Lucy’s eyes widened. “Are you okay?”
I nodded firmly. When you grew up dealing with medical issues, there was a line to walk where you couldn’t ignore them, but you tried to make them seem small. I still did that. “I’m good now. I just get regular checkups to make sure everything stays good.”
“And you lead hikes? On mountains?” Lucy blinked.
“Yeah. My heart is fine. Honestly, I always joke with people that I’ll probably be the least likely person to have heart issues again, because I’m constantly getting checked. The leading causeof cardiac death is someone’s first heart attack they didn’t even know was coming,” I added with a shrug.
Jasmine leaned back in her chair. “That’s an upside to medical issues, I guess. I have pretty severe asthma, so I know when you regularly see a doctor, it keeps things from slipping by.”
“What do you mean, major asthma?” Chloe asked.
“I meanpossibility-of-asphyxiationasthma attacks,” Jasmine replied bluntly.
Chloe’s eyes went wide. “Seriously?” she sputtered.
Jasmine shrugged. “Yes. I’m fine. I always have my inhaler, but I do have to stay on top of it.”
“Holy wow,” Chloe replied.
Just then, someone else came walking through the door. At this point, there were over ten women here, and I was starting to lose track of names.
I glanced around the room, silently clocking the people whose names I already knew—Lucy, Jasmine, Chloe, Elsa, Susanna, Tiffany, Kendall, Madison.
A few minutes later, Elsa passed me a paper plate and nudged the tray of appetizers in my direction. “Eat,” she ordered.
Maisie, who I had just met, sat down across from me, her brown curls bouncing. “How often do you do this?” I asked.
Tish, who I had also just met, grinned at me from across the table. “Usually once a month. You look like what I probably looked like the first time I came.”
“Oh, you’re not an old hand at this?” I teased dryly.
She laughed softly, shaking her head. “I moved here about two years ago, and I love it. This area is so pretty.”
“Is there any part of Alaska that isn’t beautiful?” Chloe chimed in.
“Have you traveled around Alaska much?” I couldn’t help but ask.
Chloe rolled her eyes. “No, but I’ve looked at all the pictures.”
I snorted a laugh, as Lucy gestured toward the tray of appetizers. “Eat, and tell us your life story.”
Maisie nodded in agreement. “Yes, we need the scoop.”
As the evening rolled along, I began to feel like I had a gang of best friends, and I’d never really had a best friend before.
Somehow this, to be perfectly honest,motley crewof women—each so different—made me feel like it was okay to be exactly who I was. I even surprised myself by being more open about my health growing up when questions came up around it. I was an expert at skimming over those details. As if maybe I could convince myself I had nothing to ever worry about again, if only others realized it was the metaphorical equivalent of a paper cut.
“So basically, you want to prove you’re a badass,” Lucy said.
“Well, I don’t want toproveanything,” I replied.
She shrugged. “I do.”
Amelia, who was seated beside her, laughed. They were near opposites. Amelia was tall and leggy, Lucy tiny and petite, almost like a fairy. Although Lucy’s attitude definitely belied her size.
“I’ve always been the one people want to pat on the head. No, thank you,” Lucy said tartly.
“Does Levi ever pat you on the head?” Tish asked with a sly grin.
