Chapter 4
Chapter Four
C harlotte chuckled and switched the phone to her other ear. “I didn’t forget the wine, I promise.”
“What did you get?”
“Merlot,” Charlotte replied before kicking the door to her car shut. “Now, can you hang up so I can take the rest of the stuff out of the back?”
The curtain swished, revealing Addison’s face pressed to the glass. She offered Charlotte an enthusiastic wave before hanging up. With a sigh, Charlotte popped the trunk of her Nissan open and took out a large bag full of snacks, face masks, and candy. Then, she slammed the trunk shut and raced up the cobblestoned path that led her to the two-story Victorian-style house with a wraparound white porch, a bright red door, and a chimney jutting out of the middle of the roof. On the front porch, she shifted the bag from one hand to the other and almost barreled into Mason, Addison’s husband.
He was dressed in a button-down shirt and black jeans and looked like he’d just come out of the shower. “Need a hand with that?”
Charlotte huffed and switched it back to the other arm. “No, thanks. You know that Addison will lecture me about working out if she sees me hand you the bags.”
Mason chuckled. “God bless you for letting her get away with it.”
Charlotte shrugged. “It’s easier than the alternative.”
She knew Addison’s heart was in the right place. While her mouth and brain often weren’t on the same wavelength, Addison had gotten much better. And when the front door swung open to reveal Addison in pink pajamas and rhinestone flip-flops, Charlotte immediately knew she’d made the right choice.
She handed Addison some of the things and turned to wave at Mason.
He pulled Addison in for a quick kiss and lingered. “You sure you don’t want me to stay tonight?”
Addison pretended to shove him. “I’ll be fine. Charlotte is here. We’ll have a movie night, and you’re going out with the guys, remember?”
Mason lingered. “Yeah, but they won’t care if I cancel.”
Addison took his arm and tugged. “I’ll care. We’re going to be doing our faces, our nails, and we’re going to be talking about you, so you can’t be here.”
Mason threw his head back and laughed.
On top of the stairs, he paused to give Addison another kiss. Then, he shoved both hands into his pockets and started to whistle. Addison stared after him until he was swallowed whole by the night. Slowly, she walked back to the door and stepped in after Charlotte. She slammed the door shut and rubbed her hands together.
“I’m really glad we’re finally getting our girls’ night.” Addison dragged Charlotte into the living room, where she had more snacks and wine set up on the coffee table, and the TV mounted to the wall was already pulled out, with a few of the classic rom-coms cued up.
It was usually the kind of sight that would’ve cheered Charlotte up, but since she was still on the outs with Savannah, she couldn’t concentrate on anything. The past few days were a blur of work, lesson plans, and nights spent stuffing her face while she watched cheesy reality TV shows. When Addison had called to insist on a sleepover, Charlotte had jumped at the chance.
Finally! It was time for something different.
Addison linked her arm through Charlotte’s and pulled her to the couch. “I know things have been intense, but I just want you to know that it doesn’t have to be that way anymore.”
Charlotte sat down and took the glass of wine offered to her. “What does that mean?”
“Now that the treatment is over, we can go back to the way we were. The cancer’s gone, Char. And good riddance too.”
After years of fighting that ugly disease, years of hospital visits that left her pale and sallow, and chemo sessions that left her crying over the toilet seat while clutching strands of hair that were falling out, Charlotte was thrilled that Addison was in remission. Not only was her friend finally healthy and looking forward to life, but she was also getting her life back on track.
Charlotte couldn’t have been happier.
She cleared her throat and touched her glass of wine to Addison’s. “Here’s to being healthy.”
“Here’s to staying healthy.” Addison took a long sip of her drink and tucked her legs under her. “And here’s to new beginnings.”
Charlotte took a long sip of her drink. “So, you and Mason have decided to go through with it, then?”
A shadow settled over Addison’s face, and she frowned at her drink. “No, the doctor is insisting that I can’t get pregnant. The chemo and everything else took its toll on me, so it would be too dangerous.”
Charlotte twisted so she was facing her friend directly. “And you haven’t reconsidered adopting?”
Addison sighed and took another long sip of her drink. “Don’t get me wrong. I know adoption is great and all, but it’s not what I want. I still really want to have a baby that’s ours.”
Charlotte’s mind raced to process the information. “So, what does that leave? Surrogacy?”
Addison ran a hand over her face. “Mason is a little iffy about the idea, and I know why. Having a complete stranger carry our baby…it’s not ideal, but what other choice do we have? You know what my family is like. They haven’t even spoken to me in years…”
Charlotte grimaced. “I’m sure if they knew about the cancer…”
Addison took another sip and made a face. “Yeah, I don’t think so. Do you know what happened the last time I…”
Charlotte tuned the rest of the sentence out as she turned Addison’s words over and over in her head. On the one hand, she couldn’t think of any two people who were more deserving of being parents. On the other hand, she also had doubts about whether or not they had any eggs frozen prior to chemo.
And what about the cancer gene?
Charlotte had no idea how the science worked, but knowing Addison as well as she did, she had to believe her friend had done the homework and weighed the risks. Still, the longer she sat there, listening to Addison lament her relationship with her estranged family, the stranger she felt.
She felt a strange and hollow ache in the center of her chest as she heard Addison go on about her plans.
When she glanced around the house and imagined little kids running around, laughing and shrieking, a smile sprang to her lips. Then, Addison waved a hand in front of her face, and Charlotte came back to the present with a jolt. She offered her friend a small smile and downed the entirety of her drink.
Charlotte thought about Addison’s problem for the rest of the night.
“Come on in.” Charlotte threw the door open and pulled Addison in for a hug. Then, she turned to Mason and shook his hand. Together, the three of them stepped into her great-grandparents’ living room, where a few of the family members were sprawled in various stages of rest. A few more spilled out onto the back porch, laughing and talking underneath the light of the moon.
The rest were in the dining room and kitchen, fighting over the snacks. With a smile, Charlotte led her friends into the living room and shot her sister a meaningful look. Reluctantly, Savannah picked up her iced tea and scooched over, leaving room on the couch. As soon as Addison and Mason sat down, everyone started talking over each other.
Game night with the Wilson clan usually ended with cheers and taunts.
But today, they were taunting each other over a game of charades. Having spent most of the day subbing for the summer school teacher who hadn’t shown up, Charlotte opted to sit the game out and was instead watching her family flap their arms and jump up and down.
Addison leaned in closer and raised her voice to be heard. “Thanks for inviting us.”
Charlotte patted her hand. “I thought you could use something different.”
Addison glanced back at Charlotte’s mother, who was gesturing to Jack furiously, her face a bright red color. “Your mom seems really happy.”
Charlotte took a long swig of her orange-flavored soda. “She is. Jack has been good for her.”
But seeing them together had stirred something within Charlotte, a longing she hadn’t known she had.
She wanted someone of her own. Someone to come home to and watch TV with. Someone to cuddle up with at night while they talked about their hopes and dreams. Considering she couldn’t even remember the last time she’d been on a date; Charlotte knew her chances of having that were slim.
A small part of her was jealous that Addison was ready to move on to the next phase of her life. Rather than getting her friend back, Charlotte knew she had to prepare herself for the possibility of sharing her with someone else—a baby, no less.
You’re being ridiculous. Addison is not going to abandon you. And besides, you want her to be happy, right?
During a particularly intense round, where her great-grandparents were competing against each other, Charlotte saw something out of the corner of her eye. She turned to it and found her mom’s second cousins, Laura, Glen Jr., Jaxson, Reese, and Ruby, all facing off in the backyard. All of them had their arms folded against their chests, and their nostrils were flaring.
Frowning, Charlotte stood up and glanced around, but no one was looking at her.
Addison stood and followed her line of sight. “I’ll talk to them.”
“It’s okay. I can do it.”
Addison shook her head. “Let me. It’ll be good practice. Babe, you want to give me a hand with this?”
Wordlessly, Mason stood up and shoved a handful of chips into his mouth. Together, the two of them stepped outside, with Charlotte following at a safe distance.
Outside, the weather was warm, and cicadas chirped in the distance. The scent of freshly cut grass and her great-grandmother’s rose bushes lingered in the air.
Charlotte stood under the porch light, eyeing the teenagers over the rim of her can. Addison approached them first, smiling and with her voice pitched low. A short while later, she gestured to Mason, who strolled over to them with a hand shoved in his pocket and an easy smile on his face.
She held her breath as they all stared at her friends.
One by one, they relaxed, and a heartbeat later, they were all laughing.
Charlotte’s mouth fell open as Addison and Mason ushered them back into the house, amidst a slew of praises and compliments. When they brushed past her, Charlotte snapped her mouth shut and twisted to see them join the rest of the group.
In a daze, Charlotte took another sip of her drink and frowned.
Was she the one who was missing out?
Was Savannah right about her being too afraid and getting in her own way?
That’s ridiculous. You’ve got a good job, a decent apartment that’s near your mom’s, and you’ve got good friends. What more could you possibly want?
Charlotte couldn’t tell for sure, but when she rejoined her family and found herself in a group with Addison and Mason, she could’ve sworn that what she really wanted was someone to laugh with.
An image of Patrick sprang to mind, but Charlotte immediately shoved it away.
All of Addison’s talk about babies and growing her family had gotten to her head, and she didn’t like it.
She didn’t like it one bit.