They actually sat there licking their lips for a moment before fumbling around to find an empty plate, holding it up once they’d snagged one. I was seated in the perfect position to see the pleading look on their face when they asked for more, which she happily gave them.
“This is shrimp kelaguen. My special recipe.” She winked, her voice dipping into a conspiratorial whisper. “I put a little coconut milk in it.”
They giggled together before Kekoa shoved another spoonful in their mouth. The look of pride and joy on Aunty Ina’s face one I’d never forget. Food was such a love language and a way of sharing culture. While I couldn’t cook it, I’d grown up with an appreciation for flavors of all kinds and loved trying new dishes. Seeing them be so open no matter what was offered to them would leave a lasting impression on those in attendance tonight, which would only make their assimilation into the community easier. That they did it all with a smile on their face, while taking the time to focus on each person who spoke to them, showed their outgoing side. Our jellyfish was no shrinking violet; not even a hint of shyness peeked through. They’d have no trouble making friends.
“Si Yu’os ma’åse’,” they said.
Grinning, she nodded.“Hågu mas.”
Whoa, they remembered the language. Wait, no, maybe. They’d said they’d been young when their family had left, since they’d been born here. But they’d said their family had come back several times on their vacations. Maybe they’d just picked it up on the job? They had only been back here for three weeks. Either way, the pleased look on Aunty Ina’s face had grown broader when he’d used the Chamorro phrase. She was smiling ear to ear when someone waved to her, and she plopped the dish on the table on her way to greet them. There was no way they could pace themselves with all the food available, though theconversations they engaged in probably helped. One man knew them from the jobsite, and they spent several minutes talking about what bullshit it was that they’d gotten laid off. I knew there would be more food; we weren’t finished with new dishes, not by a long shot. Not when dessert hadn’t even been rolled out yet.
“Kekoa, Nyx says you had a run-in with Nuno Bourassa at the Sapphire Sangria the other night.”
That was my mother, straight to the point once there was a lull in people presenting food to Kekoa and coming up to talk to them.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Oh please, I worked for a living,” Mom said. “Never wanted to be a ma’am and don’t want to be one now. It’s Dana, or Mrs. Masters if you want. Just not, ma’am. Never, ma’am.”
“No problem, Mrs. Masters,” and yes, I did. He assumed I didn’t know how to play pool and then accused me of hustling him when I beat him in only two turns. I didn’t even want to play in the first place. I was trying to enjoy my food when he went all annoying gnat on me and refused to leave me alone. He even asked for a rematch, and that was after he was being a sleazy braggart while we were sitting at the bar. He even offered to show me around his boat. I only played him hoping it would get him to leave me alone. Well, that and I wanted to wipe the smirk off his face since I sort of figured he wasn’t as good as he thought he was.”
“Asked for a rematch and wound up in the ER for his troubles,” she replied. “Yes, I heard all about that too, since my daughter Elana was the one to treat him when they brought him in. As much as I’d like to hope it teaches him a lesson in keeping his hands to himself, I fear it’s probably too late. His mama should have done a better job teaching him manners. Since she didn’t, I hope you’ll come down to the station in the morning tofile a full report. I know he came out on the losing end of that battle when he grabbed you, but others haven’t been so lucky. Each time he’s managed to intimidate or sweet-talk his way out of having to go to court. In some cases, they wouldn’t even press charges. I’m hoping you’ll be different and consider filing assault charges against him.”
“Uhh,” they stammered, then turned to stare at me. “Nyx, you didn’t tell me that your mom was a cop.”
“Wrong, I told you she was a master-at-arms; that’s pretty much the same thing.”
“You also saidwas, as in that she was retired. You didn’t say anything about now.”
“Retired from the Navy. Yeah, I guess I failed to mention that she’s the chief of the Yigo police department.”
“C-chief?”
“Yeah, you dropped the ball on that, son, and here I thought you were proud of me.”
“Mom,” I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose, “we’re still in the getting-to-know-you phase; I can’t just unload everything on him all at once.”
“And here I was working on the wedding plans,” she replied, winking at Kekoa and Lani.
“Mom!”
“Two Lovers Point would be a beautiful location, don’t you think? Though the name doesn’t quite work in this situation.”
“I’ve always loved that spot,” Kekoa admitted.
“Not helping,” I muttered.
“But the view is amazing,” Kekoa pointed out. “I’ve always loved that legend. Do you think Shakespeare knew about it when he wrote Romeo and Juliet?”
“I think the story of star-crossed lovers is universal and spans every culture,” she said. “Shakespeare just made the concept famous. As for the location, it is breathtaking at sunset,and the ocean would serve as the perfect backdrop for wedding photos.”
“Mother!”
“What?” she said, throwing her hands in the air and giving me the fakest innocent look in the history of trying to feign innocence. “It’s never too soon to plan what we all know will take place.”
Sighing, I had to at least concede that point, but did she have to smile so widely when I did it? “Fine. But can we shelve all the plans until after the proposal?”
I was willing to beg if that’s what it took to get her to slow down a little.
