She tiptoes forward, as if she might spook one of us. Her eyes dart between Andrew and me. “We have to, um, eat cake now. So I can open presents.”
“Okay,” he says. “I’ll go get it.”
“’K.” She turns around, pausing briefly to look at the grass.
“Bell,” he says.
She looks back.
“Are you okay?” Andrew shifts so his arm is around my shoulders again, and we’re no longer hugging. He holds out his hand to her. “Do you feel confused about this?”
She just stares at us.
“Listen,” he says. “Why don’t we all go inside and talk about it? We’ll answer any questions you have.”
After a few seconds, she slumps forward as if he’s asked her to call the whole party off. “Do we have to right now? I want to open my presents.”
He chuckles. “All right then. We’ll do it after.”
“Whatever. Go cut the cake!” She spins around and runs back to her friends.
Andrew and I exchange a glance. “I was hoping whatever wouldn’t start for a few more years,” he says.
I smile. “Oh, no. Whatever is a way of life, honey. It’ll only get worse.”
He laughs. “Maybe the whatever lifestyle is something you can take on. You know, to bond with her.”
I purse my lips. “We’ll see.”
He kisses the top of my head before ruffling it—to annoy me, I’m sure—and walks off toward the kitchen, leaving me alone, frantically trying to smooth down my hair. When it’s back to normal, I look around the backyard to see if there’s anything I can do and pause when I see one of the women staring at me from across the yard. Another one of Andrew’s admirers, I guess, based on the sour look on her face. Even though I’ve caught her clearly watching us, I’m the one who looks away first.
I find Sadie and Nathan at the picnic table, the only ones left eating, as all the kids have gone back to running around. I take the seat next to Sadie on the bench. “Who’s that woman?” I ask.
“Who?” Sadie asks between bites.
“Her.” I nod. “By the back gate.”
“I wouldn’t know,” Sadie says without looking, more fascinated by her potato salad. “I don’t know any of the moms.”
“Oh. I caught her staring at me, and she looked angry.”
“Angry?” Nathan repeats. “Why would anyone be angry? It’s a kid’s party—”
He pauses as he and Sadie meet eyes. They go completely still.
“You don’t think . . .?” Sadie asks him.
“I wouldn’t put it past her. She has a flare for—”
“Drama,” Sadie finishes, nodding. “We should’ve been on the lookout.”
“Lookout?” I dart my eyes between them. “What are you two talking about?”
Sadie turns. “Which woman was it?”
I sit a little straighter, searching the crowd. Her back is to us, so I point. “That one with the dark hair talking to Bell.”
Sadie drops her fork and starts to stand. “No. Where?”
I stand up too, alarmed. “Why? Who is she?”
“Shana,” Sadie and Nathan say together as they spot her.
“She really has some nerve—” Sadie steps out from behind the table.
“Sadie,” Nathan says firmly. “Stop. I’ll handle this. I don’t want you getting worked up—”
“No.” I lock my eyes on Shana. My breath comes faster. Adrenaline pulses through me. “Let me.”
Nathan holds out a hand. “I don’t think—”
Sadie grabs his arm and slowly, she smiles. Sadie has known me long enough to understand bitch-mode on my worst day will trump anyone’s on their best. “Let Amelia do it.”
I don’t even hesitate. In fact, when Shana bends over to get closer to Bell, I quicken my pace. This won’t happen. I won’t allow it. Bell is distracted by a classmate, who tries to get Bell to go play with her, but Shana won’t let her leave. When the girl pulls Bell’s arm, Shana reaches out and snatches her back like she’s a ragdoll.
My blood boils, my instinct to protect flaring up. “Excuse me,” I say when I’m close enough. I grab Shana’s forearm and remove her hand from Bell. “Can I help you?”
Slowly, Shana’s eyes travel up the length of me, stopping on my face. “Don’t touch me.”
“Bell,” I say, keeping my glare on Shana, “Dad needs your help with the cake. Why don’t you go find him?”
“Okay,” she says. I’m thankful when she skips off, completely clueless. I quickly check to make sure she’s out of earshot. Nathan grabs Bell and pulls her onto his lap before giving me a nod.
I return my attention to Shana. “You weren’t invited.”
Shana straightens to her full height. She’s shorter than me, but if I intimidate her, she doesn’t let on. “I don’t need to be invited to my daughter’s birthday.”
“You do, actually.”
“Look,” she glances behind me, presumably to make sure Andrew hasn’t spotted us, “I don’t know who you are, but that’s my daughter. I’m her mother. I love her, and you have no right to pull her away from me.”
I tilt my head at her. I work in PR. Bullshit is my business, and I can smell it a mile away. After everything Andrew’s told me, this chick’s bullshit is pinging off the charts. “I’ll walk you out.”
She reels back, whipping her eyes back to me. “Excuse me? Who the hell do you think you are?”
I cross my arms. “That’s irrelevant. You’re the one crashing the party.”
Her expression closes even more. “You don’t have to answer. I know who you are. Another one of Andrew’s toys, holding my place on the shelf until I return. Well, guess what, bitch. I’m back. You can go back to whatever hole you crawled out of.”
I almost want to laugh, her words are so unnecessarily full of rage. If she believed herself, she’d deliver her blows with class and confidence. But it’s clear to me Shana doesn’t possess either of those.
I remind myself that she’s likely feeling a mix of emotions—including guilt and shame—over how she’s behaved in the past and recently. “I understand you’re upset,” I say calmly but firmly. “I actually would like it if you and I could talk sometime in the future, once Andrew is ready, but this isn’t the place.”
She looks me up and down, scoff-laughing. “Why would you and I ever talk?”
“Because I’m Andrew’s girlfriend, and I’m not going anywhere. If you’re back in town, then there’s no way around it. We’ll have to figure this out.”
“Um, no. Sorry to break it to you, but Andrew would never go for you. He doesn’t like snobs.” She tries to step around me.
I block her path. “Say what you want about me, but I won’t let you near Bell without Andrew’s permission.”
She sighs heavily, rolling her eyes. “Okay. I thought you were joking at first, but seriously? I know Andrew’s type, and you’re not it. Maybe you’ve managed to get him into bed—that’s no great feat, even Denise pulled it off.” She checks my expression.
“I know all about Denise,” I say when it’s obvious she’s waiting for a reaction.
She raises her chin and continues. “But you’re deluded if you think it’s more than that. He and I have something special. He even admitted it the other night at Timber, when we had a drink, but even if he hadn’t, I’d know, because I know him. He misses me. He wants our family back together.”
Even though her words are meant to sting, they have the opposite effect. I’m relieved. Andrew could’ve not mentioned talking to Shana at the bar and it wouldn’t have been a lie—but he did. And because he did, I’m not blindsided and left questioning our relationship when I should be focused on reeling Shana in.
“You don’t know anything about the type of woman I am,” I say evenly. “If you did, you’d know manipulation doesn’t work on me.”
“Well,” she shrugs a little, “it does on Andrew, and that’s all that matters. He’ll be eating out of the palm of my hand in
no time.”
Behind me, “Happy Birthday” begins, and I pick up Andrew’s baritone leading the song. I smile a little, bolstered by the fact that the longer I stay at this party, the less worried I am about a future here. Now, for instance, Shana is giving me even more reason to dig in my heels and love Andrew. To protect Bell from getting hurt.
“All right, Shana,” I say. “We can battle it out if you want. But for your sake, I suggest you learn how to live in this new reality. Otherwise, it’s going to be a painful time for you.”
“And I’m sure you’re concerned about my life.”
“I am,” I say. “Very much so. Because you’re Bell’s mother.”
The singing stops, and I turn around just in time to see Bell’s eyebrows knit in concentration as she makes her wish. She blows out the candles at the same moment I feel Shana’s palms against my chest. I stumble backward but keep my balance, even in four-inch heels, because that’s the kind of woman I am.
She looks a little shocked as we stand there, staring at each other. Any urge I might have to retaliate sizzles out. I don’t think she meant to do it. A small part of me feels bad for her. I hope I never get to the point where I feel the only way I can make my point is by shoving someone while they’re not looking.
“Again,” I say, “it’s time for you to go.”
“You’re a terrible person,” she says, sounding less angry than miserable. “Trying to swoop in on another woman’s family.”
“I’m sorry that’s how it looks to you, but it’s not the case. I love Andrew. And even though I don’t know Bell very well yet, I’ll love her too. Because she’s a part of him.”
“Then I feel bad for you,” she says with what sounds like all the venom she can muster. “You’ll get left behind once we work this out.”
“What the hell is going on?” Andrew shouts from behind me as he runs over to us. He gets between us, blocking Shana from my view. “What are you doing here?”
“Andrew, babe,” she pleads.
“Nathan said you just pushed Amelia. What the fuck’s wrong with you?”
I put a hand on Andrew’s back. “It’s okay.”
He whips his head around, his jaw set. “It—is—not—okay.”
“I can handle her,” I say calmly.
He turns back to Shana. “Leave. Now. I told you already—stay away from Bell. Especially when I’m not around.”
“You don’t understand,” she murmurs so softly, I almost can’t hear. “She—Amelia—said vile things to me. That I wasn’t Bell’s mom anymore because she is now.” Her voice cracks, and anger rises up my chest at the outrageous accusation. “She said I should rot in hell for leaving my child.”
“She didn’t say that,” he says, “and you need to leave.”
“Can’t we go somewhere and talk alone?” she asks. “Just for a minute?”
“Un-uh. First, it’s my baby’s birthday. I’m not going to miss any more than I have standing here with you. Second, whatever you want to say, you can say in front of Amelia.” Andrew takes my hand, lacing our fingers together. “Don’t make me escort you out, Shana. People already have strong feelings about you in this town, and making a scene isn’t helping.”
She frowns, sliding her thumbnail between her front teeth as she looks behind him at the other guests. They’ve fallen quiet. I pray someone has taken Bell in the house, but I won’t dare turn my back on Shana again. “I’m not going away, Andrew.”
“Fine. If what you want is to get to know Bell, I’m not saying no. I’m saying it’ll take a lot of time and work before we even get to that part, especially when you pull stunts like this.”
She scowls, but I think inside, she must realize what Andrew’s offering is generous. I squeeze his hand for reassurance, and he glances at me. It can’t be easy to welcome her back into his life, no matter how hard he plans to make it on her.
“We’re done here,” he says. “Go out the back gate, Shana. When you’re ready to be an adult about this, call me. Don’t just show up.”
He pulls me away, leading me over to a table where Bell’s surrounded by colorfully wrapped presents.
“I was waiting for you,” she says, her lips tinted pink from frosting.
“Oh, yeah?” Andrew asks. “Then why are half of these unwrapped?”
“I left so many,” she cries defensively, pointing around the table.
Andrew laughs and leans down to kiss her on the back of her hair. He lingers there a moment, closing his eyes. Our hands are still interlaced, and I drag my thumb over his knuckles. “I’m sorry, baby,” he says to her. “Go ahead and open the rest.”
As she tears into another one, Sadie comes over. “I asked Bell what that lady said to her. She said she just wished her a happy birthday and was asking about presents.”
Andrew straightens up. “Good. I wouldn’t put it past Shana to walk right up to her and blurt out the truth.”
I shiver at the thought of Bell finding out about her mother that way, and Andrew lets go of my hand to put his arm around me. “Don’t worry,” he says to me. “We won’t let it happen.”
Bell opens her next present and squeals, “Look, Dad. Randy got me a pink inflatable pool for the backyard.”
“Great,” he says. “Randy can set it up, too.”
“What’d Shana want?” Sadie asks.
Andrew watches Bell. “What do you think?”
“She can’t just waltz back into your lives.” Sadie thins her lips. “Not just all of a sudden. Bell’s not ready.”
“Bell’s her daughter,” I say. They both look at me, but if I’m going to be part of this family, I have to be able to say what I think. “Yes, Shana’s in the wrong. But like she said, she’s not going away. Maybe she takes off again, but she’ll be back. Won’t she?”
Andrew sighs. “Definitely.”
“And Bell deserves to know about her mom,” I add, “even if it’s not an ideal situation.”
“We’ve already started discussing it,” Andrew says. “I know she has more questions.”
“Shana will have to prove herself,” I continue. “Could be years, but that’s up to her. When it happens, Bell will know she has all of our support. If Shana hurts her again, we’ll be there to make it better.”
Sadie sulks. “You guys are making it too easy on her. I didn’t even get a chance to bitch her out.”
Andrew slowly shakes his head. “If Shana sticks around, she’ll give you plenty of opportunities for that.”
“But I’m pregnant now,” Sadie points out. “I won’t have an excuse to overreact after the baby comes.”
Andrew smiles. “I appreciate the sentiment. But I’m done talking about Shana for the day.” He leans over and scoops a chunk of icing with his finger, popping it in his mouth.
“Andrew,” Sadie and I scold at the same time.
Bell looks up at us from a pile of shredded wrapping, empty cake plates, and toys. “Is that it?”
Andrew raises his eyebrows. “It is if you don’t show a little more gratitude.”
She frowns and turns back to the table. “Thank you for the presents,” she says to the kids around her, half of whom aren’t paying attention. “I love them.” Sheepishly, she returns her eyes to Andrew, imploring him.
“I think there might be one more,” he says. “Yo! Pico.”
Bell puts her hands in her lap, squirming on the bench. “I know what it is,” she says. “I just know it.”
Pico comes through the back gate wheeling a tricked-out pink metallic bike with tassels hanging from the handles and a white, woven basket on the front.
Bell gasps and maneuvers out from the picnic table to run over to Pico. “A bicycle.”
Andrew and I walk over hand in hand. “This is a big-girl bike, Bell,” Andrew says. “It doesn’t have training wheels. We’ll have to teach you how to ride it.”
She bounces up and down, and then latches onto his leg. “Thank you, Daddy. It’s exactly how I wanted.”
“I know. It’s a custom bike.”
Her eyes light up. “Like yours.”
“Exactly.” He laughs. “Thank Randy and Pico too. They helped build it.”
“Thank you,” she says to them, then reaches up to Andrew.
He removes his arm from around my shoulder to pick her up. “You’re getting too big for this,” he says.
“No.” She frowns. “Not yet.”
“No. Not yet,” he agrees. “Give me an Eskimo kiss.”
She brushes her nose against his without the slightest concern that all her classmates are watching. She looks at me. “Do you know how to do it, Mila?”
My chest tightens. I’d given my own dad Eskimo kisses as a little girl. A surge of emotion makes my throat thick, so I just shake my head and pretend I don’t.
“I’ll teach you.” She leans over as Andrew supports her. “Come here.”
I meet her nose with mine. Her big blue eyes are open, trusting, and innocent, and I know in that moment—I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them that way. “Like this?” I ask.
“Yep. Just brush your nose against mine.”
I do as she says, and she giggles. “Your nose is a lot smaller than my dad’s.”
“Hey,” Andrew says, knitting his brows. “My nose is a normal size.”
“Okay, let me down,” she says, suddenly impatient. “I want to sit on the bike.”
Andrew puts her down and Pico holds the bike steady as she climbs on. Andrew throws his arm back around my neck and turns me into him. “You’re amazing.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“You did everything. And I’ve repaid you with a string of bad dates, ending with my ex physically assaulting you.”
I smile a little. “Yet I’m still here. That says something.”
“It does. I’d go on a hundred bad dates if I knew they’d lead to you.”
I flush at the sincere, if slightly left-field, compliment.
He leans in to kiss me, but I pull back. “You’ve got frosting on your face.”
“So? Lick it off. You haven’t even tasted the cake yet.”
Hesitantly, I lean in and run my tongue along the corner of his mouth. It’s barely anything, but I make sure to get it all.
Slip of the Tongue Series: The Complete Boxed Set Page 73
