Page 32 of Alice & Meg, Girls Trip

“What the hell is that about?” Karmen asked, her voice low and tense.

I shook my head, my eyes narrowing as I watched the woman. She grabbed the little girl from the water, yanking her away from Lennox with a force that made my blood boil. The girl protested, her face crumpling in confusion, but the womandidn’t seem to care. She dragged the child out of the pool as if Lennox were some kind of leper, not even sparing Lennox a second glance.

The girl’s cries echoed in my ears as the woman stormed off, leaving Lennox standing there, looking like she had been slapped. My heart ached for her, for the way that woman had treated her as if she were nothing. I wanted to go over there, to do something, but before I could move, Lennox turned and walked back toward us, her face pale and her eyes downcast.

“What happened?” Wendy asked as Lennox approached, concern etched in her features.

Lennox shook her head, a small, sad smile playing at her lips. “I don’t know. I was just talking to the little girl about her floaties, and then her mom came over and... well, you saw what happened.”

“That woman acted like you were going to hurt her kid or something,” Karmen said, her voice sharp with indignation.

Lennox shrugged, but I could see the hurt in her eyes. “Some people are just like that, I guess.” She motioned to the tattoos that covered a good bit of her body. “She told me she didn’t appreciate trash talking to her daughter.”

I stood and tried to get eyes on the bitchy woman. “What a fucking bitch,” I muttered, still seething as I watched the woman disappear into the crowd. “You didn’t deserve that, Lennox.”

Lennox forced a smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”

But I knew she wasn’t. I could see it in the way she held herself, in the way she avoided our eyes. That woman had gotten to her, made her feel small, and it made me want to scream. Lennox was one of the kindest, most genuine people I knew, and to see her treated like that—it was infuriating.

“I’m going after her,” I muttered.

Lennox grabbed my arm before I could take a step. “No, Meg. Don’t. That woman is her mom, and if she doesn’t want her daughter talking to me, then that is her prerogative.”

“You mean her fucked up prerogative,” Karmen growled.

I tried to wretch my arm from her hold.

“Please, no,” Lennox whispered. I could feel the hurt in her voice.

“Fine,” I muttered and sat down. “But if I see her boney ass around the campground, I’m going to tell her to–”

“Meg,” Karmen called and motioned to quiet down.

“Have a nice day,” I finished.

Alice, Greta, and Cyn floated to the edge of the pool by us.

“Everything okay?” Alice asked.

I glanced at Lennox, who shook her head.

“All good,” I called. I could feel that Lennox was embarrassed by what happened when she should have slapped the woman in her damn face.

Who was she to judge someone by the way they looked?

“I think we’re about ready to get out,” Greta said.

“Once Reva, Paige, and Nikki come back, we should head back to the campsite and start dinner,” I said, trying to not let on that I was pissed as hell.

Alice gave a salute. “Sounds like a good plan!” They floated back to the middle of the deep end.

We all sat in silence for a moment, the mood around the table suddenly heavy. The noise of the pool seemed distant now, the laughter and splashing fading into the background as we all processed what had just happened.

After a few moments, I reached out and squeezed Lennox’s hand. “Hey,” I said softly, waiting until she looked up at me. “Don’t let her get to you. You did nothing wrong, okay?”

Lennox nodded, but I could tell she was still shaken. “Thanks, Meg.”

God, did I want to take off at that bitch and let her have it. No one made Lennox sad.

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