Cherie thought of herself and Michelle. As Weylin’s mistress, Cherie had given him a child when his wife couldn’t. “Even if she couldn’t have the man, she was there to nurse his baby when Rosaura’s milk dried up.”
Kayana laughed softly. “My grandmother used to say a half loaf is better than no bread at all. There are times when we must deal with the hand that has been dealt us, then work like hell to change it. What did you like or not like about the book?”
“I like that it was divided into the months of the year,” Cherie said, “and, of course, the recipes. The plot was a combination of realism, fantasy, and the paranormal, and I wondered if this was the writer’s deliberate attempt to combine all three genres because she couldn’t figure out which one she actually wanted.”
“Of course, y’all know I loved the book, but what bothered me was why didn’t Tita and Pedro run away and elope,” Leah stated.
“Sometimes it’s not that easy,” Cherie said in a quiet voice. She noticed Leah and Kayana staring at her with questioning expressions. “I know this firsthand, and one of these days, I will tell you everything, and I mean everything, about my former lover. That includes his name.”
Leah leaned closer. “Are you saying that, when you tell us his name, we’ll know who he is?”
Cherie nodded. “I’m almost certain you will.”
“Well, damn,” Kayana whispered. “You never fail to shock me.”
“There are times when I shock myself. But, enough about me,” Cherie said, waving a hand. “I’d like to suggest that we reverse the order of reading and then viewing the movie. I ordered theLike Water for ChocolateDVD, and while I plan to watch it in a few days, I’d like to watch it without thinking the filmmaker should’ve put in a particular scene that was so germane to the plotline.”
Leah lifted both shoulders. “I don’t have a problem with that. What say you, Kayana?”
“I sort of like that idea. But you didn’t have to order the movie, Cherie, because I already have it.”
“It’s too late to send it back, so I’ll just add it to my movie collection,” Cherie told Kayana. “If I really like it, I’ll watch it more than once.”
Leah clasped her hands together. “I suppose we’ve settled where we’re going to watch the Super Bowl, and that Kayana is going to prepare some of the food based on the recipes from our first book discussion.”
“I’m not so certain of that, Lee,” Kayana said. “I’ve looked over all of the recipes, and there are some I won’t be able to duplicate because I can’t get the ingredients. What I’ve decided is to make Mexican-inspired dishes like chiles rellenos, chicken mole enchiladas, tacos with chicharron and carne asada, and grilled street corn. And of course, I’ll make guacamole, and we’ll have margaritas.”
Smiling, Cherie crossed her arms under her breasts. “Now you’re talking.”
Leah rolled her eyes. “I love grilled street corn,” she crooned before pushing away from the table. “It’s time I head home before Derrick wonders what’s happened to me.”
Kayana stood. “You can’t go anywhere because he took your car, so you’re going to have to wait for me to put away the food.”
Cherie rose to her feet and began picking up dishes and tableware. “I can drive her back. But I’d rather wait so we can all leave at the same time.”
They cleared away the remains of their impromptu meal in record time. Kayana armed the security system, and they left the restaurant together. Cherie dropped Leah off at the beach house she shared with Derrick and then drove a short distance to her own home.
It wasn’t until she’d parked her vehicle in the garage and climbed the staircase to her bedroom that Cherie realized that the protagonists inLike Water for Chocolatereflected her own life with Weylin. She’d promised herself she’d relegate him to the deepest recesses of her mind, yet just discussing the lives of the forbidden lovers had reopened a door to events she emotionally never wanted to think about again.
However, she was realistic enough to know her life wouldn’t change until she was able to completely purge her ex-lover from her existence, and that would only become a reality if she found herself involved with another man. She thought about Reese but didn’t want to use him as she had Weylin, while she had to remind herself she was no longer the Cherie Renee Thompson who used her wits and body to get what she wanted from a man. Reese didn’t deserve that, and she would walk away and never look back before hurting him.
* * *
Cherie peered out the window for the umpteenth time. It had begun raining earlier that morning, and as the temperature continued to drop, it had turned into sleet, coating everything with ice. She’d gotten a weather alert on her phone that driving was hazardous due to icy conditions.
She was looking forward to sharing Sunday dinner with Reese, but it looked as if the weather wasn’t going to cooperate. Reaching for her cell phone, she tapped his number. He answered before it rang a third time.
“Hello.”
“I don’t think I’ll be coming for dinner.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because I just got an alert on my phone that only emergency vehicles are allowed on the roadways because of icing.”
“Not to worry, Cherie. I’ll be there in about twenty minutes to pick you up. And you should pack an overnight bag with enough clothes to last for a couple of days.”
“But, Reese—”
