Chapter 74

It may be silly, but it has long been considered bad luck for the groom to see the bride on their wedding day before the ceremony.

You would have thought it was bad luck to see each other for a week or two before by the way my family conducted themselves during that period.

We had relatives to dinner every night. There was no prohibition against inviting Jeff, but they monopolized my time to such an extent I rarely saw him after dinner.

I invited Jen and Rich a few times so he would have someone to talk to while waiting for me to become available. I didn't know what he did on the other nights.

During dinner he would respond to people talking to him, but he was reserved. He told me he was trying to put it all together to figure out what my father's plan was. I continued to argue there didn't seem to be a plan.

I found out, because he told me, he had been spending time talking with Sabrina. He said she was a friendly person and pleasant to talk with. She was also asking his advice about what she should do when she graduated. She asked questions about various professions and what kind of training would be required.

From his description of their encounters, I suspected the reality was she was hitting on him. She was good enough at it that, even if Jeff had been a normal guy, he probably would not have recognized it. In any event, it seemed harmless enough.

We were arguing more than usual. I attributed it to wedding jitters.

"I don't understand how you can even consider working for your father," Jeff said. "With the stuff he's pulled, aren't you even a little suspicious of his motives?"

"He thinks he's gotten a lot of what he wanted. Maybe he won't be able to marry me off to somebody he sees as useful to him, but he'll still be able to take advantage of my looks and personality."

"From what you've told me and what I've seen of him, he doesn't strike me as the type to settle for a consolation prize in a situation he is likely to see as a resounding defeat."

"Gee, thanks. I'm a consolation prize." I was miffed.

"Having you work for him is a consolation prize compared to breaking us up. And his failure to break us up, so far, is a resounding defeat."

"What do you mean by 'so far'? Is there something you're not telling me?"

"No. It's something I've just told you, but you choose to disregard."

"Oh, so now you know my father better than I do."

"I'm just telling you to be cautious."

"Right." But it was not an expression of agreement.

Jeff was annoyed. I was angry. I didn't realize at the time it had just become a fight I had to win, not because I was right, but because I had a need to win fights. I didn't need to understand and come to the right conclusions; I had to win.