“Okay, we can talk about something else,” she suggests. “Do you remember your last summer back home before you moved to the East Coast?”
“Uh... I think so.”
“You were thirteen and had just gone through this massive growth spurt.”
“Oh yeah, a year of awkward growing,” I chuckle lightly.
“So that summer, all the girls in your year were talking about you. How Noah Mason was the hottest thing to happen that summer and they were fighting about dating you. There was this one girl, Georgia I think.”
“Head of the cheer squad, Georgia?”
“Yes... I think. She was two years older than you. She was at the local store one day and I overheard her telling her posse that she wanted to date you because you were the hottest thing ever,” she exaggerates. “I knew she was a skank and I was furious when I heard that. I actually went up to her and told her that if she went near you, or hurt you, I would punch her in the vagina.”
“Charlie.” I laugh. “You didn’t? She was the hottest chick back then.”
“You’re my family, the brother I never had. I didn’t want anyone hurting you. And now is no different.”
“Now we’re adults, I should be able to take care of myself,” I remind her.
“I’m struggling here, Noah. I know you love her, but she’s married. It’s a big deal... the whole marriage thing. I’m not going to pretend to understand how she feels because every situation is different. I just know this… I hate the fact that she hurt you.”
“She’s separated, supposedly.” Even when I’m trying to defend Morgan, it comes out wrong.
“But don’t you think she owes it to her marriage to make it work before running off with someone else? Marriage is hard work.”
“I don’t know, Charlie. I’m so angry. She told me she has issues with the kid. Apparently, it’s her stepson and he’s special or something. I just don’t know. I was so angry and not really comprehending or listening to what she was telling me.”
A gust of wind sweeps through the patio, warm and calming my anxious nerves. The view from the back of the house is stunning, stretching into the darkness of the mountains. It’s quite serene, and I understand now why Charlie and Lex love this property even though it’s a fair distance into town.
“Kids can be finicky,” she informs me. “If her stepson has special needs then I can understand that a marriage breakdown could be difficult for her family. Again, I don’t know her circumstances. Why don’t you try to sit down with her and discuss it more openly?”
“Because I’m too angry, Charlie. I don’t understand why she can’t just walk away. It’s not even her son.”
“Well, Lex and Haden think that your problem would be better solved by some girl-on-girl mud wrestling.”
I laugh again, the boys know me well, though I play coy. “I’m not sure it’s exactly what I want to see right now.”
“That’s what I said. But what would I know,” she voices with frustration.
I rest my head on her shoulder, thankful that at times like this, I have family around. Even though Charlie and I had drifted apart over the years, she was and always will be my big cousin. The girl that can take anyone down.
The back door opens and Lex is dressed in his jeans and a black polo shirt. “So, boys’ night out?” he asks, hopeful.
“I think you need to take him out,” Charlie agrees with a smile.
“Wait, is my wife actually agreeing with me?”
“Show him some tits and ass. He needs to get his mind off things.”
Lex looks stunned, and Charlie brushes it off like it’s nothing. But she’s a woman, and I know her feminist side is rocking itself in the corner demanding him not to go.
“I think I have the best wife in the world,” he says gushing, wrapping his arms around her waist and planting a kiss on her neck.
Charlie smiles happily as if nothing else in the world matters. “Just take care of my brother,” she tells Lex before winking back at me and walking inside the house.
***
“Fuck, look at her ass,” Haden comments. He has a tub of popcorn and a beer, watching the wrestling like a crazed fan.