Elena looked over at my aunt, looking unsure of herself for the first time since I’d met her.
“Why do you ask?”
“Well, I’m still in college, but I’m working on my first fashion line and it’s a hard industry to break into. I need connections for internships and eventually I’ll need investors, so I figured while I was around all you richy-rich folks, I should find out if there are any opportunities.”
“What kind of fashion line are you planning?”
Elena glared at me, like the very notion of revealing her passion was too vulnerable for her. “I want to do queer-inclusive, high-end fashion.”
I raised both eyebrows and fought an impressed smile since she seemed to avoid praise. “That’s a unique subset of fashion. Tell me more about it.”
“I want to have gender fluidity in the designs, with an entire line designed for people who identify as nonbinary, and I want to make femme and masc clothes that are gender agnostic and match what the queer people in my life actually want to wear.”
“Elena, that’s areallycool idea,” I said, unable to hide how impressed I was.
She waved me off. “Okay, yeah, well, I need investors and connections so maybe I could have a contact or two, since you like the idea.”
I shook my head. “We need to work on how you pitch yourself and your brand. But if you’ll let me, I will personally invest in that.”
Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. “I’m asking for a phone number, dude, not your wallet.”
“I’m offering you both,” I said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Just think about it. You’ll need a hefty amount upfront and I’m willing to foot the entire thing. I’ve seen your sketches and designs, and a good portion of my donations go to the queer community anyway.”
She seemed too surprised for words, so I asked another question. “Are you planning to move here to Boston? Because your mom might not survive, though I’m sure Sophia would be thrilled.”
Elena shook her head. “Hawaii is my home, and I won’t be changing my mind for a partner like Soph did. Plus, my mom would honestly have a stroke.”
“Not even for the person with the other half of that matching tattoo I designed for you?” I teased. “Will I ever get to meet this mystery woman?”
Elena’s throat bobbed as she swallowed. “She would never want to live in Boston; not to mention we haven’t spoken in a year and my parents don’t even know we were together.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You seemed pretty convinced—”
“Yeah, I know. Drop it, money man,” she said sternly as she ran her hand over the side of her abdomen.
“I’m sorry, Elena,” I said, feeling remorseful for joking about something that had clearly caused the light in her eyes to dim. “If you want to run your business out of Oahu, I can help you set it up when you graduate. Just say the word.”
“Thank you,” she said.
I hugged her again as Olivia and Kayden came over with Kaylee who had fallen asleep on Kayden’s shoulder. I smiled at them. “Looks like we better get her home.” I released Elena. “Call me when you’re ready to talk more about it. We’ll go from co-best friends to business partners if you want.”
“Thanks, dork,” she said with a smile.
I took Olivia’s hand as we made our way to the car. Kayden strapped Kaylee into her car seat and Liv climbed into the back seat with her. I got in the driver’s seat and leaned over to give Kayden a kiss when he sat down next to me.
“Do we all have baby fever now or is it just me? Cause I want to go home and get started on making one,” I said with a laugh.
“We do,” Kayden agreed, taking my hand as I started to pull out of the parking garage. “I was thinking that maybe we should make sure our second kid is yours genetically if we’re pretty sure we only want two.”
I kissed his hand. “I don’t care about paternity at all. I already know I’m perfectly capable of loving a kid that is a little bit of each of you,” I said, smiling at Olivia in my rearview mirror.
She smiled back while Kayden kept talking. “But I want a kid with your eyes. I want to seeyouin our kids, just as much as I see myself in Kaylee.”
“We don’t have to be intentional about it though,” I said, loving the idea of seeing a piece of me in our child. “I guess what I’m saying is, no matter what, we’ll do the same thing we did for Kaylee and we’ll all be their parents and I’ll be happy.”
Kayden nodded. “I will too, but we could at least try tipping the odds in your favor.”
I looked in the rearview mirror, pulling out onto the street. “What about you, Liv? What do you think?”
