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“I’ll be atRedeeming Soulstomorrow…”
“Oh, word?” I left my chair to pick up Chivon’s napkin as she attempted to “feed” her baby doll tea. “I’ll be there with Chivon in the morning, too. Which service?”
“The second one. The good pastor is christening my girlfriend’s son,” she joked.
“Oh. A’ight. I’ll look for you then.”
“Okay. See you tomorrow, brudder!”
I laughed hard—tickled, in fact. As the godmother of my daughter, Peach and I had become cool. She was really dedicated to Chivon and would often have to arrange time with her through me when Ashira was on the road. I learned how cool, deep, and smart the girl was. But in between those features, I’d also get dosages of her silliness. That was what tickled me. It was a facet of Ashira’s personality I missed on the low.
“A’ight.”
Just as I hung up, I could sense a vibe. I turned and saw Celestine and Betty looking my way with zero apologies.
“So, maybe there’s some hope for you after all,” Celestine remarked.
“How do you mean?”
She sat up in her chair, adjusting the pearls on her neck. “You’re not foolishly holding out for a certain helpless heartless as I thought. Youarepursuing other lucky ladies.” She winked. “Good for you.” She tossed her index finger toward Chivon, who couldn’t see her. “She’s going to need to see a solid feminine figure around your alpha nature.”
“That was Peach,” I explained. “As in Chivon’s godmother, Peach.”
“Oh.” Her mouth formed the letterO.
Betty rolled her eyes. “Don’t off the man to just anyone.”
“A man like Jas cannot be with just anyone,” Celestine corrected her. “As I said, he needs a special wooer.”
“Chi-Chi! Leigh-Leigh!” Rose shouted behind me as she walked out of the house, holding a wooden board loaded with food. “Y’all, come on. We going to the north-side farm to feed the goats. Harmon Lee’s gotta feed them they vitamins, too. Y’all gotta stay back for that there, though.”
The girls jumped from their little wooden seats, shouting, “The farm!”
“Goats!”
The tea set leaped on the table from their quick departure. Those brown baby dolls were completely forgotten about. The girls ran over to Rose just as she placed the charcuterie plank in front of me. Diana, Ashira’s cousin, was right behind Rose, placing a bottle of wine, an empty glass, and utensils on the table. The wine was for Celestine. The family knew I didn’t drink.
Damn…
A pile of macaroni and cheese, Brussels sprouts, mesquite-rubbed pulled pork, porterhouse steak, and cornbread topped the wooden tray. And as usual, in the bottom right-hand corner, a name was carved inside, branding the board. Ashira didn’t exaggerate when she said a part of her family’s culture was serving food on charcuterie boards instead of plates. According to Rose, the tradition had been in their family for centuries. Carving the names into each one was a way of them remembering their ancestors.
“This is…” I measured my words. TheNivlebtribe ofDella, South Carolina, treated me well. I’d always been not just welcomed but anticipated with open arms. The men were reserved but mad respectful, and the women were protective lionesses—over me. When I began coming down to visit with Ashira after Chivon was born, I’d tell them all the time not to make a big fuss over me in terms of their hospitality. I’d said it so many times that Ashira had to pull me aside and explain how offensive it was to them. So, I stopped. “…looks amazing, ladies. Thanks so much.”
“Daddy,” Chivon was at my side. “you eat that food?” Her eyes were big, expressing the amount of food on such a large tray.
She was so damn pretty, my baby. Any slight variation to her expression can bring out features resembling her beautiful mother, mine, or even Celestine. Each time I recognized a shared feature, I was reminded of all that went into creating this gorgeous ass creature. Sometimes, it was so mesmerizing I sat and wondered about exactly when Chivon was conceived. I was wilding out, raw-dogging it with her mother, desperate to experience all of her back then. It could have been so many times—but I recalled each one. I was so damn open. So fucking green. How could I not create something this perfect?
I nodded at my baby. “You need to go potty before you leave?”
Chivon quickly shook her head, which was predictable.
“Oh, no, you don’t, young marvel,” Celestine hissed. “Until you stop having accidents, you must go.” Chivon hung her head in shame. “Unt, unt!” She snapped her tongue, chastising. Then Celestine clapped her hands together, straightening her spine. “First position!”
It took Chivon a few seconds to understand the command, but when she did, her heels pushed together, as did her legs, and her little arms curled into bows.
“Second position!” Celestine commanded.
Chivon jumped, and her feet, legs, and arms spread apart as her chin lifted in the air.
