signing in at the reception desk when he strolled into the waiting room as if he owned the place, the kind of walk she liked in a man. He stopped, stood still in the middle of the room, and gave her a nod that was more than a nod, something more like a bow and a smile that said, How can a woman like you have any kind of problem that would bring her to this place ? She couldn’t remember what she said to him, just remembered the warmth, the twinkling in his eyes. She couldn’t remember the last time a man had looked at her like that. It turned out he was dating the shrink then, and now he was married to Livy. It was one of those see-it-got-to-have-it things. All roses and dinners and diamonds. Then marriage. Now, just outside the bathroom door, Lawrence Baines was no doubt snoring in bed already with the Wall Street Journal on his chest.
Oh, Katy , she thought. Maybe you shouldn’t get married yet .
Years later, when she told Lawrence about the night those boys had taken her and Katy for sisters at that Mexican restaurant, he threw down his paper and said, “You might still look like a glamour girl, but you’re too old for that kind of thing.” He was furious, she knew, because his hair was thinning, his broad chest collapsing to a soft bunch of flesh at his waist, while she, well, she did have a little bit of elegance that didn’t age. She just smiled at his fury. “But those boys in the Mexican restaurant, it happened years ago,” she said. He stood up then, said with the kind of meanness as if she’d cheated on him, “And you’re still thinking about it!” Then he walked out of the room with such fury and force, it occurred to her that that was what people meant when they said a person stormed out of the room. Joe had always been a quiet man, but Lawrence came and went like weather, so when he stormed out the door, she let him go and wondered what she’d been thinking to get married again so fast. She knew it was safety. That was why Katy was marrying Billy. And safety always meant some kind of sacrifice, so Livy let Lawrence stomp away and decided she’d make those popovers he loved to go with the roast beef for dinner. He always softened with a good meal.
Now she looked at her face in the mirror. Far from a glamour girl, but she had good bone structure, high, defined cheeks. Livy hardly wore makeup, didn’t have to work to catch a glance. Whenshe was young, it was hard to keep the Suck Creek boys from grabbing at her. Being tall and filled out seemed more a curse than a gift. Then in college, after that one ballet class, she figured it out. It was all in the way you carried yourself. Livy had discovered the power to make men suck in their bellies and straighten their shoulders at the sight of her entering a room. That was what had gotten her out of Suck Creek and gotten her Joe Connor, who’d bought her a nice home halfway up Lookout Mountain. And that was what had gotten her Lawrence Baines and the five-bedroom, three-bath house on top of that mountain that was like being on top of the world in that town. Posture was everything. She used to tell Katy this. She’d touch that space between Katy’s shoulder blades when she’d see her slump. Straighten up , Livy would say. You don’t want to look like an old woman before your time . And Katy learned. She stood straighter, and finally walked away from Frank. At least she was marrying Billy, who lived a brick house and not some floating bar of a boat on the water.
Positive thinking and good posture. Those two things could take the years off, just maintaining a strong stance and a sweet smile. Livy had learned this from one of those self-help books she’d read. She glanced at herself in the mirror, closed her eyes, and thought, I’m beautiful, I’m strong, I’m blessed, I’m beautiful, I’m strong, I’m blessed . But when she opened her eyes in the harsh light of the bathroom, she saw that she was teetering on the threshold of becoming the kind of
Oh, Katy , she thought. Maybe you shouldn’t get married yet .
Years later, when she told Lawrence about the night those boys had taken her and Katy for sisters at that Mexican restaurant, he threw down his paper and said, “You might still look like a glamour girl, but you’re too old for that kind of thing.” He was furious, she knew, because his hair was thinning, his broad chest collapsing to a soft bunch of flesh at his waist, while she, well, she did have a little bit of elegance that didn’t age. She just smiled at his fury. “But those boys in the Mexican restaurant, it happened years ago,” she said. He stood up then, said with the kind of meanness as if she’d cheated on him, “And you’re still thinking about it!” Then he walked out of the room with such fury and force, it occurred to her that that was what people meant when they said a person stormed out of the room. Joe had always been a quiet man, but Lawrence came and went like weather, so when he stormed out the door, she let him go and wondered what she’d been thinking to get married again so fast. She knew it was safety. That was why Katy was marrying Billy. And safety always meant some kind of sacrifice, so Livy let Lawrence stomp away and decided she’d make those popovers he loved to go with the roast beef for dinner. He always softened with a good meal.
Now she looked at her face in the mirror. Far from a glamour girl, but she had good bone structure, high, defined cheeks. Livy hardly wore makeup, didn’t have to work to catch a glance. Whenshe was young, it was hard to keep the Suck Creek boys from grabbing at her. Being tall and filled out seemed more a curse than a gift. Then in college, after that one ballet class, she figured it out. It was all in the way you carried yourself. Livy had discovered the power to make men suck in their bellies and straighten their shoulders at the sight of her entering a room. That was what had gotten her out of Suck Creek and gotten her Joe Connor, who’d bought her a nice home halfway up Lookout Mountain. And that was what had gotten her Lawrence Baines and the five-bedroom, three-bath house on top of that mountain that was like being on top of the world in that town. Posture was everything. She used to tell Katy this. She’d touch that space between Katy’s shoulder blades when she’d see her slump. Straighten up , Livy would say. You don’t want to look like an old woman before your time . And Katy learned. She stood straighter, and finally walked away from Frank. At least she was marrying Billy, who lived a brick house and not some floating bar of a boat on the water.
Positive thinking and good posture. Those two things could take the years off, just maintaining a strong stance and a sweet smile. Livy had learned this from one of those self-help books she’d read. She glanced at herself in the mirror, closed her eyes, and thought, I’m beautiful, I’m strong, I’m blessed, I’m beautiful, I’m strong, I’m blessed . But when she opened her eyes in the harsh light of the bathroom, she saw that she was teetering on the threshold of becoming the kind of
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