She groaned. “Don’t I know it.”
Before we even knocked, Jodi, Micah’s wife, pulled the door open. Her smile was wide and there was a sparkle in her eyes.
My stomach turned.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Ace’s secret wife,” Jodi said as casually as if she were reporting the weather.
“Micah, come get your wife,” I yelled above Jodi’s head into the house. A second later, I heard Micah’s heavy footsteps.
“Secret wife?” Aiden said, turning to face Savannah and me.
I glared at my sister-in-law. It was no secret Jodi wasn’t the type to mince words, which at first I’d found endearing. But right then, I wished she had more restraint.
“Guilty as charged,” Savannah said at the same time Micah arrived behind his wife. He held their son, Lonzie, short for Alonzo, in one arm.
“And you must be Micah’s less-secret but beautiful wife, Jodi,” Savannah said as she held out her hand for Jodi to shake.
Jodi cocked her head to the side and her eyes narrowed. She nodded. “Okay. I might like you.” She shook her hand and then moved aside. “Come in.”
“This is my son, Aiden,” Savannah introduced.
“Hi,” Aiden waved. “Is that your son?” he asked, pointing at the baby who was doing his best to stuff his entire fist into his mouth.
“He is,” Micah said before lowering to introduce Aiden and Lonzie.
Aiden groaned when Lonzie reached out with a slobber-filled hand and caressed his face. All of the adults laughed.
“I hear laughing and we’re not invited?” My youngest brother’s voice beckoned from the back of the house. A heartbeat later, he and Lena appeared in the doorway.
“Nice meeting you under better circumstances this time,” Lena said to Savannah.
“Yeah, well, I don’t currently have a flat tire with a sleeping nine-year-old in the backseat,” she joked before handing the potato salad over to Jodi.
We took the party outside. Micah had purchased the property years earlier and built the house to his specifications.
The expansive backyard allowed one to see out to the hills that lay around the Texas Hill Country. It was well into the fall season, which meant the absence of wildflowers in the distance. But the green and rocky, rolling hills held a certain appeal, even without the diverse colors that the wildflowers provided.
“Hope you’ve brought your appetites,” Micah said over his shoulder. “We’ve got burgers, chicken, fish, corn on the cob, grilled vegetables, and salad.”
“And potato salad,” I added, mentioning Savannah’s dish.
“I’ll have to be the judge of that,” Jodi said. “You know you can’t eat everybody’s.”
Savannah laughed instead of taking offense. “My mama used to say the same thing.”
“‘I assume she’s a smart woman,” Jodi replied.
“She was,” Savannah responded and cleared her throat.
“Mama makes perfect potato salad,” Aiden said, sticking up for his mother. “Everything she cooks is great. Right, Mr. Ace?”
I smiled down at the kid, liking the defensiveness in his voice. “Affirmative.”
Savannah waved us off as we sat around the glass patio table on the large white brick deck.
“I think Jodi and Micah thought they were assigned to feed an army,” Lena said.
I grunted.
