cancer?” she asked, tired of playing nice.
Genuine shock registered on his face. “Cancer?”
“You don’t know, do you?”
His mouth went tight.
“Because you won’t go to a doctor.”
“I don’t have cancer.”
Liv gave him a tired look. “Why don’t we make sure?”
“I have a stomach problem. I’ve had one for my entire life. It wasn’t cancer when I last saw a doctor, and it isn’t cancer now.”
“Maybe it’s an ulcer. Those are treatable.”
“I will go to the doctor when I feel like I need to. Right now I’m fine. I had a few bad weeks and maybe I should have seen someone, but I’m on the mend and I don’t need help making decisions as to my health care.”
The conversation was going exactly as she’d known it would, making her feel like she should just beat her head on the counter rather than try to talk to him. It would be just as effective.
But getting angry with Tim wasn’t going to help. He would only clam up more.
* * *
THE NEXT MORNING Tim came into the kitchen where Liv was sitting at the table, eating a bowl of cereal before going to work. Usually he was out on the tractor by this time, but today, for some reason, he was still in the house. Could it be that he was ready to talk? That he’d come to his senses last night and realized that she was right?
Apparently not. He poured cereal and sat at the table in his usual place. The two of them ate without speaking, the noise of their spoons in the bowls ridiculously loud in the stony silence. Finally, Tim dropped his spoon into his bowl, but instead of saying, “You’re right, I need to seek medical advice,” he said, “Are you ready for your first drill performance?”
Liv snorted—both because her dad was so freaking stubborn and because she was not ready for the first performance. “Not even close. My stomach hurts just thinking about it. I’m going down to the arena to practice with a couple of my teammates on Saturday.”
“Andie?”
“No. Becca and Margo.”
Tim’s eyes came up slowly. Ah. “You might know Margo.”
“I only know one Margo. Margo Beloit.”
“That’s the one. Nice lady.”
Tim gave a quick nod, then got to his feet and carried his dish to the sink. Conversation over, and Liv was done pushing for the day.
She was almost to her bedroom when she heard her cell phone ringing. Her mother’s ring. Quickly, she went into her room and snagged the phone out of her bag, wondering what kind of wedding induced emergency she was about to contend with.
Please, not more shopping. “Hi, Mom.”
“Liv. Thank goodness you’re there.”
“Did you call before?”
“Three times.”
Liv sat on her bed and started prying the boots off her feet. “I left my phone in my bedroom during breakfast.” Because she was still breaking the habit of being available to everyone whenever they needed her.
“It’s Shae,” her mother said. “This wedding is getting out of hand.”
“Are you surprised?”
“David wants it perfect for her.” And so, of course, that’s what Vivian wanted, too. Liv was surprised that Vivian was actually voicing concern instead of silently bearing the stress, as she always did when her own needs conflicted with her husband’s.
“How’s it getting out of hand, Mom?” Liv asked gently.
“We can’t afford it,” her mother instantly replied.
“I thought that Reed and Shae were footing the bill.”
“So did I, but David will have none of it. It’s a matter of pride, I think, but he’s determined to pay for this wedding. And Shae is determined to make it a splashy affair.”
“What happened to the small wedding idea?” Liv was truly curious about that. “Did Reed finally agree to give Shae carte blanche?”
“He must have, because Shae’s motto seems to be full speed ahead, take no prisoners.”
Liv laughed. Rarely did her mother say what she was really thinking.
“So talk to her.”
“David won’t let me.”
“Excuse me?”
“He said that I am to keep my concerns to myself. But it’s hard when it’s eating into our retirement.”
“Mom, you can’t let that happen.”
“What choice do I have?”
Vivian didn’t want a solution. She just wanted some empathy. And Liv wasn’t feeling empathetic, because doing what David wanted was going to hurt her mother financially, and give her an ulcer worrying about the matter when she could be doing something to fix it.
“Mom...you’re a partner in this relationship, you know. You can tell David your feelings.”
“I have. He said he was paying for the wedding.” Her mother hesitated briefly before saying, “There’s nothing