“I don’t want to continue with the mediation,” she says. “I don’t want to continue at all.”
Danika’s mouth forms an O. “But we’ve?—”
“I don’t want to sue, if that’s what you’re thinking.” Kim licks her dry lips. “But I can’t take money from you. I don’t want to. And I don’t need it, not really. I have my apartment. My business supports Bella and me. I don’tneedmore.”
“But it’s for Bella.” Danika frowns. “Remember you’re doing this for Bella, too.”
“And I will.” Kim takes a deep breath. It still rasps, but at least she can breathe again. Her way forward is becoming clear, but she wants to be sure before she says it.And did Danika say she loves me?That’s there, humming away at the forefront of her mind. But it doesn’t change what is becoming clearer every second. She closes her eyes, lets it sit. Is it necessary? Does it feel good? Does it bring her joy? She snorts a laugh; here she is employing decluttering techniques to possibly the most important decision of her life.
She opens her eyes again. “I’m not going to take the even split we talked about.”
Danika opens her mouth—to argue most likely—but Kim holds up her hand. “I’ll take an amount for Bella equal to that which Cami has. That will go into an account for Bella just as it has for Cami. But I don’t want more than that.”
“That’s not right,” Danika says. “You’re entitled to it—morally, ethically, and, it turns out, legally. Why would you not take it?”
“It feels wrong.” That’s all she can say. Danika’s right—she should take the money. But it feels wrong. And that, to her, is the final answer. “Let’s go to Alan and tell him what we’ve decided.”
“No.” Danika folds her arms. “That’s a unilateral decisionyou’vemade, one I don’t agree with. You don’t have that right.”
“You can’t force me to accept money!”
“And you can’t force me to keep money that morally, ethically and legally is not mine!”
For long moments they stare at each other. Danika’s arms are folded, shoulders hunched, and a fierce expression. And her posture is the same, Kim realises. She, too, is frowning. With an effort, she relaxes, and the absurdity of the situation creeps up on her. She chuckles, and it morphs into a full belly laugh.“Listen to us. We’re arguing the opposite positions of what you would expect.”
Danika’s eyes widen, and a smile twitches. “We are.” She shakes her head. “Who’d have thought it?”
Kim moves up to her again, takes her hand, pulls her close, enough that their bodies touch. “Before, you said you loved me. I was on that love list, up there with Cami and your parents. I don’t know what you meant by it, what type or strength of love you meant, but I heard that you love me. And I love you too, Danika. And while I wonder if you love me as a friend, as a strange family member, or in a romantic, sexual, partner type of way, right now it doesn’t matter. You, Danika, love me, Kim.”
She takes a breath, the words thundering in her chest. “And I, Kim, love you, Danika. And so that you don’t wonder, know that I love you as my family, as my friend, and I love you romantically, sexually, and in a relationship kind of way. You don’t have to answer me. And this is not the reason I don’t want to continue with the mediation. I just want you to know.” She looks down at their joined hands.
There’s a moment of silence. When she glances back at Danika, she’s frozen, eyes wide, disbelief scrawled on her face. Disbelief? That isn’t the reaction she’d hoped for.
But then Danika lunges forward, and her hands frame Kim’s face, fingers pushing into her hair. “I love you. In all those ways. And more. I love you in ways that I don’t have words for. But you, Kim, you are my love. Don’t ever doubt it.”
And then they are kissing, and it’s magical, and there are stars, and it’s like coming into the sunlight at the end of a sleepless night, when problems are less, and the way forward is suddenly clear. They kiss for long moments, tender kisses, affirming their love. Gentle lips, mouths moving, whispering words between kisses, sharing the love between them so thatit settles into Kim’s soul, sifting slowly down like sand through water, until it becomes Kim’s bedrock.
After an age, they ease apart.
“We should go to Alan,” Kim says. “I’ll tell him what I want; you tell him what you want. We put our cases to him. And we let him decide. How does that sound?”
Danika sucks her lip, thinks. Then she nods.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Danika
Lainey shows them to Alan’s spacious corner office. He waves them to a table and pours them each a glass of water before removing the jug to a shelf.
He sits and waits. The asset lists aren’t in sight. It’s just Alan and them.
“Thank you for waiting,” Danika says. She moves her chair around the table until she’s close to Kim. Now the two of them face Alan.
Alan nods, slants a glance at Kim. “I’m glad you’re okay.” He looks at each of them in turn. “Are we continuing?”
“We are,” Kim says, “but there’s been a change.” She sets out what she now wants: money for Bella, none for herself.
“I don’t agree,” Danika says. She sets out her position: Bella to receive equal money to Cami, the rest divided equally between her and Kim.
