Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Chris’s step faltered as they reached the front door. He had Kate and Yvonne firmly tucked to his sides. His father and mother stood in the doorway, and they didn’t seem pleased—his mother anxious, his father disapproving.
Chris closed his eyes and sighed. He should have called his mother back and explained it.
“Chris,” his mother greeted without the usual warmth. “Introduce us to your friends.”
Chris pushed Kate and Yvonne forward. “Mom, Dad, this is Kate Williams and Yvonne van Dijk, the very special ladies in my life.”
His mother gasped and clutched her hands against her chest. His father’s scowl deepened but he managed a semi-polite, “How do you do?”
His mother collected herself and urged them all inside. The way she looked around told Chris she wanted to be unobtrusive in case the neighbors saw them. Chris gritted his teeth; this dinner was not starting off as he had hoped.
Throughout the sumptuous turkey dinner, they maintained a polite, quiet conversation, and with an unspoken agreement, neither parent prompted Chris to define their relationship any further.
They discussed football season, the recent elections, and the weather forecast. Things perked up a bit when Chris mentioned Kate was a serious amateur gardener.
His father had always had a big vegetable garden when they had lived in Kansas City, and he hoped the topic might ease some of the tension in the room.
At first, his plan seemed to be working until Kate started talking about her orchids.
“I never bothered with fancy things like orchids. Give me an honest plot of beans any day. You know where you stand with vegetables,” Tom grumbled, and the room temperature seemed to drop a few degrees.
Chris and Kate made sure to compliment and thank Rosie for her cooking, but Yvonne stayed quiet and answered questions in monosyllables. She seemed a far cry from the feisty submissive who played Monopoly as if her life depended on it.
After dinner, his father thanked his mother, before he pushed away from the table and turned his stern gaze to Chris. “Let’s have a look at the new television room, son.”
This was code for ‘we need to talk privately.’ Chris didn’t want to leave Kate and Yvonne but knew better than to disobey his dad. Chris shot an apologetic look Kate’s way, and she inclined her head in silent agreement and squeezed Yvonne’s hand.
Even before they were out of earshot of the women, Tom said, “I’m disappointed in you, son. For years, your mother has been hoping you’d settle down and start a family, and now you bring home two women! Would you care to explain your relationship?”
Chris did a mental count to ten before answering, “Our relationship might not be standard, but we love each other. How can that be wrong?”
“A marriage is between two people, and you know it,” his father replied sternly. “Bigamy is illegal.”
Chris sighed and shook his head. “We weren’t planning on breaking the law, if that’s what worries you.”
“That’s not the point, Chris. A relationship between three people is bound to end in jealousy. There are good reasons why polygamy is wrong.”
“I think you’re wrong, Dad. We could stand here and argue until the cows come home, and it wouldn’t change anything.
I love both Kate and Yvonne. They love each other, and they love me.
As far as I’m concerned, that’s the basis for a strong relationship.
” He caught his father’s expression and scowled.
“And don’t bring up the Bible because there’s plenty of God-approved polygamy there.
” Tom opened his mouth to reply to his last statement, but Chris held out his hands.
“I believe that God created all of us. Love comes from God, and it’s beautiful in all its forms. If you can’t accept our relationship for what it is, then we’re never going to see eye to eye. ”
His father’s eyes darkened. “Is that your final word?”
Chris stood straight and didn’t break eye contact. “Yes, it is, Dad.”
“In that case, you and those women aren’t welcome in my house. Your mother was hoping to gain a daughter but it looks like she’s losing a son.”
With the metaphorical knife to Chris’s gut, Tom marched out of the room, leaving Chris struggling to stand and fight his emotions.
Kate exchanged a worried glance with Yvonne.
After Chris returned from the den, he had told them they were leaving.
He had given his mother a peck on the cheek and whispered, “I’m sorry,” but the woman had just stared at her husband worriedly.
Chris’s dad had been watching the exchange with his arms crossed and a fierce scowl.
Chris walked the three of them out of the house.
Kate had no idea what happened between Chris and his dad, but this behavior was so unlike him it had to be bad. And what the hell had Chris been sorry for?
They drove to the hotel in uncomfortable silence, and Kate was thankful they had checked in before going to see his parents. They reached their room on the second floor, and Chris used the key card to gain access.
He marched in, dropped into one of the chairs under the windows, and stared at the ceiling. Kate wasn’t sure he was aware she and Yvonne were present. He might not even notice if they paraded in front of him naked.
“Chris, tell us what happened,” Kate demanded.
He started but shook his head, his expression that of total devastation.
Yvonne pulled at Kate’s arm. “Maybe we should leave him be for a while.”
Chris stayed closed off and withdrawn the rest of the evening.
Kate didn’t think the man did surly, but he could sulk like a toddler.
Yvonne and Kate let him stew while Kate played solitaire and Candy Crush on her phone, and Yvonne read Jester by Lilly Atlas, occasionally stealing glances at Chris’s unmoving form.
After a fitful night in the king-sized bed, they left the next morning for the airport, and Kate and Yvonne still didn’t know what had happened.