Neither of the older men looked amused by the quip.
“She’ll have plenty of time for a social life after she finishes her career training,” their dad said firmly.
Their grandfather nodded agreement. “Just be glad you got rid of that McCright boy in college. Can you imagine how much harder this would all be if you had to stayed involved with him?”
“If she’d gotten into medical school at all,” her dad muttered.
That McCright boy. It was the way they always referred to Liam, even though he was almost seven years older than Anne. He’d done a hitch in the army before enrolling in the university where they’d met.
They still blamed him for the B she had received in chemistry her freshman year. For an Easton, a B might as well have been an F. Had she not been involved with that McCright boy, she would have been able to focus on her schoolwork, they had proclaimed.
Anne took a sip of her iced tea, pleased her hand was steady as she lifted the glass to her lips. It was her right hand, and a pretty little diamond and sapphire ring glittered on her finger. She’d worn it home from her year studying abroad after her college graduation, telling everyone she’d bought it as a souvenir in London. She never took it off.
“I saw him on TV the other night when I was flipping channels to find a good movie to watch.” Her mother shook her ash-blond head in disapproval. “He was filming in another one of those dangerous, unstable places he’s a
lways going to. That long, floppy hair looked like it hadn’t been trimmed in months, and he had at least a week’s worth of stubble on his face. He looked like a pirate. I don’t know how any woman could handle being involved with such a restless adventurer. I believe he’s one of those adrenaline addicts I’ve read about. Never really happy unless he’s risking life and limb somewhere.”
Reckless, impulsive, footloose. Terms her family had used to describe Liam when she’d dated him that year. He had been all of those things, of course, and more. Had it been despite those traits or because of them that she had fallen so desperately in love with him?
Her dad abruptly changed the subject, as he always did whenever her college romance came up. “How’s your car performing, Anne? Is it still giving you problems? Don’t know why you won’t let me buy you a newer one.”
“I like my car, Dad. And it’s running fine since you had your mechanic work on it for me. I don’t need you to buy me a new one.” It was the same car he’d given her for a high school graduation present six and a half years earlier. She had always intended to buy her next car for herself. She had certainly inherited her share of the Easton pride.
“Humph.” He looked both annoyed and pleased by her refusal. “You always have been stubborn about letting me help you.”
She smiled at him. “You raised me to be independent and self-sufficient, remember?”
His eyes softened. “So I did. What was I thinking?”
“Isn’t this nice? I’m so glad we could all be here this evening. It’s the first time we’ve all been together since Christmas.”
“Not quite all of us, Mother.” Stephen glanced pointedly at the empty chair beside him.
“Oh, I know, and I wish Danielle could have been here, too. Tell her we missed her, will you?”
Danielle Carpenter, another surgical resident, was on call that evening and couldn’t leave the hospital. She and Stephen had been engaged for a few months, though they were in no hurry to set a wedding date. They seemed quite content for now to live together in their downtown Little Rock loft and focus all their attention on their jobs. Her family approved heartily of Stephen’s choice for a mate. They considered the ambitious, brilliant and attractive Danielle a fine addition to their overachieving clan.
Both Stephen and Danielle had admitted they weren’t sure they wanted children, though they weren’t ruling out having one child in the future. Of course, they would be extremely busy in their surgical careers, but that was what nannies were for, right?
Having been cared for by several nannies during her own childhood as the daughter of career-obsessed parents, Anne knew it was possible to hire daily child care and still remain active and involved in a child’s life. Her mother and dad had certainly kept a close eye on her. Still did, for that matter.
She had no doubt Stephen and Danielle would be just as successful at parenting as they were at everything else.
Anne prepared to leave not long after finishing her dessert. As much as she loved her family, she was ready to get back to her own apartment. She’d thought an evening break would do her good, but she was more stressed now than she’d been when she’d arrived. Her family didn’t try to detain her; all she had to do was mention that she needed to study and they practically shoved her out the door.
Leaving the men in the den to discuss Stephen’s chances of becoming chief surgical resident—something Anne had no doubt he would achieve—her mother offered to walk her to the door. Anne waited patiently while her mother reached for her aluminum cane, which she used to steady herself as she moved carefully through the large house.
Though only fifty-nine, Deloris Easton had suffered a massive stroke nineteen months earlier. It had happened only a month before Anne started medical school, only a few days after she had returned from abroad. Anne had brought home a secret she hadn’t been able to share with her family while her mother lay near death for several days, nor during the long, still ongoing period of recuperation. Her mother had made great strides since her stroke, but it still broke Anne’s heart at times to see the formerly robust and fiercely independent woman looking so frail and vulnerable.
“There’s something I want to give you before you go, Anne. I found it when I was cleaning out my jewelry armoire earlier, and I thought you’d like to have it. It belonged to my mother.” Her voice was only a little slurred, though it had taken a great deal of effort and therapy to achieve that success. Resting one hand lightly on the cane handle, she reached with the other into the pocket of the melon-colored blazer she wore with a matching shell and camel slacks. From that blazer pocket, she withdrew a small, flat jewelry box.
Anne opened the box curiously. She studied the necklace inside with a lump in her throat. Small baguette diamonds surrounded a larger, round-cut diamond that caught the light from the foyer chandelier and reflected it cheerfully back at her. The pendant hung from a deceptively delicate-looking gold chain. “It’s lovely, Mother. I think I remember Grandma Henderson wearing this.”
“It was one of her favorite pieces. My brother gave it to her not long before he died in Vietnam. I know you’ll treasure it.”
“Of course I will.” Almost unbearably touched, Anne reached up to fasten the chain around her neck. She’d worn her long hair pinned up, so it didn’t get in the way as she secured the clasp. The pendant nestled into the neckline of the crisp blue shirt she’d worn with black pants for this family dinner. “Thank you.”
“It looks lovely on you.” Her mother sighed lightly. “I still miss her, you know. Every day.”