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Angelo didn’t seem bothered by any of the talk going on around us. Not even by his dad, who fell beside me as we entered the restaurant. “So, Gigi, how’d you two meet?”
Panic gripped my insides. “Well.” I considered how much of that night I wanted to disclose. Decided it was best to stay vague. “At a bar.”
After Angelo spoke to the hostess, he informed his folks, “She’s from Phoenix. Showed me around a bit.”
“Hmph.” His mom eyed me. “Thank you for doing that for him.” We followed the hostess to our table.
I took a minute to remind myself Mrs. Isaac was notMrs. Victors.Telling myself,“No need to worry.”But as soon as we sat across from each other, I became the center of her focus. Meanwhile, his dad gave Angelo a rundown of every single play of the game. His sister, more interested in their conversation, left me alone to fend for myself with Mrs. Isaac.
I stretched my neck and tried to focus on the menu in front of me. But she persisted. “And what is it you do, Gigi?”
I grinned. My smile serving as an advertisement. “I’m a dentist.”
“Oh.” Her eyes lit up. “That’s amazing.” Her smile wasn’t too bad. I could tell she at least didn’t skip on her bi-annual appointments.
“I like it,” I told her.
“At the end of the day, baby, that’s all that matters. So, what about your family. Do they still live here?”
I shifted in my seat and said, “They do. Same house I grew up in actually.”
“Very nice.” She nodded, seemingly approving of my answers. “And you and my son—”
Angelo perked up and smirked at his mama. “Chill, Mama. Today is Gigi’s birthday. It’s bad enough she’s spending it meeting my family instead of me spoiling her on a beach somewhere.”
I rested my hand on his knee. “I don’t mind.”
He cocked his head toward me. “I tried to save you.” He laughed. “Next question will be if you’re ready to have my kids.”
I blinked. Slowly. May have even closed my eyes. Kids were something I dreamed of often. Especially the closer I got to my wedding day. It was like the last box left to check on myfully grownchecklist. But after Shawn made his grand announcement, it faded.
“Well, sinceyouasked.” His mom snickered.
But the waitress saved me.Where the hell had she been all this time?
I watched her and ordered my cocktail, “I’ll have the desert sky.” It was likely the strongest drink on the menu. But I’d need it to get through dinner with the Isaacs.
“Mama,” Corinne blurted after the server walked away.
Mrs. Isaac tried hard to revisit the question. “I wasn’t going there, but Angelo…”
Corinne’s face was stone cold when she said, “That woman’s ovaries are her business.”
My mouth dried, but the water in front of me did nothing to quench my thirst. I cleared my throat and searched the dining room for anything to stare at. I found a picture of a piano across the room.
“Okay, you’re right. I’m overstepping,” his mama whispered. “My bad. Corinne tells me the same thing every time I ask about grandbabies.” She scoffed. “Since when is it out of bounds for a mama to want some grandbabies?”
“It’s okay,” I told her, “My mama asks the same.” Not since the wedding debacle, of course. It was likely the last thing she’d say to me anymore. Of everyone in my circle, she was the one who approached me like she was walking over a carton of eggshells.
“Good.” His mama tooted her nose in the air. “Anyway, happy birthday, dear.” She held her glass in the air. “May this next year be the best year yet.”
With a wide smile, I said, “I’ll drink to that.”
After dinner, hugs and kisses to his family, me and Angelo walked to his car. I teased, “Remind me on your birthday to have my parents lined up and ready to meet you.”
“Oh, we have a whole year.” He joked, “My birthday was in August. August 7th.”
I placed a hand on my chest. “I missed your birthday? How’d I miss your birthday?” I thought back to that time and remembered he was doing the whole pre-season thing. “Did you celebrate?”
