Mom waves her off. “You don’t have to apologize for your family, Lauren. I’m grateful that you’ve given us such a large one, to be honest. This trip up has been fantastic. Besides, Aaron’s parents are getting the brunt of it, and that just screamskarmato me.”
Marcus chuckles. “That’s what I was just saying too.”
Mom grins and turns her attention to me. “Your nana, Ned, and I are about to rescue them anyway. The six of us, including Aaron, are taking Cam out to lunch. I’m just letting you know, before we head out.”
I snort. “You seriously think Nana will behave herself?”
Mom smirks. “Probably not, but at her age, her behavior seems a little more permissible, I suppose. We’d have invited you to come along as well, but I know you’ve still got a handful here,” she adds, her eyes flicking between the three of us.
“That we do,” Marcus replies. “Thank you for the offer though.”
“We’ll be back in time for your softball game,” she adds before heading back inside the house, referencing the home game we have tonight for the adult league Marcus and I joined—because, yeah, we don’t have enough things on our plate, we apparently needed to add more.
Gannett roped us into it, even though he himself doesn’t play. He’s on his husband Gordy's cheering squad. Yep, they got married. Lost myself fifty dollars onthatbet because I never thought they’d get hitched. I assumed they’d be like Marcus, Lauren, and me—being perfectly content with never tying the knot.
Sure, the three of us talked about it, but we’ve always landed on the same answer—not for us. I’ve been married before, and, for what it’s worth, Istillconsider Aaron my husband. I took vows to him, and, despite our forced divorce—which his parents did apologize to me for a while ago—those promises I made to him on our wedding day still hold true.
Lauren and Marcus still seem satisfied with their common-law arrangement as well. They still refer to each other as husband and wife, and now I am an honorary husband too. If there ever comes a day when polyamorous marriages become legal, we may revisit the topic, but that’s unlikely anytime within our lifetime. The status quo is good enough for us anyway. We know our love is enough.
“Mum! Dad!” Brody hoots, popping his head out. “Grandad wants to take me, an’ Harrison, an’ Ryker to the arcade. Can we?”
Yeah, that’s right. Ryker’s in the boys’ BFF squad now. Still not entirely sure what changed there, but, uh, the three of them are pretty much inseparable these days.
Marcus’ brows pinch. “Grandad actuallysaidhe wanted to take you, or you conned him into it?”
Lorenzo steps behind Brody. “I told him I’d take him to go do whatever he wanted to do today for his birthday. He said he wanted to hang out with his friends. Do I particularly care to go to an arcade? No. But for my grandson, I’m willing to accommodate…”
Marcus snorts. “Funny, you’ll do it forhim.”
His father gives him a withering glare. “I have made strides to be more accepting of you as well, have I not?”
I wouldn’t say that, in the months since that Christmas where everything came to light, Lorenzo has been themostaccepting, but he has made an effort. I still think he has a long way to go, and the two of them—Marcus and his father—have a lot of communication that still needs to happen, but they’re slowly making headway. Kimber, Marcus’ mother, has been a hell of a lot more open-minded, and, for that, I’m truly astonished. She reminds Lorenzo all the time of what he stands to lose if he cuts Marcus out of his life.
Lorenzo did thank me once, for being a part of Marcus’ life. For providing his son with some guidance and stability that he felt Marcus needed, especially when it came to holding down a job. We didn’t hug on it or anything, but I did see some earnest respect in his delivery. Lorenzo Antonucci is definitely a hardened man, for sure, so that crack of vulnerability I saw in him that day meant a lot.
Marcus wobbles his head. “Yeah, I guess you have. Let me go in and grab my wallet, I’ll give the boys some spending cash…”
“Thanks, Dad!” Brody chirps.
Lorenzo holds up his hand. “It’s okay, Marcus. I’ve got it covered.” Then, his gaze drops down to his son’s attire. “Fleetwood Mac, huh? Good choice. Took Kimber to see them in concert once, you know. Bought myself a shirt just like that, actually. Not sure whatever happened to it. Knowing your mom, she probably threw it out when Inever wore it after that concert, but how could I? The thing was signed by Stevie Nicks herself. I wasn’t about to wash it.”
“Where was it autographed?” I ask him, and Lauren interprets for me.
“On the inside, underneath the tag.”
I smirk and flash my hands for Marcus. “You're wearing your dad’s old shirt, I think.”
“Seriously?!” he replies, twisting the neckline around so he can see it. Sure enough, he spies the faded signature. “Huh, what are the friggin’ odds! I mean, she must have signed thousands of shirts like this, right?”
Lorenzo narrows his eyes. “Yes, but let me see…” He steps over, and Marcus tugs the shirt off over his head, revealing his pierced nipples to his father, who simply shakes his head at the sight of them.
“You see right here?” Lorenzo points at an illegible part of the autograph. “It says ‘To Lo-’ Christ, thisismy shirt! Did you steal this out of my closet, Marcus?”
He shakes his head. “It’s C’s shirt. I stole it fromhiscloset.”
I sign. “I found it thrifting online.”
Lorenzo clutches the shirt to his chest after Lauren repeats my words to him. “May I have it back?” he asks me.
