A Family Affair - First Born by Marilyn McPherson

Author:Marilyn McPherson [McPherson, Marilyn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2012-08-25T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

On the morning of Tom’s wedding Hayden sipped his espresso, while Tom and Jack debated the relative merits of marriage. Tom was listing the many benefits he saw in marrying Ellen, while Jack scoffed at everything he said. This was no surprise given he was about to become a single man again at age seventy. Margaret had filed for a quick divorce and as a result, Jack seemed to have lost all faith not only in marriage, but in women as well.

“Women never forgive, and they sure as hell never forget,” Jack declared. “I can’t recommend marriage to either of you boys.”

“Come on, Dad,” Tom said. “You had a love child! Mum has a right to feel angry about that.”

“Marriage requires forgiveness. Look at me - I’ve forgiven your mother continuously for her meddling over the years. But the minute a single skeleton is brought out of my cupboard, that’s it. She files for divorce.”

“You have both said that you weren’t happy in the marriage.”

“Damn right, I wasn’t happy. Don’t get me wrong. I couldn’t be happier that she’s finally filed, but mark my words - she’s going to calm down in a few months and regret kicking me out.”

“Maybe.” Tom didn’t sound so sure.

“She won’t survive a year without me. The woman can’t do anything on her own.”

“Yes, Father. Whatever you say.” Tom was obviously tiring of the conversation.

“Now, this Ellen is a nice-enough sort of girl, but why not just date her for another year? As soon as you marry them, they change. Look at your mother – she used to be a reasonable sort of woman when we were young. I liked her enough to marry her back then, but look what happened. They’re all the same.”

Hayden put his drink down. “Ellen and Margaret are nothing alike, Jack.” he said flatly. He couldn’t stand his daughter being compared to the awful Margaret Bradley. “And, what’s more - it’s the morning of the wedding.”

“It’s never too late to make the right decision,” Jack cheekily added. “But what do you know anyhow? You’ve never been married. Come to think of it, you must be the smartest one here. Maybe we should be taking your advice.” Jack looked towards Hayden, hoping to hear more wisdom.

Hayden didn’t have anything else to say, and shook his head.

He had been adding a comment to the heated discussion every now and again, although he didn’t feel strongly about either point of view. Other people’s personal lives were of little consequence to him. Why any man would want to be legally tied to a woman was certainly incomprehensible. Women were sometimes good company for a night, but he was happy to be without them. The fact that Tom had refused to ask Ellen to sign a prenuptial agreement was proof that love was confused and blind. The only reason that Hayden hadn’t pressed the point was due to his blood relationship with the girl. If she ended up with half of Tom’s money, so be it.

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