a somewhat clearer head. I decided to take Marigold to the splash park meet-up since it was Tuesday and the weather was still plenty warm for it. If nothing else, Marigold would have a chance to see some non-scowling faces. Staying cooped up together at home was a recipe for a disappointing day.
After feeding us both breakfast and getting us dressed and ready, I had to take care of the chickens and help a few customers on the lot. When it was finally time to get going, I decided to make use of the stroller and walk to the park instead of driving.
Mari dozed with a face full of teething cookie crumbs. I stopped partway to apply the sunscreen I’d forgotten to take care of at home, and when we finally arrived at the park, most of the other parents and babies were already settled around on blankets and towels at the edges of the splash pad.
I found Ava sitting with several other parents. All of them were familiar, so I didn’t feel as awkward joining them this time. Ward looked up from the bottle he was giving his baby. “Hey, there he is. Come sit by me. They’re talking about boob shit, and I’m feeling increasingly irrelevant.”
I huffed out a chuckle and parked the stroller before pulling out my backpack and Marigold. When I joined them on the ground, Mari practically threw herself at Ava with a happy squeal. Ava caught her and gave her big, exaggerated faces as she cooed a welcome.
“You look like poop,” Ava said to me in cheerful baby talk. “Bad meeting yesterday?”
My face must have dropped even more because her big smile was replaced by a frown. She sat Mari in her lap facing outward and handed her a set of plastic loops from a pile of colorful toys on the blanket. Her son, Beau, was nearby slapping at a puddle of water on the soft, foam floor of the splash pad. I noticed Paul was watching him which probably meant he’d been able to duck out of work for his lunch break. I returned his silent wave.
“I mean,” I began. “Not really? The firm definitely felt good about our chances, and they were… on top of things.”
Ward’s forehead creased between his eyebrows. “Then why do you look like someone took your pony away?”
Maureen’s soft look of concern was touching, and Ginger reached out to squeeze my knee. These four new parents made me feel so much less alone in trying to figure things out with Marigold. After I’d first met them, Ava had insisted on including me in a group text, and the messages flew back and forth throughout the day—questions about developmental milestones and parent guilt, tips for quick snack ideas, and the best Spotify playlist for keeping a sleepy baby awake in the car. I’d only known them a very short time, but I already felt like I was beginning to have a crew of sorts.
I laughed at myself. Maybe at one point I’d imagined having a biker crew. I’d certainly never anticipated having a mommy crew.
“Parrish and I… um… got married,” I said hesitantly. “Kind of… by accident?”
Four sets of eyes stared at me without blinking until Ava tilted her head. “Yeah, run that by us again?”
I pressed my lips together, second-guessing myself about revealing this information. But I was messing everything up with Parrish, and I needed some help.
“So, like—” I cleared my throat. “The lawyers said our chances would be better if we went ahead and got married on paper even though…” I glanced around, reminding myself they all thought the Parrish engagement was real. “Even though we wouldn’t normally have the, ah, the ceremony until later.”
Ava threw some attitude. “Damned right, you wouldn’t. One needs time to plan certain things. And I had plans for that wedding.”
I continued. “Right, so, we didn’t really understand at first what was happening, and then afterward when we saw the marriage certificate—”
Maureen held up a hand. “We’re going to need details about how one can be tricked into marriage by highbrow attorneys.”
“We weren’t tricked,” I assured her. “We were just kind of not paying enough attention.”
“Mpfh,” she huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “Continue.”
I tried to think about how to ask them for advice without telling them the whole story. “I was upset, and I dropped him off at his place instead of bringing him home with me.”
Ava’s face dropped, and Wade let out a muffled “Uh-oh.”