Girls In White Dresses (23 page)

The second night he was at the apartment, Winston cried so much that Isabella ended up lying on the floor next to him. She woke up to Harrison standing above her saying, “Who owns who?” Winston was curled in a tight ball by her stomach, and she looked closely to make sure he was still breathing. Then she looked at Harrison, rubbed her eyes, and said, “I think he might own us, but we’ll see.”

Harrison smiled. “You’re a good mom,” he said, and then he went to brush his teeth. Just like that, out of the blue,
You’re a good mom
.

“Do you want to go back in?” Isabella asked him. “Katie is talking about her birthing plan.”

Harrison considered. “No,” he said. “I do not.”

Isabella twisted the handkerchief in her hand and smiled.

K
en’s father had died, and so Mary couldn’t be as honest about things as she wanted to. “I’m all my mom has,” Ken said whenever Mary mentioned anything.

“She has three other kids,” Mary said.

“None like me,” he said, putting his arm around her shoulder.

Mary tried to be charitable. After all, she was Catholic. She could suffer in silence. She tried not to say anything when Ken spent whole weekends at his mom’s house, doing her taxes or helping her pick out a door for the new garage. “My dad took care of all that stuff,” he said whenever Mary complained that she didn’t see him enough.

On Mary and Ken’s first date, Ken took a call from his mom in the middle of dinner. “I’m sorry,” he said when he got back. “My mom gets nervous when I don’t answer. My dad passed a few years ago, and so she’s all alone.”

Mary could have cried from happiness. She was on a blind date with a truly nice guy who loved his mother and wasn’t afraid to tell her. Three dates later it wasn’t as charming.

Ken moved into Mary’s apartment but warned her that he could never tell his mom what he’d done. “But we’re thirty,” Mary said. She’d never found him less attractive.

“My mom is just old-fashioned,” he said. “And I don’t want to upset her. She’s been through so much with my dad and everything.” And so Mary wasn’t allowed to say much more.

“Some umbilical cords are stronger than others,” Lauren told her. It sounded like the first line of a horror movie.

“Call me Button,” Ken’s mother said when they got engaged. “Or Mom.”

Everyone called Ken’s mother Button. They always had. Most people didn’t even know that her real name was Virginia. “My dad just thought I was cute as a button,” she explained once to Mary. “And the name stuck.”

Mary couldn’t imagine calling a grown woman Button. Calling her Mom was worse. Mary was certain the offer was insincere. She wanted to keep calling her Mrs. Walker, like she always had. But now that the subject had been broached, she knew she couldn’t, so Mary just said, “Thank you,” and stopped calling her anything.

“What am I supposed to do?” Mary asked Isabella. “His family is obviously crazy.”

“So is Harrison’s family,” Isabella said. “They never hug. Did I tell you that? They literally just wave at each other from across the room when they haven’t seen each other in months. It’s bizarre.”

“Well, Ken’s mother hugs her children when they leave the room for more than five minutes.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s kind of weird.”

“I know.”

“Harrison’s family doesn’t ever talk on the phone. Never. Except if they’re going to meet somewhere and they want to confirm the time.”

“Ken’s family only goes out to eat at T.G.I. Friday’s or Chili’s,” Mary said, and Isabella laughed.

“Harrison’s brother eats with his hands and never says ‘Excuse me’ when he leaves the table. He just gets up to go.”

“I don’t think Button wants us to get married.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I think she wants Ken to pay attention only to her.”

“Ew,” Isabella said.

“I know.”

Every summer, Ken’s family went to Lake Minnetonka in Cable, Wisconsin. “Don’t you guys ever want to go somewhere else?” Mary asked.

“That’s where we go,” Ken explained. “My dad started taking us there when I was just a baby.”

Mary and Ken had been dating for two years, but Mary was never invited to “the lake.” Ken came on vacation with her family, but never mentioned it when he went away. Now that they were engaged, Button called Ken to tell him to extend the invitation to Mary. He told her as though she should be thrilled. “You’ll get to see the lake!” he said. She smiled. No lake could be worth a week with Button.

It took them all day to get there. They had to fly into Minneapolis–St. Paul International, and then drive three hours to the lake. When they arrived, Button was standing on the porch, waiting for them. “I’m so glad you could join us,” she said to Mary with just a trace of a fake British accent. It sounded like she had been practicing the sentence.

Mary saw that Button was trying to smile but couldn’t quite get her mouth to go the right way. Ken went in to change into his bathing suit and ran down the path to the lake before Mary had even gotten inside. She gave him a look that said,
Don’t leave me alone here
, but he just called out, “Come meet me when you’re ready!” Mary and Button stared at each other on the porch.

“Let me show you your room,” Button said, and led Mary to a slim rectangular closet off the kitchen. There was a cot set up in there that took up most of the room. Mary put her bag down and tried to seem pleased to be sleeping in an old food pantry.

“Thanks so much for having me,” Mary said. “I’m so excited to be here. Ken always talks about this place.”

Button was flustered. “Well,” she said. “Well, how nice.”

“Do you need help with anything? Dinner or anything like that?”

“No, we’re all set,” Button said. “Dinner is at six.” When Mary was finally alone in the pantry, she decided to lie down and take a nap.

“This is my family now,” she thought to herself. “I am going to be legally bound to Button.” She tried to tell herself not to be so overdramatic, but then she imagined spending holidays with these people and let a single tear slide out of her eye. She was allowed a single tear. She was going to have a mother-in-law named Button.

The lake was pretty but freezing. Ken took her out in one of the kayaks, assuring her that she wouldn’t die. “Here,” he said, tossing her a life jacket. “Put this on.”

They paddled out to the middle of the murky lake. Mary was in the front because Ken said the heavier person should be in the back. She kept trying to turn around to ask him questions, but when she did the boat wobbled and so she remained looking straight ahead. The paddles were dripping into the boat and a pretty big puddle was gathering around their feet. The only nice thing about being in the boat was that Button was getting smaller and smaller on the shore. Mary was just starting to enjoy herself when she heard Ken say, “Uh-oh.”

“What?” Mary whipped her head around and the boat tipped to the right. “What uh-oh? What?”

“No big deal,” Ken said. “But we should start paddling back. I think there’s some holes in the boat.”

Mary grabbed her paddle and started slapping it in the water. She could hear Ken laughing. “It’s okay,” he said. “I promise, even if the boat sinks we aren’t that far out. We can swim in.”

When they got back, Button was standing on the shore with her hand pressed over her chest. “Oh, I was so worried!” she said. “What on earth made you think to take the kayak out? We haven’t had those out in years.” Mary thought Button was looking at her while she said this.

“Mom, we’re fine,” Ken said. He was taller than his mother, and when he put his arm around her, she looked tiny.

“Well,” Button said. “Well, I was worried.”

“I know, Mom, I know!” Ken and his mother walked ahead down the path to the cabin. Mary walked behind them, shivering, with wet feet.

It became clear to Mary that the Walkers had a routine at the lake and that just by being there, she was disrupting it. Sunday night they went to the Lodge for dinner and had walleye pike and cheese curds. Monday night was hot dogs on the grill. Tuesday night was taco night. When they went to the grocery store, Mary suggested that they get salmon to grill and the whole family looked at her like she was nuts.

“We only eat fish at the Lodge,” Ken’s sister said. Mary nodded like this made sense.

They went down to the Lodge on Wednesday night for bingo. “You know what this place reminds me of?” Mary asked. “The summer place they go to in
Dirty Dancing
, you know?” Ken’s sister laughed.

“Dirty Dancing?”
Button asked. “What kind of a movie is that?”

Mary felt as though she had just admitted to Button that she watched hard-core porn, and so she shut her mouth and focused on her bingo cards. Ken was in the other room getting his mother a gin and tonic. He walked in and looked around the bingo tables to see where they were sitting. Mary and Button waved their hands at him together. Ken saw Mary and smiled and then started walking over.

“Oh,” Button said, “He saw you first. I guess you’re his number one girl now.”

For a moment, Mary thought she had heard wrong. And then for another she was just too creeped out to answer. Finally she said, “I’m wearing a pretty bright color. It was probably just easier to see me.”

Ken’s siblings didn’t cater to Button the way that he did. They were perfectly nice to her, of course. They just didn’t watch her every move to make sure she was okay at all times.

“Maybe it’s because he’s the oldest,” Isabella said to her on the phone. Mary had driven into town and called Isabella from a pay phone. She had no cell service in Cable and she needed to talk to someone before she lost her mind.

“Maybe,” Mary said.

Every year, Ken’s family took a picture in front of the lake. This year, Mary volunteered to take it and Ken said, “No, you should be in it.” Button straightened her shoulders and Mary said, “How about I take one of just you guys and then one with me?” Button smiled at her.

On the plane ride home, Mary counted the mosquito bites on her legs. “Twenty-three!” she announced to Ken. “No, wait—twenty-four!”

Ken laughed. “I told you that you shouldn’t have gone running without bug spray on. You didn’t believe me.”

“I just thought I would be faster than the bugs,” Mary said.

“I’m glad you got to see the lake,” Ken said, and Mary smiled.

“Do you think we’ll be able to go next year, with the honeymoon and everything?” Mary asked. “I’m not sure I have enough vacation time.”

“We’ll work it out. Even if you can’t make it, I’ll have to sneak away for a few days to get up there.”

“It’s a long trip for just a few days,” Mary said. Ken patted her knee.

When they got married, Button cried. Mary was pretty sure that they were sad tears and not happy tears. “You’re crazy,” Ken said. “My mother adores you.”

Ken danced with his mother and it was the happiest she looked all night. Mary stood near her for a little while at the reception, and when a waiter passed with a tray of shrimp, Button said, “You know that Ken can’t eat shrimp, right? He breaks out in hives.”

“Yes,” Mary said. “I know.”

“Oh, okay.” Button seemed relieved. “I just wanted to make sure. I just didn’t know why you would ever serve shrimp at your wedding if you knew your husband could break out in hives.”

Mary went to the bathroom and locked herself in the handicapped stall. She stood in her dress and breathed deep breaths until she heard Isabella walk in.

“Mary?” Isabella called. “Are you in here?”

Mary unlocked the stall and stood there. “Button,” she said.

Isabella nodded. “Harrison’s mother told me last weekend that she thought polka dots were out of style.”

“So?” Mary asked.

“I was wearing my pink-and-white polka dot dress,” Isabella said.

“Okay,” Mary said. “Okay.” She and Isabella walked back out to the reception.

When Mary found out she was pregnant, Ken called his mother right away. “She’s crying,” he mouthed to Mary. Mary smiled.

They all went out to dinner to celebrate. “We should know the sex of the baby soon,” Mary said.

“Oh no! You’re going to find out?” Button looked horrified.

“Yeah, we thought it would be nice to prepare.”

“But it’s the greatest surprise of your life. Why would you ruin that?”

Mary didn’t know what to say.

“You’ll have to move out of that neighborhood,” Button said. “You can’t have a baby there. It’s rather sketchy.” The neighborhood they lived in hadn’t been sketchy since the seventies. Now it was stuffed full of Starbucks and Baby Gap and no one in their right mind would call it sketchy.

“Maybe,” Ken said. “We’ll think about it.”

“Have you thought of any names?” Button asked. Mary knew she was trying to be nice.

“We thought maybe Parker if it was a boy. And if it’s a girl, we like Lola.”

“Lola? You can’t call a baby Lola! It sounds like a prostitute.”

“Mom,” Ken said, laughing. “It doesn’t sound like a prostitute.” Mary stayed silent.

“What about Brittany or Tiffany?” Button offered, looking at Mary. “Or Mandy or Christina?”

“Maybe,” Mary said. “We’ve got some time to decide.”

Button nodded. “Well, if you name her Lola, then maybe I’ll call her something else.” She looked pleased, like this solved the problem. Mary tried to catch Ken’s eye, but he was looking at his cheeseburger.

“She wants her grandchild to be a teenybopper!” Mary said. “Brittany and Tiffany? What kind of names are those? Those are pretend names that you gave your pretend children in second grade!”

“Really?” Isabella asked. “I always went with Brandy at that age.”

“Isabella.”

“Sorry, okay. So she has bad taste in names.”

“Bad taste? She wants her granddaughter to be a teenage singer who wears leather pants and vows to stay a virgin before getting pregnant at seventeen.”

Mary started to cry and Isabella patted her back. “Maybe it will be a boy,” she offered.

The baby was born with all of his fingers and toes, which made Mary happy. She hadn’t been that worried, but there’d been one night before she knew she was pregnant when she and Isabella had drunk enough wine for a small country. And so, when she was able to count everything for herself, she was relieved.