Page 40 of D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding

Apparently, Rhea, Ray, Kiana, and Josue had all opted to tag along with Mami and Papi. Their presence was unexpected but not unwelcome. Honestly, the more the merrier when it came to the show. Kevin was probably hiding in some room inside the building behind us doing a fist pump to the number of people we had with us today.

“Sorry we’re late, mija,” Mami began as soon as she stepped onto the sidewalk. “Your father decided to ignore the directions and go the way he knew.” She frowned. “As you can see, he didn’t know as much as he thought he did.”

Papi rolled his eyes, pocketing his keys. “We made it here, didn’t we?”

“¡Dios mio! We’re late, Reynaldo!”

“They’re not even inside yet, mi amor.”

I smirked when Mami instantly softened at his endearment. No matter what she was fussing about, as soon as he spoke sweetly to her, she forgot the issue and forgave him. Granted, he never did anything worth being angry about for more than ten minutes, but it was a blessing to grow up in a home where my parents rarely held grudges. Papi looped an arm around Mami’s waist and kissed her cheek and then her lips. Once she started giggling like a schoolgirl, Ray cleared his throat.

“Ahem! There are children present.”

“¡Cállate!” She slapped his arm before walking toward me and enveloping me in a hug. “Perdoname,” she whispered into my ear.

“It’s fine, Mami.”

Leaning back, she met my eyes. “Are you sure? I know this is a big moment for you.”

I nodded, a slight twinge of guilt hitting me in the chest at her earnest expression. She was genuinely upset at being late. Smiling, I nodded again. “Lo prometo.”

Seemingly relieved, she smiled. “Good. Now where is my future daughter-in-law?” Releasing me, she pulled D’Vaughn into a tight hug, rocking her from side to side as if it hadn’t only been three days since she’d first met her.

“D’Vaughn!” she exclaimed loudly. “You look so good, mijita!”

I shook my head, groaning good-naturedly at the over-the-top display, but movement in my peripheral stole my attention. I turned to my left to see that Ms. Miller’s face had fallen. She looked completely devastated as she watched her daughter and my mother embrace. I didn’t think twice, moving quickly but not fast enough to draw anyone’s attention away from Mami and D’Vaughn until I was standing before her, using my body to block her expression from the others.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, my brows knitted with concern.

Blinking, she shook her head and looked off to the side, but I didn’t miss the way she swiped at a few tears that had started to fall.

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine if you’re crying. Please talk to me. It would break D’Vaughn’s heart if she knew you were upset about something and I didn’t do anything about it.” It didn’t matter that I had only met her less than a week ago; I already knew that the love D’Vaughn had for her mother could likely move mountains.

Ms. Miller sighed so heavily I wouldn’t have been surprised to see two boulders perched on her shoulders. When she met my gaze, I could see the pain and regret shining in her eyes.

“Well...seeing her with your mother affected me more than I expected it to. Realizing that my baby didn’t think she could talk to me, learning about you and...all of this, it’s been a hard pill to swallow, but knowing that it hasn’t been the same with your family—seeing that she’s built a relationship with your mother in a way that I haven’t even fathomed—it cuts me deep. She’s built an entire life that I had no knowledge of.”

Shit. That was beyond what I expected her to say, but it made total sense. I couldn’t fully assuage her guilt—and wouldn’t even if I could because, in my opinion, she deserved to feel it—but I felt confident that I could remove at least one of those worries from her plate. First, I hugged her tightly, taking a chance that she would jerk away from me, but all she did was clutch me in return. Then I pulled back and gripped her shoulders, looking her in the eye.

“Let me ease your mind, Ms. Miller. D’Vaughn just met my family on Saturday.”

The older woman’s eyebrows crinkled, and then she looked from me to the subjects of our conversation who were now fawning over Kiana and her protruding belly.

“You’re kidding!”

Smiling, I shook my head. “Not at all. My mom just fell in love with her instantly.”

Returning my smile, Ms. Miller’s still slightly watery eyes sparkled. “As she should,” she declared proudly. “My baby is incredibly lovable.”

“I would have to agree with that one.”

Sighing, she grabbed my forearm and squeezed. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“You’re most welcome, Ms. Miller.”

Clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth, she stole another glance over at the group. “Well, now it just feels silly for you to be so formal with me after I’ve heard D’Vaughn call your mother by her first name.”