s her youngest’s day—her last wedding. How could we say no?”
Dorothy had been an old childhood friend of his mother’s, Doug knew. There would be no getting out of this one.
His mother gave a little smile. “Maybe you’ll be surprised. You might end up having a better time than you think.”
More like he might meet someone, at least that was what her eyes were telling him.
Doug took a long sip from his wineglass. He’d had enough surprises for one year, if not a lifetime, and if his mother was insinuating that he might settle down, or even start dating any time soon, she was sorely mistaken. If it wasn’t her birthday he’d tell her so, too, but seeing as it was, he let it pass, along with the weddings he’d be attending tomorrow and next Saturday, and the Saturday after that. And…oh, he couldn’t even think about it.
His mother’s heart was in the right place, he knew. Always was. She wanted him to be happy. She just didn’t realize that he was happier alone.
Or, at least, less disappointed.
He looked over at his mother, who still held his father’s
