“Oh my god!” Lily groaned, covering her face with both her hands. “No, for the record, we’renotdoing any of that because we decided to wait until after the Olympics. You know, no distractions. This year is too big for both of us. I needed to tell you guys because I can’t be worrying that you don’t know about Wren and me while I’m trying to stick the most difficult beam routine I’ve ever attempted.”
Beth nodded, raising her hands in surrender. “Okay, good to know. Just, as your mama, I had to ask. Sex is totally normal and fun when it’s with someone you really love and?—”
“I get it.” Lily cringed as she bent to pick up her bag. “Well, that went even worse than I thought it would in my head, but now you know. Thanks so much for the supportive andsuper normalconversation.”
Sarah stood and moved around the table, wrapping Lily into a hug. “We’re both so happy for you, Lils. And Wren. You know you can always talk to us about anything going on in your life and we’ll try our best to be whatever support you need.”
“I know,” Lily muttered into Sarah’s shoulder.
“Kick butt today. Find us in the stands?”
“Thanks, Mom. I’m glad at least one of you is normal.” Lily moved towards the door, pausing briefly with her hand on the door handle. “I love you both, butpleaselet’s never speak of thisagain. Okay? But next time you see Wren, tell her how happy you are for us. She really cares a lot about what you think of her.”
With that, Lily was gone, the door clicking behind her.
A slow clapping sound filled the room as Sarah turned to face her, a grin stretching across her face. Beth groaned, burying her head in her arms on the table.
“That had to be some of your finest parenting, and let me just say, I’m thrilled to have been able to bear witness to such artistry.” Sarah did not attempt to hide the laughter that laced her words.
Beth looked up. “I panicked. It’s not even surprising, Lily and Wren—we all kind of knew that one was coming—but I don’t know what happened. My brain short-circuited.”
“Lily will recover,” Sarah said with a small smile. “But you know this definitely ranks as her top-most embarrassing conversation with us, right?”
Beth groaned again. They sat in an unfamiliar quiet together.
Sarah reached for her water bottle, pausing halfway to her lips. “This weekend’s probably hitting a little differently for you without Jamie here.”
Beth looked down at the table, not sure how to answer Sarah. She decided to go with the truth. “Yeah. It is.”
“It’s not the same being here without her,” Sarah said quietly, not looking at her. “If you want to talk later, or sit and not talk, I’m around. You let me know, okay?” She flexed her hand before slowly reaching out, giving Beth’s arm a gentle squeeze, the heat of her touch reassuring.
Beth looked up, slightly taken aback by the offer and the gesture. “Thanks,” she said appreciatively.
Sarah took a swig from her water bottle before leaning towards her, bumping their shoulders together, her lips twitching. “Oh, by the way… Did you know Wren’s gay?”
Beth caught her eye and this time she noticed the slight sparkle mixed with the hazel coloring, accompanied by that familiar feeling of being around Sarah. It was like taking a deep breath. And even after all this time and everything they’d been through, it surprised her thatthatfeeling was still there.
She dropped her head back onto the table with a thunk. “Most embarrassing parent award goes to me today.”
Sarah’s unguarded laugh filled the kitchenette, echoing off the hard surfaces, filling her. Before Beth could stop herself, she smiled too, wide and real and just as unguarded for the first time in what felt like forever. “And I’m usually so good at conversations like these,” she added, her body buzzing with the unexpected surge of joy where guilt usually settled.
“I know. Heart-to-hearts have always been your forte, so the fumble is that much funnier. This definitely makes my list of top ten favorite parenting moments with you.”
“You keep a list?” Beth asked, intrigued. “What’s on it?”
Sarah eyed her, a smile curling at the corners of her mouth. “Oh, all sorts of things,” she said gently. “We may have had our ups and downs, but I have always loved every moment of raising Lily with you. I mean, we did create damn near perfection.”
“We did, didn’t we?” Beth agreed, grateful, as always, for having someone like Sarah in her life.
THREE
SARAH
JULY
Thwack!
The blade of an axe biting into dense wood echoed across the still water. Sarah sipped her iced tea, squinting into the Minnesota summer sun. Her eyes fixed on Nell, standing a little ways away near the woodpile, backdropped by towering trees. Warm light filtered through leaves, illuminating Nell in an almost surreal way, making her look like a literal goddess of the forest.
