by Lake, C. J.
“Sure, all right,” Tragan said. “That’s no problem.”
“Thanks.”
“You got it, buddy. Anything else?”
“No. Well, actually…”
“Yeah?”
Relaxing his tone somewhat, Ethan said, “Listen, can you try to get Andy to come to London?”
“London,” Tragan repeated blankly.
“This opportunity for her at the university is tremendous. I don’t want her to miss it. I’m not sure what kind of pull you have with her, but for her sake, do what you can to get her on that plane. Okay?”
Tragan’s pulse sped up as an unsettling confusion closed in. “Um…”
“Oh, I have to run,” Ethan said quickly. “I have a class now. I’ll just text you that address if that’s okay. Thank you for agreeing to mail me a copy of the renewal.”
“Sure,” Tragan replied distractedly.
“And please, work on Andy. She’ll like it over here,” Ethan proclaimed, before he disconnected.
Troubled now, Tragan’s mind raced. What the hell was Ethan talking about? What “tremendous” opportunity was waiting in London? And why hadn’t Andy told him about it?
Chapter Thirty-four
Sitting at a corner table overlooking the Charles River, Andy was waiting for the right moment to tell her mom about Tragan--which came after they ordered sparkling water and seared tuna. However, Kathryn preempted her. “Andy, I can’t hold my tongue any longer.”
“Oh?”
“We need to talk.”
“Hmm, that was going to be my opener actually.”
Kathryn arched her dark blonde eyebrows. “Is there something you want to tell me then? I certainly hope so, because I am at a loss as to what has been going on with you over the past few weeks.”
Scrunching her forehead, Andy asked, “What do you mean by that?”
“I talked to Darcy this morning,” she began, referring to Ethan’s mother. “She told me there’s a Bronsteg study that Ethan can get you into at the university.” Kathryn’s slightly accusing tone made Andy sink an inch lower in her seat. Darcy Field was Kathryn’s long-time friend. Shoot, Andy should have realized the London thing would get back to her. “Here, Darcy is telling me all about this incredible opportunity for you, and my own daughter hasn’t said a word to me about it.”
“Because I’m not doing it,” Andy interrupted. “That’s why I didn’t bother getting into it, Mom.”
By Kathryn’s stiff posture and now pursed lips, Andy could tell that wasn’t a sufficient response. “Why not?” she questioned. “Darcy said that according to Ethan, the professor conducting the study is addressing physical symptoms that match Bronsteg Disorder exactly. Darcy said your condition might even be tied to an allergy. An allergy, Andy!”
Determined to dismiss the topic, Andy said, “Please, it’s just a way-out-there theory. I’m not going all the way to Europe for that.” Not when Europe was thousands of miles away from Tragan--but of course she couldn’t say that.
“How do you know? We have to at least try!” With her eyes almost pleading, Kathryn managed to appear both hopeful and incredibly frustrated.
“Mom, it’s just going to be another dead end.”
“Andy, be reasonable--”
“And just so you know: it’s really a study about pesticide chemicals, not Bronsteg, per se. Ethan told me that this Dr. Strand who’s running the study has been working on a theory that exposure to certain chemicals can trigger symptoms--”
“Yes, your symptoms.”
“But he’s still trying to establish a common link. It’s all speculation, pretty much.”
“Andaline--”
“Mom, I don’t want to take off and go to London now,” Andy said firmly. “Ethan said it’s an eight-month study that is already in progress.”
“Yes, but because of Ethan’s assistantship with an environmental biology professor who knows Dr. Strand, he can get you in late. We have to try everything!”
“No, please,” Andy nearly snapped, suddenly hearing a thready, desperate quality in her voice. How hard was her mom going to push this? The thought of leaving Boston now, after she’d found Tragan and was so happy with him…when she was finally sleeping again and feeling excited about life…no, she wouldn’t do it.
She wasn’t a fool; she knew long-distance relationships didn’t work. Andy had seen many of her high school friends split with their boyfriends when they went to different colleges, and she’d witnessed a college roommate’s relationship crumble when the girl had left to study abroad. Realistically, she and Tragan had only just begun dating. Even though they loved each other, how could she pick up and move to Europe for six months and expect nothing to change between them? Feeling a lump of emotion rise in her throat, Andy steeled her resolve. Her mother wouldn’t convince her, end of story.
“Please, drop this, Mom, I’m begging you. I don’t want to live like a lab rat, okay? That’s why I dropped that study at St. Catherine’s. Are you going to lecture me about that, too?” she said, hoping to divert her attention.
It worked.
“Oh, yes, of course,” Kathryn remarked, annoyed. “The drug study you abandoned before it was even finished. You just up and quit. And St. Catherine’s is a very reputable hospital. I know people there from my charity work with the Ladies’ League,” she added unnecessarily. Mothers had a way of being wise, yet simultaneously peppering their wisdom with lots of information you already knew. Still Andy was relieved, because focusing on St. Catherine’s meant taking the focus off of going to London. “Quitting like that was very impulsive, and that doesn’t even seem like you.”
“Well, that’s not entirely true,” Andy pointed out carefully. “Moving into Ethan’s apartment was pretty impulsive.”
“That’s another thing!” Kathryn went on, gathering steam now. “It seems that ever since you moved in with this Helga, you’ve been making decisions that defy human logic. I mean, really, Andy, what woman tosses away a man like Brad Trewell by choice?” Her motherly concern was blatantly mingled with disappointment.
“I didn’t want to be with him,” Andy said simply.
“But he has it all!” Kathryn insisted. “He’s successful, educated, handsome, charming. What on earth were you thinking breaking up with him?” Although Andy opened her mouth to speak, Kathryn was clearly on a tear, and continued. (She was usually so composed, but when that mom valve blew, there was no telling how much maternal angst she might let out.) “Emma tells me to trust you, that it’s your life, but…I’m afraid none of this sits well with me, Andy. I really think I need to meet this Helga girl and see what kind of influence she’s having over you.”
Now Andy couldn’t help rolling her eyes--not at her mother, though, but because Helga didn’t even exist and the whole situation was ridiculous. Even more ridiculous perhaps was for Andy not to pick this moment to tell her mother the truth. Nevertheless, she held her tongue. After all, she wanted her mom to like Tragan, not blame him for Andy’s slew of “mistakes” over the past several weeks.
To make matters worse, Kathryn softened her tone and went for a moment of entreaty. “Look, Andy, in a way I understand. You’ve graduated college recently, you’re becoming, well, restless. Brad was your first boyfriend and your first love and now you’re wondering what else is out there, etcetera, etcetera. It’s just a phase,” Kathryn told her plainly. “There’s nothing better out there, I promise.”
“Mom, stop,” Andy said, holding up a hand. She couldn’t suppress a sigh. “Boy, this isn’t off to a good start. When I asked you to have lunch, I did want to talk to you about my love life--but not about Brad.” Kathryn’s furrowed eyebrows silently asked what else a talk about Andy’s love life could entail. “Okay, I’ll just rip the band-aid off. The truth is: I have a new boyfriend.”
For a long second, her mother only blinked at her. Then she said, “When on earth did this happen? Dear God, is he the reason you broke up with Brad?” Unfortunately, her tone implied an imme
diate dislike for whoever he was.
“Technically, he played a part in my decision, yes, but Brad and I have been spinning our wheels for a while now,” Andy said.
Apparently unwilling to accept reality, Kathryn retorted, “But Brad’s so perfect!”
“On paper, maybe!” Andy said, getting exasperated. Really, her mom knew Brad on only the most superficial of levels. Couldn’t she see that? “Look, he’s a great guy but we just never reached that deeper level. You called him my first love, but I don’t think I was ever really in love with Brad. Not like this.”
Kathryn wrote off Andy’s confession with a wave of her perfectly manicured hand. “Oh, you’re so young. You don’t know what love is yet.”
“Mom, that is so condescending! C’mon, you can’t have it both ways. Either I loved Brad or I didn’t. Now you’re saying I loved him but am too young and ignorant to know it--and therefore I should stay in a relationship with him even though it feels wrong for me?” Appearing struck, Kathryn sat wordless as Andy pressed on. “Okay, do you remember that time when you met, um, Helga’s boyfriend, Jamie?”
After a moment, Kathryn gave a reserved nod. “Yes. That rude young man who sat on the couch with his back to us instead of greeting me properly?”
“Right, well do you remember his friend, Tragan? The one who did come over to you, the one who shook your hand?”
“Vaguely,” Kathryn began--before her glittery blue eyes widened in a troubled epiphany. “Oh, no…don’t tell me…”
“Yes.”
“Dear God, not him?” she said, appearing scandalized.
“Yes, him.” With a groan, Kathryn brought her fingers to her temples. “Mom, I really care about him a lot.” If she told the unabashed truth, that she was deeply in love with Tragan Barrett, Kathryn might belittle the notion, accuse her of being overwrought, or even blame the whole thing on Helga.
“You ‘really care’ about that ruffian?”
“Oh, Mom, please. How is Tragan a ‘ruffian’? He is so sweet!”
“Didn’t he have tattoos?”
“One tattoo, big deal.”
“Sorry, that’s just one more than I have,” Kathryn replied with chilly sarcasm.
Willfully, Andy kept her tone lighthearted. “Mom, you’re so old-fashioned. Besides, Tragan explained his tattoo to me; it has meaning,” she said, not generating any noticeable interest from her mother. “See, he didn’t plan to get a tattoo, just went with a friend a few years ago, but then he saw a design that looked similar to an old family crest. His dad’s family is originally from Ireland…”
“Mmm-hmm,” Kathryn said distractedly and cleared her throat as the waitress brought their sparkling water. “Andaline,” she said sternly after the waitress left. “Enough of this nonsense. What does he do for a living?”
“He works in construction.”
“Gee and why did I think he was a ruffian?” Kathryn muttered.
“You act like I just said he was a cage fighter.”
“I don’t even know what that is.”
“Mom, without construction work, we’d have no houses.”
“Well thank you, Miss Social Conscience.”
With a determined breath, Andy looked caringly into her mother’s eyes. “Look, Mom, Tragan is my boyfriend now. You need to give him a chance, that’s it. And if you want me to come to dinner tomorrow, I need your word that you’re going to be welcoming to him.”
“Of course you’re coming. It’s your birthday dinner.”
“And I’ve invited him to come, because I want him there. Plus, I’ve already told him how great my family is, so I couldn’t bear it if you weren’t nice.”
Clearly insulted, Kathryn said, “Since when am I rude to guests in my home?”
Andy smiled at her. “So you’ll give him a real chance? Please, he makes me happy,” she added a bit more softly.
“All right. Fine,” Kathryn acquiesced with a weary sigh. “Brad’s out. Mr. Tattooed Construction Worker is in.”
Ignoring her tart tone, Andy burst into a smile. “Thank you, Mom!” She scooted her chair over to loop her arms around her mother’s shoulders. “I love you. And you’re going to love him--I promise!”
Chapter Thirty-five
“Hey, you came.”
Tragan felt his face light up when he saw Andy sidling through the throngs of people filling the Billiard Grill later that night. He’d left her a message in case she’d wanted to meet him out, but he hadn’t realized until this moment just how much he’d been hoping and waiting for her to come.
Smiling back, she encircled him in a hug as soon as she reached him. “Hi,” she murmured into his shoulder, before meeting Tragan’s mouth for a brief, soft kiss. “So who’s winning?” she asked, angling her head toward the pool tables.
“I’m sure Matt’s kicking Pellican’s ass over there,” Tragan speculated, pointing to a table about forty feet away. “Bardo and I were waiting for a table to open up, so we’re actually just racking up now.”
“Okay, cool,” Andy said brightly and climbed up on a vacant stool near their table.
“You hungry?” he asked. When Andy shook her head, Tragan scanned the crowd for a waitress. “What do you want to drink? Mojito?”
“Oh, yes! But not too--”
“Much lime juice,” Tragan finished. “Babe, I know,” he added with a grin. When the waitress found him, Tragan ordered Andy’s drink for her. “And can you add some cherries to that?”
“Sure. You don’t look like the type of guy who likes cherries in his drink, though,” the waitress added a bit flirtatiously.
“It’s for my girlfriend,” Tragan said, before picking up a square of chalk and turning his attention back to Andy.
“C’mere,” she said. Lifting his eyebrows, Tragan stepped closer to the stool--and Andy pulled him closer still. Then leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. “You remembered about the cherries.”
Running his hand down her back, Tragan’s voice became more intimate. “Of course. I remember everything when it comes to you.”
“Is this about to turn into embarrassing and uncomfortable PDA, because I could leave…?”
Both Tragan and Andy turned at the sound of Bardo’s voice, as he approached the table carrying a bottle of Sam Adams. “Really, no worries. I saw an old man drinking alone in the corner booth. I could go hang with him till you’re done,” he offered cheerfully.
“Hi, Jamie,” Andy said with a giggle.
“Here,” Tragan said, standing straighter and tossed Bardo a cue.
After Bardo caught it, he glanced back toward the bar. “Actually, though…there’s a cute waitress over there. I was starting to talk to her when we got interrupted. It looks like she’s free now. Do you guys mind if--”
“No, go ahead,” Tragan said, chalking his cue. “I’ll wait.”
“Good luck,” Andy said.
Bardo ducked closer as he confided, “I was going to pretend I have a question about the onion rings. What do you think, Andy? Good conversation starter?”
“That’s not bad,” Andy agreed supportively. “Though…onion rings are kind of straightforward. Maybe instead you should ask her about…” She picked up the menu that had been abandoned on the stool next to hers and scanned it quickly. “The Reuben Wrap. There seem like more possibilities.”
After a moment’s contemplation, Bardo replied, “You’re right. Like we could discuss flatbread versus rye, turkey versus corned beef--”
“Or maybe she’s a vegetarian,” Andy threw in, “and you guys can talk about that.”
“Ask her why it’s called Russian dressing,” Tragan suggested.
With a wry grin, Andy tilted her head. “You can Google that,” she said and flicked her phone out of her purse, before dropping it back.
Tragan gave a short laugh. “Hey, I’m trying to help the guy.”
“Be right back,” Bardo said, then disappeared into a swarm of people.
Once he was gone, Tragan gave in
to an impulse. He’d told himself to wait till later--to wait until he and Andy were home alone and could talk at more length--but his patience broke anyway. “Listen, Andy, I wanted to ask you about something.”
“What?” she said, sipping the Mojito the waitress handed her.
“I got a call from Ethan today.”
Andy froze for a moment, her expression that of someone who was caught. “Really? I didn’t know you guys ever talked on the phone.”
“We don’t. It was about the lease renewal,” Tragan explained. “Anyway, he mentioned something about you going to London?”
Tragan watched Andy’s reaction carefully. Her intake of breath. Her eyes darting downward. Clearly she wasn’t flabbergasted or profoundly confused. It was all over her face: she knew full well what he was referring to and had deliberately kept it from him.
“I don’t know why he’d even bring that up to you,” she remarked, toying with her straw.
Inadvertently, Tragan’s jaw tightened. “He seemed to think I could convince you to go. Does he know about us, by the way?”
“Yes. I might have mentioned that we had a thing going,” she responded a little coyly.
With a trace of amusement, Tragan raised his eyebrow. “A thing, huh?”
“Yes.”
“Was he surprised?”
“Um, he had mixed reactions,” was all she said and Tragan suspected she was being tactful.
“Let’s talk about London. Ethan said there was a great opportunity for you at his university. What is it? Were you thinking of doing a grad program over there, too?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m only applying to graduate schools in Boston.”
“Then…?”
“I really don’t know why Ethan would run his mouth to you about this,” she muttered.
Tragan couldn’t help getting annoyed by her evasion. “Andy, c’mon. What is it? Another drug study or something?”
“Yes, exactly,” she replied crisply. “Not a drug study, exactly, but a study nonetheless. A big fat waste of time study that I’m not partaking in. I’m not going. This is actually my fault, because I’ve been meaning to email Ethan again and tell him once and for all to count me out.”