I glance at Adam, our gazes meeting. His lips tick up and his eyes brighten to the shade of green I love the best. They remind me of rough-cut peridots. I hope that look means he understands the meaning behind my words.
He’s been so patient with me. He’s been here for me in every way over the past few months, and seeing how he is with Lizzy more than confirms what I already know I’m feeling. I think I’m finally ready to advance our relationship.
And I’m not afraid to tell him.
He takes a sip of his wine and stands. “Let me help you clear the table. It’s the least I can do since you fed me. Twice today, I might add.”
Adam stacks the dirty plates while I carry the serving platters into the kitchen. Lizzy leans back in her chair and lets out a soft moan. “I’m just gonna stretch out and try to make more room in my tummy for dessert.”
I snap a towel and pin her with a stare. “If you want dessert, you’ll help clear the table, young lady.”
“But Mom, I’m a guest. I shouldn’t have to clean up too.” Lizzy does her best to keep a straight face, making Adam laugh.
“Something tells me you’ll never be considered a guest in your mom’s house.” Adam says.
“Ain’t that the truth,” I confirm as I take the plates Adam carries in. I place them in the sink and give them a quick rinse.
I glance over my shoulder, and Lizzy sticks her tongue out at me with a playful grin before she starts helping. I know she’s joking, and would’ve gotten up to help eventually. She just likes getting a rise out of me.
Once she’s up and next to me in the kitchen, I wrap my arms around her and kiss her cheek. “You should know by now, sweetie, that I’m not going to let you sit around and watch everyone else clean up. Especially whenourguest is helping.”
“Hey, you can’t blame a girl for trying.” She laughs and kisses me back.
“And Lord knows, you’ve spent enough of your life trying.” I rinse off my hands and dry them before turning toward the refrigerator. “Grab those small plates I stacked there and take them to the table, please.”
“Yes, ma’am.” She bounces on her feet and heads back to the table where Adam is already sitting with a huge smile on his face.
“So, what did you make?” she asks.
“You’ll see.” I chuckle as I carry her favorite dessert to the table. As soon as I set it down, she squeals.
“Yes! You’re trying to make it so I never want to leave, aren’t you?” Lizzy claps her hands, her smile wide.
“I wouldn’t mind that one little bit, sweetheart.” I cut a piece of tiramisu and hand the plate to Lizzy. I look up at Adam to find him watching us with amusement. “What’s that look for?”
“Just enjoying the two of you interacting. It reminds me a lot of my momma with Leann. It’s … cute.”
“Leann is your sister, right?” I ask.
“Yeah, and she’s the baby in the family, so she thinks she can get away with things the rest of us can’t. Much like Lizzy here.”
That makes Lizzy laugh. “She sounds like my kinda friend.” She shifts her gaze toward Adam. “How old is she?”
“She’s actually not much older than you. She’s twenty-nine.”
“Whoa.” Lizzy drops her fork. “I take it she was an unexpected child.”
Adam chuckles at her reaction. “You could say that. I was an only child until I was eighteen. My parents thought they couldn’t have any more kids. So they decided to adopt. They’d made all the arrangements, met the young couple who weren’t ready to be parents, and signed the adoption papers. They’d have a baby in seven months. A month later, Momma found out she waspregnant. Those were crazy times in our house. Two infants just months apart in age. But it made my momma so happy.”
“Wow.” Lizzy sits back in her chair, a look of complete amazement on her face. “So you have a biological sister and adopted brother that are the same age?”
“Yep. Several years later we took in another foster, Matt. He stayed, and a few years later my parents adopted him, too. He’s a couple years older than Joe and Leann.”
Lizzy looks at me, her eyes glossing over. I know what that look means. Our family is nothing like that. Not mine or Mark’s. The thought of any of them sacrificing any part of their lives for someone else's child is a ludicrous thought.
She turns back to Adam, her smile huge. “Your parents must be generous people with huge hearts. I can’t imagine any of that was easy.”
He pauses to take a bite of his dessert and moans. “This is so good.” He nods in my direction, his eyes rolling back in his head before he continues. “And you’re right. It wasn’t. And yes, they are. Or my momma is; my dad passed several years ago. They always wanted a large family, but that wasn’t in the cards for them. So, they made a family in whatever way they could.”
