Page 59 of The Surrogate Omega, Part Two

“Fine. I like him a lot. I haven’t felt like this about anyone since your mother.”

He seems a little guilty about it, but River doesn’t seem upset. “That’s great, Dad. I don’t see what the problem is.” He hesitates. “It’s not because of us, right? Me, Lake, and Essie? You know we’re all here for it, right? If I have another phone call from Essie complaining that she’s afraid you’re turning into a monk, I’m gonna lose it.”

Luke’s cheeks are hot. “I am definitely not a monk!” Then he quickly covers his mouth as he realizes what he just implied. “I mean, I’m, um . . .”

“Dad, you do not need to try and explain that. I don’t need to know about your sex life, please.”

“Thank gods.”

“But, if you are, you know . . . what is the problem? Why are you friend zoning this man?”

Luke looks around, and his eyes fall on Ev and me, who probably should leave since this is a private conversation, but neither one of us has made a move. “Joel is poly.”

There’s a quiet hush that goes around the room, and Luke quickly continues, “Not that I find anything wrong with it, but it’s just hard to imagine me with more than one partner.”

River is quiet, understanding as he speaks. “Dad, you know just because he has more than one partner, doesn’t mean you need to be with the other person too, right? As long as everyone is open and honest from the beginning, it’s perfectly acceptable.”

“I know that. I started doing some research after Lake met you two.” He looks at us. “And even more so after Joel opened up to me. I’d like to say I won’t be jealous if I know he’s out with someone else, but I’m not sure I won’t be.”

“Have you discussed this with him?”

Luke shrugs. “No. Every time he tries to bring it up, I change the subject.”

“Dad . . .”

“I know! I know,” Luke replies defensively. “I’m still trying to recover from the shock that I’m not completely straight. I’m not sure I’m ready for anything more than that.”

“And that’s fine. But you need to talk to him about it. Let him know your concerns. I’m gonna assume it’s not the first time he’s had to deal with this when he’s had a new partner. I’m sure he’ll be able to help in a way I can’t.”

Luke turns to look at Joel. He’s watching us now, and his head tilts to the side, as if he’s asking Luke if he’s ok. Luke smiles and waves at him like a preteen at a school dance seeing his crush. It’s fucking adorable.

“It’s clear there’s a lot of feelings there, Dad. He seems like a great guy, and from what I can tell, he’s been open and honest about everything.”

“Yes, he has.”

“Then don’t you think you owe him the same?”

Luke groans as he side-eyes his son, though I can see the pride. “Since when did you get so mature and smart?”

River wraps his arms around his dad. “Since you became my dad.”

Well, fuck, I will not cry. Luke isn’t as successful, and finally Ev takes my hand, dragging us out of the room that we certainly already overstayed our welcome in.

The rest of the party goes well. Miri is totally overwhelmed and passes out on her dad’s shoulder in a sugar and present induced coma after a couple hours. Ro is hanging on the outskirts of the other kids about his age. They are all outside playing kickball, and while he declined to play, he stays and watches while they do. He uses his shoulder as the reason, which is honestly smart, but I know it’s just an excuse. Still, it’s a huge step in the right direct and gives me hope.

Finally, the party starts to die down, and all but the core group of us has left. Zoe’s picking up pieces of confetti and torn wrapping paper off the floor when she looks at River, who’s packing up leftovers for all of us. “Where’s Cam? He said he was coming today.”

River sighs. “Yeah, he was supposed to, but he ended up getting a last-minute makeup job for a wedding. You know he can’t turn down any money, especially since he’s paying for an apartment on his own now.”

“Makes sense. I miss him though. With the play, I haven’t been working as much and have barely seen him.”

River purses his lips. “I know. I miss him too. When he was staying with us, he was driving me crazy, but as soon as he leaves, I miss the shit out of him.”

Zoe laughs and throws her long braids over her shoulder. She must have been aware of the theme because she’s wearing a donut-and-cupcake-print sundress that only Zoe could pull off. “That’s best friends for you.”

It’s not too much longer when we also say our goodbyes. Lake is exhausted and uncomfortable, and Ro is overstimulated. Both need some time in our house and away from people for a bit. As we’re leaving, we assure everyone that should Lake go into labor early, we’ll make sure everyone is aware. We came up with a phone chain for this exact purpose. I’ll notify Avery and Zoe, Ev will notify River, and then between them, they’ll get everyone else.

Both Lake and Ro fall asleep on the ride home, Ro’s head resting on Lake and Lake’s arm wrapped around the smaller boy. It’s so adorable I snap a picture. Ev shakes his head at me. “You know neither of them will be amused, right?”

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