My dad let out an approving chuckle. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

“I have to admit I didn’t see this coming,” my mom said, “but I’m thrilled with your choice, Chloe.”

My mom rose and pulled me up too and threw her arms around me. The guys shook hands, then we traded, and my dad hugged me, and my mom grabbed Holden’s hand, hesitated, then held out her arms as if asking his permission to hug him. She was a hugger through and through, but I knew, in this situation, there was a class difference that held her back.

“Come here, Mrs. A,” my fiancé said warmly, which came as no surprise to me. As aware as I’d always been of the differences between us Abramses and the rest of the town, I’d gotten over it with Holden and his family long ago because they’d never seemed to hold our poverty against us. With the exception of letting him into our house, of course.

“We’ve always thought the world of you and your family,” my mom told him.

“I think the same of yours,” Holden said, not looking in the least uncomfortable. That’s how he was—comfortable with just about everyone. Another way we were opposites, but it was something I admired him for.

Once we’d all sat back down again, my mom said, practically bouncing in her chair, “Have you picked a date yet?”

A date. Yeah. This part likely wasn’t going to go over as well. “We’ve decided to do a private courthouse wedding,” I spit out quickly.

I’d lain awake in the middle of the night thinking about logistics, timing, the ridiculousness of spending tens of thousands on a wedding for show. Holden and I had agreed that sooner was better, particularly because who knew how long Angelica would be alive, so simple and cheap made the most sense.

“You know I’ve never been one to dream of a white dress and a big church,” I continued.

“Always my practical girl,” my mom said with a half grin that told me she was disappointed, as I’d expected.

Holden had just taken a bite of apple pie, and he set his fork down and took my hand in his, giving me a conspiratorial look. He swallowed his food and said, “We don’t want to wait a minute longer than we have to, Mrs. A. If I could’ve pulled it off, I would’ve flown her to Vegas last weekend.” His eyes lit up, and he pulled off the excited groom to a tee.