He removed his arm from my shoulder only to grab me by the back of the dress and gown, tugging me backward so I pressed firmly into his side.
He roped his arm through the back of my open gown, laying his arm in the space between the navy-blue robe and my thin, pale blue dress. His hand, now hidden, gripped the fabric of my dress at the opposite hip, pulling me taut against him.
The screaming of panic and excitement that roared in my head wasn’t in English or made of any actual words. In my stress, I glanced over to see if Liam or my mom had witnessed the spectacle. Liam was oblivious as he exchanged a quick “hello” with a passing football parent. But Mom’s face tilted to the floor as she hid what looked to be laughter.
Trey’s cheek was a light pressure against my hair while his lips radiated a heat next to my ear. “You really need to stop running away from me, May,” he said.
I stared up at him, absolutely baffled.
“Okay, you three, big smiles!” Mom announced before I could respond. My face must’ve disobeyed the melted putty I had for a brain, as I willed a smile to form, because my mom lowered the camera.
“Lovebug, smile for real please!”
I did everything I could not to target my lovely mother with a feral death glare.
Trey’s fingers that gripped the fabric of my dress now traced up my waist and slowly stopped. I held my breath. Then they pressed into a sensitive area on my rib cage that sent me wriggling like a floppy fish.
A defiant smile pulled at my lips as I threw an elbow at his stomach. He didn’t flinch from the blow, but he threw his head back with laughter as I continued to squirm from his tickling.
“Maybelle, you good? Just smile so we can take the picture,” Liam lectured.
I glared up at Trey, who stared forward with a boyish grin teasing his lips. Reluctantly, I faced the camera and smiled as I watched my mom smirk behind the flash.
8 Take The Leap
Maybelle
It took a while, but once Liam finished taking pictures with his never-ending line of fans, we left the building. Mom, Liam and I piled into the car and headed to our favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurant to celebrate.
This specific family-owned restaurant was a preferred spot for us. It was the first place we stopped for food as a family of three during our long move to San Francisco.
It was owned by an older couple, Mr. and Mrs. Fernandez, but their son, Xavier, managed it. The older couple doted on us twins. They spoiled Liam and me like we were their own grandchildren with homemade gifts and treats.
But their son, Xavier, only had eyes for our mom. He was constantly giving her free sides of her favorite sopapillas. He’d wink at her from across the dining room, and gift her dinner special coupons, saying things like, “Maybe I could see you again this week? You’d get free food and company.”
I always thought it was his way of asking our mom out discreetly. Coming across as politeness or flirting, depending on how mom saw it. Mom usually determined his efforts as platonic gestures. Even after years of themplaying this will they or won’t they game, Xavier still made moves while mom blushed, but always played it off as a friendship.
I expected tonight would be no different as Xavier strolled up to our table. He wasn’t dressed in his usual work uniform but in a fitted black tee, and dark jeans. His hair was combed back, showing off the peppered white through his jet-black straight hair.
“How’s it going, my favorite family?” he greeted, and I watched my mother beam.
“Xavier! We’re good. Just celebrating. May and I graduated high school tonight,” Liam boasted, leaning back in his ornately carved wooden chair.
Xavier brought his hands to his hair as he said, “Shut up. Feels like yesterday you kids were in here scared to death about starting your first day at a new school.”
Liam snickered while Mom hummed in agreement. “They’re growing up so darn fast, I can’t keep up.”
Xavier shuffled himself so he stood just behind Mom’s chair as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “It’s crazy how fast they grow up. My Sofia just entered her bachelor’s program for engineering. I still don’t understand how she went from playing with dolls to being such an incredible woman in the blink of an eye,” he said, as his thumb mindlessly swiped back and forth at Mom’s bare shoulder.
I had to swallow the giggle that bubbled at the sight of my mom’s deep blush.
Xavier was a proud, single dad of his daughter, Sofia. His wife, Sofia’s mom, had passed over ten years ago. I eavesdropped on Xavier confiding in my mom about it during a slow dinner hour. The two bonded over being two single parents who lost the first loves of their lives to devastating circumstances.
I could only imagine how it must’ve felt for my mom, Xavier, and even Sofia to lose the people they loved so deeply and remember it all so vividly.
“Are you working tonight, Xavier, or are you headed out?” Liam asked, oblivious to the situation unfolding between Mom and Xavier.
Mom peered back up at Xavier, a small smile on her lips while he looked down at her, grinning. “My parents need help putting up a couple of new paintings they bought at an auction. I’m clocking out early tonight to go over and help them.”
