Carter’s voice startles us. “I don’t want to interrupt.”
“I told Zane I love you.” Lianne reaches for him. He takes her hand but looks at me with trepidation.
“So, be together.” I shrug. “I’m fine with it. I’m sick of hanging on to old bullshit.”
They stare at me like I’m a naughty kid. I guess, maybe, I’m acting like it.
“What’s going on in here.” Fee joins us, her pink hair piled in a knot on her head. Her face is still flushed. I made her come about half a dozen times this morning while she watched herself ride my face. I swear to God, this mirror sex is a game changer. I’m having them installed in strategic locations in our bedroom as a surprise for Fee when we go back home to Seattle.
“Carter and Lianne are officially back in love.” I sling my arm around her shoulder. “Discuss.”
My dad brings my mom’s hand to his lips. “It’s not up for discussion. What we do and when we do it is our business.”
“Well, the three of us have a session today.” Lianne speaks softly. “It’s our business. Our story. It’s long past time to hash it out so we can all move on.”
I pinch my nose with my thumb and forefinger. I decide I need a solid three-hour block to shred. Alone. I keep my Gibson downstairs in the game room, but maybe I’ll hole up in the garage later. Just the thought of playing music makes me relax a bit.
“Morning.” Zoey shuffles into the kitchen, her belly protruding heavily. “I see the gang’s all here. Where’s Meems?”
Fee pulls out a chair at the table for her to sit. “Olga took her to horse camp this morning. We thought it would be best for her to be away for the final ten days of our sessions. We still have a lot of hard shit to cover.”
“Yeah. Well, we don’t need to put that much stress on ourselves. It’s not like we’re going to be miraculously cured. Ty and I are committing to a long-term therapy plan so he can manage his anxiety.” Zoey drums her fingers on the table with one hand. She cradles her bump with the other. “But, now that we’re getting closer to Ty’s release date, there’s something I’d like to run past you all.” She looks at me. “You haven’t talked to Jace and Connor about us all being here, have you?”
“Uh, no.” I look at Fee. Back at Zoey. “Obviously, I’ve checked in on them because of the personal shit they’re dealing with, but it didn’t seem like the right time to out ourselves until we all figured everything out.”
“Yeah…I’m glad. I still haven’t heard back from Alex, Jace is probably pissed at me for not being there. I would have been, it’s just …” Zoey’s face falls a bit.
My mom pours her a glass of water. “You’re doing the right thing by being here with your husband, Z. She’ll understand when she knows more. Physical health and mental health can both be life-threatening situations.”
“I agree,” Fee assures her. “You guys have been besties forever.”
“I hope so.” She taps her lip with her finger. “I was thinking. Should we come up with a plan to tell the rest of us what’s been going on when we get back to Seattle? As you know, Ty wants to apologize to the guys for what happened. Whether or not we want to go deeper—that’s obviously up to you.”
Crazily when Zoey says Ty’s name, her belly visibly jerks. Her eyes dart to Carter. She waves him over. She places Carter’s palm on her belly. His face lights up. “He’s moving.” It’s kind of sweet. My dad is so excited to be a grandfather again. Zoey’s going out of her way to include him. Like letting him feel his grandson moving inside her.
My mom must think it’s adorable too. I catch her making moony eyes at Carter.
Fee rolls her eyes at me. “So, let’s get back on track. When we’re back in Seattle—“
“Hold up. We have a family session later this afternoon.” Carter flicks his eyes from Zoey’s belly to Fee. “Let’s bring it up then. See what Ty wants to do. Maybe get some suggestions on how best to let Jace and Connor know about all of this.”
“And Alex and Ronni,” Zoey points out.
“Well, yeah. Before we do any of this, we need to know if Ty even wants to be in the band anymore.” I can’t help but vocalize my biggest fear.
Carter leans back in his chair. “Of course he does.”
“So you say. Even if that’s true, what if Connor and Jace don’t want to be in the band? Do I even have a fucking band?” I cross my arms over my chest. Pout. If I’m honest, as much as it’s helping, I’m overdosing on the therapy.
Well, all but the morning sex therapy.
Fee wraps her arms around my middle. Looks up at me. Says quietly, “Zaney. Let’s take it up later.”
“Fine. Always later.” I pull away from my wife and head toward our room. “I’m going to take a shower.”
I’m standing under the spray in the double-sized shower when Fee joins me in the bathroom. My eyes are shut and I’m not even facing the door, but I can feel her presence. A couple of minutes go by before the glass door opens and she joins me.
Fiona grips my arms. Runs her hands down my biceps and forearms. Takes both hands in hers. “Talk to me.”