detected.”
Andrea threw her head back and laughed, nearly falling out of her armchair. “How many times have you had to do that, Mari?”
“I plead the fifth,” I snickered. “Oh wait, that doesn’t exist anymore. Damn it!”
“You can always ‘accidentally’ smother a guy to death while you’re sitting on his face,” Noelle suggested. “Although, you’ll need his limbs tied down, so make it like a kinky bondage session first.”
“Better to use a pillow,” I interjected. “You don’t want things getting bitten off down there if he catches on.”
Andrea howled with laughter, and even I couldn’t smother my giggles entirely. The only one we couldn’t seem to drag out from the dumps was Tessa, who barely cracked a smile as she rocked Vivian against her chest.
None of us could blame her. The father of her children and the woman she just rekindled a romance with were leaving on a dangerous mission in a few short hours. The probability was high that neither would come back soon, if ever.
The four of us were in one of the City Hall lounge rooms, usually reserved as sitting rooms for the male dignitaries to drink and smoke cigars. But us girls wanted to chat and get together before sending Andrea off.
And Big G. And Grudge and Shadow. My Shadow, I thought worriedly. We watched last night’s sunset from a City Hall balcony until darkness and cold settled in. Our new house wasn’t entirely furnished yet so we still had to spend another night in separate rooms in the B&B. By the time he returned from the mission, his new home would be moved in and ready.
Our new home.
“Don’t look so sad, sweet cheeks.” Andrea stood from her armchair, wobbling slightly from the drinks we’d all been consuming, before planting herself next to Tessa on the loveseat and pulling the young mother into a forced cuddle.
“I don’t know how you all can be laughing right now.” She leaned her head on Andrea’s shoulder. “What if I never see you again?”
“Then we can remember the good times we had.” Andrea planted a kiss on her forehead. “However brief they may have been.”
“I’ve always laughed at the worst fuckin’ times.” Noelle helped herself to more whiskey from the coffee table. “Drove my moody-ass brothers nuts. Helps me deal with shit, I guess.”
“That’s really common, actually,” I told her. “Cracking jokes at seemingly-inappropriate situations is a widely-studied coping mechanism.”
“Alright, smart girl.” Andrea wadded up a cocktail napkin and threw it at me. “What else should I know about potentially ending or saving lives?”
“Do you know how to give CPR?” I asked.
“Sure do. I taught myself from a book actually, when my son was born.” Andrea’s face turned thoughtful, her hands stroking lightly over Tessa’s arms. “I should…I should see my kids one last time.”
None of us were about to tell her no, as she slid out from behind Tessa and headed for the main doors of the building. She had said goodbye to her children right before coming here, but the finality of the situation seemed to sink in as the time grew near.
“Poor Drea.” Noelle curled her feet underneath her. “It has to be so hard to do this.”
“I told her that,” Tessa said in a small voice. “She just said that was exactly why she had to. And that it’s what Dallas would have done.”
“She’s being so brave,” I said, swirling my reposado in my own glass. “I have to hand it to Big G too. He really stepped up.”
“Yeah, now he does,” Tessa scoffed. “Like I wasn’t feeling shredded up about this enough.”
“You still love him?” Noelle asked, never able to put a filter on that mouth.
“Not like I used to, but I still care about him.” Tessa cradled Vivian’s head against her shoulder. “He’s my kids’ father. There’s always gonna be something there.”
“It is nice to see him take initiative instead of just tagging along on the rides,” Noelle relented. “Hopefully this is the start of him acting like a grown-up.”
“If he comes back,” Tessa mumbled.
“He will.” I reached over and squeezed her knee. “He’s stubborn as hell and built like a stone chimney. And he won’t miss out on being here for his kids.”
“What about your tall, dark, scary one?” Noelle turned to me, the alcohol making her extra chatty. “Scared for him?”
“He’ll get it done,” I answered, the tequila now jostling in my stomach.
“Not what I asked, sister.” Noelle nudged me with her foot.
“Of course I’m scared,” I sighed. “Why do you think I’m