Page 71 of The Best Bad Decision

Lolo

erm not really why?

Amie

Cam was asking earlier. No biggie.

Katy

You liked Millie

And Rosie

ROO

and Lyla

Katy

omg and you liked Chloe until Lo ruined it

Lolo

it’s not my fault, i thought Roo said cloaca not chloe caine

ROO

What planet did you come from, Lo?

I snort out a laugh and clap my hand over my mouth. I’m lying in bed with Cam beside me, a pair of dark-framed glasses on his nose, attention focused on a thick stack of printed notes and data for his upcoming simulator training. He marks the page with blue ink before looking over at me. I shift against the stack of pillows behind me and wordlessly hand him my phone. He scans the screen quickly and his lips lift in a smirk.

“That sounds like Paloma,” he says. “Ruth is right. Remind me again how she ended up on this planet?”

“Dropped here by aliens,” I answer with a smile.

Truthfully, none of us really remember how we met Paloma. I think it was Ruth who met her first, in a club. I’m pretty sure Roo rescued her from a scary situation with a drunk guy, and then Lo tried to make out with her. Neither of them will admit to remembering the night in any more detail than that, but the next day, Roo invited Paloma to join us for a girls’ night. And that was that.

thirty-six

Cam

Christmas Eve at myparents’ house is always a big family affair. It’s the day the whole extended family visits for an afternoon of backyard grilling and pool time, and this year—at Amie’s insistence—is no different. My mom tried to keep the day quiet this year and only invite one or two people, but Amie demanded anormalWhitehouse Christmas, so after breakfast, we packed Maisy and Roger into my car and headed across town.

The party is already in full swing when we arrive mid-morning, with two of my aunts and their husbands, my uncle and his husband, and several of my cousins and their families all fighting for the best sun loungers by the pool. The volume drops when I enter the backyard with Maisy on my hip. Mom is the first to rush over, greeting her granddaughter with noisy kisses before pulling Amie into a long hug.

“Hi Mom, good to see ya,” I say with a laugh as she finally releases Amie. She swats my shoulder before pulling me into a hug, too. Dad is next, stealing Maisy away to show her the jungle gym he and I have been building on the other side of the yard.

Amie is hovering in the threshold between the house and the porch, biting her lower lip nervously. I reach for her and squeeze her fingers.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” she breathes. “Just… a lot of people. I didn’t think I’d be so nervous.”

“They’re gonna love you, baby,” I tell her. “C’mon, let me introduce you.”

With her hand in mine, I’m invincible as I lead her into the fire, sitting on the edge of an Adirondack chair and pulling her down onto my lap. Just as I expected, my cousins love her. Their kids love having Maisy around, boldly joining their games and keeping everyone on their toes. My aunts and uncles welcome both of my girls to the family with open arms and plenty of embarrassing stories, and I wrap my arms around Amie’s waist, nuzzling into her shoulder. She smells like apples and pears; a fruit salad has never smelled so intoxicating. She rests her hands over mine where they meet low on her belly and tilts her head to rest on mine.

I don’t know what I did in a past life to be worthy of this woman and her love, but it must have been something spectacular. For four years, I’ve dreamt of holding her in my arms again, because that one night wasn’t nearly enough. For four years, I’ve loved her silently, anonymously. But today, and forever, I get to love her out loud.

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