Chapter 8 Summary

Ray is Astrid's singular obsession. They spend a lot of time together making love. One afternoon, Astrid asks him why he stays with Starr, and he replies that she is the only woman who lets him be himself. She tells him that she loves him as they make love, but he shushes her.

Starr is edgy and she accuses her daughter of all the things she wants to accuse Astrid of. Carolee barely ever comes home anymore. One day Astrid comes home to find Starr curled up on the porch swing. She wants to talk to her, which is rare. As she rambles on about Carolee, Astrid realizes that Starr is drunk. Starr has been sober for eighteen months. Starr talks about how Ray is crazy about her, how she does things for him that his proper wife never did. It makes Astrid...