Next of Kin

In the car, Chloe plays the unmarked CD she’s heard on past drives but has never been able to identify. The band is Warren’s from high school, which he left when they started touring so he could get a job and receive custody of Luke. At the hospital for Willow’s appointment, Warren goes in with them, and Chloe is silently grateful, thinking she could get used to “the feeling of not trudging through appointments, difficult days, or fears alone” (155). Willow’s blood pressure is trending down, and the hole in her artery has closed by itself, meaning she won’t need surgery. The news leaves both Chloe and Warren elated.

The visitation with Chloe’s birth mom goes well, and Chloe’s mom promises not to contest the adoption because she wants Willow to be “with [Chloe]. The stronger version of [her]” (161). After her mom leaves, Chloe talks to Odette, confessing she might be in love with Warren. Back in the car, she gives Warren the good news about her mom and then starts focusing on her adoptive parents’ visit the next night.

Warren and Luke take Willow to pick up food, leaving Chloe alone with her adoptive parents. The exchange is tense with her parents giving her money they want her to use to visit them and both changing the subject whenever Willow is mentioned. Things aren’t much better once Warren and Luke return. Chloe’s mom looks down her nose at Warren and Luke, implying that Chloe is dependent on them, which makes her a failure in her mother’s eyes. Chloe doesn’t back down, telling her mom she’s happy with her decisions and that “you can either support me…or you can go” (174). When Chloe’s mom continues her rant, purposefully not signing to exclude her husband from the conversation, Warren jumps in to explain how hard Chloe works and how she doesn’t need to be treated this way.

The rest of dinner is more civil, but Chloe is still glad when her parents leave, all the while amazed at how Warren stood up for her. After Luke goes to bed, Chloe and Warren confess their love for each other and kiss, interrupted from doing more by Chloe remembering she has her period. Chloe doesn’t want their first time to be during her period, which Warren accepts. They curl up in his bed and cuddle, and Chloe falls asleep “listening to his steady heartbeat” (186).

Chloe wakes up late the next morning, realizing Warren got up with Willow so she could rest. At breakfast, Chloe asks Luke if he’s okay with her and Warren as a couple, and smiling, Luke responds, “Anything that makes Warren this happy is fine by me” (189). Chloe and Warren spend the afternoon chatting and napping in her bed. Chloe asks Warren why he calls her dove, and Warren explains doves symbolize the peace she makes him feel.

Emily and Lane come for a visit, and both are excited to meet Willow and learn that Chloe is happy with him. The two are moving back to town and will be renting the two-bedroom apartment Warren didn’t take. When Chloe asks why they are moving back, they say they want to be there for Chloe and Willow, and Chloe is amazed to find their support, thinking, “[M]y people were with me the whole time. I just had to let them in” (196). When Warren and Luke get home, Chloe introduces everyone and notices Luke’s brooding expression, which is concerning. Luke goes to his room, and Warren joins Chloe’s group, laughing and chatting along.

The following weekend, Warren takes Chloe on their first date, refusing to tell her where they’re going. Chloe wears a form-fitting red dress and high-heeled leather boots, and she is overwhelmed by the sight of Warren in a suit. She tries to get him to spill the date’s details with a sensual kiss. Warren refuses, though he whines as she backs away “as if he already regrets every decision he’s made that will prolong this evening” (207).

Warren brings Chloe to a fancy restaurant for dinner. Afterward, they go to a local hill, hitting glowing golf balls into the woods beyond. On the last one, they make wishes. Chloe hopes both Willow and Warren will stay with her. Warren wishes the same about Chloe, and as they kiss, Chloe realizes the wanting between them is far more than physical—it’s “wanting love, wanting loyalty, wanting permanence” (214).

Lastly, Warren brings Chloe to the warehouse where his band used to play, where he sings a song he composed for her. The whole thing feels right, and Chloe feels like “whatever magic this evening holds is tangible” (218). When the song’s over, Chloe and Warren promise this is each other’s last date and go home.

Back at their building, Warren and Chloe kiss in the elevator and the hallway outside the apartment. Inside, Warren goes to check on Luke and Willow, and Chloe waits in his room, stripping to lounge on his bed, naked. When Warren returns, he’s stunned silent by how beautiful she is. He lies down to pull her atop him so he can bring her to orgasm with his mouth. It’s just as amazing as Chloe imagined, but even knowing that, she’s glad they waited because she now feels “safe to show him all of [her]—body and soul” (227).