“Although we’ve never tasted them.” Summer interjects but I barely hear.
I wince back as Merrick reaches for the serving dish, pulling it toward him. “Sorry, I should have told you when I called this morning, Kezia has an allergy to poultry…chicken…turkey. Also eggs. We need to be very careful.”
Margaret goes silent, her face dropping, and I’m immediately uncomfortable again.
“I’m sorry. It’s fine. I usually eat lots of vegetables and rice.”
“It’s okay,” she says, but her voice is strange and even her daughter looks at her questioningly.
“You okay, Mom? That’s so odd…” Summer adds giving me a quizzical look but before I can ask what’s odd, her mom pushes her chair back and I’m suddenly embarrassed.
“Yes.” She says the word but it’s clear she’s not okay. “Can you excuse me for a minute?”
“Anyway,” Summer looks at me. “As I was saying, it’s a coincidence…my mom and I are both allergic to poultry too.What are the odds?” The chirpy goth unicorn girl smiles on a shrug, then passes me a bowl of salad.
Her sudden departure does nothing to dampen everyone else’s mood, so I take scoops of the green beans and a large serving of salad to start. As we eat, Margaret returns, but she’s quiet and keeps glancing my way when she thinks I’m not looking.
“I’m so full.” I finally put my fork down as Merrick and his parents have a heated debate about the latest need for a new stop light a few blocks up Main Street.
“Where’s the rest room?” I lean over, whispering to Summer, who points to the back left corner of the now-packed diner.
Merrick grabs a handful of my rear end as I stand and I turn red, looking around the table, but no one seems to care. “Kiss me first.”
“Do you hear everything?”
“Yes. Now kiss me.”
I lean down and do as he says, my heart feeling as full as my belly as I work my way through the crowded diner. Everyone eats and laughs, and this is the world I was never a part of before, but finally, I have hope.
I feel a part of it, like it’s a life I deserve and a confidence builds in me that the dreams I never dared to dream, maybe will come true.
Chapter Thirteen
Merrick
My pager goes off as my cell phone rings, and I look down to see it’s Malcolm calling and paging at the same time, which means something is urgent.
I look across at my mom, then at the others at the table. “I have to go out and take a call. Make sure you take care of Kezia when she comes back.”
“I’ll treat her like my own daughter.” My mother smiles.
“Good, because that’s who she’s going to be as soon as I can get a ring on her.” I surprise myself with the admission but ignore the gasps and laughter from the table.
It feels right. I’m marrying her as soon as I can, I just need to get things arranged.
I take a look back toward the hallway with the restrooms, but the diner is so full I can’t see past all the standing patrons waiting for tables as I head out the front door.
I tap the screen as the warmth of the summer afternoon envelops me.
“What’s up?”
“We have a situation. I just got a report from one of the workers at the fair out there on Baldwin Road. You need to come in, man. I hate to have to tell you this, but the girl you’ve been with the last couple days…her name is Kezia, right?”
“Yeah, what about her?”
“Her father says you kidnapped her.”
“What?Jesus…” I shake my head, holding my temples with my fingers. “That’s bullshit and he knows it. She’ll confirm.”
