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“Really?” James looks at me, wide eyed in shock. “Why?”
“Because I was an ogre.”
“You were?” He sounds genuinely scared.
“Don’t worry. She turned me into a human.”
They both look at me. James is waiting for confirmation. “I guess I did,” I tell him, spearing a meatball with my fork. “But he can still be an ogre sometimes.”
Marco roars, banging his chest with his fists.
“That’s a gorilla, daddy,” James says. “Not an ogre. An ogre does this.” He frowns in concentration. “Actually, I don’t know what an ogre does.”
“Makes children eat their veggies,” I say, pointing at his plate. “Now dig in.”
I look across at Marco. He’s smiling at me. “What?” I say. “Have I got something in my teeth?”
“Just thinking,” he says.
James points at him. “No soppy things at the table.”
“I’ll save it for later,” Marco says, winking at me. “Right?”
“I can’t wait,” I reply, watching as he swallows down a laugh.
We carry on eating. I sit back in my seat, thinking he’s kind of right. He was an ogre. A monster. A beast. But now he’s human.
Mostly.
Except in the bedroom, where he can still be an animal sometimes. But that’s something you’ll never hear me complaining about.
When we’re done eating, Marco takes James outside to play. I put my feet up on the couch and close my eyes. I don’t know what I did to deserve such a perfect family. I’m just grateful that my past hasn’t defined my future.
I’m happy. I’m content. That’s all I ever wanted out of life.
I open my eyes again. I don’t want to nap. I want to be with my family.
I head outside to join them, just in time to see James being dumped into the paddling pool with an enormous splash. “You next,” Marco says, picking me up as I shriek in protest. He dumps me beside James, soaking my bikini bottoms.
“Now you, Daddy.” James shrieks with joy.
Marco takes one look at me and then grins, leaping into the air and landing right in the middle of the pool, soaking us both with a huge splash of water.
The sound of our laughter drifts out over the bay, mingling with the gentle ripple of the waves on the golden shore far below us.
