Page 34 of Love Song, Take Two

“Okay, how about this one?”

Looking over her shoulder, she smiled at the T-shirt Emery held up—Rainbow Brite sat astride Starlite, while the rest of the Color Kids stood in the background. “Only if they have it in my size too.”

Emery grinned and then got to rummaging, while Micah turned back to the dresses. Her whole life, she’d been told to hide her curves and not wear anything that would accentuate the wide shape of her body. So now that she could make her own clothing decisions, she always turned to dresses and skirts. She liked flaunting her legs and thick arms, she liked dresses that cinched at the waist and moved when she did. She even liked plunging necklines, because her breasts were great and it would be a shame to hide them away.

While Emery picked up random things, Micah’s thrift purchases were always things she could wear to work or nights out with her girls. Which was why she had a bunch of dresses spread out across the table, scrutinizing each one and making sure that she would actually wear them one day. Her eyes landed on the red dress, liking that it was casual and could be worn for any occasion, but specifically perfect for Christmas. While she’d outgrown the excitement around the holiday as a jaded young adult, Micah held it together for Emery. Her daughter loved the holiday and waited with bated breath for December to roll around. They’d already pulled out all the decorations with the intention of getting everything up in the first week. Despite her dislike for the season, Micah was a good mother and that meant she would pull out all the stops for Emery.

Including buying a red dress to wear for their annual mother-daughter hot cocoa date.

Even though they’d skipped Santa’s Village a few years—following Hank’s death—Micah was hoping to convince Emery to go back that year. The year after Hank died, they’d spent it with Micah’s parents and it had been most unpleasant; they stressed Emery out about her clothes, eating and lifestyle habits. It was a whole mess. Another time, they’d gone with Sadie and Tatum to Telluride for the holidays and it was a perfect escape. Emery had been ready to meet the new Santa the year before, but changed her mind at the last minute.

While she’d never push her daughter, Micah knew that encouraging her to do things she used to like was a step in the healing process. She’d was back at Big Waves for the first time in four years. Emery might be able to handle Santa’s Village too.

“I like that one, Mama,” Emery said from behind her and her heart clenched at the use of the term. “The color will look good on you too.”

“Yeah?” She held the red dress against her torso, striking a pose for her daughter. Emery rolled her eyes, but gave Micah a thumbs up before moving on.

Closing her eyes to savor the moment, Micah smiled to herself. When Emery was little, she only called her Mama for a few years. Obviously being around other kids introduced her to the Mom term and she switched. Every now and then, Emery would still call her Mama and Micah’s heart would explode with love for her daughter. She might be fourteen going on forty, but her little girl was the light of her life.

With Emery in her line of vision, Micah continued to examine the dresses she’d set aside. Four different colored outfits lay in front of her, including the red one Emery had already signed off on. The black dress was a little fancier than she was used to, but it would join her collection of LBDs, so it was a must have. Especially with the sheer bottom half and the deep neck that would accentuate her cleavage. The lavender dress was sleeveless and reminded her of the one she wore the day before with Fletcher. He hadn’t really said anything about her clothes, but she saw the way he looked at her. That was enough. The final dress was one that Sadie would be proud of her for even considering—a full length black wrap dress with large flowers, made of soft material and hugged every inch of her body. It also had a slit that would flash her legs and that made it even better. Given that she so rarely found sexy dresses like that in her size, Micah didn’t even think twice about adding it to her pile. She’d find an occasion to wear it one way or another.

Gathering the dresses into their shopping bag, Micah set it to the side and tried on a few earrings. She eyed the bracelets, remembering how Fletcher kept the ones she’d left in his hotel room even though he was allergic to it. If she asked him for it, Fletcher would give them back, but she liked the idea of him always having a piece of her. Adding a few pairs of earrings to her selection, Micah smiled when Emery hurried over and dumped her things in the bag as well.

This was the one time Micah didn’t give her daughter a budget. While she wasn’t living paycheck to paycheck, she also didn’t want Emery to think they had lots of money to splurge and spend as they pleased. She got a monthly allowance that she was very good with and on their thrifting days, Micah let Emery go wild. Besides, before they cashed out, they would always double check their choices, so she knew that even though Emery was picking up the randomest of things, half of them would stay in the store when they left.

“I think I’m done,” Emery said, peering into the bag and gasped as she pulled out the black dress. “Damn, Mom. This is hot.”

“Thought I’d take a chance, you know?”

“You’ll look amazing in this.”

“Thanks, kid,” Micah told her daughter, blushing slightly at the compliment. She’d never been good at saying ‘thanks’ when people said something nice.

Emery narrowed her eyes. “You’re hot, Mom. It’s weird when my friends say it, but you’re crazy beautiful.”

Hand over her heart, Micah smiled. “I love you, Em.”

“I love you too. Now can we please stop with the teary eyes? It’s getting weird.”

She laughed and pulled Emery in for a hug, sighing happily when she hugged her back. Everyone told her that the older her daughter got, the less affectionate she’d become. And Micah was preparing for it, which meant never taking all the hugs and moments like these for granted.

“All right, let’s sort through our piles,” Micah said, blinking back tears as she and Emery went through their selection. Despite putting most of it aside, they still walked out of the store with three shopping bags full of things.

Tatum

Location for tonight:

*address for The Loose Lasso*

Sadie

Why are we going somewhere new?

Tatum

Because we’ve been through the pool of datable people at our usual haunts. Mama needs variety.

Micah

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