Margot sat back.

There it was.

And it began.

Shit.

“We’re glad you told us,” Addie said to the phone.

“When your mom left, took you girls, he got into booze and drugs. It was after going to AA when he learned he needed anger management too. Though I think he already kinda knew that because he never . . . not with me . . .” Fonda didn’t finish that. She shared, “And he did that. Anger management. Now he’s been clean for ten years and he . . . well, he owns a club. Here in Memphis. He plays with his boys Friday nights but mostly he finds acts he thinks have talent and gives them a shot. He’s, well . . . his place is well-known. Justice Lonesome has played his club. And the Blue Moon Gypsies shot a video there.”

And fantastic a-fuckin’-gain.

The dad sounded like he genuinely had his shit together.

Deanna sat back and ran her hand over her pregnant belly.

And there it was again.

“Ah, hell,” Charlie muttered.

“Can we . . . can we, do you think we could speak to him?” Izzy asked.

“Yes. Yesyesyes,” Fonda said hurriedly. “Let me . . . I’ll take you with me to find him.”

Iz looked to Addie.

Addie looked to Izzy.

“Just a second,” Fonda could be heard from the phone.

Then nothing except the sisters shifting to sit closer together on the couch.

“Okay, girls, he’s here. Here he is. Right here,” Fonda blathered then could be heard saying, “Take it, Harley.”

A throat clearing and then a melodious, deep, “Girls?”

Izzy and Addie’s heads listed until they were resting against each other.

“Dad?” Addie called.

“Is that . . . ?”

“Addie.”

“I’m here too,” Izzy said.

“Izzy,” he whispered. “Um . . .” another clearing of the throat, “how’re you two girls doin’?”

“We’re fine, Dad,” Addie told him.

“David?” Margot called softly. “I need a martini, my love.”

“On it,” David said and took off.

“Charlie?” Deanna called, also softly. “I need a martini, my love.”

“How about a chilled Perrier?” Charlie asked.

Deanna rolled her eyes.

Charlie took off.

“Are you girls . . . not alone?” Harley Aubrey’s voice came from the phone.

“No, we’re with family,” Izzy told him.

“Understandable,” he said. “And good. Good. That’s good. Uh . . . is, um . . . is my grandson there?”

“He’s outside with the babysitter,” Addie shared.

“Yeah. Okay.” His voice was getting thicker. “Okay, girls, hold on.” Then a distant, hoarse, “Shit.”

And Fonda was back.

“Your dad needs a sec, girls. Is that okay?” she asked.

“It’s okay,” Izzy said.

“Totally okay,” Addie said.

“So, well . . . while Harley sorts himself out, tell me about you. You girls sure dress real nice and those men you were with . . . I just, you know, I’m older, and um, well, I guess your stepmother, but . . . uh, wow.”

Izzy and Addie started laughing.

Goddamn fuck.

They were gonna have to put up with that ass.

He looked to Johnny.

Johnny looked to him.

“Beer?” Tobe asked.

“Bourbon,” Johnny said.

“I’ll get it, you stay,” Toby offered.

Johnny nodded.

“I’ll take some bourbon too,” Deanna called.

That was probably the only thing that could make Toby smile.

He gave that smile to Deanna.

Then he moved to get bourbon as well as wine for Addie and Izzy.

Because he reckoned, twenty-five years to catch up on, this was gonna take a while.

“So,” he heard Fonda say as he walked out, “two sisters, two brothers, I think that’s all kinds of sweet. When Harley found out, you know, when June’s attorneys told us who would be coming with you to the reading, he was worried about you two, you know, ’cause he just kinda does that, but I told him . . .”

Yeah.

Fuck.

This was gonna take a while.

Probably years.

And yeah, they were gonna have to put up with that ass.

But at least Fonda sounded like she was cool.

And Harley Aubrey sounded like he’d spent that last twenty-five years walking through hell.

Which meant at the end of Addie and Izzy’s journey, they could come to terms with the fact they’d had Daphne, they’d had each other, they’d had love, their place, their people, their family.

With as little as they had, they’d had it all.

They had it better than their father.

Far better.

And the thing of it was, they knew that all along.

And so did Harley Aubrey.

So Tobe was actually feeling sorry for the guy.

Yeah.

Shit.

Let Her Fly

Addie

Two Months Later . . .

TOBY WOULD TELL me after, it wasn’t what they’d first planned.

They’d done a switch up.

Though Izzy had started that.

So when she walked out of the mill and down the stairs toward the chairs set out in the grass to where Johnny was standing, under the arch close to the creek with Toby and his friend Ben behind him, me and Deanna across from them, she had hold of Charlie’s arm.

But as Izzy had planned, Dave joined them at the top of the layout of chairs.

And she held on to both as she walked down the aisle.

Incidentally, she did this walking right by without looking at the couple three rows up from the back.

Our father and his wife, Fonda.

This wasn’t a slight.

It was just that she only had eyes for Johnny.

What she didn’t know, was that Lance, Dave Junior and Mark would help their mom up from her seat at the front on Johnny’s side so she could stand by Johnny in the final steps Izzy took toward her future husband.

All Izzy, she had no clue what was going on, but she didn’t look freaked or confused.

She just gave Margot a serene smile.

She’d been just like that for weeks.

Then again, she’d really always been like that.

But Margot came forward, and Charlie and Dave did not put Izzy’s hand in Johnny’s.

And I could tell from Johnny’s face this wasn’t what he expected either.

The men gave Izzy to Margot.

And it was Margot who put Izzy’s hand on Johnny’s.

And then, I hated to admit it, but I lost it, though fortunately somewhat quietly, when Margot wound Mom’s braided leather headband around their hands.

I looked to Toby.

He winked at me.

He was in on this shit.

God.

My beautiful man.

It was Johnny who said, “No,” when Margot gave Izzy away and started to turn from them.

He wrapped his fingers around Margot’s that were over both of their bound hands.

Izzy did the same.

“Please stay,” Johnny whispered.

Margot peered up at his face only a moment before she nodded.

Thus Margot stood there holding their hands together over Mom’s braid the whole ceremony.