Melody & Styx - Anne Mercier Page 0,7

back into my arms. "I know. But before we go visit my parents in a very Mormon state, we need to update you on the facts."

She looks up at me and grabs my shirt in her fists. "Oh God. Please, help me. I don't want to fuck up in front of your parents and say something stupid like I just did. Don't let me do it. You've gotta help me!"

"Stop panicking. I'll help you. It will all be great."

She puts her hands on my cheeks, her look is fierce. "Teach me the ways of Utah."

And so I do.

When we arrive at my parents' house, Meg looks surprised. I wonder if she thought we'd live in some strange building with a cult. Lord knows how people assume about what they don't know.

"This house. It's the all-American dream home."

I look at the house I grew up in. It's yellow with white shutters, a wrap-around porch, flowers my mother planted, and a white picket fence.

"And a porch swing!" Meggie bounces. I guess her nerves are forgotten for the moment. She swings around and looks at me with wide eyes. "Do they have any animals?"

I grin. Her smile is infectious. "A few horses, dogs, cats—"

"—and a Cockatoo that talks back and curses up a storm," my mom finishes for me.

I walk over to Meg and take her hand, guiding her up the stairs to where my mom waits.

"Mom," I say, and she pulls me into a fierce hug.

"Oh, how I've missed you. You always wait so long between visits."

"I missed you too, Mom." I step back and my mom looks over to Meg, who's begun to fidget and twist the rings on her fingers.

"You must be Meggie. I'm Stephanie and I am so happy to finally meet you." Meggie blushes then goes stiff for a moment when my mom pulls her into a hug. It's only a few seconds before Meg wraps her arms around my Mom in return. The sight does something to my heart. Mom steps back from the hug, holding onto Meggie's hands. "I'm so happy to have you here. You're the first woman Trace has brought home, you know."

Meggie gives me a smirk. "Is that right? No other girlfriends?"

"None that mattered," I reply. "I told you."

"So you did." She smiles and it's one that lights up her entire face. I found happiness and it's this girl with her crazy hot pink hair, tattoos, piercings, and strange fashion sense.

"Your dad will be home soon."

Meggie titters. "A governor."

Mom laughs. "Governor Timothy Stanton is who he is outside of this house. In this house, he's a completely different person."

"Good to know," Meggie replies.

It was a good visit. As I knew they would, my parents loved her. Who wouldn't love her?

Now, I just know I need to protect her—even if it's from the other family we became part of. Sometimes those emotional wounds hurt worse than any physical one ever could, and I have a feeling it's going to be inevitable no matter how hard I try to stop it.

5

Meggie

"Ow," I whine as Trace soothes my sunburned skin with aloe.

"At least it's your back. You sleep on your stomach," he offers.

I let out a frustrated noise. "True, but my butt cheeks when I have to pee… the backs of my legs when I have to sit to eat." I let out a sigh. "I was all SPF'd up. How? How did this happen?"

"We were out there too long."

We fell asleep. For two hours. I'm sunburned and Trace is all bronzed and beautiful.

"We can't even have sex!" I shout. "Missionary is out. I can't be on top because bending my knees."

"There's always doggie style," Trace offers.

I tilt my head in consideration. "We might be able to make that work if you don't spank me and are careful where you hold my hips."

"Sugar, you're getting me hard."

I look over at him and sure enough, he's at half-mast.

"We need to wait until the pain relievers kick in. Sorry, hottie."

"I'm not worried about it, Meg. I just want you to feel better."

"It's just a sunburn. I've had worse. This one time I was in Rio and I blistered. That was painful. This is nothing compared to that," I inform him.

"But it still hurts," he says, soothing me with more cool aloe.

"Yeah. It still hurts."

The quiet surrounds us. The only thing we hear are the waves, the occasional bird, that is until someone knocks on the door.

"I'll be right back, Meg."

I wonder what he's up to. The cold milk