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“You look tan. Did you spend a lot of time outside?” he asks, taking a seat at the head of the table, across from Ava at the other end. I follow suit, a bit annoyed when Maddox purposefully takes the spot next to Adalyn, leaving me beside Oakley.
“We did, actually! I had no idea Cooper was such a water bug until I had to drag him out of the ocean in Paris,” Addie jumps in, eyes on me, suddenly so full of mischief.
It’s her attempt at bringing some ease to the heavy conversation and calm my anxiety, but when memories of what else we did so close to that ocean fill my head, I become the furthest thing from calm. I cough into my fist and focus on the angry man sitting beside me.
Oakley has never been anything but supportive and kind to me, but as his glare burns into the side of my head, I know he would throw me in a snake pit without a second thought.
Dad smacks my shoulder and grins at Addie. “You must bring out that side of him. I haven’t seen him go into the ocean since the last time I brought him to the beach as a kid.”
“You know what, I think you’re right. I don’t remember the last time he joined us on any beach trips,” she replies.
“I wasn’t aware you had been paying attention to whether Cooper joined us anywhere when you were younger,” Maddox butts in.
She turns narrowed eyes on him. “I wasn’t. And you damn well know that. But it wasn’t hard to tell when he didn’t come with you somewhere. You would pout and grumble every time. It was almost as bad as if Braxton didn’t come.”
“I think it’s fair to close down all thoughts of Adalyn and Cooper having been interested in one another before this trip. Right?” Ava asks the table.
“Yes,” I state over an array of accepting hums.
Oakley leans forward, clearing his throat. “I want Cooper to explain to me how this happened.”
“I’m not a fan of how this feels like we’re being asked to explain ourselves after being caught sneaking out as teenagers. We’re not children, Dad. We’re adults,” Adalyn tries but is quickly shut down.
“You will always be my little girl, Adalyn. That will never change. I won’t accept this as it stands right now. This is not how you were supposed to get married. Honey, you don’t even have a real ring. This isn’t right for you. You deserve better,” he breathes, wringing his hands on the table.
Ava sighs, and I grimace, the realization of what Oakley’s feeling striking deep. He’s not angry. He’s hurt and worried and blaming me for not giving his daughter what she deserves.
“I love you, Dad, but you don’t get to decide what I deserve or what’s right for me,” she tells him. He goes to reply, but she shakes her head, addressing the entire table this time.
“As you all know, we didn’t plan on getting married. It was a drunken idea that we ended up turning into a reality. But that’s just it. It was anideaonbothparts. It’s not fair to put the blame on Cooper because he’s older. I’m a twenty-one-year-old woman. I had just as good of a shot to say no as he did. So please, stop painting me as the victim here. And I love the ring I have, by the way.”
“You have options, right? Can you get a divorce?” Maddox asks, his voice slightly calmer than just minutes ago.
“An annulment would be faster. But they have to be approved for one,” Oakley says.
Adalyn’s eyes meet mine across the table, and the softness I find there makes my lungs squeeze and lock. It’s impossible to pretend I’m not already obsessed with her. Every pastel, sparky, extroverted part of her. I’m grateful I’m sitting because my legs go weak when she tugs her lips into a discreet smile. One just for me.
The words just burst out of me, and for the first time in my life, I don’t care how they make anyone but her feel.
“We’re trying for an annulment, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t anything real between us. Because there is. I want to explore it, and I think she does too. Whether we have your support or not.”
Ava sucks in a sharp breath, and Dad laughs softly. I don’t look at her brother or father to see their reactions. Not when Adalyn grins that dimpled smile at me.
“Youwouldtell me this in front of everyone,” she says.
I wink. “You’re nothing if not a grand-gesture type of woman.”
“Fuck my life,” Maddox mutters.
“I think I would have preferred if you had brought your better half with you today,” Addie tells him.
He flips her the finger. “I’m sure you’ll tattle on me to her soon enough.”
“Already done, bro. Let me know how the doghouse treats you tonight. I think we’re expecting rain.”
“Don’t think I’ve forgiven either of you yet. I just need some time to recover from the torture of having to watch you give googly eyes at each other for the past ten minutes.”
“I don’t need your forgiveness. We’re family. You don’t have a choice but to love me. Give it a few days and you’ll be inviting me over to babysit Liam again.”
