Her hair was up in a high ponytail and she had on gray leggings with an oversized purple sweatshirt along with a pair of fancy sneakers.Her engagement ring and diamond studs that Cam had given her for Christmas flashed in the watery afternoon sunlight.She set down her glass of tea and a plate with a half-eaten oatmeal raisin cookie.She’d nibbled through part of it as I explained the entire situation to her.
“Iknewsomething was up with you.”
She picked up the cookie and took a big bite.I bit my cheek so I wouldn’t smile at her as I watched her eat with gusto.I shifted my tush on the smaller couch, aware this one didn’t get as much use.They were older now, but they were comfortable, and done up in a thick brown material that had survived Cam as a boy.
My house smelled of brown sugar and, faintly, of lemon and rosemary from the environmentally friendly cleaning products I whipped up every few months.The space was tidy and clean, as always.Now that the kids were grown, I didn’t abide mess or dust.
“Steve won’t be glad you already figured out we’d ah…hooked up.”
The words felt weird on my tongue and Jenna scrunched her nose, letting me know they sounded just as awkward.
“He seems to think he’s good at ‘covert ops’.”I rolled my eyes even as I used my fingers for the air quotes the girls liked to use.
Jenna giggled, and that sound brought joy to my heart.Jenna was an intoxicating mix of fragile and confident, and Cam hadn’t stood a chance resisting her.Not that I would have wanted him to.Jenna wasn’t easy—high maintenance, the kids called it—but she felt deeply and loved more wholly than nearly anyone I’d ever met, which made her perfect for Cam.My boy loved just as hard.
“You know I need to call in the rest of the crew,” Jenna said.She flopped back on the couch, hands over her belly.She didn’t even realize how she was sitting—almost as if she was protecting herselffromherself.Oh, this girl.
“They’ll be hurt otherwise,” she added.
I pressed my hands to my chest, right over my fluttering heart.“I know.But I’m worried Kate will judge me for wanting a relationship.And Aya will judge me for having…relationswith her father-in-law.”
I blushed—blushed!—at my comments.Nothing sounded right.
“First, don’t ever sayrelationsagain.That was weirder thanhooking up.”Jenna crinkled her nose.“Just like I struggle with the term making love.Just…no.”
“I don’t want to call it whateveryoudo,” I said.
“Good because that’s weirder and grosser still.”She picked up her phone and sent a text.
I laughed.“I’ve been havingrelationslonger than you’ve been alive.”
“So, you got the doing down, just not the lingo.And if Cam hears you, I’m not responsible for his conniption fit.”
“Noted.”My tone was drier than the hard-packed horse arena.
“So, I’ve let the girls know to head over, stat.Kate’s working out babysitting, but Nash is home to snuggle sweet little Levi.”
I melted at his name.Levi was the best baby I’d ever been around.He slept well, ate like a farmhand, and had his daddy’s smile.He was, in a word,perfect.
“What about Cash?”I asked, who was an absolutely perfect specimen of toddlerhood.
“When he wakes from his nap, Cam will take him out with the horses.Don’t worry, I got my sweet pea covered.”
My girls were beautiful and precious, their eyes as glossy as jewels and their coloring varied enough to remind me of butterflies.But these ladies were strong.Resilient.They didn’t suffer fools—and I’d been one, which meant they wouldn’t let me get away with my choices.
That was one reason I hadn’t wanted to tell them.
With a glance to ensure everyone had enough tea, I settled in my chair in my kitchen.We’d moved into the large, sunny room so the girls were closer to the refrigerator…and the cookies they planned to devour.My hands shook, and I shoved them into my lap, trying to ignore the age spots on the backs of my hands.
“I made a mistake,” I announced.I focused on Aya, most worried about her reaction to my next statement.“Steve and I…” Could I say it?My cheeks blossomed.
“What she’s trying to say is that she and Steven hooked up at your wedding,” Jenna said.
Aya hid a giggle behind her hand, her eyes dancing.At least she wasn’t upset about the situation.
“Hmm, I’ve been wondering about you two,” Kate said, her tone softer.She swallowed, and I worried she was thinking of her daddy.“I noticed the sexual tension.”She shrugged.
“I don’t want to cause problems between us,” I said.Worry gnawed at me, and I shifted in my chair.
