A Palette for Love

by Charlotte Greene

  “I take it you like it?” Meghan asked.

  “It’s amazing.” I looked around at all of them, blinking away tears. “You’re all amazing. I don’t know how to thank you.”

  Aunt Kate walked over to me and gave me another hug. “You deserve it, honey. I want you to be happy. We all do.”

  I saw her share a smile with Amelia, and my heart swelled with relief and joy. They were finally starting to understand each other.

  “I am happy. Right now, I couldn’t be happier.”

  I hugged all five of them, trying my hardest to stop crying, but my tears were infectious. Amelia, Meghan, and Aunt Kate’s eyes were leaking by the time I’d made my rounds, and even Jim looked a little red around the eyes.

  “Okay,” Aunt Kate finally said, making a cutting motion. “Enough of these tears.” She wiped her eyes. “This is a happy occasion, and we should celebrate.”

  “Port of Call is just up the street,” Jim suggested.

  “Oh, man. I could go for one of their burgers,” Amelia said.

  We all looked at her, surprised to think that she’d ever been to that dive bar, let alone eaten a burger there or anywhere else. Seeing our shocked expressions, she laughed. “Well, it is an institution, people. I did grow up here.”

  I laughed and grabbed her hand, squeezing it. “A burger sounds perfect.” My eyes were tearing up again in perfect happiness.

  “We’ll go grab our jackets,” Aunt Kate said, steering Jim out the door.

  “We’ll come with you,” Meghan said, grabbing Zach’s arm. Both of them clearly understood that Amelia and I needed a minute.

  Amelia and I were left alone, and she pulled me into a long embrace. I kept swallowing the lump in my throat, too happy to tell her how I felt. After a couple of minutes of simply holding each other, I drew back. I met her eyes and saw that they were wet and red, too. She knew how I felt about what she’d done for me without explanation.

  “You go ahead,” I told Amelia. “I need a minute to calm down.”

  “Are you sure?”

  I nodded. “I’ll be right down.”

  She left and I turned slowly around once more, looking at my marvelous new studio. Had anyone asked me to describe the perfect studio, I would have described this room exactly. Somehow, without even asking me, Amelia had known just what I would like. Even after our progress last night, when I’d seen her almost completely nude, I’d still been harboring a kernel of concern about our future together. Now, seeing this room, those worries were put to rest. Our sex life could only get better—that I knew for certain. And if our love for each other deepened along with it, I knew that everything would eventually work out. I was determined to show her how much she meant to me, even if it took years for us to get there.

  Wiping my eyes for the final time, I made my way downstairs and rejoined the others. They hadn’t heard me coming, and I watched as the five of them joked and laughed with each other as they stood in my new living room. Amelia and Meghan looked relaxed and happy, and Aunt Kate and the men were watching the two of them banter with big grins on their faces. Amelia and the people I considered my family were finally seeing eye-to-eye.

  Seeing them there, I knew everything was going to just keep getting better and better.

  About the Author

  Charlotte Greene grew up in the American West in a loving family that supported her earliest creative endeavors. She began writing as a teenager and has never stopped. She now holds a doctorate in English, and she teaches courses in literature and women’s studies at a regional university in the South. When she’s not teaching or writing, she enjoys playing video games, traveling, and brewing hard cider. Charlotte is a longtime lover and one-time resident of the city of New Orleans. While she no longer lives in NOLA, she visits as often as possible.

  You can find and contact Charlotte on her website, charlottegreeneauthor.com, or follow her on Twitter and Instagram @cgreene_writer.

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