Their server appeared to tell them about the specials and get their drink orders. When he left, Jase’s gaze met hers.
“It’s Galen.”
His oldest daughter? “Is she all right?”
He dropped his head for a second. “She’s anorexic.”
“What?” Galen had always been thin, but anorexic? “When did you find out?”
“We got a call from the camp. She hadn’t been eating. I knew she was skinny, but she wore baggy clothes and we thought she was fine.” Tears filled his dark eyes. “We got her into a special program in Miami. I’ve been getting her settled these past few days. Plus we had to deal with Grayce. We talked about bringing her home, but in the end, let her stay in camp. She has friends there, and the counselors are watching out for her.”
Now she reached for his other hand. “Jase, I’m sorry. This is such a nightmare.”
“What if she’s not okay?” he asked, his voice trembling. “What if this is my fault? I work a lot, her mother works a lot. We’ve had trouble keeping a nanny. Maybe there wasn’t enough consistency.”
Robyn doubted consistency was the problem, but didn’t say that. From what she could tell, both girls were scheduled every moment. There was no time to just be, to think, to imagine, to get bored. She would also guess they needed their parents around a little more.
“You know the situation now,” she said instead. “That will help. It’s going to be a process.” Not exactly helpful, but she didn’t know what else to offer. She’d never had to deal with the disorder.
Jase released her hands and cleared his throat. “The whole time I was gone, I kept thinking about your kids being so normal. Okay, Austin didn’t go to college, but he’s a solid kid. He fucking eats.”
Jase held up a hand. “I apologize for swearing.”
“It’s okay.”
He shook his head. “It’s not. I lie awake at night and think of all the things I used to worry about happening when Galen went to high school. I figured drugs, or some guy knocking her up. I never thought she’d stop eating. I never thought she might die.”
Robyn had no idea what to say to him. “I’m sorry,” she murmured.
“Me, too.” He looked at her. “I’ve been thinking about you so much. Through all I’m dealing with, I wonder how you’d handle it. You’re not like us—you didn’t push your kids to achieve. You’re relaxed. Austin’s refusal to go to college would devastate me, but you went with the flow.”
Their server appeared with their drinks, then left. Jase wrapped his hand around his scotch.
“Look at Harlow,” he added. “She’s working for her dad. Not exactly at a ‘change the world’ profession, but she’s happy. Engaged. Normal. I envy that.”
Robyn was trying to stick to the positives, but it felt like there were little digs buried in his compliments.
“Maybe it’s because you weren’t pushed yourself as a kid,” he continued. “You married young and got pregnant right away. You didn’t go to college.” He smiled ruefully. “I used to think that was a problem. I worried we wouldn’t have anything in common because you weren’t educated, but I was wrong. I might have gone to medical school, but you’re the one who knows how to raise happy, healthy kids.”
“Like an idiot savant?” she asked dryly, telling herself not to take what he was saying personally. He was in a bad place and not thinking about his words.
“What? No. Of course not. More like an earth mother. Like how mother bears know how to look after their young. It wasn’t bred out of you.”
“Or erased by too much learning.”
He set down his drink. “You’re angry. What did I say?”
She held up a hand. “Let it go, and I’ll try to do the same.” She didn’t want to fight with him. Not tonight. He had too much going on. Later she would slap him upside the head, but right now, she was going to play nice.
He looked confused. “But I was complimenting you. I think you’re a great mother.”
“Because I’m hearty, uneducated peasant stock?” she asked before she could stop herself. He was really starting to annoy her.
“Robyn, no.”
She told herself to change the subject, then blurted, “What did you mean when you said you worried we wouldn’t have anything in common?”
He leaned back, obviously uncomfortable. “That we, ah, come from different worlds. I’m a doctor surrounded by professionals. My ex-wife is a principal. Just job stuff.”
“Not just job stuff. You’re way too uncomfortable for that.”
“You have to admit our circumstances are different. I’m a doctor.”
“Yes, you’ve mentioned that once or twice.”
“You work in retail. Part-time. You don’t have any ambition. At first I thought you were dating me because you wanted to marry a successful doctor. To give you security.”
Her mind went in fourteen different directions, leaving her unable to articulate a single one. His stark assessment of her life was the most painful, but his assumption that she was looking to marry a rich doctor was the most annoying, so she went with that one.
“You thought I was trying to trap you?” she asked, careful to keep her voice low. “I wasn’t.”
“I know that now.”
Did he? “Why go out with me if you thought that?”
He stared at her blankly. “You’re beautiful. I knew the sex would be great. Finding out we had something to talk about was unexpected but very welcome.”
Anger blossomed. She thought of all the times he’d gone to work events without her, saying she would find the evening boring. Had he been ashamed to be seen with her? What about dinners at his club—one that was far more exclusive than hers? The rare occasions they went, everyone watched them. She’d barely met his friends and had never been introduced to his extended family.
How, after a year together, had she only figured out just now that her boyfriend was ashamed of her?
“Let me recap,” she said softly. “You assumed I only wanted to date you to hang out with a—” she used air quotes “—rich doctor with the ultimate goal of trapping you into marriage. You felt I was beneath you, what with me being an uneducated and possibly unintelligent stay-at-home mother with no hope except to find a rich man to support me. You think I’m attractive and you’re interested in sex with me, so you figured it was a good trade-off as long as you were clear we weren’t going to end up together permanently. I mean, what would your friends at the club say? Right?”