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I giggle. “I like to try new recipes. I choose two or three, then go pick up what I need. What do you think of this one?” I point to the lamb chops.
“I’m invited, then?”
“Absolutely! That is, if I get to the grocery store and fill my fridge. I’ve been putting off doing groceries.”
“I gotta go pick up some stuff. We can head out now if you’re ready.”
“I was planning on homemade pizza later this week. Do you like pizza?”
“In general, yeah. Homemade sounds even better, baby. Grab your jacket,” he says, then shines his brilliant smile at me.
* * *
Caleb
We walk through the local grocery store hand in hand. Gwen has a bounce to her step as we enter. I find that she has a great appreciation for food. She takes her time choosing her produce, reads labels, and redeems every coupon possible. This is the way she’s lived her life. Since she had to raise her kid sister alone, she learned to be frugal.
Gwen places every item in the cart with care, crossing things off her list and focusing on the task at hand. She’s completely oblivious to the men staring at her. One is fixated on her ass and ends up running into the cart in front of him. That doesn’t stop him for long, and when he purposely comes around the corner after us, I do what any guy would do.
“Are you seriously staring at my woman’s ass while I’m standing right here?” I growl. The guy turns red and hightails it out of the aisle. When I look over at Gwendolyn, she appears stunned. “I’m the kind of man who won’t stand for another guy gawking at my girl,” I tell her.
“I’m sure he wasn’t looking at me,” she says. The crazy thing is, she means it.
“He was.”
“That’s silly. You’re right by my side,” she says innocently.
“Do you think that’ll stop a man from looking? He saw something he liked and was going to enjoy the view.”
She looks down at her faded jeans and brown ankle boots, then back to me. I grab the cart and wrap an arm around her waist, dropping the conversation with the intention of getting the hell out of here.
The next stop is the checkout, and I’m focused on wrapping things up and getting back to her place, where I can hold her in my arms. I’m a patient man, but when I’m with Gwen, I can’t seem to keep my hands off her.
“Caleb?”
I know that voice. I whip my head around, and there she is, my mother.
“Christ, have mercy,” I grumble under my breath, raising my gaze to the ceiling.
“Caleb Everett Thorne, are you rolling your eyes at me?”
My mother’s heels click as she makes her way over to where Gwen and I are standing. I look to Gwen and see her befuddled expression.
“Stay with me, babe. The tornado I call my mother is coming for us,” I warn.
Her eyes huge, she gasps and sputters, “Your m-mother?” Gwen shrinks behind me. “I can’t meet your mother. I’m not dressed for a mother meeting.”
I wish I had time to prepare her better for my mother and her need to see her son married, but there’s no time to do that now. The best I can do is try to keep this conversation brief, and with any luck, she won’t scare Gwen off.
I hold one of Gwen’s hands while I brace myself. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hello, my beautiful boy,” my mother says, but she’s already looking around me to get to Gwendolyn. “Hi, sweetie, I’m Caleb’s mother, Joyce.”
“Hello, Mrs. Thorne, I’m Gwendolyn Honeyton,” Gwen replies nervously. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“What a lovely name. I just dropped in to pick up a few things, then I’m on my way to meet Sandra,” Mom says. Noting that I’m not giving her an in, she turns her attention back to Gwen. “Do you live close by?”
“I live just around the corner,” Gwen says.
