Kristy

It was hard to believe, but Mary Anne and I had been in Santa Cruz for a month. For the most part, we'd been having a great time. Dawn's work schedule was kind of sporadic—she taught group Pilates classes twice a day during the week and also scheduled private classes—so Mary Anne and I had taken advantage of her schedule to take a few day trips. Somehow I doubted Dawn would have been interested in joining us on our trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I could just see her getting arrested for trying to liberate the fish.

I'd also been spending quite a bit of time with Tom, although our relationship was definitely on the "just friends" side of things. I knew Mary Anne and Dawn thought there was something more going on between us, but Tom and I had settled into a brother-sister type relationship. I know people say I'm immature for my age, but I just wasn't sure I wanted my rebound relationship to be with a guy who could have once been one of my babysitting charges. Tom was teaching me to surf, a sport I found I would miss when I returned home—wherever I decided home would be after this summer.

During our month in California, I had been scouring the Internet and calling contacts I'd made in the non-profit world for job leads. I had sent my resume to a few places, but my heart really wasn't in it. Not for the first time, I wondered if I was having a quarter life crisis. Maybe playing college softball and graduating early and being in a serious relationship while starting my career had been too much, too soon. I wished I could be more like Dawn. Her lack of motivation to have a real career suddenly seemed refreshing. I knew I would have to make a decision about my future soon. The summer was flying by—we'd already left June behind.

For the Fourth of July, we had invited Tom, Kyle and Aidan over to our place for a barbecue. The evening before, Mary Anne and I finally got around to shopping for the food (well, our food—Dawn was in charge of the tofu burgers and organic ice cream). The store was crowded, full of other last minute shoppers. When we finally made it out an hour later with our burgers, hot dogs, chips, salsa and refreshments, the night was still young. "You up for some pool?" I asked Mary Anne as we drove past a bar Tom had introduced us to.

"Sure." I still couldn't get over how much Mary Anne had changed since graduating from high school, and especially in the past few years. There had been a time when I would have expected Mary Anne to fall into a dead faint upon setting foot in a bar, and don't even get me started on how surprised I was to find out she was a more than decent pool player. We'd beat Tom and Kyle three weekends in a row.

I pulled out my cell and called Tom. He and Kyle agreed to meet us at the bar. Mary Anne and I got drinks while we waited for them to arrive. Twenty minutes later my cell buzzed.

"It's Tom. They won't let us in. Can you come meet us outside?" I rolled my eyes at Mary Anne and nodded toward the door. She sighed and we got up.

"I told you guys you were flirting with disaster." I shook my head at Tom. "Pretty soon the bouncer was going to realize you aren't a 28-year old Hispanic guy named Fernando."

"Well, it took him long enough," Tom grumbled. "The only reason they're cracking down is because it's a holiday weekend."

"We can go to our place instead," Mary Anne suggested. "We bought some beer for tomorrow, but we can always go back to the store if we run out."

Mary Anne and I got back into the car and dove back to our place. "Dawn must be home," I said as we pulled into the drive. The kitchen lights were on. We hadn't expected her home so early. She'd had her weekly staff meeting and dinner after work. I wasn't sure what a group of Pilates and yoga instructors and a masseuse did at a staff meeting, but Dawn usually got home late on the nights they met.

The guys parked behind us and we all trooped into the kitchen, arms laden with groceries. I wasn't sure what I was expecting to see, but a naked man—sitting at the kitchen table, reading the newspaper with a slice of pizza in front of him—certainly wasn't at the top of my list.

I dropped the bag of groceries I was carrying and grabbed the nearest thing that could be used as a weapon, which happened to be a silicone potholder. "Get out! This is private property! Are you high? Mary Anne, call the police!" Naked Guy seemed to be saying something—his lips were moving—but I couldn't hear him above all the yelling. When he finally leaped out of the chair—hands covering his head to prevent further potholder-inflicted damage—Tom and Kyle rushed him and pinned him against the wall. Mary Anne had retreated to a corner. She looked about ready to cry.

"You have three seconds to explain yourself or we're calling the cops!" I waved the potholder menacingly. The intruder opened his mouth again to speak when Dawn, wearing a Japanese kimono, appeared in the doorway.

"Kristy! Leave him alone! It's okay. Guys, let him go."

"You know this guy?" I couldn't have masked the surprise in my voice if I tried. Though, if I thought about it, it wasn't really a surprise that Dawn would befriend a naked guy who reeked of marijuana.

"This is my partner, Tree," Dawn said. As if that explained everything.

"Are you a Pilates instructor, too?"

"Kristy, don't be daft. Tree is my life partner." She flashed a toothy smile at Naked Guy.

"You mean he's your husband?" I asked. I don't know what was more shocking: That Dawn was married, that her husband's name was Tree, or that he appeared to be about 35 years old.

"Kristy," Tree said, "we prefer the term 'partner.' 'Husband' and 'wife' are outdated terms, created by our patriarchal society, that box men and women into stereotypical roles. They enforce unrealistic expectations, which ultimately lead to the breakup of many marriages. Dawn and I believe ours is a union in which we're equal partners."

Great. Dawn had found the only man on the planet who was as patronizing and condescending as she.

"Wow. That's a bombshell." I seemed to be the only other person who could speak. Tom and Kyle had slowly inched their way to the door. They obviously weren't intending to stick around. Across the room, Mary Anne still looked weepy.

"You – you got married and didn't tell anybody?"

"I'm sorry, Mary Anne. We wanted to keep things simple. Only Sunny, Asante and our priest were there."

I was willing to bet their "priest" wasn't Catholic.

"But we have some beautiful photos that we'd like to share with you," Tree invited.

"How could you invite us to spend the summer with you and not tell us you're married?" I demanded. "Don't you think we might have wanted to know that you have a husband who wanders around naked? By the way, I'm not sitting in that chair ever again."

"Dawn?" One. Two. Three. There it was. A single tear began to roll down Mary Anne's face.

Dawn sighed. "I think we'd better discuss this in private," she said to Tree. "Do you mind waiting for me in the bedroom?" Tree, in all his unclothed glory, gave Dawn a quick hug and left the room. Tom and Kyle also took the opportunity to finally make their exit.

"Well!" Dawn said brightly—too brightly, in my opinion. "I guess I have a few things to tell you about."