Chapter 5
FIVE
Those who couldn’t read my friend would never know the effort it took for Lacy to keep herself in check as she stood in the Winter Garden.
We had no need of the heaters any longer, what with the rising temperature of the situation we were finding ourselves in.
I was proud of her for remaining cool and collected, but a part of me wanted her to explode, to put these people in their place.
Anton was avoiding Lacy’s gaze, which was probably a good idea since, as the seconds passed, her stare was growing sharper.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Anton said, turning back to his mother and trying to find his conversational footing. “But where is Dad?”
“Oh, you know, entangled in some new business opportunity.” Patty waved as if such things didn’t concern her before placing a possessive hand on the priest’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze. “I told Todd that he would definitely want to be with you, get to know you, tonight.”
“And I told her that would be terribly inappropriate,” Reverend Todd responded, with a tight smile that was difficult to read. I couldn’t tell if he didn’t want to attend the bachelor party or if he was waiting for Anton to extend an actual invitation.
Either way, Anton wasn’t having it. His eyes flicked between the priest, his mother, his cousins, and Lacy, but Anton decided to deal with the instigator first. “Can I speak with you alone, Mother?”
Patty let him lead her to the farthest edges of the Winter Garden and onto the back lawn, toward the rose hedge maze.
Lacy and I stood awkwardly, with Anton’s watchful cousins and the priest, who was only a couple of years older than us.
Would this man become Lacy’s father-in-law?
Would he expect Anton to call him “Dad”?
If so, I could hardly imagine the level of awkwardness that would permeate their future holiday gatherings.
Lacy shot me a look that said she needed me to jump in.
I turned to the collared man still standing with us. “So, how did you two… you and Mrs. Swanson… meet?”
“At Sully’s,” he said, before catching himself, seeming to remember that I was an outsider and thus had no knowledge of their Texas town. “It’s a… a homeless organization that I—and the church, of course—run. In downtown Swanson.”
Lacy saw my confusion. “The Swansons founded and live in the town of Swanson,” she clarified, her raised eyebrows telling me that she realized how pretentious this fact sounded. “Three brothers were running everything for the past few decades, but now Anton’s father is the only one alive.”
“That’s right. My dad and Myrtis’s father died a few years ago, but we carry on their legacy,” Cousin Charlotte interjected, obviously proud of her roots.
“Great-great-grandfather Swanson worked his way up from cattle hand to land owner, and every generation since then has improved our little corner of the world.”
“With a little help from a wealthy widow who took a liking to him,” Myrtis added, causing Charlotte to frown at her. Myrtis’s shoulders slumped under her cousin’s gaze.
I thought of a documentary I’d watched during one of my agricultural animal science classes about King Ranch, a Texas cattle ranch in the southern part of the state.
Larger than the state of Rhode Island, and while not incorporated as a city, it generated revenue of more than $600 million a year.
Were the Swansons this level of rich? And was this young priest dating the matriarch of the family?
Several things clicked into place at once as I realized that Anton had grown up in the same kind of town as Aubergine, but there, he’d been the royalty. He was already familiar with how small towns worked, how outsiders were always and forever “the other.”
Charlie had dealt with this issue a lot over the past year: citizens who asked to speak with officers instead of the sheriff because they didn’t trust him yet; drunks who yelled profanities punctuated with “You ain’t even from around here” when he hauled them into the station to sleep it off in a cell.
Aunt DeeDee and I told him to just give it time, but Charlie was often frustrated by his inability to make inroads with the people of Aubergine.
At least Anton had known what he was getting into by deciding to settle down here with Lacy.
As I processed all of this, I took a step back and bumped into a tall planter filled with winter jasmine.
I hit it just right, and the table wobbled, the pot falling too quickly for me to catch it.
As it broke, dirt flew around us, causing Myrtis and Charlotte to scowl and scoot away as a staff member hurried over to assess the damage.
“Are you all right, Ms. Green?” a young man in the standard black-and-burgundy Rose uniform asked as he knelt to swipe at the dirt on my dressiest white boots.
I wasn’t used to being called “Ms.” anything, and I certainly wasn’t familiar with being fawned over by an employee, particularly one who was technically my employee, since half of my inheritance funded the maintenance of this estate.
“I’m fine,” I said, stomping the dirt off my boots.
Lacy, in her fancy heels, jumped back and, startlingly, Reverend Todd began to curse, his calm expression twisting into irritation.
“Watch it. Shit!” he muttered, stomping his feet before bending to wipe at his shoes before remembering he had an audience and putting out a hand apologetically.
“Forgive me. They’re suede,” he said, pointing at his shoes and composing his features into a more neutral expression as he addressed the young man. “Boy, do you have a suede brush?”
The worker glanced behind him to see if the priest might be addressing someone else as “boy.” He was not.
“A soft-bristle toothbrush will do.” The priest stared pointedly at the staff member. “Do you think you can handle finding that at least?”
The young man nodded rapidly and hurried away, and I wondered if he would be brave enough to return. The entire exchange was so rude and so unlike any priest or preacher I’d ever seen that I didn’t know what to say.
I could tell that seeing the slight against a worker had emboldened something inside of Lacy, and she was preparing to put the priest in his place.
She narrowed her eyes, studying the priest’s shoes.
“I would guess Santonis from the looks of them? That’s a pricey brand for someone of your occupation. ”
Reverend Todd’s jaw moved mechanically as if he didn’t want to admit to his expensive taste. “I got them at an outlet. On sale.”
As he knelt and meticulously attempted to flick the remaining dirt away, Lacy looked at me over his head. She put up nine fingers before pointing at the shoes and mouthing, “Nine hundred dollars.”
Even a half-off sale meant that the priest was wearing four-hundred-and-fifty-dollar shoes.
It seemed strange for a priest to be able to afford such luxury unless…
the longer Anton and his mother were out of sight, having their private tête-à-tête, the more I began to wonder if Mrs. Patty Swanson was this priest’s sugar momma.
Aunt DeeDee always said that the Lord will provide, but this was a whole new level.
After another minute of swiping at what now seemed to be invisible dirt, the priest stood, looking for the worker, who hadn’t returned. Reverend Todd tugged at his collar as if it was choking him.
“It was rather stressful, traveling with Patty from Texas to… here.” Reverend Todd glanced around as if the Winter Garden were unimpressive.
It was true that a few of the plants were dormant and a couple of the pots were currently simple mounds of dirt, but the blooms that were growing were vibrant.
“Patty has, let’s say, mixed feelings about this weekend, if you know what I mean. ”
I didn’t know what he meant, and I only hoped that it had nothing to do with Bella Rivera, the woman who’d almost kissed Anton.
If Patty planned to stop the wedding this weekend by reminding Anton of an old flame, she could shove it.
I silently begged Lacy to throw out another one of her sharp quips and put this man in his place, but she remained silent, too dumbstruck by the past half-hour to come up with solid repartee.
“The only feelings that matter this weekend are between Lacy and Anton,” I said, meeting the priest’s eye. “Any other agenda or plans can… well, they can go to hell.”
It was the best I could come up with in the moment, but the words did seem to surprise the priest.
“Actually,” Reverend Todd said, “you’re totally right.”
Even though the words sounded agreeable, I didn’t trust them.
“In fact, Patty mentioned on the flight that it might be good for the four of us—me, Patty, Anton, and you…” Here, he pointed to Lacy as if to clarify I wasn’t invited to this little gathering.
“Well, it might be good for us to sit down and talk through what exactly you’re hoping to get out of this… relationship?”
The way he said the last word made it sound like Lacy and Anton had enjoyed a one-night stand rather than a nearly two-year romance.
“What we’re hoping to get?” Lacy asked, her voice rising the teensiest bit.
“Don’t be offended,” the reverend added, though his tone suggested that he very well meant to offend.
“Patty and I just want to make sure that both of you have thought everything through. You know, Anton does have certain family responsibilities and obligations. We’d hate for anything or anyone to derail him from his future.
To that end, Patty has taken the liberty of drawing up a prenup to ensure—”
“A prenup?” I nearly shouted. Every person turned toward me, the sound of conversations fading into the background.
My blood was boiling. The suggestion that Lacy would be marrying Anton for his money was grating, but the idea that the two of them couldn’t make decisions for themselves about prenups or future plans made me even more furious.
Bella Rivera’s uninvited presence and this priest’s veiled threats sealed my righteous anger.
Aunt DeeDee had taught me to respect the Church, but I had a feeling about this guy and would bet that he knew as much about the Bible as I did.
I moved within inches of the priest and lowered my voice.
“I realize that you don’t know Lacy, but she is kind and honest and fair.
She and Anton have a whole lifetime ahead of them, and the two of them get to call the shots about how they navigate their future.
If you think for one second that the best woman in the world is marrying Anton for his family connections, then you can take that thought and shove it up your holy—”
“Language, my child,” the priest said, eliciting raised brows from the cousins.
He glanced around, noticing the attention I was drawing, and gave me a pitying and beatific smile, his forehead furrowing as he patted my arm, like I was a hysterical little lady.
“I hate to start the weekend with anything except celebrations, but if you insist on behaving like a—”
Lacy put a gentle hand on my shoulder and shot the priest a look that made him stop speaking mid-sentence.
“That’s enough.” Her tone was even and assertive, and she spoke loudly for everyone to hear.
“Feel free to let Anton know your fee for performing the ceremony, but otherwise, we have no other use of your guidance this weekend.”
At that, Lacy spun on her heel, motioning for me to follow her. I was happy to let her lead the way.