The Almost Wives Club Box Set: The Complete Series of romantic comedies, Books 1 to 5 by Nancy Warren

Author:Nancy Warren [Warren, Nancy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ambleside Publishing
Published: 2019-07-27T04:00:00+00:00

They got to the trailhead and unloaded. She put on her butt-ugly hat and he shoved a ball cap over his head. They hefted their packs and headed for the trail.

It was so nice to be out in the mountains and the fresh air, away from the city, her weekend routines, and weddings. To spend a Saturday in hiking boots instead of high heels, her hair shoved under a hat instead of styled by a professional, and to wear no more makeup than a swish of lip gloss felt great.

They hiked at an easy pace, neither trying to impress the other. They disturbed a snake sunning itself on the trail, which slid away instantly. As they climbed, she began to get views of the ocean and the nearby islands. “It is so beautiful here,” she said.

“God’s country,” he agreed.

When they reached the peak, he found them a flat spot with a view and they settled, with their backs against a couple of large rocks, to eat their lunch.

They munched Millie’s amazing sandwiches and ate the apple cake. She pulled out a slab of chocolate.

She turned to him. “Why do you hide how smart you are?”

He looked uncomfortable. “Who says I’m smart?”

“I do.”

She thought for a moment that he wasn't going to answer; she could almost see him gearing up to make a joke. And then, as though he realized that she was on to him, he dropped the teasing act and said, "Sometimes it's easier to be the kid nobody expects anything from."

She knew he was telling the truth, but she was genuinely puzzled. "But your family seems so . . .” She didn't quite know how to put this without sounding offensive. "So success oriented."

"Yeah, I know. But I'm the youngest. My brother was always the one that had all the expectations piled on him. And, it was like he already had the Smart Spot, my sister already had the Girl Spot, that kind of left the Clown Spot open.”

"The Clown Spot?"

"I know it sounds crazy. But when I was growing up, my brother would bring home his excellent report cards and my folks pretty much piled on the expectations. Of course, I was younger. If I tried to say anything, he just shut me down and made me look stupid. And, I don’t know, I always had a gift for making people laugh. My mom used to call me her little clown. After a while, I figured out that if I started acting stupid everyone was happy. Plus, it was a lot easier on me. My folks pressured him pretty hard. Now, he's driven, he’s successful, but it's like his whole life is a report card, you know what I mean?"

"Sort of. I don't have any personal experience with that, because my folks only wanted us to find a decent career, maybe one day buy a house, hopefully find a partner, you know, live a reasonably happy life."

"I think the Van Hoffendams still have that mentality that their sons and daughters are supposed to lead society and excel in business.

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