Даниэла Стил - All That Glitters

“So what do you think?” she asked him nervously. She wanted Sam to love Nigel too.

“I like him. He’s a good guy, and he’s obviously nuts about you. But you still don’t know him after so little time. Don’t go off half-cocked and do anything crazy.”

“I’m not going to,” she said firmly.

“I think he would, and he may try to talk you into it. I think you need to run a check on him. I’m worried about his finances. He talks about how poor he is. He may be exaggerating, but if he isn’t, his expectations of you may be excessive or unrealistic. Your father would have worried about that too.” That was always the key with her, what her father would have done, or thought, or disapproved of.

“He’s not marrying me for my money, Sam. He doesn’t know how much I have. And he hasn’t asked me to marry him. You’re jumping the gun here.” But he had hinted at it, and his intentions were obvious, although they seemed honorable. He kept hinting at marriage. And he said he wanted kids. Soon. So Sam was worried.

“Don’t be so innocent. People guess or talk, or know things. He may have run a check on you. People do that. And they marry people for a lot less than you have. I don’t want that to happen to you. If you marry him at some point, you’ll need an airtight prenup. And you should get married in the States so it’s legally binding. You should do that with anyone. Don’t even think about it without a solid contract.” He really did sound like her father.

“He hasn’t asked me to marry him, so you have nothing to worry about.”

“I think he will. And so do you. The other thing that worries me is that he doesn’t have a career. He has a job, and one he hates. If he decides to stop working if you marry him, there isn’t a damn thing you can do about it. You need to think about this stuff, Coco, and get a sense of what his plans are, and his goals, and his values. How would he feel living off a rich wife? Would that be fine with him? You don’t want a dead weight around your neck, with a guy who doesn’t want to work. It happens, more often than you think. For him it may seem stupid to bother working with everything you have, once he realizes it. It sounds like he has no real interest in his career or any career. At his age, he should. You and I are just starting out. He’s ten or twelve years into his work life, at what should be the high point of his career, not the low point. Instead, he’s a low-level advertising guy and hates his job. That’s not good news for you. And you may be very good news for him. I don’t want to see that happen to you. You deserve better than that. He seems more like a play and party guy to me. He’s charming as hell, and he loves you, but you should have someone who contributes more than that. He wants kids, but how is he going to support them, and you?” She knew that her mother had lived on her father’s meager earnings when she’d married him, and worked herself. She wasn’t sure how ambitious Nigel was. He talked about people, and their social plans, and the house parties they were going to, not about work, or building anything for the future, or saving money. Sam was giving her good advice.

“I feel rude snooping into his financial situation. He says he has no money. His brother got everything, and he got nothing when his father died. What more do I need to know? He already told me. He’s not hiding anything.”

“That’s the British system,” Sam commented, and poured himself another cup of coffee. “I don’t think this is about being rude. You have to protect yourself. He leads a very high-end life with a lot of jet-set people. This is not the ‘normal’ guy we were talking about. He’s another highflyer, a flashy guy like Ed, but maybe with no way to get the plane off the ground, unless you pay for it. Check it out. Ed could do it for you. It’s not that complicated.”

“This is none of Ed’s business,” Coco said immediately. It complicated everything that she had slept with her trustee, and shouldn’t have. She regretted it now. “I’ll see what I can figure out.” Sam nodded. He had raised some good points.

“Have you met his brother?”

“No, they hate each other, and they don’t speak, if they can avoid it. His brother got everything, and gave him nothing.”

“That’s not good news either. He seems like a sweet guy. I like him. His life is a little fancy for me, with dukes and duchesses, and counts and castles. That all matters a lot to him. Is that what you want, Coco?” He was surprised. It seemed so unlike her. But Nigel was very seductive and glamorous in a boyish way, and the people around him and their lifestyle were very appealing too. They seemed to play all the time. It was a throwback to another era. Nigel readily admitted that many of the aristocrats he knew had lost their money but refused to give up the lifestyle that went with it. He didn’t seem to mind since they gave a lot of the parties he went to.

“It’s kind of fun. A lot of it is very superficial, but I’ve met some interesting people with him. And I love him. He’s kind of like Prince Charming. He’s generous with me. He paid for everything in Paris and he always pays when we go out to dinner.” But he had a miserable, seedy little apartment. She suspected that he was spending his entire salary on her. And the house parties they went to cost him nothing.

“Just make sure Prince Charming has a little something in the bank and won’t be totally dependent on you. Or if that’s the case, at least you’ll know what to expect. It’s hard to talk about money, but if you’re thinking about this long-term, you should know.” She nodded, and knew he was right. Maybe Nigel found it hard to talk about it too. It was embarrassing for both of them. He had said he was poor since they met, so he hadn’t misled her. No matter how in love with her he was, he wasn’t proposing marriage, so she didn’t need to worry about it. And by no stretch of the imagination could she see herself married at twenty-two. So Sam was worried for nothing, but she was grateful for his concern.

They talked about Tamar too. Sam said he loved her, but Coco wasn’t convinced. She was the kind of girl his parents wanted him to marry, but Coco thought he needed someone more interesting than a religious bank clerk who wanted six kids. It sounded like a dismal future to her, and to Sam too. She didn’t want to see him give up his dreams just to please his parents, and she hoped he wouldn’t.

They went out and explored London together after Sam showered. It was nice just being together, and talking, and sometimes just walking along together, lost in their own thoughts. He had given her much to think about, and he was right that Nigel just wasn’t the “normal” guy she had hoped to find. But she loved the Prince Charming aspect of him, and it was hard not to be dazzled by the people he knew, the places they went together, and the friends he introduced to her. He led such a glamorous life, whether he had money or not. She wasn’t sure she cared about that one way or another, although she appreciated Sam worrying about her. She and Nigel weren’t getting married, and she didn’t spend a lot of money to live, and even if they did get married one day, how expensive could it be? Her parents hadn’t been extravagant with all they had, although they had lived well, had nice homes and bought important art, and were generous with her and each other. Nigel didn’t seem to spend a lot of money. They usually went to inexpensive restaurants when they went out, and cooked at home several nights a week. Their busy social life cost them nothing, except flowers for their hosts afterward and she paid for those. She thought Sam was overly worried.

The three of them had dinner out that night at a nice Italian restaurant, and Nigel picked up the check, although Sam offered to. They ate dinner at home again on Saturday, and on Sunday, Sam flew back to New York. She went with him to the airport and had tears in her eyes when he left.