Page 79 of ICED
She twirls. She compliments someone’s earrings. She offers a grown man a plastic tiara.
Everyone melts.
And when I glance around, I realise I’m not out of place anymore.
Because my daughter justownsthe room.
And because Owen’s next me like I’m someone worth standing beside.
The shower unfolds in a soft blur of games I barely understand, a bingo sheet I lose in my bag, a moment where Sophie opens a gift and cries because it’s her late grandmother’s baby blanket. We clap, we laugh, we eat far too many mini sausage rolls.
And then it’s time for the reveal.
Sophie holds the cupcake tray like it’s a sacred relic.
“Alright,” she announces. “On the count of three…”
Everyone leans in. Lila claps.
“One… two… three!”
Teeth sink into icing. And then…
Blue.
Cheers erupt. Murphy fist-pumps and Sophie cries again.
And beside me, Owen just smiles.
He leans close. “Wanna try one?”
“I already know what’s inside,” I tease.
“Humour me.”
He feeds me a bite, his thumb brushing the corner of my mouth. And suddenly, the whole world narrows to this moment. Sugar on my lips. His hand on my hip.
“You’re incredible, you know that?” he murmurs.
I glance up. “I’m not.”
“You are,” he says, like it’s the simplest truth he’s ever known. “And I’m lucky you let me near you.”
I don’t answer.
I just lean into him and let the safety net catch me again.
Later, when the party winds down and the lights grow soft, I find Lila asleep in a pile of balloons and streamers. Owen picks her up like she weighs nothing, her wings askew and her curls damp from all the dancing.
“She had fun,” he murmurs.
“She’s never met a room she couldn’t charm.”
He pauses by the door, Lila’s cheek resting on his shoulder.
“I’m proud of you, you know.”
I blink. “Why?”
