I pulled her against me with her flour-covered apron, hands, and nose, and I kissed her slow and deep. She was everything that I needed and wanted, and I wasn’t sure how to make her see that, but I would.
10
TEGAN
It was a balmy seventy-seven degrees, and the sun was on brilliant display over Cherokee Avenue today. Music played from the deejay’s speakers, and people danced, laughed, and mingled. There was a bounce house for the kids on the corner street on the side of my bakery.
Somehow, Harlem had surprised me with a permit that had been issued allowing that street to be closed off to traffic. It had been issued with the support of the other business owners, and he had hired the bounce house for the day.
The pink- and champagne-colored balloons at the entrance to my bakery swayed in the breeze, and the hired servers moved effortlessly through the crowd. We had tables set up along the sidewalk between my bakery, the antiques shop, the bookstore, and the women’s boutique.
On the side of my bakery was a little garden area, and we had set up a few tables there for the older patrons, like my parents and their friends.
In the face of the storm, I was glad that I opted for an evening launch party rather than an all-day event. I was also glad that I set it up like a pastry and cocktail party and that I had Harlem’s support and the other businessowners. Four people could fit atone table, and at the very end of the sidewalk, I noticed that Harlem’s crew had pulled their tables together.
“This is a lovely event. Thank you for the invite,” an older lady named Clarice stated.
“Yes, I can’t wait for you to open officially. I’ll stop by here for breakfast every morning. Since my midsection is ever expanding, I might as well make sure that it’s something delicious that adds to the girth,” her husband declared.
“Otis,” Clarice stated with a chuckle.
“Honey, this event is even better than we expected it to be, especially after that hellacious storm,” Mrs. Vanessa remarked, passing by.
“Thank you, Mrs. V,” I replied, calling her by the name that she asked me to. A few other people stopped me on my way to my destination to congratulate me on a wonderful event.
“Girl, I admire your fortitude. I’m not sure that I would have been able to hold it together after going through a storm like that,” another woman named Mesha stated.
“Yeah, we drove by here right after the storm on our way to town. I wasn’t sure that you were still on,” a lady named Aurora added.
I conversed with them for a while before moving on.
“You look beautiful, baby girl,” Daddy declared when he stopped me as I passed him and Mama’s table for the hundredth time.
I wore a pink and white peony print bustier, Bodycon dress with spaghetti straps, pink Sophia Webster high heels, and a mixture of David Yurman and Kurt Geiger jewelry.
“Thank you, Daddy. You’re looking mighty fine in all white yourself today. So handsome,” I declared, reaching up and straightening his tie.
Daddy lowered his gaze, narrowed his eyes, and released a low hum in his throat. I giggled. “Daddy, don’t be like that.”
“Baby, did you know that your brother, Easy, tried to dress EJ and me alike?”
I patted his shoulder and replied, “That sounds exactly like something your favorite son would do.”
“Favorite?”
“Mm-hmm. The one who has you wrapped around his finger. Why you think we call him Easy?”
I struggled to keep my composure and not burst out laughing when Daddy narrowed his gaze even tighter, leaned in, and asked, “Did that nigga say that to you?”
“Oh, Daddy, I’m not trying to start trouble. You know me.” I patted his chest and moved toward my mother, where she was gossiping with a small group of ladies.
“Mommy, keep an eye on your husband. I think he’s about to give Easy the business.”
Mama frowned, turned around, and looked in their direction. “Why would he do that, Baby?”
Shrugging, I replied, “I don’t know. You know Daddy; he’s always looking for a reason to give someone the business.”
“He’d better not act up today, or I’m gonna give him the business,” Mama professed.
