Page 55

Their celebration lasted into the evening and seemed to involve most of Portland. They started with a bottle of champagne at the Makers Bar.

“So glad you’ve moved on to champagne,” the waiter said. “Congratulations.”

Then they went to a lavish dinner at the ridiculously overpriced but truly fantastic restaurant Apollo and Diana.

Nina’s treat. Kia ordered fern fronds with house-distilled balsamic glaze.

Sullivan ordered a drink with cotton candy floating like a cloud around the biodegradable paper straw.

By six, they were at the Tennis Skort, and by seven the She-Pack was there, sweaty from practice.

Deja brought her friend Not A Hacker But.

Me’shell and her daughter arrived with a half a dozen other food truck owners, followed by the waitstaff from Mirepoix. Blake showed up.

“I deleted Mickey’s account,” he said over the clamor of voices.

“I think Mickey will be okay with that,” Sullivan said and gave him a hug.

Maybe she wouldn’t have to fire him.

Just when Sullivan thought it couldn’t get more festive, the burlesque troupe paraded by the window in their dancing snake puppet costume.

Kia stood beside Sullivan, her hand tucked in Sullivan’s back pocket, Sullivan’s arm around her shoulder.

“You could live stream this on Serve the World PDX,” Kia said. “It’d play really well. Activism is fun. By saving the snakes, you’re part of this beautiful diverse community. I know we’re supposed to save the snake for the snake, but people are motivated by a lot of things.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being motivated by community.

” Sullivan looked at the crowd. She couldn’t stop smiling.

One of the She-Pack women was explaining how to drink beer out of a cleat to an activist who—despite their shaved head and militant outfit—looked horrified.

Deja was flashing a QR code on her phone that took people to the Save the Snake website Not a Hacker But had set up.

Kia texted everything to her cousin, who texted back at lightning speed even though she was in Paris.

“She wants a picture of you and me,” Kia said, leaning over to sip on Sullivan’s straw.

Then they took half a dozen bad selfies, their smiles wide and the angles all wrong. Kia sent them all to Lillian.

Sullivan heard Opal whisper, “They’re so cute.”

Nina said, “They’re frickin’ adorable, but don’t tell them I said it.”

And Sullivan even live streamed a bit of the celebration.

“Let’s go outside and see the massive Oregon snake,” Sullivan said to the hearts that were popping up on the screen as she live streamed.

Outside, she showed her viewers the burlesque troupe’s snake.

The snake costume engineer talked about using recycled plastic to make the snake’s frame, and he invited Sullivan and her camera into the head of the snake.

Holding the snake’s head and live streaming at the same time was not easy, and eventually Kia popped into the tiny space in the snake’s papier-maché head and took over filming.

Sullivan felt good when she finally turned off the live stream and pocketed her phone.

There’d be trolls, and there’d be haters, but everyone who liked her live stream was one tiny bit closer to understanding one tiny, precious part of the natural world.

And they got to see diverse communities coming together for a common cause and, yes, to drink beer and watch burlesque performers in a giant snake costume…

but in the world with all its strife and divisions, that was a win too.

The party was still going on when Kia and Sullivan snuck out of the bar.

Back at the house, Kia and Sullivan mounted the stairs without discussion. Once in Sullivan’s bedroom, Sullivan kissed Kia tenderly, running her fingers through Kia’s hair for the first time. Georgie had felt off-limits. The way Kia sighed and leaned into her touch said Georgie wasn’t anymore.

“I can’t believe it worked out,” Sullivan said, unbuttoning the top button of Kia’s shirt.

“We always win,” Kia said.

She fumbled with the button on Sullivan’s pants until Sullivan had to help her.

“I’m still worried that I’m not good at this,” Kia said, toying with the waistband of Sullivan’s pants. “You said you’ve done everything twice. What if I’m boring?”

“You could never be boring.” Sullivan tipped Kia’s chin up and cupped her face. “And yeah, I’ve tried a lot of things twice. Like raw abalone. It’s okay but twice is enough.”

Kia laughed. Sullivan kissed her forehead.

“What I want is to be with you. I want to do all the fun things way more than twice. I want to learn what you like and what we like as a couple. I don’t need or want anything more than that.”

“So you’re not going to lick abalone off me?”

“If you want me to lick abalone off you, I will lick abalone all up and down your beautiful body.”

“You could just kiss me instead.” Kia beamed.

Soon they were naked, their movements both urgent and tender as they burned off the adrenaline of the day and found a place to put all their joy.

Sullivan was just waking up when Kia brought coffee and scones to bed, strutting in naked with two mugs in one hand and a plate in the other. A marshmallow floated on top of both cups.

“I won’t even complain about this high-fructose pillow floating on my coffee, Jackson.”

“You better not. You know it’s good.” Kia set her mug on the bedside table, handed Sullivan the plate, and snuggled back under the covers.

“Are the scones the best you’ve ever had?” Kia asked, nudging Sullivan’s bare calf with her own.

“They’re the best. I admit it. And you are the best wife.”

“I thought I was kind of a wrecking ball,” Kia said, her eyebrows furrowing ruefully.

“I think life is a wrecking ball sometimes. I want to be with someone who’s by my side throughout it and someone who tries to make things better when, maybe, they had something to do with the wrecking ball.”

“Are you saying you like me?” Kia nudged Sullivan’s foot with hers. “After everything.”

“Of course I like you, Jackson. I’ve always liked you.”

“Not enough.”

“Enough for what?”

“Enough to throw yourself at my feet and say, Kia, I want you more than anyone else in the world .”

She was so cute, and Sullivan did want her more than she’d ever wanted anyone, more than she could imagine ever wanting someone else.

“Do I have to get out of bed to throw myself at your feet, or can I just do it here sitting up?”

“Where is the romance, Chef?” Kia said with mock indignation and behind that a brittleness that said she was afraid this conversation wasn’t going to go the way she obviously wanted it to.

Sullivan couldn’t leave Kia hanging even for a moment.

“I do want you more than anyone else.”

She felt Kia’s body relax.

“Were you really in love with me in school?” Sullivan would have to revisit all her school memories. Kia had loved her!

Kia paused for a moment. “I think so. It’s probably good we didn’t date back then, but it wasn’t just a crush.

You impressed me more than anyone else I’d ever met, and I come from a family of professional ballerinas, so that says a lot.

I guess one of the things I loved about you was that you weren’t just one thing, like my cousin and my aunt were for a long time.

You took your work seriously, but you were playful.

You have this sexy masc lesbian vibe, and you dated all the men in the program. ”

“Not all of them.”

“A significant number of the men in the program, significant if you’re in love with the woman dating those men. You know, after we lost touch, I didn’t look you up because I didn’t want to find out you’d turned out to be an ass.”

“Did you think I’d be an ass?”

“Of course not, but you were so amazing, after we lost touch, I didn’t want anything to ruin that memory.”

“I wish we hadn’t lost touch. I got so busy; I lost touch with everything.”

“Did you ever think about me?”

“Honestly, if you’d asked me back then, I would have said, Not a lot .

But that wouldn’t have been true. When I look back, you’ve been everywhere in my life.

You were so much a part of me, I didn’t see it.

There’s only one dish I serve every single night.

It’s the Golden Crisp Experience dessert.

It’s puffed rice cooked in brown-butter mixed with homemade marshmallows.

Then I finish it with a pear-infused glaze. ”

“It’s a Rice Krispies treat!”

“We are not talking Jet-Puffed and Rice Krispies, but it’s all about you. It always has been. When I saw you in American Fare … I was happy for you. Really happy, even though I was distraught over all those forks.”

“I know. I know. I’ve reformed.”

“I didn’t realize how much it mattered to me that you achieve your dreams until I saw you there. And in case you haven’t noticed, I am in love with you, Kia Point Six Percent Jackson.”

“I am still in love with you, Chef Alice Sullivan.”

Kia turned toward her, and they kissed.

When they finally parted, Sullivan said what had been on her mind since they lay down the night before.

“We didn’t take a chance back in school.

” Sullivan felt a flash of déjà vu. They were back in the practice kitchen staring down an unspoken possibility.

We could stay together. It had been a ridiculous idea then, and it was a ridiculous idea now.

“We didn’t complicate things with a relationship anyone would have told us was crazy to start.

I know you’ll want to get back on the road, but I’m willing to give long distance a try. ”

“I don’t want to travel like I used to. I want to find an empty used car lot and build Taste the Love Land somewhere where I’m not hurting the environment.

I think I could find a place like that in Portland.

But mostly, the times in my life when I’ve been the happiest were when I was with you, staying put in one place.

I’d rather be here with you. Is that too much too soon? ”

That was exactly what Sullivan wanted to hear and knew she shouldn’t wish for since she shouldn’t stand in the way of Kia’s dreams. But if Kia’s dreams didn’t include serving tursnickens in all forty-eight contiguous states, that was just fine with Sullivan.

“That’s not too much at all.”

“I’m not saying we have to live together if you want your space.”

Sullivan took a sip of her deliciously sweet coffee. She felt her brow furrow.

“What is it?” Kia asked.

“We’re still married.”

“We are.” Kia looked everywhere but at Sullivan. “Nina would tell us we should get divorced,” Kia said. It sounded like a question. “Mark emailed me the paperwork.”

“Nina sent it to me too.”

They looked at each other.

“I haven’t even asked you if you wanted to be my girlfriend,” Sullivan said. “It’s too early to be married.”

“It makes sense to get divorced.”

Kia was right, but her words hurt… but only until Sullivan noticed the tremulous look in her eyes.

“If we weren’t married, and I asked you to marry me right now, you’d be like, Whoa. Too much too soon. ” Sullivan was asking, not saying.

Kia answered, “I wouldn’t.” She held Sullivan’s gaze with her golden eyes.

“I don’t want the first thing we do in our real relationship to be you moving out and us getting divorced,” Sullivan said.

Kia curled up against Sullivan, their warm, naked bodies melting into one. Sullivan couldn’t bear the thought of getting out of bed, let alone ending the morning with divorce papers.

“I always thought when I got married it’d be forever,” Sullivan said, “and deep in my heart, I wondered if I made a mistake when I left after graduation without at least seeing what we might have been together. What if I didn’t make that mistake this time?”

“Are you asking me to stay married to you, Chef Sullivan?”

“And live with me. Cook together. Camp in your RV. Have abalone sex if that’s your thing. Build Taste the Love and build a life together. Yes to all of that.”

Kia cuddled even closer, wrapping her arms around Sullivan and pressing her cheek to Sullivan’s chest. She was a very successful cuddler.

“I do,” Kia said. “I do. I do.”