Chapter 4
They didn’t join the family at Mass, but crept into the back row. They were five minutes late. Woops.
Nicky sat next to her, tense all through the Mass. If nothing else made Tricia think that this was important to her, this was it. Hardly anything had Nicky tense up, accept when it had something to do with someone bad mouthing her family. Heck, Tricia has no idea why anybody would throw such a fit at a bunch of Boyle’s. A family of lawyers…
Though Reagan was very familiar with something else. ‘Probably something dealing with the old presidents’ Tricia pushes the thought to the side.
Everyone is leaving, and that’s when Tricia finally got a chance to cross paths with Nicky’s mom’s family. “Hey, Grandpa.” Nicky calls to an older gentleman wearing a nice suit, and if Tricia didn’t know any better (which she will totally claim that she doesn’t, pleading the fifth here) the guy was wearing a piece.
“Nicky.” The man smiled, “Who’s your friend?”
Nicky tenses beside Tricia, but doesn’t correct the assumption. “Tricia. I invited her to the family dinner. Hope that’s alright?” Tricia smiles a smile full of teeth. Usually it works for her Uncle Gino.
The man holds out a hand, and Tricia takes it in one of her own. “Not at all. Just didn’t expect anyone else. We’ll have to set another table. Nice meeting you, Tricia.”
“Same here, Mr. Reagan.” Tricia releases his hand, and he smiles so that the corner of his eyes crinkle up at the corners. Kind of like how Grandma Alina does.
“Call me Frank.” He nods his head in greeting. “See you at dinner, you two.” He walks away, and Tricia looks to Nicky for guidance.
She’s almost pleading with her girlfriend when she says, “Great-Grandpa?”
Nicky snorts out a laugh. “No. Grandpa. How old do you think he is?”
Tricia shrugs, putting on as fake as a sincere smile can potentially get. “I don’t know. Eighty?”
Their shoulders bump when Nicky puts her side into Tricia’s. “I know you’re better at estimating ages than that, dork.”
Tricia doesn’t rise to the bait, but puts her arm around Nicky’s shoulder for a quick side hug before putting space between them. She still remembers how Nicky didn’t correct her grandfather’s-Frank’s assumption. “So…how is this dinner thing supposed to play out?”
“What are you talking about?” Nicky reaches for Tricia’s hand, but she pulls back. Her expression is guarded as she keeps a blank expression focused on her sort-of girlfriend.
The smile, who Tricia’s Uncle Gino says looks like her dad’s right before he takes care of a problem, breaks the guardedness. “I’m your friend?” Her tone doesn’t change. It doesn’t raise, it doesn’t lower. She simply keeps on smiling.
Nicky reaches out a hand to reassure her. “I just want to tell them all together. Anyway, it’s not like you’ve told your family about me.”
“I told my brother.” Tricia tells her, not weakening from her stance.
“Anybody else?” Nicky must have seen something change because she stepped back. “I thought so.”
Tricia didn’t deny it, because what was there to say? It was the truth, even if not in the way that Nicky would think. “Can we just go, okay?”
“Sure you’re not ashamed to be seen with me?” Nicky bit back, and the wince that Tricia tried to hide had her feel a little guilty.
Tricia just shook her head. “Today is your day, right?” The cold smile from earlier was replaced with one quite a bit more uncertain. “Let’s not fight. You know my family is…complicated. They still think that this,” Tricia motions between the two of them, “is just a fad.”
Nicky let the anger go, for now. “I get it. I just want to meet the other people that are important to you. Just like I want you to meet my family. I want the people I love to know about each other.”
Tricia slowly smiled at Nicky’s words. “Love you, too.” This hadn’t been the plan for the announcement, but it worked all the same.
“It’s why I’m really hoping…” Nicky paused in her speech to look at Tricia with wide eyes. “What did you say?”
“Said, I love you too.” Tricia chuckled as Nicky wrapped her up in a full body hug, not even worrying about potential eyes looking at the two of them.
As suddenly as she started the embrace, Nicky pulled back. “What do mean ‘too’?”