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“He is not waiting beside his phone for a stranger to contact him.”

“He could be.”

“Now that would concern me.”

I lock the screen and place the phone facedown beside my coffee.

“There. Dare completed.”

“No,” Harper says. “The date completes it.”

“There is no date.”

“Yet.”

I look at Micah. “Can you text Paul and let him know you gave out his number?”

“Nah, he likes surprises.”

Harper opens her mouth. “Micah, you need to send him something encouraging him to say yes.”

“No, that’s weird.”

She points at him. “You’re weird.”

“You married me.”

“Yeah, because they dared me.”

He pulls her down onto his lap before she can argue. She laughs, then immediately tells him to let her go while making no effort to stand.

Ivy watches them.

Gray watches Ivy.

Charlie sleeps through all of it.

I pick up my coffee. The ice is fully melted and it is now watered down.

This is the current structure of my life.

Two best friends in love with men they met because of a dare.

One newborn who has already been photographed more times than I have in the past five years.

One message sent to an architect named Paul.

I take a drink and make a face. Watered down coffee is unacceptable.

Some things remain easy to identify.

My phone stays facedown and I do not check it again.

Not when Charlie wakes.

Not while Ivy takes more pictures.

Not while Gray asks the nurse three questions about the hospital blanket.