“I love you.”
“I love you too, baby, and I promise, it’ll be fun.” Which is how we ended up here, driving to Isaac’s parents’ house which was as rural as my house was, but theirs was much nicer. With a big garden that had a bounty of corn and tomatoes and every other vegetable that could be grown here. There were also fruit trees and grape vines. “This is beautiful.”
“They try to grow as much as they can,” Isaac said, and even though he wanted me to believe he didn’t want to be here, I could feel his excitement at going home.
I’d brought two dozen cupcakes from the store in Foggy Basin that I hoped were enough, but Isaac assured me that no amount of food was ever enough with this many people eating. He showed me where to park and together we walked to the door.
“Here goes nothing,” he mumbled before throwing open the door and leading me inside. “Hey, buddy.” He scooped up a young child, who giggled and tried to get away as Isaac carried him out to the back of the house. Outside there was a large yard with toys and play structures scattered everywhere. “This is Xander.” Isaac set him down and he immediately ran over to one of the toys.
“Isaac, it’s about time you stopped by for dinner,” a woman with dark hair gathered into a messy knot on her head said. She sat at a big table with a few other people I’d never seen before.
“Ma, you know I’ve been busy,” he said and leaned down to give her a hug. “This is Tig Sawyer. Tig, this is my mom Janet and my dad Ivan.”
“Nice to meet you two,” I said and shook his father’s hand when he offered it.
“So, this is the man who’s caught your eye,” his mom said wasting no time and showing me where her son got his directness from.
“Yes, so please be nice,” Isaac said.
“Are you from Foggy Basin, Tig?” his dad asked and offered me a chair.
“I lived here for a short time while I was in high school, and recently moved back. I thought once I left, I’d never want to come back, but it’s been nice.”
“That’s why we’ve never left. Plus, it’s not easy to pack up and leave with a big family,” Ivan said while Janet spoke to Isaac.
“I’m from a big family too and I agree. Once we grew up my parents moved away to a small house where there’s no room for any of us to stay with them.” I chuckled as I spoke, and Ivan’s eyes lit up.
“That sounds amazing,” he said with a far off look in his eyes.
“Don’t get any ideas, we still have the little ones, you’re not going to be living with no kids for years,” Janet said, making us laugh.
Jen and Bex walked in carrying a tray of food. Watching them put it on the table, I realized I was still holding the cupcakes. “Oh, where should I put this?”
“This way,” Janet said, and I followed her inside. Isaac gave me a nervous glance as I walked by and squeezed his shoulder.
“Everything is nearly done. We were just waiting for everyone to get here. Want to help me with the chicken?” she asked.
“Sure, what can I do?”
“Start taking those trays out of the ovens and I’ll pull all the salads out of the fridge.”
After setting the cupcakes down where she directed me, I opened the lower oven and pulled out one of the large trays of fried chicken. “This smells so good,” I said. “I haven’t had homemade fried chicken in years.”
“What are your intentions for my Isaac?” Janet asked without missing a beat.
“I love him, but we’ve only been together a short time. I’ve been interested in him since I met him before Christmas, but I didn’t think he was interested in me.” I wasn’t even going to attempt to lie, it was clear she wasn’t going to accept bullshit as truth.
“You’re older than him,” she said meeting my eyes.
“Yes, and we’ve talked about that. I would never do anything to hurt him.”
“He’s always been my wild one. Never settling for one person and never satisfied with anyone enough to see them more than a few times.”
“I know, and I was honest with him about the fact I wasn’t interested in a temporary relationship, or one based on sex. I want commitment, and a chance to see what we can be.”
She grinned then and took another salad out of the refrigerator. “How big is your family?”
“There’s seven of us kids,” I said.
