“It just takes one sperm, honey.” Lily laughed and threw her arms around Ben, who, for the first time, hugged her back with equal force.
As Lily walked up the path to Granny McGilly’s house, the old woman opened the screen door.
Mimi stood in the doorway, wearing a sunshine-yellow gingham sundress, and her face lit up like sunshine as soon as she saw Lily. “Mama!” she squealed and ran barefoot down the path into Lily’s open arms.
Big Ben and Jeanie had told Lily and Ben they could invite anybody they wanted to the big celebration barbecue, and they had taken the elder McGillys at their word. Ken was there, and he and Ben were pushing Mimi around the pool on the inflatable raft while she lounged like a tiny bikinied goddess.
Jack was helping Ben’s brother Wayne tend the grill, while Honey was helping Jeanie set out the potato salad and baked beans.
“There’s no telling when we’ll see our better halves again,” Jeanie laughed, in reference to the fact that Big Ben had just taken Mick into the house to show her his hunting trophies.
At the redwood picnic table, Granny McGilly sat with Dale and Sue, drinking beer and laughing about times no one else at the party was old enough to remember.
Sheila and Tracee gave the party’s queer guests a wide berth, but they kept their pink-glossed lips buttoned tight. Big Ben had made it clear that any rudeness on their parts would incur his wrath, and he didn’t have to explain that his wrath carried with it dire financial consequences.
“You wanna come for a swim, Lily?” Ken hollered, as he and Ben were taking Mimi on another circuit of the pool.
“Not with that brand-new tattoo on her back, she don’t,” Honey answered for her. “She’s gotta keep it dry twenty-four hours.”
Earlier in the day, Lily had an appointment at Honey’s tattoo shop. On Lily’s left shoulder blade, Honey had engraved the image of a peacock. Its feathers swooped and flowed with the natural curve of her back. It was Lily’s first color tattoo, and it was stunning — rich with emerald greens and bright blues.
The peacock, Lily knew, would remind her of her time in the Peacock Alley region of Georgia, a time that had made its mark on her. But Lily liked the image of the peacock for another reason, too— its pride. Now that she had won Mimi, Lily planned never to hide her true colors again.
“Actually,” Jack said, joining Lily by the pool, “I was just about to ask you if you’d care to take a walk with me.”
“Sure,” Lily said. “Just don’t forget and touch my shoulder. It’s sore as hell.”
Jack smiled. “I promise not to touch ...” She leaned closer and whispered, “your shoulder, anyway.” Jack unlatched the gate, and they walked in the field beyond the McGilly mansion and pool.
“So,” Jack said, “what now?”
“I ... I thought we were going for a walk.”
“You know what I’m talking about.”
Lily shrugged. “Well, I guess I’ll take those animal sketches and work on turning them into a book.”
