Page 245 of All For You Duet

That’s what I want.

But what if a year into that, I think about what she did, and it taunts me, and I pop open a beer without thinking? Or we get in another fight about it because she won’t admit it, and I flood this secret between us with Absolut instead?

“Ahem.” I fold the napkin in my lap and try to clear the awkwardness from the air. “Who watches Chandler while you’re away?”

“Um.” She pushes salad around her plate. “My friend Jennifer. She’s available all the time.”

“My sister went through a phase with my nephew when he’d melt down anytime she left him. Nowadays, that boy is on me like a bur in fur. I think he likes having a man around, too.”

“Where’s his dad?”

That question sets off fireworks, ones I can ignore as easily, and I reach for a sip of soda.

You mean the man who attacked me and raped my sister? That dad? Damn, I’m sitting on thumbtacks. I don’t know how to talk to Karen.

Shouldn’t this be easy? Shouldn’t I be excited?

I’m not. I’m nervous as hell in this dimly lit restaurant full of couples in love when all I want to do is beg for my love back.

“His dad was never around.” I force myself to answer. “That’s for the best, trust me.”

Don’t think about it. Don’t think about it.

“Same goes. Once my ex found out I was pregnant, it was SEE YA! Such a jerk. It was all perfect until I got pregnant.”

“Weren’t you drinking, though? Couldn’t have been that perfect.”

“Oh, uh. Yeah. No. I was drinking, and it was bad, and then I found out I was pregnant, and he left.”

“Getting sober while pregnant must’ve been hell.”

Hell would’ve been a spa vacation compared to the detoxes I’ve known. I get so sick; it’s inhuman. It’s why I didn’t want Cade around. No one wants an audience for that. And by the time I felt better, I felt shame.

“Yeah, it was,” is all she offers.

Fair enough. I get not wanting to talk about it.

“Well, butter my biscuit”—a voice I’ve heard for twenty years sounds over my shoulder—“look who it is.”

It’s quick, my leap out of the booth. “Mama G.” I pull her into a fast hug. “I’ve missed you.”

When I pull back to see her smile… I swallow my shock. Her skin doesn’t glow, and she feels like delicate bones in my arms.

“You feelin’ okay?”

“I’m fine,” she lies.

I’m about to fall over myself with worry, but Cade’s dad walks up and pulls me into a back-slapping hug.

“Hey, Son.” His hug is tight, and those words shred my heart. Jeff Bryant is the closest I have to a dad. And I miss him and Mama G. And Cade. “You’re looking fit as an ox.”

“Yes, sir.” A cough takes the air, and I remember. “Oh, uh. Excuse me. Gloria and Jeff Bryant, please meet Karen Brown. Karen, these are…”

So many years. So many memories. Cade and Christmas and our birthdays with her parents. They should be mine, too.

“These are my second parents, so to speak.”

“Ms. Brown.” Mama G has the grace of a queen. “It’s very nice to meet you.”