8. Magnolia
EIGHT
Magnolia
I picked up Kendall from the high school, and now I’m sitting at the kitchen table, swirling a glass of red wine while Jenny gives me the latest gossip. “Did you know it was three guys, not two? He didn’t even know until after the divorce.” Jenny’s playing her favorite game of seek and tell.
“I think something is up with Aidan,” I butt in, changing the direction of our conversation completely.
“Before you say I told you so, I want you to know that’s not what I mean.
Like, we could have had dirty, furious sex at his house, and instead we ended up sitting at the beach talking. For an hour. He held me in his arms.”
“Whoa, like you think this might be super real, like legit, put a ring on it, super real?” Jenny asks, draining her wine.
Kendall and Juliet filter into the room for their popcorn that just finished popping, talking about some sort of ponytail holder they saw on Instagram.
Jenny and I stay silent, waiting for them to disperse.
I haven’t been completely honest with her about my feelings for Aidan.
Until recently, I wasn’t honest with myself about my feelings for Aidan.
Now, not only am I confident I’m falling for him, I think the falling might have already happened.
“Super, legit real, Jenny. I wasn’t expecting anything more than maybe exclusive casual dating, but he seems to be all in.
It’s hard to be sure because it’s just been Paul for me, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this before,” I say, tilting my wineglass to watch the wine dance around, my mind spinning future possibilities that make me giddy.
“I told you about the night at Magnolia’s Steals, how he talked to me about the affair, and Paul, and everything. ”
“And the wild, hot sex you had after,” Jenny adds, hissing it under her breath. “You told me.”
I hold my pointer finger against my lips. “Keep your voice down. I haven’t told Kendall anything. And I definitely don’t want those images in her head.”
Jenny widens her eyes. “You can’t fall in love without telling her, Magnolia.
Give the kid a heads-up before a new daddy waltzes in and rocks her world.
She’s almost an adult. I think with the history with Paul, you need to be completely honest with her.
What if she freaks out? You told her you were dating, right? ”
Kind of. In really loose terms I wasn’t sure she’d understand.
“Yeah, I told her you wanted me to go on coffee dates and, like, make friends with men and women my age to expand my horizons.”
Jenny shakes her head, her lips pressed into a duckbill. “You need to come clean.”
“I don’t want her to think she won’t be my number one priority, you know? Will she feel abandoned? I don’t think bringing another man into her life is smart. Why not wait until she’s moved out?”
Jenny snarls, “Please tell me your plan for this then? Keep the man a secret until she goes to college and then say surprise, here’s your new daddy!”
I shrug. “That is a horrible idea,” she continues. “An idea I doubt Aidan would agree to anyway. Does he not want to meet her?”
I think about what he said tonight, about how I was essentially meeting his family by meeting his SEAL teammates, and the guilt hits me square in the chest. “This is different. It’s tricky with Kendall. She’s still so sensitive. I’d cut it off now if I could, but I think I’m in too deep.”
Jenny smiles. “This is rich, Magnolia. You are so in love with this bad boy. At least introduce me to him.” She pours herself more wine, her third glass.
“You staying over tonight then?” I tease.
“I wasn’t planning on it, but this is too good. Drink up. We have things to discuss.”
Shaking my head, I smile. “Want to meet him? Maybe we can meet for dinner this week. I can have him bring a friend.” I waggle my brows.
“Hell to the no. Don’t entangle me in this testosterone-induced mess. I have a date with Harry, the plumber, on Friday. He’s a nice, stable man. Doesn’t even have kids!”
I snort. “Fine. Fine. I just can’t describe what I felt tonight,” I say, floating back to the beach, his arms wrapped around me.
For a few moments, I forget the world existed outside of our moment.
It was ethereal. The moon, the waves. The sound of his voice.
The beats of his heart against my back, a steady symphony.
“Sounds like falling in love,” Jenny says, taking a sip, eyeing me over the rim.
“I’d challenge that, but I’m not sure you’re wrong. It never felt like this with Paul. It always just was. This is different. I feel like it’s a story I’m actually a part of, not one that was predestined because of the circumstances. It’s mine. Ours.”
“God, that’s deep, Magnolia. I might want a piece of this, after all. Are all of his friends whores too?”
Rolling my eyes, I remember meeting them earlier.
“Kind of. Some ooze whore more than others. They’re also good at trying not to ooze whore, so it could be an act.
I think you have to get to know them first, and you can gauge for yourself.
” Jenny is a beautiful woman, but like me, she’s been single for a long time.
The difference is, she’ll go on a date every once in a while.
The dates never escalate into anything else, and then she begins back at square one. She calls it harmless hunting.
“Mom.” Kendall pops her head into the room. “Can we go down to the beach? Sandy Beach,” she says, clarifying. It’s right down the path, past the docks a bit. It’s small, but sometimes there are parties there.
“It’s late, honey. Why didn’t you go earlier?” I ask.
Juliet pops her head in. “Come on, Mom. Just a quick bike ride, and we’ll be back before eleven.”
“What’s down there?” I ask.
Jenny clears her throat. “Who is down there?”
“A few of the girls on the cheer squad,” Juliet explains. “They’re just hanging out.”
“Hanging out is code for underage drinking and boys,” I interrupt. Jenny punches a fist in the air in agreement. “I’ll keep the tracker on your phone if I agree,” I say.
“That’s fine. Keep the tracker on. That’s where we’re going. I wouldn’t lie to you, Mom. No boys or alcohol. I promise.”
In an effort to give her a tiny bit of freedom, I make my decision. I glance at Jenny and can tell she’s arrived at the same decision I have.
“Be back in an hour. Make sure the batteries on your bike lights are fully charged.”
“Yes,” Kendall squeals loudly, clapping her hands. “A nighttime bike ride is going to be so fun!” Kendall runs over and kisses my cheek as Juliet hugs her mom and they bound out the back door.
“It’s safe, right?” Jenny asks.
“It’s less than half a mile,” I counter. “They’re going to be in college all on their own before we know it.”
“It’s late,” she says.
I shrug. “They are teens. This is teen stuff.” I pull my phone out of my purse hanging over the chair next to me and pull up the family tracking app. “We’ll watch them ride there and back.”
“And while they are there?” Jenny says.
“We trust them to use decent judgment,” I reply. I don’t say good judgment, I say decent. Good comes later, when you’ve been burned a few times and can rationalize. Decent won’t get you pregnant. My stomach sours at the thought.
“Maybe Kendall will use the same judgment as her mom,” Jenny quips as if reading my mind.
“Ha. Ha. You’re an awful friend,” I say, rising from my chair, cell in hand.
“Want to help me make a board? You cut the cheese, I’ll find crackers.
” Jenny agrees, her excitement for food paired with her wine, effervescent.
We chat about mundane things while we eat, both of us watching the Kendall dot arrive at the beach.
“Technology really is a beautiful thing,” Jenny says, stuffing her face with a cracker. “What did we do without it?”
I can’t remember. It’s been that long, and that’s embarrassing given what I do for a living.
I offer a weak joke about being old and continue my cell phone stare down.
Trust. I need to trust her. If I give her trust, she’ll return it and maybe I can be honest about Aidan and my feelings for him.
Or maybe I wait a few more months to see how things unfold, and if things blossom like I’m positive they will, then I’ll tackle that conversation.
I’m giving myself easy outs. It’s disconcerting.
Jenny’s brutal question brings me to the present. “Did you call Paul about the wedding yet?”
I exhale deeply. “I should do it now,” I reply. “I didn’t want to be wrapped up in my own emotions when I called. That’s not fair. It’s hard being diplomatic when I want to call and scream at him like a rabid bear.” I focus on my breathing.
“Call him now. I want to hear,” Jenny says, eyes widening.
“You are such a gossipmonger. You know you can’t tell anyone, right? This is my business, and I don’t want Bronze Bay talking about my life.”
“That’s offensive. You’re my best friend. It won’t leave the room.”
I set a hand on her shoulder. “My best friend who likes gossip. Give me your phone,” I say, holding out my hand. “Watch the Kendall and Juliet dot while I call Paul.”
She claps giddily and hands over her phone.
I don’t need a reference to remember Paul’s cell phone number.
He hasn’t changed it, and right now I wish he had—wish I had to look it up instead of recalling it by memory.
Swallowing hard, I hit call and wait. He answers on the first ring, with an uneasy, questioning tone.
“Hey Paul, it’s me,” I reply.
“Hey Maggie,” he says. I cringe but don’t correct him because it’s not worth it, not when I have bigger fish to fry.
Clearing my throat, I focus on the end goal and what I want out of this call. “Kendall isn’t comfortable going to your wedding.”
“Goddammit, why can’t you talk to her? Tell her I’m not a bad guy?” His reply is hissed, and that only serves to stoke my fury.