“Shut up,” Kyle said, shaking his head at Jackson while leaning into Britt’s hug.
Joy stood in the doorway of the kitchen just watching them. Britt and Kyle had been really close when they were young, but then the teenage years happened, and Joy had often wondered who was going to kill the other first. But now? They were two peas in a pod when they got together.
“Hey, Jackson,” Britt said as she gave him a quick hug from behind. “Long time no see. What have you been up to? Or should I say, who have you been up to?”
Kyle let out a choked cough, while Jackson stared at him, clearly wondering what he should tell Britt.
Joy cleared her throat. “Have you boys eaten?”
“Just coffee,” Kyle said.
“Do you want breakfast?” she asked, heading for the refrigerator.
“Sure. Thanks, Mom.”
“Jackson?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder.
He stood up and shook his head. “No thanks, Joy. I need to get home and change for work.”
“What? You’re leaving?” Britt asked. “But I haven’t seen you in ages.”
“Sorry, B. You know how it is when you gotta work for the man.” He smiled at her and turned to go.
“Wait,” Kyle said, catching his hand and stopping him.
Jackson stared down at their clasped hands and then looked him in the eye. “Wait for what?”
“This.” Kyle tugged him close and then pulled him down for a quick kiss. “See you tonight?”
Jackson grinned at him. “I’ll come over after work.” He quickly glanced at Britt, who was staring wide-eyed with her mouth open. He gave her a wave as he chuckled and then all but floated out of the room.
“Well done, Kyle,” Joy said with a wink.
He flushed bright red, but a smile made his lips twitch.
“Kyle!” Britt cried. “You’re the guy Jackson is doing?”
“Britt!” Joy barked. “Please. His mother is in the room.”
Kyle’s face turned a deeper shade of red. “I, uh, wouldn’t put it like that. But yes, we’re dating.”
“And he stayed the night!” She flopped down into the chair across from him. “Scandalous,” she said, pressing her palm to her chest.
Kyle rolled his eyes. “I have a broken leg. How scandalous could it have been?”
She pursed her lips and gave him a cheeky smile. “I’m willing to bet it wasn’t PG13.” Britt turned to her mother. “You’re allowing this, Mom? I mean, they’re just teenagers.”
Joy snorted while Kyle groaned.
“You do remember that I’m twenty-two years old and a college graduate, right?” he asked her.
“You’ll always be my sweet sixteen-year-old brother. I just can’t deal with your boyfriend sleeping over.” She reached over and ruffled his hair.
“Oh for the love of the gods,” he mumbled. “I’m not inviting you to the bachelor party.”
“Bachelor party? You’re engaged?” she cried as she stood so fast the chair nearly fell over. “Just what exactly has been going on all these years? How long have you been together? And why didn’t you tell me?”
Joy stood at the stove, frying bacon and chuckling to herself as Kyle launched into an elaborate story about how they’d been star-crossed lovers ever since high school. Joy knew the truth of course. He’d admitted last night that they’d only been together about a month. He’d dated one other guy in college, but it hadn’t been serious enough to talk about.
“I hate you,” Britt said without any heat. She continued to ask him questions and express her unwavering support.
Joy reveled in the fact that two of her children were home. Her heart swelled with love and contentment at the sound of family at her table. She’d missed them. And while she was enjoying her freedom to start a career and prioritize her interests for the first time in years, there was nothing better than being with her children, two of the three people she loved most in the world. She knew they needed to grow up and make their own lives without their mother hovering in the background, but there was a small part of her that desperately wanted them to move home and stay there forever. She just enjoyed them. And as far as she was concerned, there wasn’t a damn thing wrong with that.
“Hey, Mom?” Britt called.
“Yeah?” Joy turned around to look at her children.
“Do you want to tell us why you have purple dots all over your face?”
Joy frowned. “What?”
Britt pressed her forefinger to her chin, her forehead, and then two spots on her right cheek. “You look like you got into a fight with a purple Sharpie and lost.”
Dread curled in Joy’s gut as she hurried down the hall into the bathroom. When she looked at herself in the mirror, she let out a loud groan. Sam’s facial had finally seemed to work on the acne, as the bumps had vanished, but the dark purple spots had been left in their place. “Britt?” she called. “How long are you staying?”
Her daughter appeared in the doorway. “I’m not sure yet. Why?”
“I’m going to need your help tonight.” She pointed to her face. “I have a cocktail party to go to… with press. And I cannot look like one of the Purple People Eaters.”
Britt, who’d always had an interest in makeup, laughed. “All right. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ve got this.”
“I think you need a real healer,” Britt said as she dabbed yet another layer of concealer on Joy’s face. “These marks only seem to be getting darker.”
“I know. Pretty soon I’m going to look like I have flesh eating bacteria on my face.” Joy had to admit that she was really getting concerned. She’d started to wonder if someone had cursed her or if the remedies she’d tried had caused the unusual spots. “I just need to get through tonight, and then I’ll go see Carrie at Luminal Space Day spa. She’ll know what to do.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to try this stuff Gigi gave you?” Britt looked at the small jar and bit her bottom lip.
Joy sat back in her chair and sighed. “I tried it last night. It didn’t seem to do anything.”
“Crap. All right. I’ll get these spots covered, but it’s going to be a lot more makeup than you’re used to. And no snuggling up next to your date. You’ll get makeup all over him.”
“Fine. Just as long as the pictures are good, that’s all that matters.”
“I’m on it.”
An hour later, Joy’s spots were hidden under a pound of makeup, her hair was styled into a fashionable twist, and she was wearing a dress that hugged every one of her minimal curves. She walked out into the living room with a thigh-high boot Hope had insisted she buy in one hand and a stiletto in the other. She held them up for her children. “Which one?”
“The boots,” they both said in unison. Britt turned to Kyle. “You’re on your way to becoming a really fabulous gay man.”
“I’m not gay. I’m bi, and that was a terrible stereotype. You should be ashamed of yourself,” he said before turning back to Joy. “Mom, you look hot.”