Page 32 of A Very Miller-Cooper Life

I turned in her direction and shielded my eyes with my hand so I could actually see her. “They said you told them they could as long as we gave the okay.”

My mother scoffed. “Well, I didn’t think you actually would.”

“Why not? Jamie and I played in there all the time. You and dad would beg us to go in sometimes.”

“Yes. Well, that was you, and these are my grandkids.”

“Wow. Thanks, Mom. Glad to hear where I rank.”

My mom laid a blanket out on the ground beside me and sat down on it. “Did you happen to ask Mary Beth why she didn’t invite us to her wedding? We’ve been like family to that girl since you were kids. It’s very hurtful that we wouldn’t be included.”

Really? The woman who skipped my wedding wanted to know why she wasn’t invited to a different gay wedding?“Ididn’taskher, but that’s because I didn’t need to. She told me when they first got engaged that she wasn’t planning on inviting you.”

My mother scoffed and shook her head, looking absolutely disgusted that Mary Beth wouldn’t want someone at her wedding who was still fairly homophobic, in spite of “trying” not to be. “Did she tell youwhyshe decided not to include your father and I after everything we’ve done for her?”

After everything youdidfor her,I thought to myself. Ever since the great Miller Reunion Blow Up, my mom hadn’t gone out of her way to include Mary Beth like she did in the past (even when we had asked her not to). “Yes, she did. She didn’t want me to be upset if you decided to come after skipping my wedding. I told her I thought that made perfect sense, because it definitely would have upset me, even if I tried to not let it get to me.”

“Really, Charlotte? You’ve been married for years. I thought we moved past this. We’ve come so far.”

“You’re right. We have.” The last thing I wanted was to fight with my mom when things had been decent between us, but I had made a promise with myself a long time ago that I would always be honest with her about how I was feeling. I held my feelings in for way too long, and I wasn’t going to do that any more. “But that doesn’t make it hurt any less that you chose to miss one of the biggest days of my life.”

“I thought I was making the right choice. It turns out I made a mistake. I didn’t know you were going to hold it over my head for the rest of my life.”

Hold it over her head? Seriously?“I haven’t held it over your head. I’ve never even brought it up before.Youasked why Mary Beth didn’t invite you, so I told you the truth. Now, let’s just drop it.”

“I didn’t realize Nana was going to be one hundred in two years,” Reagan said as if it somehow fit into our conversation, even though I knew she was just trying to help me out by changing the subject. “I know that seems far away right now, but if we’re going to throw her the huge party that she deserves, I think we need to start planning as soon as possible.”

“You want to throw my nana a birthday party?” I asked, all of my anger from a moment before being melted away by just a few words from my perfect wife.

“Of course I do! Nana’s the best, and she deserves the best.”

“You do know she’s never going to agree to that, right?”

“Of course I do. That’s why it’s going to be a surprise.” Reagan smiled over at me, and at that moment, I was pretty sure I had never loved her more.

Chapter 8

Reagan

Two years later

I never considered how hard it would be to plan a surprise birthday for a one-hundred-year-old woman until I was the one responsible for planning it. It was especially hard since the party was obviously going to be in Maryland which was definitelynotwhere I spent most of my time. Luckily, I was able to get everything worked out with the venue, an old rec hall where Nana used to go for poker nights, over the phone.

Ethan used his connections in town to help find us a caterer and my parents had taken on the task of providing the alcohol—complete with plenty of red wine for Nana.

It was the little details that were killing me—who to invite,howto invite them, when to send said invites, what decorations to hang, and so many more that seemed to keep popping up.

As I drove to Jamie’s house the week before the party, I finally felt like I could breathe. Well, as much as one can breathe when driving a fair distance with three six-year-olds fighting in the back of the car. Charlie wasn’t coming until the end of the week because she didn’t want to close her practice for too long, so until Friday night, it was me, Jamie, Ethan, their newly adopted ten-year-old son, Finn, and my three wild children. Luckily, since it was summer, Jamie wasn’t working, so he would be free to help me.

I considered staying home until we could all ride down together, but since I was the one who had been dubbed as the party planner, I didn’t think it was right for me to wait to show until the night before.

As soon as I pulled into his driveway, Jamie opened the front door and waved wildly at us. The car had barely come to a stop before Ronan was freeing himself from his harness and trying to open the door.Thank god for child locks.

“Patience,” I said as I turned off the car and undid my own seatbelt.

“But I want to see Uncle Jamie,” Ronan whined.

“You canseehim by looking out the window. Remember, we see with our eyes, not our hands or our feet.”

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