“Hey,” I say. My own smile is unavoidable. Our gazes are locked on one another for a long second before he takes in my family standing on the porch with me. If he’s nervous to meet them, he’s hidden it well behind his friendly smile.
“Please, come in,” he tells my parents, moving aside so they can cross the threshold. Mom hangs her coat and bag in the entryway, and Zayne shakes her hand and Dad’s. “It’s nice to meet you both. I’m Zayne. Thanks for coming.”
“Absolutely,” Mom says. “I’ve been so excited to meet you.”
Dad nods and adds, “I can smell the food, man. My mouth is watering already.”
Zayne laughs. “Thanks. I guess that’s what happens when you have a mom and a grandma who cook for a living.”
“Here you go.” Beau hands Zayne the bottle of cider we brought as a thank you.
He takes it with a surprised smile. “Oh. Thanks.”
Mimi rounds the corner from the kitchen into the entryway then, and when she sees us, her entire face lights up. “Oh, you’re all here! It’s lovely to meet you!” She hurries toward us and tucks a lock of her thick, dark hair behind her ear before hugging my parents, one in each of her arms. They introduce themselves and Mimi glances at Beau. “You must be Dot’s brother.”
“Yeah, nice to meet you.” Beau kicks his shoelaces. Zayne’s hand finds mine, and he tugs, beckoning me to follow him.
Mom is already deep in a conversation with Mimi, and after several lingering moments, Dad and Beau walk to the living room to join Lenny, where a football game is playing.
I follow Zayne to the kitchen. On the island is a line of metal serving trays with closed lids. There are even more resting on the clean, marble countertops. Steam escapes from beneath the lids, and the smell of it is enough to make my stomach rumble.
Zayne lifts one of the lids on the island, a mischievous glint in his eye. “Come taste this.” He dips a spoon into the tray, filled to the brim with stuffing. “It’s my favorite dish they make.”
He holds the full spoon out to me, so I take it. When the bite is in my mouth, my eyes almost roll back in my head. “Wow,” I murmur. “That’s fantastic.”
He nods. “It really is.” He sets the spoon down, the metal clanking against the counter just as Lenny rounds the corner to the kitchen.
“Hi.” I lift my hand in a wave.
His eyes widen. “I hope that spoon isn’t going back into the food, because if you’re sick, the whole dish will be infected.”
My lips twitch with the effort to hold back a smile. “I’m not sick,” I tell him. “I promise.”
Zayne shakes his head at his brother and picks up the spoon again, walking to the sink to wash it. Mimi enters the kitchen with my parents and Beau, and Mom sniffs the air. “My word. Everything smells amazing.”
A warm blush appears on Mimi’s plump cheeks. “Thank you so much.”
“Zayne fed Bardot-Who-Goes-By-Dot a bite,” Lenny blurts. “But he’s washing the spoon now.”
A gap of silence follows Lenny’s statement, and thankfully, a voice coming from the front door breaks it. “I’m here!”
We all turn our heads as Gwen shuffles into view, her arms full of floral-patterned, reusable grocery bags packed full.
“Here Mom, let us help.” Zayne takes several bags from her, passing one to Lenny, and they unload the groceries. My parents reintroduce themselves now that Gwen is here, and Mimi takes a bundle of parsley from her to wash, chop, and add to the salad waiting in a covered bowl.
When Gwen’s hands are finally free, she runs them over her smooth head and sighs in relief. Her eyes catch mine, and she crosses the room to pull me into a hug. “Good to see you again, sweetie,” she says against the top of my head. For some reason, the warmth in her voice makes my throat burn. She has such a motherly quality to her, and with my own mom being absent so long, I was starting to forget how it felt.
Gwen pulls away, and we all move to the connected dining room to find seats while Mimi sets serving platters on the long wood table. Photos of Zayne and Lenny decorate the walls; some of them old and others more recent. I stifle a laugh as I remember the cowboy photo of them on the stairway.
I sit beside Zayne, and Mom takes the chair on my other side. I glance at her as she folds her linen napkin across her lap, frowning when I notice a bead of sweat at her temple again. I don’t recall her ever sweating so much, especially in autumn. It’s not like it’s toasty in here, either. Aunt Lucille’s warning flashes through my mind. I elbow her gently. “You all right?” I do my best to hide my concern with a polite tone.
Her gaze jumps to mine. “I’m fine, baby.” She swallows, hard, and picks up the glass of ice water in front of her but doesn’t take a drink.
“Dot, are you excited for theWuthering Heightsplay?” Gwen asks across the table. “I can’t believe it’s a week away.”
“Me either.” I try to sound excited, but a prick of unease crops up in my mind. “And the dance is Saturday.”
“Wow.” Mimi smiles broadly as she finally takes a seat, now that the last platter is on the table. “So much is happening. Zayne, what color handkerchief are you wearing?”
