Aftershocks

Karen and Nikki were delighted to hear about my father and Missy.  Well, they aren’t the ones with a disgruntled sister-in-law and a father who’s in love.

“I knew it when I heard them talking at the wedding!”  Karen was triumphant.  “She probably set out to get him then.”

“No, she just wanted to make up with Janet.”

“That’s what she told him.  Of course, he was a sitting duck.  Damsel in distress, estranged from her best friend with a husband who fools around.”

“What did you say when he told you?”   Nikki asked.

“That’s the thing of it.  He hasn’t.”

“Why don’t you call him?”

“What should I say?  ‘Well, I hear you’re getting it on with my husband’s stepmother?’”  Everyone seems to lose their name in these situations and is spoken of by the way they are related to someone else.

Nikki doesn’t like loose ends.  “Do you want me to call him?”

This was getting to be like junior high except it involved my father.   “No, he might think you’re after him.”

“No offense, Charlie, but ew.”

I guess Karen was afraid my feelings would be hurt, because she quickly added, “Though he’s not bad for an old guy.”

“That’s right,” Nikki jumped in loyally.  “He’s even kind of cute for an old guy.  Distinguished.”

My father had never discussed love and marriage with me.  Neither had my mother, actually.  The main ideas I got from them was “Don’t get carried away with your social life and neglect your schollwork” and  “Even if you get married, you can always go to school.”

I didn’t need to tell Janet and Kate because, as Janet told me later, Allison had called and yelled at both of them on the speaker phone.  Naturally, Kate had gone all therapist on her and Janet had gotten mad at Kate for not yelling back and defending her.  Then Kate got therapist with her.  Kate finally calmed Allison down by pointing out that now her inheritance from her father wouldn’t have to be shared with Missy and her kids.

“When Kate asked me how I felt about all this, I said the bastard had it coming and I hoped he was miserable.”

“What did she say?” I asked.

“She said, ‘Why don’t we have a nice cup of tea?’   I said, ‘I need a drink.” And she said, ‘If you think you need a drink, you shouldn’t have one,’ but I just laughed.  You gotta love her.  So we went out for Chinese.”

Kate wasn’t the only one thinking of inheritances.

Ed is huffy because now if my father marries Missy, we’ll lose money.  I hadn’t thought of that.