She folded her arms. “I just need you to know that I’m always going to be fat.”
“Cherry, you’re not—”
“Don’t say it. I swear to god.”
“Okay. Sorry.”
“When you say I’m not fat, what you mean is, I’m not ugly. But I know I’m not ugly.”
He closed his mouth. He nodded.
“Also, I might want to have a baby,” she said. “Someday. So, you should know that. You should take that under advisement. That will make me even fatter.”
Russ nodded. His eyes were shining.
“I just have a lot of issues with my weight,” she said. “And I don’t want you to make them worse. I’m in therapy—that’s also for the record.”
“I’m in therapy, too,” he said. “For the record.”
Cherry nodded.
Russ cleared his throat. “You should know that Liam has ADHD.And some... learning challenges. And he’s still really struggling with the divorce.”
Cherry cocked her head sympathetically. For Liam.
“And I never want to leave Nebraska,” Russ said. “I want to be governor someday.”
Cherry laughed. “Okay.”
“Be advised.”
“I’ve been advised.”
“Also, I have a receding hairline.”
“No, you don’t,” she said softly.
“I do.” He held his hair off his forehead. “It’s receding at the corners.”
She stepped closer to look. “It looks the same as it always has.”
He let his hair fall. “It’s gradual.”
Cherry brushed his hair off his forehead. “You’re very vain.”
He nodded. “I know.”
She stroked his hair. “What about your perfect girl for your perfect pictures? For all your campaign ads...”
“Are you kidding me?” He touched Cherry’s cheek. “We lookfantastictogether.”
Chapter 24
On Monday evening, as Cherry was walking up her steps, Tom walked out the front door. He had Stevie.
“Oh,” Cherry said. She smiled at them. “Hi. I didn’t see your dad’s car.”
“I rode my bike over.” Tom nodded toward the garage. “I found it in the garage last week.”
