Marrying Ember(14)

I shut the door to the shed behind me while Ashby paced the floor for a moment. Finally, he sat in a chair against the wall, motioning for me to take the one next to him.

“How is she?” He spoke with the same heartbreaking vulnerability Ember did. The similarities between the two made this even harder somehow.

I sighed as I sat, rubbing my forehead with my sweaty palm. “Jesus, Ash … not good. Can you tell me what the hell happened?”

“She didn’t tell you?”

“It came out in pieces. You’re Willow’s biological father. You and Raven aren’t married. Apparently those two go together equal Ember’s assertion that we have to get married immediately.” I looked to Ashby, who frowned as he sat back.

“We just weren’t careful, Bo. It’s not like we were swingers, in the traditional sense, but the four of us—me and Raven, and Solstice and Michael—had a very open relationship for years. Years. This conversation could just as easily be happening the other way, with Michael at the helm.”

I scoffed. It was meant to be silent. It wasn’t, and I could tell it hurt Ashby’s feelings.

“You can’t judge us, Bo. It was a lifestyle we all chose. We never meant for anyone to get hurt.”

I stood, pacing the short length of the room with my hands in my back pockets. “Someone did get hurt, though. Two someones, and it was none of the four of you who made that original decision, Ash. Those girls didn’t get to decide this. Now Ember is in full panic mode, and I don’t know how to help her. She’s pulling away, though I’m sure me losing my temper didn’t help. Why didn’t you guys tell them when they were growing up? Did all four of you know?”

Ashby nodded. “We all knew, but not until the girls were two. That’s when Michael found out he couldn’t have children. He and Solstice had been trying for a sibling for Willow, and it wasn’t working. They went to a doctor, and …”

“So Willow could be anyone’s child, then?” I stopped and turned on my heels to face him again.

He shook his head. “It was just the four of us, no one else. We were monogamous in our group … if that makes sense.” He looked up at me with the shame of a two and a half decade-old decision scrolling over his face.

“None of this makes sense. Why didn’t you tell them?”

Ashby sighed and stood. “By the time we found out, we’d all bonded in our families. I didn’t feel closer to Willow just by learning she was biologically mine. And, Michael didn’t feel any distance from her. We accepted the results of our actions and agreed to just … keep our families the way they were. It would have been too confusing otherwise. We did what we thought was right, I—”

I cut him off as he started to ramble through his guilt. “I really don’t mean to judge, Ashby. I’m just trying to understand how I can help Ember. How’s Willow, anyway?”

“Same. Though it seems that she was resolved this would be the outcome, so it didn’t come down on her as hard as it came down on Ember. I’m scared I lost my little girl, Bo. I’ve spent twenty-eight years falling in love with her, and the way she looked at me today … it was like she was staring at a stranger.” Ashby put his hand over his mouth as a sob escaped.

“Christ.” I walked over to him and pulled him into a hug. If nothing else, spending all of this time with Raven and Ashby taught me how to love them. Ashby needed a hug.

After a long five seconds, Ashby cleared his throat and pulled away. “Do you think she’ll be okay to do the show tonight?”

“If for no other reason than to spite all of us, yes.” I smirked, and he followed. “Is Willow going to stay on tour with us?” I’m not sure what answer I’d hoped for.

Ashby nodded, and I realized I’d been hoping for the opposite movement. “She will. We asked both girls to stay.We don’t want or expect them to suddenly behave like the family they are, but we can’t bear to have them at each other’s throats anymore.”

“Ash?” Raven knocked on the door to the shed. “We’re ready to do sound checks. Are you guys all right?”

Ashby looked at me hopefully, and I nodded. He called over my shoulder. “We’ll be right out, hun.” He redirect his words to me. “Let’s get through the shows tonight and tomorrow. Then we have a couple of days before the next one to hopefully sort through some things.”

I opened the door, motioning for Ashby to exit ahead of me. “Here goes nothing, huh?”





Thankfully, I was right about Ember’s ability to keep her stage life and off-stage life separate for the sake of the show. It was something I’d always been able to do. I found performing the best way to work through whatever was happening off stage. Luckily for all of us, and the audience, Ember and the rest of The Six did the same.



The last song before intermission had me nervous, and holding my breath. While the whole band was involved instrumentally, the vocal showcase belonged to Ember and her mom, while Ashby and I led the melody on our guitars.

Ember looked as poised as ever as she stood inches away from her mother, sharing a microphone as they sang:





Sing, baby, sing, baby, sing tonight

Sing for the good and sing for the bad,