“Nah. I got something else for you to try. We can save this for a later date.” He winked at me.
I couldn’t ignore the warmth that brewed inside me. Jabari grabbed two glasses and a bottle of wine out of the fridge. I went into a trance at the simple task of him pouring wine. He made my mouth water. Everything he did, he did it with confidence. He passed me the glass, and our fingers brushed against each other, and a shockwave shot through me.
“To getting to know each other,” he toasted, raising his glass.
“To getting to knowing each other,” I concurred.
We tapped glasses and sipped. It was the sweetest white wine I had ever tasted. It was delicious.
“You like that?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes, it’s so good.”
“Good. I plan to add it to the menu, but I wanted someone to try it out that I knew would be honest with me,” Jabari explained as he made his way to the stove.
I tried my best not to grin at his direct compliment. I was honored to know he valued my opinion on things.
“Um, does JaBria spend some days with her mother or...”
Jabari shook his head. I noticed his entire mood changed.
“Kya, JaBria’s mom, hasn’t seen her in almost two years. One day, she dropped her off to me and hasn’t returned. I haven’t heard from her since.”
“Oh wow. I’m so sorry to hear that.”
My heart broke for JaBria. It must have been tough not to have her mother around. JaBria was a sweet, beautiful little girl. Clearly, the mother was the problem.
“I’m not sweating it. It’s her loss,” Jabari responded. “By the way, my mama said hey.”
“You told her I was over here?”
He nodded while continuing to stir whatever it was in the pot.
“Well, JaBria did. I confirmed it.”
“Let me guess. She asked a million questions? I’m never going to hear the end of this, especially after the kiss.”
He shrugged. “Don’t sweat it. I already talked to her.”
My eyes widened. “You did?”
“Yeah, she wasn’t going to stop asking until I did. My mama doesn’t stop ’til she gets what she wants.”
“If you don’t mind my asking, what did you tell her?”
“I told her we’re exploring each other. I made sure I thanked her for mentioning you to me. She wanted to dig deeper, but I told her I’d tell her later.”
My curiosity got the best of me, and I couldn’t control my inner thoughts much longer.
“How come I never saw you? You know… while your mama was going through chemo.”
Jabari stopped stirring and turned to face me. I couldn’t help but notice the slight sadness behind his eyes.
“I kick my ass about that often, but growing up and up until five years ago, my mother and I didn’t have a strong relationship because of her working... a lot. That’s why most of my time was spent with my grandmother. She missed many of my biggestachievements. However, she also made up for it in gifts and shit. I never went without. The older I got, the more I realized that shit meant nothing. As soon as my grandma died, I hauled ass and studied different cuisines and stuff across the world. I felt like my true mother figure was gone, and I had no one else. I was angry.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, Jabari.”
My heart ached for him. I couldn’t imagine not having a bond with my mother. That was why it broke me when she left this earth for good. Her passing had broken our family, and it hadn’t been the same since. I had a beautiful childhood, despite my mother being a single parent. We didn’t feel heartbreak until she left us here on this earth.
