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The space fell silent. I swallowed hard.
“I, um... I had a son. He passed away before birth.”
Her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry! I didn’t know!”
“It’s okay,” I assured her. “Yes, I want children. It just has to be with the right man, this time. I can’t take another man like my husband.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re married?”
“I assumed Callum told your husband everything. But yes. I’m about two weeks shy of being officially divorced.”
“And we are going to celebrate!” Avyn said, pouring another glass of wine. “For everything you’ve endured, you deserve this freedom... well, at least until you and lover boy make things officially official.” She tapped my glass and then took her drink to the head. “Damn, that’s good. What is that?”
“It’s called Celestial Rose,” Bella answered. “My mother used to drink this all the time, and I’d always beg her to let me have a sip. Callum let me taste it for my eighteenth birthday, and I’ve been in love ever since. He always has a bottle here for me.”
“You two seem so close,” Avyn commented.
Eva giggled. “You two missed them tussling in the kitchen earlier. She had him in a hell of a headlock while Precious tickled him.”
Avyn laughed. “That big ol’ man is ticklish?”
“Is he!” Bella exclaimed. “He used to take me to the nail shop. With our mom passing, he always tried to do things with me that our parents would have done. Anyway, one time, he decided to get a pedicure with me, and he damn near kicked that lady in the face.”
I stifled a laugh as I reminded myself to keep that tidbit of information to test out. We continued talking until the patio door opened, and Callum stuck out his head.
“Dinner is ready.”
We all climbed to our feet and gathered the multiple bottles of wine from the table. Bella and Eva called the girls in to wash their hands. After washing my own, Callum motioned me over to where he stood with a plate in his hands.
“What can I serve you?” he asked, motioning to the spread on the counter.
My mouth watered at the sight of the rice, collard greens, fried chicken, honey-baked ham, macaroni and cheese, yams, and corn bread.
“Y’all made all of this?” I asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said proudly.
“Everything looks so good!”
“Are you shocked I can cook? Look at me. I don’t miss a meal, baby.”
I giggled. “I’ll take a little of everything. This feels like a holiday meal.”
“Well, it’s a special occasion. The woman I care about is meeting the people I love most. Hopefully, we can do this more often.”
“I’d like that.”
“Then it’s done.”
He started fixing my plate, and all I could do was watch him. I could get used to being served. I was always the one cooking and serving Raymond. He never lifted a finger to serve me first. When Callum was done, he grabbed my hand and led me into the dining room, where he pulled out my chair and placed the food in front of me as I sat.
“Tea, lemonade, or water?” he asked.
“Can I have tea and water?”
“Sure thing.”
He tried to walk away, but I grabbed his hand.
