Page 34 of False Confidence

“They can’t be that bad.”

Jazz turned toward where Maggie was sitting, listening to Eliza and Danisha bickering about their vegetable garden. “Maggie.”

She looked up. “Yeah?”

“Tell Liam what my parents are like,” she said, and Maggie frowned at the mere mention of them. “He’s coming to family dinner tomorrow.”

“God help you,” Maggie said with a shudder. She leaned toward them. “They go around the table and make everyone talk about their biggest achievement from the past month. And if your achievement isn’t good enough, they won’t move on until you think of a better one. One time, in college, they grilled me for thirty minutes on why I got a B. And they’re not even my parents.”

“Wait, you got a B?” Liam looked more surprised about Maggie’s imperfect GPA than Jazz’s parents.

“Shut up. It was one B,” Maggie growled, glaring at him. “You want to compare GPAs?”

Liam’s eyes lit up with the challenge. “Let’s do it.”

“Children,” Danisha admonished, as Maggie and Liam readied themselves to see who could one up the other.

“Please don’t call them children,” Cal begged. “It’s already weird enough.”

Liam and Maggie really did act like long-lost siblings, which was a little fucked up, given the actual dynamics of their family. But it was also hilarious. Traditional was overrated.

“You wouldn’t win. It was her only B,” Jazz told Liam. He frowned but didn’t protest. “Either way, she’s not exaggerating about my parents. They really are that bad.”

Liam glanced between Maggie and Jazz in alarm. “What the hell is going on with parents in Marysville?”

“I thought you avoided dinners with your family?” Eliza asked, frowning.

“I do avoid them, but someone, and I’m not naming names—Cal—posted this on Instagram.” She held up her phone, showing the room the selfie Cal had posted from the car with Liam and Jazz behind him, complete with cat-ear filter, and the caption dinner with the fam!

Maggie turned to her husband. “Dinner with the fam? I love you, but you’re too old to be saying that.”

“Jazz told me to say it!”

“Jazz is also too old to be saying it,” Maggie pointed out and Jazz glared at her. She was only thirty. Maggie needed to lighten up. “I still don’t see how this led to you and Liam being roped into dinner with your family. Cal’s Instagram is private.”

“Apparently Xander follows him.”

“Oh yeah, we talk all the time,” Cal chimed in while Jazz stared at him open-mouthed. “What? We met at the wedding and we like the same books. Do we not like him? Because if you don’t want me to talk to him, I won’t,” he told Jazz, his tone turning serious. “You’re family, Jazz. He’s just a man.”

“Oh my God.” Maggie hid her face in her hands, trying not to laugh. Liam didn’t even try, and his moms just looked at each other, confused.

Jazz held a hand up. “Okay, I take full responsibility for teaching him that one. It’s cool, Cal. My siblings are only a problem when my parents are involved.”

She explained the rest of her conversation with her mom, leaving out the fact that she’d told her she was in love with Liam.

“I guess she’s pissed off because I come to family dinner with you all, but not my real family.”

“We are your real family,” Eliza interjected. “You and Maggie are the daughters we never got to have.”

“Again, let’s not say things like that,” Cal muttered under his breath, frowning at his ex-wife, who pointedly ignored him.

“You know, you and Liam could actually get together and make it official,” Danisha said, her tone not entirely teasing.

“Oh, we have big plans for that,” Liam joked.

Jazz nodded her agreement. “Big plans. Our wedding is going to blow yours out of the water.” She nodded toward Maggie and Cal. “One word?—”

She and Liam exchanged a look and said, in perfect unison, “Clowns.” They cracked up, doubling over, laughing, Liam’s parents not far behind them, but when Jazz looked up, her best friend wasn’t laughing.

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