Page 101 of Fundamentals of Being a Good Girl
Above me, Mom nods as Nolan says, “Hell yeah, baby.”
“And I shouldn’t even be surprised by his horrific sex worker registry stunt,” Bee adds.
I’d read more about it over the last few days now that my news feeds were more Southern California–focused again.
It was always part of Gentry’s plan to run on family-first policy and to straddle the line of liberal and conservative, and if it was for the sake of pushing through legislation that truly mattered, I understood why he would do that, even if my younger self would have been horrified. But I really hadn’t seen that family-first olive branch coming in the form of a California sex worker registry so that you could see on a map if any sex workers lived in your neighborhood. The map was supposedly anonymous but did give specific addresses, just like the sex offender registry.
It was the kind of policy that would (hopefully) never pass, especially in a state built on the entertainment industry, but I’ve thought that before about absolutely inane bills that were then used to amass attention and dominate news cycles.
And it worked, because in the last week of his campaign, when thousands of base supporters had already voted early, Gentry began to float this new idea of his and immediately piqued the interest of zealous extremists who wanted to rid the earth of anything that they deemed sexually deviant even if it meant burning it all to the ground just to build it back up.
The furrow in Bee’s brow is riddled with genuine concern. The registry would greatly impact many people she knows and possibly even Bee herself. Even if I don’t know how much truth there is to it, I feel compelled to comfort her. “The good news is he’s only a junior lawmaker,” I assure her. “He’s only doing all this to make some noise. Very few people would actually vote for this.”
“I hope so,” she says as Nolan pulls her under his arm and kisses the top of her head.
And I do too. The wordregistryin conjunction with anything outside of babies and weddings is almost always a bad idea.
“Okay,” Mom begins, “so we are in agreement that Gentry is an awful mother... effer.”
“Mom!” Nolan and I both say at the same time, his voice full of alarm and mine full of delight.
She shrugs. “I’ve said the actual word before.”
“What else are you keeping from us?” I ask.
Bee snorts. “Maybe you should ask her about her contractor boyfriend.”
I shoot up now to face her, and Nolan is on the edge of his seat.
“What the ever-loving fuck, Mom?”
Mom rolls her eyes as she pulls me back into her lap. “Oh, hush, you two. It was one dinner date.”
“And three coffee dates,” Bee adds.
“And four brunches,” Mom continues.
My brother’s nostrils flare. “I’m going to beat the shit out of this guy with his own tool belt.”
Mom giggles. “Donald doesn’t wear a tool belt on most days. He’s the contractor, dear. And you’re the one who hired him to rebuild the steps and pergola in the backyard. And he’s a very kind gentleman.”
“He didn’t even kiss her until the third date,” Bee says, trying to prove Mom’s point.
“And how exactly do you know all of this?” Nolan asks.
“I’m observant, okay? And it was more entertaining than my book club book when I had to back out of filming for that new Hope After Dark movie last month because I was already showing too much.”
“So you and Donald are a thing?” I ask, feeling a little hopeful for our mom.
“We are taking it slow,” she confirms. “But perhaps we are... the beginning of a thing.” With a huff, she turns her attention back toward me. “Enough about me. Maddie, talk to us, baby.”
Nolan nods. “Yeah, we’ve hardly heard from you since you left for the gig in Mount Astra.”
I groan and bury my face in the blanket Mom and I share, but she silently squeezes my shoulder, and I know it’s finally time to tell them everything. Not just about Bram.
My first confession comes in the form of my nonexistent law school scholarship and how it was an informal guarantee that Gentry and his family would pay for my student loans once we were married.
Nolan leans forward, like he has a lot to say, and I’m sure he does—mainly that he would have rather paid for law school than have me in debt to a bank or the Wade family. But Bee pulls back on his shoulder and encourages me to continue.
