Alex pushes her back our way. He turns to Luca and Calvin, circling a finger by his temple.
I take Joan’s hand. “Don’t listen to him, sweetie. As usual, Tom’s full of shit.”
My guy grins at me, dimples cutting deep into his cheeks. Infuriating things. They make me forgive him every damn time. His hand finds my hip, a bit of damage control. Unnecessary, but I’m not complaining.
“I know,” Joan says with dramatic flair. “But could you imagine? That would’ve been so scandalous.”
“So, so scandalous,” Luca murmurs behind her ear.
Joan spins around, swatting him in the side.
“Fuck off, Gianluca di Marzio! Wait until I slash your tires and you’re begging your mum for a ride to town.”
“Oh yeah? Like when you poured water in my gas tank and it turned out to be Cheryl’s car?”
The boys nearly fall off their chairs laughing. Joan lets out a very guilty giggle.
I laugh too. It’s that or crying, because this family keeps finding new ways to prove they’re completely insane.
Tom takes both of Joan’s hands.
“Baby, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Yosh and me. That’s why you were upset yesterday, wasn’t it?”
She shrugs. “I’m sorry too, for running away from the dinner table, I just thought…Tom and Joan don’t keep secrets from each other. That’s what you’ve told me ever since I can remember. Whenever I was dealing with stuff and too scared to say it out loud, you’d remind me of that. So I always told you everything.”
She looks away. “We were one.”
Tears gather in her eyes. Her long lashes try to hide them, but they’re there. Tom sees them too. I can’t say I didn’t see this coming.
The moment I watched them together at SeaBreeze, I knew what they had was something rare. My head was filled with questions. And yes, there was the occasional stab of jealousy that night.
But meeting the rest of this family clarifies things, such as the two wild souls of Tom and Joan McKenna only ever had each other. In the wolf pack they were pushed to the back. Denied the space to shine, even though they’re the most artistically gifted of them all.
Jay rules. Tom fails.
Effy chosen. Joan abandoned.
She was right. They were one. And she probably thinks I’m the one who broke them apart.
“Baby, I—”
Joan cuts him off, laying a finger on his lips.
“Shh, babe. Please. I want to say that I’m proud of you for choosing your own path. And for finding a cute guy for us along the way.” Her smile widens bright and big.
“I think it’s time we become two. And not only that, three! Three is better!”
There’s a lot happening before I can process that fully. Joan throws her arms around me, pressing her cheek into my neck.
“Bestie!” she chirps against my chest.
My hand finds her hair where I give a few hesitant pats. She’s kind of wrecking her own point by dragging me into their bond. But hey, at least she doesn’t want me dead, so I’ll take the win.
My lips form a small smile. I belong to Joan McKenna now. I like the sound of that. Nothing here is perfect. These people are far from it. Still, I’m relieved not everyone in this house is against me.
What if I can finally stop running? What if loving Tom and our small circle of people could be enough this time? What if Heatherfell isn’t something I need to survive, but something I can learn to live in on my own terms?
But what if it’s all an illusion, and I’m nowhere near safe?
