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“Lavigne, Joel. Then he’s been carrying around the weight of thinking he was responsible for Curtis’ death. Before I knew his team had me in their sights, he looked out for me. I want to do this for him because I know he’ll appreciate it…even if he might wind up looking at it with his dick in his hand.”
His eyes narrowed. “You’re not funny.”
“You brought it up. I never even considered it.”
“It’s what I would do.”
She laughed. “I love you, Joel Lattimore.”
“You better.” He swatted her on the butt. “One picture. If he sneezes or blinks or some shit, no do-overs.”
“Got it. No do-overs.”
She kissed him, reluctantly let him go, and headed toward Adrían. Adrían looked around as if he didn’t see her coming, but when his gaze settled on her, it didn’t shake.
“Hey, come take a picture with me,” she said.
He followed her to the trees.
Had she still been a student, she would have written her dissertation on manifestations of love for people like the guys—the importance of having a symbol of “home” outside of a physical place. In many ways, it could be argued that they loved quickly, and they definitely loved hard, but they didn’t love indiscriminately. No one easily won their hearts, yet it was a free fall into love when they found someone who made them see a clearer reason why the world was worth their blood.
With the right blueprint, she was sure even a dickhead like Lavigne could be manipulated.
Adrían snaked an arm around her waist.
She leaned against his side.
The photographer snapped.
“Obrigado, Ayesha,” Adrían whispered. “I will treasure it.”
* * *
She and Joel ate, danced, and went around receiving hugs and congratulations. Halfway through the reception, every step Ayesha took felt like she was walking on knives, so Tayler fetched her a pair of yellow Converse sneakers.
Hours later, even the Converse were beginning to tap out, so she found a quiet corner, plopped down on a folding chair, and exhaled. Joel was still chatting and laughing with guests, but she could tell even his Lithium ion social battery was nearly empty.
Jemma and Archie had Theo.
Josiah and Malia were the epitome of adolescent awkwardness at a giant Connect Four game board as part of a series of lawn games they’d installed for the guests. Malia’s crush was as palpable as Josiah’s, but they were both probably confused as to how they’d gone from friends to seeing each other in a different light. A light they stared at when the other wasn’t looking.
Malia’s parents and grandparents moved to Maui from Papua New Guinea when Malia was younger, although her grandparents, on both sides, didn’t permanently relocate until after the accident. Mo and Ari knew her family, which they’d learned when Josiah introduced her to everyone the day she and her father flew in.
No one teased him in front of his crush.
Malia was a good kid from a good family. Yet, Ayesha was in no way ready for Josiah to experience feelings outside of loving books, skateboards, and video games. Books and video games could break hearts, though only temporarily, but she had no control over who he would eventually choose to love or when it would happen.
If he did get his heart broken at some point, it was part of life. Still, it was a part she would try, like hell, to shield him from for as long as possible, especially after losing his father the way he had. Unfortunately, one day, she’d be forced to accept that she couldn’t spend her life blinding him to the world and then expect to send him out into it.
She rubbed her stomach.
Now, she had a third little one to worry over.
When she first got pregnant with Josiah, she’d been more afraid than excited. She’d worried about odd things, like whether there was enough room in her slender frame for the baby to grow; whether the sip of wine she’d had at a friend’s party months before she met Curtis could still harm the baby, and whether she could physically push when the time came.
With Theo, grief cloaked most of her worries.
With this baby, she found more peace than anxiousness.
