Dad laughed. “We could say the same about you, Shi.”
“Where’s Mom?” The twins grabbed on either of his arms and swung from them like monkeys. He merely walked across the room like it was no big deal. Like they were weightless.
Momma poked her head out of the kitchen and grinned at all of us. “My babies are all here!”
There was that foreign feeling again, like I was cracking open. I sighed and smiled. I didn’t dare try to speak or I knew I would fall apart. Shilah tossed the girls off of him and wrapped me in a hug. He smelled like ginger and lemongrass. I took a deep whiff of it. I never wanted to forget this feeling. I felt whole but also not.
Shilah pulled away and jumped into an easy conversation with everyone. He looked at me. “Are we having Christmas at your place?”
I coughed. “What?”
“Why not?” Kota shrugged.
Kia looked at everyone and shook his head. “I have to get the vacation time approved.”
Maze popped into the living room. “I’ll make more jewelry to sell so we don’t have to worry about money!”
I wrinkled my eyebrows. She made jewelry? How odd. I couldn’t picture it.
Kia held his drink up in cheers. But Kota wasn’t having it. Whatever was boiling under the surface was coming right out. “I don’t understand why you need that stuff!”
Oh. The alcohol.Kota had a problem with it too.
“We all have choices in this world Kota, I choose to not be like father was. I can have alcohol without getting out of hand and I will break the cycle. I know when too much is too much. I know when to stop. Are you afraid because you don’t?” Kia’s eyebrows raised as he downed the rest of his drink. He had a point. Maze didn’t seem to mind his drinking and he didn’t seem to get out of hand. If he could control it, then there wasn’t an issue on my part. But Kota wasn’t going to stand down as easily.
“You just want to rub it in dad’s face. That you can control it and he can’t.”
I was about to open my mouth when Dad placed his hand on my arm. Shilah slipped into the kitchen with a funny look on his face. He was probably trying to sniff out what Momma was making. My mouth watered at the thought. There was nothing better than her cooking.
“Kota, that’s enough. I know you don’t like alcohol. I know you don’t have fond memories of me with it, but there is no point in fighting. This is supposed to be a joyous occasion. We are all together again after ten years. Can’t we celebrate and leave everything else for tomorrow?” Dad wrapped his arm around Kota’s shoulders and Kia looked at the floor guiltily.
While they were having their moment I slipped into the kitchen behind Shilah. During all of that mess, Islah had snuck into the kitchen too. She was stirring a giant pot and Momma was chopping vegetables. Shilah was pouring Kool-aid into a plastic cup. I thought it was for the girls.
Nope.
He downed in one swallow and grinned. “I missed all this sugary crap.”
Maze disappeared down the hall and the girls were right on her heels. Momma held a massive spoon up to my lips and I tasted it with little hesitation. Spices exploded on my tongue and I was immediately transported to my childhood. I closed my eyes and let the emotions wash through me again. This was everything I had dreamed and hoped for. Now all I needed was someone to share it with.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Derek
Aiyanna had toldme when her flight was getting in. I had offered to pick her up at the airport but she insisted that she needed to bring her BMW home with her. I didn’t know why I was so nervous. Then I looked at her apartment around me and I blushed.
Vince had given me her house key when I had begged him. He said he trusted me but he wasn’t afraid of me if something went sideways. She was going to be here any minute and I didn’t know what to do with myself. Vince had watered all of her plants already. Which was good because I had no idea how to take care of a plant, which was exactly why I had bought her a cactus instead of flowers. She didn’t seem to be the type that liked flowers that would die anyway. Cactuses took very little water and didn’t need much care. This one had a cute little pink flower growing out of the top of it too.
I wrinkled my nose at the thought. Cute? I was getting too soft hanging around Elise and Everly all day. The door wiggled as the key slid into the lock. The door swung open a few seconds later and I didn’t know what to do with myself. I stood up quickly and grabbed the plant.
Aiyanna let out a squeak when her eyes landed on me then the cactus. “You scared the living daylights out of me!”
My shoulders slumped. She looked exhausted and her face looked swollen from crying. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot too. I put the plant on her coffee table and rushed to her side. I grabbed her bags from her hands and threw them behind me. Just as long as they made it into the apartment, that was all that mattered. I wrapped my arms around her waist and took a deep breath.
Somehow, I felt whole again.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Aiyanna
