The Relationship Coach Read Online Free

she realized at this time, it would be futile to try to talk sense into her sister.
    “Will someone please tell me what oath you two are talking about?” her mother repeated, her voice rising in agitation.
    Her sister shook her head to warn Lacey to refrain.
    But oh no, Lacey couldn’t hold back. She persevered to be honest and upfront with her mother. Forging ahead toward the edge of the maternal cliff, she took the plunge.
    “When you were on husband number three, Billy, I believe, Kerri and I made a pact that we would only marry once, so our kids would never experience step-families.” Lacey figured in less than thirty seconds a volcanic eruption would explode from her mother’s mouth.
    “You just couldn’t keep quiet, could you,” her sister said softly to Lacey.
    Their mother’s face flamed a scarlet color, and Lacey knew she’d just ruined her sister’s engagement lunch. When would she learn to keep her mouth shut?
    “Tell me how you kids had it so bad?” her mother demanded, her voice shrill over the clank of dishes.
    Kerri shook her head. “We made the pact the night that Billy’s kids smeared dog poop all over the clean clothes in our drawers. Remember that little incident?”
    A frown flitted across her mother’s tense face, and she sighed with an air of acceptance. “His kids were little monsters,” she said. She straightened her shoulders into a rigid motherly stance. “That was years ago, Lacey, and if Kerri is happy and thinks that Matt is the one for her, she should embrace this moment. You’re the one who is almost thirty and hasn’t even had a great love affair that I know of.”
    “Dean and I are perfectly happy,” Lacey said softly, trying to downplay her mother’s response. Who needed great love affairs? She preferred honesty and stability, neither of which she’d witnessed in her mother’s relationships.
    Her mother rolled her eyes in that insolent way of hers that made Lacey crazy.
    “Except Dean’s about as interesting as cardboard, and if he’s anything like that in bed, then no wonder you’re still single.”
    “Mother!” Lacey said her voice indignant. “Just because I don’t jump into relationships like I change my underwear does not make me a bad person.”
    Her mother’s chest swelled like a Thanksgiving turkey. “I want you to know that I do not choose the men I fall in love with. There is a burst of instantaneous attraction that leads me to marriage. It’s called passion. You should try it sometime.”
    “I’m a relationship coach. I help people like you make conscious decisions about dating the right person and finding the right mate, instead of being led by their emotions or impulse.”
    Who needed great love affairs? You needed honesty and stability, none of which she’d witnessed as a child in her mother’s relationships.
    “You can’t pick and choose who you’re going to fall in love with,” her mother replied hastily.
    “Then you have no need for my matchmaking services.”
    Her mother opened her mouth to respond, when Kerri snapped her fingers.
    “Excuse me!” her sister said, her voice rising. “Would anyone care to know how he proposed to me or about our future plans?”
    Lacey and her mother sent each other one last glare before they pivoted to Kerri.
    “Sorry, honey. How did he propose?” her mother asked calmly.
    Lacey went through her mental process of deep, slow breaths, exhaling her anger. Good breaths in, ugliness out. It would do no good to fight with her mother. This argument was an ongoing one, and no matter what, this issue never got resolved.
    Kerri’s eyes misted, and she glanced at her ring. “Yesterday, after my final exam, he picked me up from school. We went out to the lake and sat enjoying the spring sunshine. Suddenly, a jet boat came by bearing a banner that said, ‘Marry me, Kerri, Matt.’” She wiped her eyes. “I sat there stunned, until they came around a second time honking their horn. Then I lunged for