Ethan loved me.
But Marlene had spent his entire life training him to avoid confrontation.
If she pushed—
he stepped aside.
If she criticized—
he laughed awkwardly.
If she demanded something—
he tried to keep everyone happy.
And I had spent years doing exactly the same thing.
Until the next morning.
“WE’RE ALL COMING FOR THE FOURTH!”
My phone rang before breakfast.
Marlene.
“Claire, sweetheart! Yesterday was wonderful.”
“I’m glad you had fun.”
“The children are still talking about those ribs!”
Wonderful.
Then she said:
“We’re all coming back for the Fourth of July.”
I froze.
“All?”
“The whole family!”
I tightened my grip on the phone.
“For the day?”
“Oh no, darling.”
She laughed.
“We’ll make a weekend out of it.”
My eye actually twitched.
“We’ll arrive Friday afternoon.”
Before I could speak, Marlene continued:
“Make sure you get those little sausages the kids like.”
