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“Because you were sneaking around behind my back. That gives me the ick.”
Oh no, not the ick. “We really did want to tell you, Lily. You’re my best friend. I tell you everything.”
Her eyebrows rise. “Except that you’re fucking my father.”
Alex’s hand tightens in mine. “Don’t say that again.”
Her petite nostrils flare. “I think I can say what I want. I really want to hate you both right now.”
I touch her arm. “Lily, please, our friendship means the world to me…” My throat tightens with fear. If we lose Lily, I’ll never forgive myself. She’s not just my best friend. And even though I can never tell her that she’s so much more, it doesn’t change my feelings for her.
She sits on the couch and puts her face in her hands, her shiny black hair falling over her like a curtain. After a few moments, she finally looks up at us.
“Okay. I’m calmer now,” she says, shaking her hair back into place. “Here’s the thing. Penny, when we were in high school, you decided we were going to be friends. For whatever reason, which I still don’t understand, you changed my life. I was in a seriously messed-up place mentally and you pulled me out of that. You gave me confidence. You made me feel special. And you really helped me and Dad learn to get along. I love you for all of that.”
Every word drives a bittersweet ache in the center of my chest. “Lily—”
She puts her hand up. “Let me finish.” She turns to Alex. “When I got pregnant, I was scared out of my freakin’ mind. I had no idea how I was going to take care of a baby and keep him safe. But you immediately stepped up to take care of both of us. You never judged me or made me feel like I made a mistake, and you never said I told you so about Jeff, even though you were right about him being a total asshole. You’re an amazing father and grandfather. So even though I’m really pissed at both of you, you both accepted me when I needed it, so now I’m going to do the same for you. The three of us are a family, and now we have Brian and Marcus. To be honest, I just can’t picture either of you with someone else.”
My heart skips as I realize that, on some subconscious level, Lily felt the connection, too, not just between me and Alex, but between me and her.
Her acceptance has me so relieved I can’t control myself anymore. I rush across the room, pull her off the couch, and hug her. “You have no idea how much that means to us. We wanted to tell you, Lily. We were just afraid of upsetting you. Especially after you got engaged. You’re so happy.”
“I want you to be happy, too.”
After she hugs me, she puts her arm around her dad. “I’m glad you’re not going to be living here all by yourself,” she says to him. “I was worried about that.”
We share a smile over Lily’s shoulder. He’s beaming.
The last weight that’s been sitting in my chest melts away.
My family is together, and we’re happy.
Really, truly, happy.
Chapter 51
PENNY - SIX MONTHS LATER
A text message alert chimes from my phone as I’m walking across the parking lot to my car.
Yes, I finally have my first car. A small, white SUV that passed Alex’s safety requirements.
As I buckle myself in behind the wheel, I dig my phone out of my purse and smile at the screen.
Alex:
I miss you. When are you coming home?
I miss you, too. :-) I’m leaving work now. I’m going to stop at the café and get us some of that creamy chicken rice soup for dinner.
Alex:
Mmm. Almost as yummy as you. :-) Hurry home, it’s been nine hours and six minutes since I last kissed you.
That’s way too long.
Alex:
Damn right it is. xo
I find a parking spot at the traffic oval near the café, but I can’t resist wandering into the antique store that just opened a few weeks ago. Now that Alex and I are officially living together as a couple, I want to buy a few things to decorate the place and make it a little more mine.
A little more new me.
A wrought iron table lamp with a red tasseled shade catches my eye, and I put it in my basket. It’ll match the living room couch and chair perfectly. I have the perfect spot for it on the end table where I keep my books. As I head to the register, my eyes land on a small metal toucan sculpture made of random metal household objects, with a can opener for a beak. I’m drawn to it like a beacon. I run my fingers over it, thinking I’ve never seen any other work similar to Alex’s, so I have to buy it.
