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"She put her on restriction for life. And made her wear clothes from the sale rack at Fred Meyer," Tully answered.
Marah shuddered at the thought.
"Polyester," Kate added. "For an entire summer I was afraid to be near open flames. "
"You two are lying to me," Marah said, crossing her arms.
"Us? Lie? Never," Tully said, taking a sip of her drink.
Marah got out of her chair, gave them a long-suffering sigh, and headed back into the house. As soon as the door banged shut, Tully and Kate laughed.
"Tell me we werent like that," Tully said.
"My mom swears I was. You were little Miss Perfect around her. Until you got us arrested, that is. "
"The first chink in the armor. "
Laughing, Kate sat down in the Adirondack chair beside her, wrapping herself in one of her moms afghans.
Tully hadnt realized how tense shed been, how tight her neck and shoulders had become, until that moment, when she began to relax. As always, Kate was her safety net, her security blanket. With her best friend beside her, she could finally trust herself. She leaned back in her chair and stared up at the night sky. Shed never been one of those people who felt insignificant beneath the heavens, but suddenly she understood why some people did; it was a matter of perspective. Shed spent so much of her life in a rush for the finish line that shed been left out of breath. If shed paid a little more attention to the scenery and a little less to the goal line, she might not be here now, a forty-two-year-old single woman searching for the tattered remnant of a family.
"So, are you going to make me ask?" Kate finally said.
There was no point in hiding the truth, although she had an almost instinctive need to do just that. The music changed to ABBA, "Knowing Me, Knowing You. " "I saw Chad," she said quietly.
"A few months ago, right? In Central Park?"
"Yeah. "
"And seeing him then made you jump on a plane and fly out to see me now. I completely understand. "
Before Tully could answer, the door opened behind them again and Johnny walked out, holding a beer. Dragging another chair over to where they were, he sat down. The three of them formed a ragged semicircle in the grassy yard and faced the dark Sound. Moonlight illuminated the waves that lapped against the sand. "Has she told you yet?"
"What are you two, telepaths?" Tully said. "I was just getting started. "
"Actually," Kate said, "she reminded me that she saw Chad a couple of months ago. "
"Ah," Johnny said, nodding as if that explained Tullys unexpected cross-country trip.
"What does that mean, ah?" she asked, irritated suddenly. It was exactly what Chad had done.
"Hes your Moby-Dick," Johnny answered.
Tully gave him a look. "I never said a thing about his dick. "
"Come on, Tully," Kate said, putting her hand on her husbands arm. "Whats the matter?"
She looked at both of them, sitting so close together, a wife and husband who still laughed together and touched each other after so many years of marriage, and her chest felt tight with longing. "Im tired of being alone," she finally said. Shed held the words back so long that when they finally came out they sounded worn, as polished as beach stones.
"What about Grant?" Johnny asked.
"I thought you said Chad lived with a woman," Kate said, leaning forward.
"This isnt really about Chad. I mean, it is, but not in the way you think. He pointed out that I have a family," Tully said.
Kate drew back. "You mean Cloud?"
"Shes my mother. "
