"Mommy," Jade says, looking over. They're laying out on loungers by the pool in robes, hair wrapped up in towels. Stevie lowers her sunglasses, looking at her daughter. "Is Daddy staying again tonight?"
"I don't know, babe," Stevie says, sighing. She glances over at the pool, where Lindsey is swimming laps. "Do you want him to?"
Jade nods, leaning back in her chair with her glass of lemonade. Stevie chuckles, catching Lindsey's eye when he swims to the edge of the pool. She's feeling uneasy because she can't identify her feelings about the situation. She loves him, that's a given. She just isn't sure about the rest. She's worried about how they're going to find their rhythm again.
"Hey," Lindsey says softly, sitting on the edge of her lounger, towel draped across his shoulders, water dripping from his hair. "What's wrong?"
"Hmm? Nothing," She says, offering a half hearted smile. He looks at her, raising an eyebrow. "Nothing, I'm fine, really."
He shoots a look at Jade, who has her eyes closed, the picture of relaxation. He shakes his head, amusement glimmering in his eyes.
"Stevie," He says softly, leaning in closer to her. "Don't do that."
"Do what?" She asks, picking at her cuticles. He sighs, rubbing a hand down his face.
"I'm gonna take a shower. I think we should talk about this."
"Later, Lindsey," She says, cutting a quick look at Jade. He nods, squeezing her shoulder as he walks past.
————
Stevie hums as she brushes through Jade's hair. Jade is sitting at Stevie's vanity, lining up all her lipstick tubes and perfume bottles, focused very intently on her task.
"Did you have fun today?" Stevie asks, running the brush through Jade's thick curls twice more before putting it down.
"Yeah! I especially liked when Daddy talked like Uncle Mick and brought us lemonade."
Stevie chuckles, running her fingers through Jade's hair as she starts to section it off for french braids. "Yeah, that was funny."
Jade returns her attention to lining up all of Stevie's makeup, now working on stacking pots of eyeshadow into short towers.
"Careful with those ones, babe. They break easily," She says softly.
"I know, Mommy," Jade nods, wincing when Stevie's ring snags in a section of her hair.
"Sorry," Stevie says, pushing the finished braid over Jade's shoulder and grabbing the rest of her hair. Stevie looks up when the bedroom door opens, locking eyes with Lindsey through the mirror.
"Hey," She says. "We're almost done."
He nods, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Whatcha working on, Bug?"
"I'm organizing Mommy's makeup!" Jade smiles, looking over at him. Stevie gently pushes her head back to where it needs to be, chuckling softly.
"Yeah, Mommy has a lot of makeup, doesn't she?"
"Mhmm," Jade says, picking up Stevie's fluffy brush, swiping it across her cheeks.
"Okay, sweet girl, you're all done," Stevie smiles, bending to press a kiss to the top of Jade's head.
"Thanks, Mommy," She beams, spinning around and wrapping her arms around Stevie. Stevie lifts her into her arms, spinning around with her.
"Of course, my girl," She says, kissing her cheek and rubbing her back. "I love you."
"I love you too, Mommy," Jade yawns, laying her head on Stevie's shoulder.
"Say goodnight to Daddy," Stevie says. Lindsey smiles, kissing Jade's head.
"Night, Bug. I love you," He says, tapping the tip of her nose.
She giggles, blinking her sleepy eyes at him. "Love you, Daddy."
Stevie smirks at him, heading down the hall to Jade's room. Lindsey walks towards Stevie's vanity, putting her makeup back where it goes. He doesn't even realize what he's doing until he catches Stevie staring from the corner of his eye.
"Oh, sorry," He chuckles, stepping away.
"How the hell do you know where that all goes?" She asks, moving towards the armchair in the corner, grabbing her pajamas that she'd thrown over the back. "I can barely keep track of it all. Sometimes she pulls out shit that I swear I lost months ago."
He shrugs, clearing his throat and looking down at his feet when she starts to change.
"Linds, what's your deal?" She asks, laughing as she pulls her sundress over her head. "It's not like you've never seen me naked before."
"I know," He says, dragging his heel across the carpet. "It just feels..."
"Weird now? Yeah, I know," She sighs, fluffing her hair as she sits on the edge of the bed. She has to purse her lips to hold in her giggle at the sight of him blushing, staring down at the floor like it holds the secrets to the universe. "Lindsey, sit down."
He looks at her, looking so awkward and shy that a wave of nostalgia washes over her, so strong she has to blink back tears. The last time he looked at her like that, he was about to ask her out on their first date. She melts just a little inside, scooting closer until their thighs are touching.
"Stevie," He says, grabbing her hand, clasping it between both of his and pulling it into his lap. "What were you thinking about earlier?"
She sighs, shaking her head.
"We can't do this," He says softly, tilting her chin up so she meets his eye. "We need to talk about things. I don't want us to start off with the same bullshit we always do."
She nods, chewing her bottom lip anxiously. "I know."
"So... talk to me."
She sighs, running a hand through her hair. "I don't know, Lindsey. Just... how the hell are we going to do this? You're gonna need your house back, and Carol is still there-"
"That's what this is about? Stevie, I told you-"
"Lindsey, I know what you told me. It's the same thing you've told me before, so forgive me for being a little apprehensive. I need her gone, Linds. Completely out of the picture before we get serious about this thing we're doing here. I don't want her around Jade, I don't want her around your house, and I sure as hell don't want her anywhere near this," She says, gesturing between them. "We need to go slow. We can't jump headfirst into bed and just assume the rest will fall into place. I know we kind of already did that, but we can't do it again. We have to take it slow, and not involve anyone else until we know we're solid."
He nods, stroking his thumb across her knuckles. "Okay."
She closes her eyes, letting out a breath. He sees the tension leave her shoulders, and he relaxes, too. "Okay."
She climbs up the bed, getting settled against the pillows. He looks at her, a dopey smile on his face.
"You gonna sleep down there?" She asks, patting the space beside her. He shakes his head, laying beside her. She hands him the remote and turns on the bedside lamp, pulling her journal into her lap.
"Is the light okay?" She asks, looking over at him. He nods, his eyelids already drooping. She smiles, raking her hand through his hair. He lets out a soft, contented sigh, and she can see the tension drain from his body with every pass of her fingers through his curls. She plays with his hair until he falls asleep, gently trailing the pad of her thumb across his forehead.
"Goodnight, Linds," She whispers, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead. She turns down the volume on the TV, giddy to finally get to put all these new developments in her journal, where she can gush and not be afraid to look like a teenager after her first date.
