“It must have slipped her mind.”

“Yeah, that’s why she has them amazing seats, and she’s at every game. Elli belly is Uncle Bryan’s favorite,” Liam said, “he hates the rest of us.”

“For good reason,” Elli said, “Y’all name drop like a mother. I don’t, plus I actually like hockey.”

Everyone rolled their eyes as they continued to eat. Uncle Bryan was a touchy subject; he only talked to Elli and her father since they were the only normal ones in the family. Shea hadn’t started eating again, he was just staring at his plate, and Elli wished she could beg him not to be mad. It was bound to get worse, though. So she just picked her fork back up and started eating again.

“So, Shea,” Olivia said, “do your parents live in Nashville?”

“No, they live back in Boston. That’s where I’m from.”

“That’s nice, what do they do for a living?”

“Mom,” Elli groaned; Olivia gave her a look.

“What, darling? It’s a simple question.”

“It’s fine, Elli,” Shea said, looking back at Olivia.

“My dad is a college professor at one of the private colleges in Boston, while my mother is a teacher at the local high school.”

“Oh, that’s nice,” Olivia said, basically pushing her nose even farther in the air at Shea. If Elli could kill someone, it would be her mother. Mean old bat.

Olivia laid her fork down and then looked back at Shea.

“Are you going to continue dating Elli while you’re gone?”

Everyone got quiet, looking down at Olivia, as she gave Shea a pointed look.

“You know, she is just so busy with that picture taking business of hers, and she won’t be able to go with you.”

Elli’s face fell into her hand, as Shea cleared his throat.

“I know, but that doesn’t mean we can’t talk on the phone every night or text, or Skype. We did just fine while I’ve been traveling the last month, and we’ll do fine this time, too.”

Elli’s heart warmed as she looked over at Shea. He wouldn’t look at her, but he had to feel her staring at him. She slid her hand onto his lap and he took it tightly in his.

“Well, that’s just silly. You’ll get so lonely.”

“Olivia,” Michael warned.

Elli looked down at her plate as Olivia let out a frustrated breath. They went back to eating as small talk, about a bunch of nothing, was tossed around the table. That was until Elli reached for more greens. They had always been a favorite of hers, and she couldn’t cook them the way Mrs. Harris did. She wanted to get her fill while she was there but when she reached for the serving spoon, her mother stopped her with a smack on the back of her hand. Shea’s quick intake of breathe was louder than Elli’s as the room went completely silent.

“Now, Eleanor, I’m not going to let you get to the way you were. You’re done eating.”

Elli had never been so embarrassed in her life; she looked up at Victoria, who was grinning from ear to ear.

“Yeah, Elli belly, you get fat again, and there’s no way Shea will stay,” she said with a laugh, causing everyone else to laugh.

The tears were stinging in Elli’s eyes as she looked over at her mother.

“Victoria Renee!” Michael said sternly.

“I was sick, that’s why I got fat,” Elli said, as strongly as she could.

“Oh, I know you were sick. But still, we don’t want to chance it. For all I know, you ate yourself into a coma up in New York because of all the nerves from Broadway.”

Shit, shit, shit, shit.

“Broadway?” Shea asked.

Everyone turned to look at him, except Elli.

“Oh, yes. Eleanor has the voice of an angel,” Michael said with a grin, trying to change the subject. Little did he know, he was just making it worse. But her daddy had always been her biggest fan.

“She didn’t even go to college first. Bryan called one of his director friends up in New York, and Eleanor auditioned at 17. Next thing you know, she’s on the stage, starring as Fanny Brice for Funny Girl. She was, and still is, amazing.”

Shea looked over at Elli again. Like before, she couldn’t look at him until he squeezed her hand, causing her to look up at him.

“Another thing that must have slipped her mind.”

Elli bit her lip as her mother laughed.

“Oh, no, she probably didn’t tell you because she got kicked off Broadway when she got fat. It was terrible, I tell you, Shea. She was close to what, Victoria? 250 pounds?”

“Yeah, it was crazy,” Victoria added with a disgusted look on her face.

“It was, poor Justin, he just couldn’t take it, that’s why he broke the engagement.”

Fuck.

Shea had to have heard Elli’s mother wrong.

“Engagement?” he asked.

Shea felt Elli tense up beside him.

“Yes,” Olivia said, taking a drink of wine, “She was engaged to Justin Yates of Yates Financing, such a fine man.”

“Until Elli got crazy fat and he left her for one of his interns,” Victoria laughed.

“He didn’t leave me, I left him,” Elli said, but no one was listening because they were all talking about Justin.

“They were engaged for what, Momma, four years?” Liam asked.

“One year,” Elli said.

“No, I think it was three,” Olivia said, completely ignoring Elli.