Page 81 of The One I Love
“You think?” I know he feels bad, but I’m sorry, I don’t know how to react right now. I continue marching around my living room, trying to wrap my brain around how in the matter of hours my relationship with Shane became not a secret, and on top of that, I’m now somehow engaged.
“In our defense,” Wes begins, “he was being horrible.”
I clutch my nonexistent pearls. “Oh! Shocking! My ex is a dickhead! That is brand-new information!” I try to calm down, but it’s not going well. “Guys. I know you hate him. So do I. And I appreciate the solidarity, but do you know what you’ve done? The can of worms you opened?”
I fall down on a chair, because I can’t think and maybe this will help. “Please, someone tell me what happened before I fucking lose it.”
The three of them look up and share a nod, and I see Shane take a breath. “You’re right. Mostly.”
“It started with him existing,” Wes says.
“Then he walked into the bar and started running his mouth,” Simon interrupts. “Though I must say, Wes and I were doing a stellar job at knocking him down a few pegs. Wes even suggested setting him up with the Wicked Witch, which I think is a fantastic idea.”
“That’s when he brought up that he has a girlfriend—we can only guess she’s half his age—then he turned his sights to Shane,” Wes says. “During all of this, Shane was just sittingthere stewing, which at the time we thought was just Shane being Shane and wanting to pummel him because it’s another day that ends in Y.”
“Who knew that our boy here was trying to keep his cool because he was talking shit about his woman? We sure as hell didn’t.”
I can’t help but laugh at Simon’s rendition of this encounter. I might be mad at them, but they will never not make me laugh. “Yeah, sorry about that. I promise we had a good reason for keeping it quiet.”
“Oh we’ll get to you…Mary,” Simon says. “Anyway. Paul is being Paul, and then he tells us about the vacation he’s going to take with the kids.”
“What vacation!” I yell. “Shane? What vacation?”
I see him balling his fists. “For the first time in years, Paul wants his two weeks. That was another trigger for what happened.”
I take a few deep breaths. Legally, he’s allowed. But fuck him. He’s never wanted the kids for his extended summer visit. Now I’m hoping this story ends with one of them punching him in the face.
“Okay,” I say, trying to stay calm. “Shane? What happened next?”
“He was talking about how he didn’t have to ask you permission to take the kids, and that he could do whatever he wanted. How he could be a dad whenever he chose to. I snapped.”
My heart immediately sinks, knowing this all started because Shane wasn’t just defending me, but Luke and Mariah as well. Now I’m not as mad.
And I still hope there’s a punch in this story.
“I just lost it,” he continues, his voice pleading. “Amelia, I didn’t mean to. But years of hatred and things I’ve wanted tosay to him just poured out. So many times I wanted to tell him what a shitty husband he was. Or a shitty father. It all just came barreling out. Before I know it, I was professing my love for you and the kids to him, which then somehow led to talk of a future hypothetical wedding.”
“That was our fault,” Wes admits. “Well, mine. In my defense, I didn’t think any of this was real, and I was just playing along to piss off Paul. Which is always fun.”
“You should have seen the look when I told him I was officiating,” Simon says. “Oh, by the way, when you guys get married, I’m performing the ceremony. I will not be taking any objections at this time.”
I think Shane is legitimately about to cry, and I can’t take it anymore. I walk across the room to him and sit on his lap, wrapping him in my arms.
“Ah! Wes! Look at our two friends in love!” Simon says. “I can’t wait to tell Oliver that I got to see this before him. He’s going to flip.”
Shane and I laugh. “And there’s one of the reasons we kept this to ourselves.”
“What do you mean?” Wes asks as he moves off the couch to another seat, making room for me. As I do, Shane grabs my hand and links our fingers. We share a look, and I know exactly what he’s trying to tell me: This is it. This is the official start. And he’s right.
“When we figured out this was for real?—”
“Correction, when she came around to the realization she couldn’t live without me.”
I look over to Shane, who has apparently channeled his inner Simon. “Watch it, buddy.”
He laughs. “I’m sorry. Go on.”
“When we knew this was for real, we knew it wouldaffect a lot of people in our lives. The kids. Our families. And you guys.”
