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“You also don’t hear yourself.”

“If you mean the way we like to poke fun at Pete and Dale, it’s just…”

“Good fun?” Andi asked.

“Yes.”

“Except not everyone finds itfunny,” Andi said.

“Hey, they like to pick on us, too.”

“I have never heard anyone tease you in a way that demeans you, Billie. Not once.”

“How do wedemeanthe boys?”

“You really don’t hear yourselves, do you?” Andi sighed.

“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Billie confessed.

“Nothing.”

“Do you honestly believe I think less ofyou?”

“I think that you and Fallon believe those of us who chose to stay here, who didn’t achieve degrees and settled into the familiar life we’d always known, are less,” Andi paused to search for the right word. “Worldly?”

“That's not true.”

“Maybe it isn’t. Itisthe way youtease. You do it to Carol, too.”

Billie absentmindedly scratched her eyebrow as she contemplated Andi’s observation. She would like to deny it, but she and Fallon often commented on the “townies, lifers, and barnacles” of Whiskey Springs. She never meant it as a derogatory remark; she understood how it could be perceived that way.

“Shit,” Billie muttered. “That’s not it at all,” she told Andi. “Before you say anything, I can see how it might feel like a put-down. Andi, almost everyone here has stayedhere. Most of the transplants have been recent additions. You think our teasing is because we believe we’re better for leaving to go to college or living away from here, even if it was only for a few years, even if it was only a few miles away. That isn’t it. Sometimes, people judgeusfor wanting a life beyond Whiskey Springs—for pursuing our education away from Vermont. That’s how it feels to us—like we became outsiders because we didn’t stay the course. Coming back isn’t easy. You know better than almost anyone why Fallon keeps her wealth quiet. Leaving home was hard. Going away for school, settling somewhere new—that wasn’t easy. Coming back? Sometimes, it feels a bit like we should apologize for leaving at all.”

“I know what it’s like to leave home and return,” Andi said. “I hear what you’re saying. But it’s more than that. It’s also about your education. You don’t poke fun at Marge like you doCarol. Just like you don’t make fun of Dick Bath the way you do Charlie.”

“Everyone makes fun of Dick Bath.”

Andi wasn’t taking the bait. “Of his name,” she said. “But when he stops into Murphy’s or you’re talking about him, there’s never any insinuation that he’s simple or stupid. Do you think that might be because he has a law degree?”

“I think it’s because he’s our parents’ age—if you want to know the truth,” Billie said. “Look, Pete and Dale, even Carol, they’ve never been interested in talking about much outside the town, except maybe sports. It’s local gossip, happenings, and drinking to celebrate or commiserate over the Red Sox, Bruins, and Patriots.”

Andi nodded.

“It’s true, Andi.”

Andi took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “They don’t like to engage in your political and cultural debates at the bar,” Andi said. “Neither do I—in case you hadn’t noticed. That doesn’t mean they’re uninterested or lack opinions.”

“If they’re interested, they should engage.”

“Given how you tease them, do you think they feel inclined to offer their opinions, particularly if they differ from yours?”

“Well…”

“And, Billie? They all have businesses to consider. Fallon may pay the bills at Murphy’s Law, but Carol is the face of it. She’s the person people come to see. This town is full ofopinionsabout everything. Some people talk about theirs in private, not at a bar. You think everyone is laughingwithyou. Sometimes, you don’t pay attention to who isn’t laughing.”

“And you think Fallon doesn’t want Pete or Dale to be her kids' biological father because she’s afraid they’ll belikePete and Dale?”

“No, I don’t,” Andi said. “But I think if Pete or Dale heard how you reacted to the idea, that’s howtheywould feel. I think it would hurt Pete’s feelings that you’re so surprised by Beth’s interest in him.”