Page 17 of The Ampersand Effect

Six

“You know we’re only letting you con us into re-watchingTop Gun: Maverickfor the eleventy-billionth time because of your nomination, right?”

Grier had forced her family to rewatch the movie every time it was her turn for Friday Night Film ritual, and they were probably closing in on Delta’s hyperbolic count.

“Pilots are hot. And Phoenix is my dream wife. What’s a girl to do but pine longingly for her heartthrob?” Grier fanned herself dramatically before collapsing onto Delta in a soggy heap—Lake, her rescue mutt, piling on top of them.

“You havegotto get a girlfriend,” Delta groaned, rolling her eyes. “Or better taste in films. This one’s tired—put it to bed. Then maybe you can find a real woman to take to bed! That Captain Maes was hot…”

Grier shot upright, decidedly ignoring the comment about the captain. She fanned her fingers across her chest and gasped in mock horror. “Me? What about you? When are you going to leave us, lover in tow, abandoning film night for a new life of romance and betrayal?”

Delta deadpanned a look of incredulity at her aunt, “I’m eleven.”

“Exactly!” Grier retorted, pushing herself out of the chair and mussing Delta’s hair as she grasped the coveted afghan—crocheted by her grandmother, Delta’s great-grandmother—even after she’d gone blind. She swiftly tugged on the blanket, wrapping herself like a burrito, and fell onto the couch, giggling in the triumph of her theft.

“You’re incorrigible,” Delta sighed, shifting across Lake, comforting her beloved pup against the sudden chill.

“Where in the hell did you learn to talk like such an adult?” Grier semi-yelled, her words muffled by her blanket cocoon.

“I read. You should try it sometime. Might broaden your palate.

Maybe then we’d get a new movie around here,” Delta retorted.

Grier freed herself from the blanket. “A, stop being an adult— you have your entireadulthoodto be an adult. And B, don’t pretend you don’t think pilots are hot. Because they are.”

Delta grabbed an alternate blanket from the back of her chair and tucked it around herself and Lake. “I’ve already agreed with you. But seeing as you have yet to make good on anything with the real- life captain we met this week, your evidence in support of such a case is lacking.” Her rebuttal was dripping with sarcasm.

“Okay, Sassy Spice. Change my mind.”

“You know I’m eleven, right? As in, born in the teens? As in, your Spice Girls reference is wasted on me.”

Grier smirked. “I think you just refuted your own evidence, my friend.”

“Ladies,” came a voice from the staircase. Grant, Grier’s brother and Delta’s father, descended with a tray of snacks—including the family’s sacred staple—root beer floats. He gave them both the mock stern look of a man who knew his efforts at order were futile.

“She took my blanket again, Dad,” Delta tattled immediately. “New rule,” Grant announced, setting the tray on the battered ottoman in front of the old, over-loved sectional. He lowered himself onto the cushion beside Grier, barely suppressing a grin as both she and Delta swiveled their necks and locked onto him like a laser sighter, knowing full well the rule would be immediately overruled. “The blanket goes to the weekly film picker. She or he should be afforded the most comfort during the film of their choice.”

Grier met Delta’s eyes, understanding igniting between them— unspoken, instantaneous.

Two throw pillows hurled at Grant in perfect synchrony. “Think again, big brother!”

“No way, Dad! If she’s going to force us to watch this crap on repeat, I should at least get dibs on the best blanket!”

Grant deployed his most charming grin. “Listen here,girls.” His eyes sparkled with mock authority. “I am the man of this house, and my rule—”

Grier and Delta cut off the remainder of his bluffed bravado. Grier jabbed a finger down her throat with exaggerated gagging noises while Delta accompanied her with groans of exasperation.

Grant chuckled, leaned back against the cushions, and laced his hands behind his head. “Glad to know where I stand in this house.” Still smiling seconds later, he added, “Don’t ever change, Delta.”

Pride swelled in Grier’s chest. Grant’s dedication to raising a strong, independent and self-secure young woman after Nora’s death was his first priority. He challenged Delta to think critically, challenging the patriarchal norms surrounding Delta by holding space for conversations about gender, sexuality, religion, and politics—never forcing ideas, but never dodging topics either. The results were evident in the girl’s unflinchingconfidence, her refusal to shrink from topics most families hurriedly whispered through or ignored entirely.

Nora had been Grier’s best friend since the first day of chiropractic school—inseparable from that moment on. When Grier introduced her to Grant, their connection had been palpable and instant, just as undeniable. They married before graduation, asking Grier not to standwitheither of them but to standbetweenthem, officiating their vows and uniting their families joyfully through an abundance of love. Nora was pregnant before they graduated.

Nora’s death had been swift and merciless—the illness claiming her mere months after diagnosis. Still, she wasted away while her seven-year-old daughter flourished around her. Her final request of Grier had been simple and devastating: help raise her daughter. Grier accepted the request with determination, moving into Grant and Nora’s house two days before Nora succumbed.

Nora had been adamant that Delta grow up with full autonomy over her body and mind, and neither Grant nor Grier would ever risk tarnishing that legacy. Even at eleven, Delta was already formidable—whip smart, sass seeping from her pores, and a veneer sheltering her sensitive heart, most of which was reserved for rescue animals. Rarely a week passed without some sort of stray finding a temporary shelter in their home, only to be kindly released into the wild as soon as it was well.

“Pass me a float, please,” Grier stage-whispered as she pressed play on the remote. “Let me revel in my reward—for an award I have not yet actually won.” She felt the heat of two sets of eyes glaring at her.