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She smiles, and I smile back. It’s such a lovely thing to say. Ethan is Noah’s baby in every way except blood. He even delivered him. I still can’t believe that. I’d have been frightened witless if a friend went into labor, but even though Noah’s wife had died in childbirth, along with the baby, Noah stayed by Abby’s side until the baby was born.
They’re getting married at Christmas. Noah’s agoraphobia has been so much better that he’s said he’s going to fly everyone somewhere exotic for the wedding.
“Any idea where the wedding is going to be, yet?” I ask Abby.
She shakes her head. “We’re still thinking about it. I worry a little that when it’s time to get on the plane, he’s going to freeze, but he seems confident he’ll be okay, and he’s certainly been better lately.”
“You’ve been good for him,” I tell her. “He’s so happy right now.”
“Aw.” She stretches out her legs and sips her tea. “Yeah, I have to admit, life could be a lot worse.”
We’re in the conservatory at Noah’s house, looking out over the Bay of Islands. It’s a bright, blustery spring day, and their two German Shepherds are lying on the deck, enjoying the warm breeze.
I’ve been coming over a lot since Abby had the baby. I love seeing Ethan, and Abby and I have struck up a friendship, which I’m enjoying. I don’t make friends easily, and I suspect she doesn’t either, so it’s nice for the two of us to have someone to chat to.
Noah’s working in his office, and Abby has been baking this morning, filling the house with the mouthwatering aroma of sponge cakes. She’s been posting recordings of herself decorating fancy cakes on YouTube, and she already has tons of followers. We’re having a slice of one of the cakes now with our coffee—a jam-and-cream-filled sponge topped with Disney characters made from fondant icing. She definitely has a talent for it.
“Have you got something on your mind?” Abby asks. “You seem distracted.”
I don’t answer for a moment, smiling at Ethan, who has opened his eyes and is looking up at me. He grabs my finger and tries to put it in his mouth and suck it. I laugh and kiss his head.
“Sort of,” I reply finally. I’ve been trying to pluck up the courage to talk to Abby about this. I can’t think of anyone else to talk to. My mother would always help me if she could, but this isn’t the type of thing you talk to your mom about. Izzy would have been another option, but she’s in Fiji on her honeymoon with Hal. Nix and Remy are both younger than me, and although they’re both very open, I don’t feel comfortable talking about this with them. My sister is the other option, but although Summer and I are close, I kinda don’t want to admit to her that I have a problem in this area.
“I wondered whether I could ask you a personal question,” I begin.
“Of course.” Abby accepts Ethan from me as he starts to grizzle, puts him to the breast, then smiles at me. “Fire away.”
“It’s a little embarrassing.” I study my hands. “It’s about sex.”
“Oh, okay! Well, I’m hardly the expert.” She laughs. “Although if Noah has anything to do with it, I will be soon.”
That makes me chuckle. I love the fact that Noah’s finally getting some after so many years of solitude. “That’s good to hear.” I curl up in the chair and warm my hands on my mug of coffee. “The thing is… I’ve been talking to someone… a guy… and he said something I didn’t believe, but he got me wondering… and I feel I need to ask someone else to find out, because it’s not really the kind of thing you can Google and be sure you’re getting the right answer, you know?”
“Sort of. I do know that I found it very helpful when Summer was so open with me. I’ve never really had the kind of friends you could talk to about sex, but she made it seem very normal to be able to discuss everything.”
“Yes,” I agree, “she’s very down to earth.”
“So what did this guy say to you?” Abby asks. She doesn’t press me to find out who he is yet.
