“What Opal’s asking is, are you sleeping with her?”
“How diddid you talk about your birthdayturn intoare you sleeping together?”
Nina chuckled into her mug. “The witness will answer the question.”
“Yes.” Sullivan hadn’t believed in auras until she felt her whole aura glow with the memory.
“Good job,” Nina said. “Don’t give them anything more than they ask for. I knew it. Now spill the tea.”
“How did you know?” Sullivan asked.
Nina shot Sullivan a look. “I can tell if an estranged husband in another country is sleeping with his assistant. I can certainly tell if my best friend is falling for someone.”
“I saw you bumping hips in the kitchen,” Opal said. “You seemed to be getting very close. And I heard you ask Kia to come work with us and dump her life on the road. So of course I told Nina all about it. And you halfway said you loved her.”
“I didn’t.”
“She did,” Opal said to Nina. “And that was before they even slept together.”
Sullivan couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across her face. She could see Kia’s delight when she saw the Wind Searcher Pop-Up Pavilion strung with lights. She’d throw her arms around Sullivan. Sullivan could feel the way Kia would lift up for a kiss. A secondlater Kia would pull out her phone and tell Sullivan to reenact the gift, but for a moment it’d just be Kia, childlike in her delight. Sullivan felt her chest contract and expand at the same time. Everything tasted better and smelled better—even the ghost of rugby socks in the van—just because Kia existed. And Sullivan felt fully alive.
“Sooo…” Opal began slowly. “I’m so excited you’ve met someone you like. We’re all on team Kia. Kia is amazing.” Opal seemed nervous, like she was about to tell her team they didn’t make the playoffs. “For a young Black chef to accomplish what she has…” She continued with some statistics about bias in the culinary arts.
Nina cut her off. “We’re just saying, be a little careful. I don’t think she’d hurt you on purpose.” Nina frowned as though she couldn’t believe she’d just said that. “But sweet, loving grandmothers would finesse their favorite grandchild when this much money is at stake. But I don’t think she’dtryto hurt you. But it’s a lot of money. And if the shit hits the fan, she could be in a lot of trouble legally.”
“You said she’d be okay?”
The sparkle of happy adrenaline in Sullivan’s blood turned to pinpricks of anxiety.
“I think so. But if shit goes down, there’s a chance—small chance—she’ll be able to save herself by throwing you under the bus. If I see that coming, I’ll have to destroy her. And then you’ll be mad at me for life.”
“She wouldn’t.”
Sullivan was certain in a way she’d never been certain about Aubrey. It wasn’t that she’d thought Aubrey would deliberately hurt her, but if someone had asked,Do you think it’s possible Aubrey could hurt you, know she was doing it, and not stop?the answer would have beenI don’t think so. For a relationship to work, the answer to that question had to be no.
“And she’s on the road a lot too,” Opal added. “That’s hard on relationships. We like her, but be careful. That’s all we’re saying.”
chapter 27
It had beenyears since Kia let her guest chefs close up the truck without her. But tonight was different.
“You got this?” she asked the local chef she’d invited to cook with her.
They’d featured his recipes and handed out his business cards with every meal. The customers had loved him.
The lights were on in Sullivan’s house when Kia got back. She’d timed it right. Sullivan was still up, probably stretched out on the sofa listening to an audiobook. Kia had struggled with a birthday card. How could she capture her feelings and their strange situation in a card? Hallmark didn’t have a message for that. Sitting in the cab of her truck, she picked up a pen.I’m taking you camping. Itinerary and packing list included.She placed a carabiner on the card and traced it, like the chalk outline that would mark where she fell when the snake got her.What are these things even for?She drew an arrow to the carabiner outline and tucked the card and carabiner into the envelope.
When she let herself into Sullivan’s house, Sullivan wasn’t listening to an audiobook. She was standing at the kitchen sink, staring out the window. She whirled around, like she’d been caught at something. But she looked happy, no trace of gazing-at-my-lost-wilderness in her eyes.
“Happy birthday.” Kia held out the envelope.
“You remembered.”
“You’re my wife, and I have all your vital stats on my phone. And… I like you. In case you haven’t noticed. Of course I remembered your birthday.”
Sullivan sat down at the kitchen island and slipped her finger into the edge of the envelope, opening it slowly.
Sullivan read the message out loud. “Dear Sullivan, despite my better judgment, I am taking you camping. We will probably be eaten by snakes. I’ve planned everything. All you have to do is show up.” Sullivan pressed the card to her chest. “Aww, Kia, that’s my dream birthday.”