Page 65 of Love In Translation

Rheo’s temper subsided as quickly as it rose. “Sorry, Dad, it’s a hot button.”

“I know,” Ed replied. “Our hot button is you criticizing our lifestyle. It’s not fun knowing your only child thinks you are moronic for doing what you do, for the life you live.”

Oh...Bullseye,Dad...straight to the heart. Rheo faced a choice. She could change the subject, or they could pull their issues into the light and deal with them.

“It’s no secret that I hate that you can’t support yourselves without taking the occasional handout,” she said, choosing her words carefully.

Rheo heard Carrie’s gasp, but she kept her eyes on her father’s face. “I hate it when you take money from people—” she swallowed “—fromme, and promise to repay it and then don’t. That you sweep it under the carpet and hope I forget about it. I don’t forget, and every time you break your word, another piece of me cracks.”

When had she last been this honest? Rheo couldn’t remember. But it was time to open the wound and inspect it, as ugly as it was. Maybe if they could flush it out, they could find a better way to deal with each other in the future.

“We’ve had bad luck,” Gail protested. “Not everything was our fault!”

No, she wasn’t going to let her mom play the victim. “You made choices, Mom! In every way and every day, you made choices. Both of you got good job offers! I was there, I heard you talking about them. But something always went wrong. You got bored, or a boss was mean to you! Or someone was going somewhere, and you wanted to tag along!”

Hearing her voice rising, Carrie touched her arm. “Easy, Rhee.”

Rheo nodded. Her eyes connected with Gail’s, and she lifted one shoulder. “You can’t keep blaming circumstances, Mom. You chose this life, you chose it overme. Every decision you made had consequences attached to it.”

Gail ran her thumbnail along the edge of her plate. “Do you think we should’ve settled down when you came along?”

Should they have put her happiness above theirs? Should two people be miserable instead of one? She didn’t know. How much were parents supposed to sacrifice for their children? Everything? Nothing? Something in between?

“I don’t know. I can’t answer that. I’m just glad I came off the road when I did.”

“We lost you to your grandmother,” Ed stated bitterly, after throwing back his wine. “Once she got her claws into you, we didn’t have a chance in hell.”

Paddy had never made any bones about how much she despised her son’s lack of ambition, Ed’s complete inability to conform, and Rheo’s parents’ quest for freedom.

“Paddy’s love of structure and organization appealed to me,” Rheo carefully replied. And, yes, because she adored her grandmother, because she’d given Rheo a sense of stability when she’d most needed it, she had modeled her life after Paddy’s and taken on her opinions. Paddy’s life made sense to Rheo... But, along with her ambition and drive, she’d also absorbed Paddy’s judgmental streak.

Paddy liked things the way she liked them and so did Rheo. But their way didn’t suit everybody. Being confined to an office life would’ve killed her father. Or worse, it would’ve killed his delight in the world and his adventurous spirit. He and Fletch were alike in that way. Was that why Fletch was ignoring her? Because he’d stayed in the same place for too long and was feeling jailed?

She couldn’t think about Fletch now; she needed to concentrate on her parents.

“What happens when you get too old to be on the road? You don’t have a house, medical insurance, or a consistent source of income. What happens then?”

Ed cleared his throat and his normally quick-to-smile mouth tightened. “I admit I’ve—” he placed a hand on Gail’s shoulder “—we’vemade mistakes, pretty big ones. I know you worry about us. But we never asked you to do that. Maybe we should’ve talked to you more.”

He sighed. “When your grandfather died fifteen years ago, he left both your dad—” he nodded at Carrie “—and me, money. His will stipulated we had to use the money to buy property. We bought a house here in Gilmartin, which we’ve rented out since then. That money has been placed into a fund, earmarked for our retirement.”

Holy shit.What?Why couldn’t he have told her this sooner?

Rheo massaged her temples. “And the money you borrowed from me?”

Ed looked embarrassed. “We knew we couldn’t have access to the retirement fund because we’d spend it, so we put it in an inaccessible account. Asking you to help us when we ran short was our only option.” He shrugged. “You’ll inherit the house one day, so you’ll get your money back.”

Aaargggghhhhh!So much angst and annoyance could’ve been avoided if they’d communicated better. “Have you told Paddy this?” she demanded.

Ed snorted. “I tried, but she wasn’t prepared to listen. And you know how she sometimes only hears what she wants. I think that happened when I asked her whether she had a will.”

“My dad says she likes thinking badly of him and you,” Carrie said. She looked at Ed. “Your brother John died while you and Dad lived, and she’s never quite forgiven either of you for that.”

Was that true? She’d known Paddy preferred John’s ambition, but did Paddy feel likethat? If she did, then maybe Rheo didn’t know her grandmother as well as she thought.

“She’s goddamn stubborn,” Rheo said, shaking her head. “And too set in her ways.”

Three sets of eyebrows rose as they all looked at her. Rheo lifted her hands. “What?” she demanded.

---