Luke laughed when BJ groaned as the eight ball tapped the sidewall of the pocket before falling in. He and Christina had arrived at her grandparents’ home over an hour ago and he had to admit that he was having a good time with her cousins and her brother. Not having family, he could now see what he had been missing – the jokes, the laughs, and even a serious moment when BJ asked the fellas’ advice on dealing with his baby’s momma.
“BJ, don’t even bother playing Luke in basketball. He’s good at that too and will have no mercy when he dunks on your ass,” Zack said when he came up behind Luke, slapping him on the shoulder. “He’s been this way since college. Unlike some people who lose their talents as they get older, he seems to get better.”
“Zack, you should have given a warning before you introduced him to us,” Jerry, Christina’s brother, chimed in. “I lost twenty bucks to Luke when we played pool at Terrance’s bar a few weeks back.”
Six years younger than Christina, Jerry was six-two, over two hundred pounds and looked as if he should’ve been on a football field blocking for a quarterback instead of being a fifth-year electrician apprentice.
“Well, that’s better than the forty dollars I lost playing poker with him the other night,” Craig Logan, Toni’s husband said.
Luke laughed and accepted the moans and groans of how he had beat the cousins and walked away with their money. He had inherited his father’s competitive nature and ability to excel at almost anything he attempted. Back in college, Luke’s skills had served him well as he often had to hustle up extra cash for things his scholarship hadn’t covered.
He put the cue stick back in the rack and grabbed his baseball cap, shoving it on his head low over his eyes. “I’m going to give you fellas some time to practice while I go for a second round of food.”
“Whatever, man. Maybe you should just stay up there,” BJ said as he racked the pool table, preparing to play the next person.
Luke walked upstairs and outside to the backyard for another plate of food. From where he stood near the deck, he could see Christina and her sister arguing again near the food tables. When he and Christina arrived, Peyton had laid into her for not getting there early to help with the setup. Her sister had shot him the evil eye and he was pretty sure part of the problem between the sisters had to do with him.
They were so into their conversation, they didn’t notice a woman lingering near the table listening to them. For the most part, no one else seemed to notice their heated discussion. Children were running around playing. Christina’s parents, as well as another couple, were on the makeshift dance floor dancing near the table that held a sound system and speakers. And everyone else sat at tables eating and laughing, enjoying their own conversations.
Luke’s attention returned to Christina and her sister as he slowly approached them.
“You came late with your man and now you’re sitting around as if you’re an invited guest,” Peyton said and set a fruit platter on the table next to the vegetable tray. “I shouldn’t have to be the one who always has to set up and then clean up around here.”
“PJ, you’re really starting to get on my nerves. You’ve been on my case since we arrived. If there’s something wrong and I’m not talking about the brunch, you need to just say it so we can move on.” Christina looked up at that moment and smiled when she saw Luke. “Hey there. I was getting ready to search you out to see if you wanted something else to eat.” She approached him, planting a sweet kiss on his lips.
He didn’t miss Peyton’s boy-toy comment and though Christina was smiling, the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “What’s going on with you and your sister?” He grabbed a couple of pieces of barbecue chicken and ribs. When Christina told him her uncle Martin could burn on the grill, she wasn’t kidding. This had to be the best barbecue Luke had ever tasted.
“Nothing.” Christina’s gaze followed her sister’s retreating back as Peyton stomped off to the house. “She has a bug up her butt about something. Instead of telling me what her problem is, she’s harassing me about missing the last couple of brunches and claims I’m not much help today.” Christina followed behind him, making a plate full of vegetables for herself.
“Does she have an issue with you dating me?” Luke asked the question quietly when two people he didn’t know walked past.
Christina’s hand hovered over the dinner rolls and she shot him a quick glance. “Wh … why would you say that?” She grabbed the roll and looked everywhere but at him.
“Just a hunch. So why don’t you tell me what the problem is. I have a feeling you already know.”
Christina sighed and added a spoonful of potato salad to her plate as well as his.
“I’m not really sure. She’s been acting strange for months and seems to be taking her issues out on everyone around her.”
“So she doesn’t have a problem with me or us dating?”
Luke followed Christina over to an empty picnic table set up under an oak tree. He was glad to see it unoccupied since none of the other tables were available.
“She might’ve mentioned that she thinks you’re a bad influence on me.”
“How so? She doesn’t even know me.” Luke had stopped caring a long time ago what people thought of him, but if Peyton was giving Christina a hard time because of him, it was time to nip it in the bud.
“She thinks my piercings and the fact that I don’t bend to her every command has something to do with me dating you.”
“And does it?” Luke bit into his chicken, savoring the tangy heat and stopped short of licking his fingers.
“Maybe.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
Luke had noticed some subtle changes in Christina since they first met, but he liked the changes. Gone was the goody-two-shoe, girl next door type who dressed simply and tried to be everything to everybody. Christina was still sweet, but now she was edgier in her style of dress, the music she listened to, as well as the way she spoke. She cursed more than he remembered, which was probably because of his potty mouth, but she seemed happier, freer.
“I feel great. I love the new me. Well, actually, I don’t think it’s the new me. I think I have finally come into my own and I’m more comfortable with myself.”
“Well, for what it’s worth,” he scooted closer and nuzzled her scented neck, “I love everything about you.”
*
Christina was still grinning when she walked into her grandmother’s newly remodeled state-of-the-art kitchen. Luke always knew just the right thing to say to make her feel good. Reiterating how much he loved her was an added bonus.
“Hey Gram, we’re running low on potato salad and dinner rolls. Do we have more?” Christina set the semi-empty glass bowl on the dark granite counter.
“We’re also out of baked beans,” Violet, Christina’s mother said when she walked in carrying a long aluminum pan.
“Okay, there’s more potato salad in the refrigerator, but we’re going to have to make more baked beans.”
“I can whip up a batch real quick.”
“No!” Christina and her grandmother said in unison. Christina fell out laughing at her mother’s facial expression.
Violet placed her hands on her hips and scowled at Christina. “What’s wrong with my baked beans? Your daddy loves them.”
“That’s probably true, Vee, but I was already planning to make some more,” Katherine Jenkins said. “But since you’re in here, can you slice up the coconut pineapple cake and that chocolate marble cake that I just finished frosting?”
Christina almost burst out laughing at how cool her grandmother handled what could have been a messy situation. Katherine Jenkins was remarkable in dealing with people. She could diffuse practically any type of problem before it happened.
Christina removed the other bowl of potato salad from the refrigerator. She thought her mother was the most amazing woman she knew, but Violet was a horrible cook. Unfortunately, her mother didn’t know just how bad of a cook
she was since Christina’s father ate anything she made as if it were the best thing he ever tasted.
“Okay, let me run to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.”
“You handled that well,” Christina whispered, standing next to her grandmother. “Then again, maybe it’s time you told her that she doesn’t know how to cook. She clearly hasn’t taken the hint from anyone else.”
Her grandmother chuckled. “Bless her heart. Vee is a doll. Even after months of giving her cooking lessons before she and your daddy were married, I don’t think she grasped any of what I taught her.”
“Is that why you were so adamant about me and Peyton learning to cook?”
“Yes. There was no way I’d have the next generation of girls not knowing how to prepare a decent meal. Besides, someone had to know how to cook in that house.”
Christina took the bowl of potato outside. Her grandmother had taught her, Peyton, Toni, Martina and Jada how to cook. As each one of them turned seven, she would have them over to her house for cooking lessons twice a month. Christina and Toni enjoyed it more than the others, especially their baking lessons and the monthly Gramma/granddaughter breakfasts. As they grew older, their relationship with their grandmother grew stronger. For Toni and Martina, their relationship with their grandmother was even tighter since both of them didn’t have strong relationships with their mothers.
“We missed you here last Sunday,” her grandmother said when Christina walked back into the kitchen.
“Luke and I went away for the weekend.”
“I see.”
Christina groaned inside. Usually “I see” meant that she really didn’t see, or that she wanted to say more.
“Okay, I’m back. I had to let hubby know where I’d be.” Violet floated into the kitchen. Christina couldn’t help but think of the phrase, a breath of fresh air, whenever her mother entered a room. Always smiling with a kind word for everyone she met. Violet Jenkins could light up the darkest room. “Is this platter okay for the coconut pineapple cake?” She held up an oval glass dish.
“Perfect. And CJ, why don’t you frost that cake on the counter next to the stove. Use this buttercream frosting.” She pointed to two containers of frosting near where her mother was working.
The three of them worked in a comfortable silence. Christina loved moments like this when she could spend time with the most important women in her life. She felt so blessed to have not only one strong, confident, older woman to guide her, but two.
“So what do you guys think of Luke?” she asked adding frosting to the second layer of the three-layer cake.
“Question is what do you think of him?” Her grandmother added brown sugar to the pan of baked beans.
Christina wasn’t surprised by the question. Katherine often answered a question with a question. Anything to get them talking.
“He’s the most incredible man I have ever met. I’m in love with him.”
“Aw, honey, I’m so happy for you.” Her mother wrapped her arms around Christina and kissed her on the cheek. Christina didn’t think she would ever get tired of her mother’s hugs. “I like him too! He’s good-looking, intelligent, and have you noticed that he has a sexy walk just like President Obama?”
Christina threw her head back and laughed. Leave it to her mother to notice Luke’s walk. God only knows what else she had noticed.
Violet put the dirty, empty cake plates in the farmhouse sink and rinsed her hands. “I know you were pretty upset when you guys broke up, but your relationship seems stronger than ever. I also can’t help but notice that your aura is in full bloom now that you two are back together.” Violet closed her eyes and held her arms up as if praying. “I can so see you guys making beautiful music, and beautiful babies together.”
Christina’s mouth dropped open and she watched her mother walk, no glide out of the room with one of the platters of cake, her long patchwork skirt dragging the floor. Violet always said what was on her mind, which was fine with Christina. She just never knew what would come out of her mother’s mouth.
Christina turned to her grandmother frowning. “What does ‘your aura is in full bloom’ even mean?”
Her grandmother shook her head laughing. “Chile, your guess is as good as mine. That mother of yours know she’s special.”
“Yeah, that’s a nice way of putting it. I’m afraid to ask what you thought of her when daddy first brought her home to meet you and Grampa.”
That got another laugh out of her grandmother. “Let’s just say, I thought she was special then too.” They both laughed and then her grandmother turned serious. “To be honest, though she was different than what I had in mind for your father, I thought she was perfect for him.”
“Really?” This was the first time they had a conversation about her parents meeting. “Why did you think she was perfect for him?”
“Growing up, your dad was always very serious and a little stiff if you ask me.” Her grandmother smiled as if thinking about a particular instance. “But when Vee came into his life, it was as if someone turned on a switch inside of him. He was like a different person. He laughed more. He started hanging out with his friends more often, whereas before Vee, he stayed in the house watching television or just lying around. He also joined a rock band, spiked hair and all.”
“What?” Christina knew her father played the drums and tinkered a little with the sax, but she didn’t know he actually joined a band. She had heard that he never fully pursued a career in music the way he wanted to because her uncles and grandfather talked him out of it.
“Your father nearly drove me crazy when he first started learning how to play the drums. Our house was much smaller back then. So your grandfather made him play out in the garage.”
“What else?” Now Christina wanted to know everything.
“Once he started dating your mother, it was as if he gave himself permission to relax and be himself. He even got caught sneaking in through a window one night after missing curfew. Before Vee, he would have never tried anything like that. He wanted to be what he thought your grandfather and I wanted him to be. What I remember most is that he was happier, especially whenever your mother was around. Somewhat like you are when you and Luke are together.”
“Really, Gram?”
“Really. I watch you from a distance and your whole face lights up when you see him or whenever he speaks. I’m a true believer that God has the perfect mate for each of us and I think you and your father found yours.”
Christina wasn’t sure what to say, especially when she thought about her conversation with Peyton. Her sister might’ve thought Luke was a bad influence, but Christina knew better.
“I thought you didn’t like Luke.”
Her grandmother set the spoon down on the counter, wiping her hands on her apron. “Why would you think that?”
Peyton was on the tip of her tongue, but instead she said, “I don’t know. I guess I just thought—”
“I don’t dislike, Luke. I don’t know him. He’s been over here what, one or two times? And when he is here, he’s usually hanging out with Craig, Zack or the other boys.” Her grandmother studied her for a moment, her hands on her rounded hips. “Now do you care to tell me what this is all about?”
Christina set the spatula down. She ripped a paper towel from the holder sitting on the counter and wiped her hands.
“You seem to treat Luke differently than you treat Craig and Zack. When they walk into the house, your eyes light up and you turn your cheek up, expecting a kiss from them. You don’t do that with Luke.” Christina leaned her back against the counter. “But you’re right. You haven’t really had a chance to get to know him like you have the others. So I guess we’ll have to make sure we don’t miss many more Sunday brunches.”
“Does he have family in Cincinnati?”
“No. He doesn’t have any family.” Christina’s heart hurt for him. She couldn’t imagine a life without her family. She told her grandmother how his parents had di
ed, but didn’t mention that he had a sibling.
“Well, I’m glad he has you and now he has us. But I’ll tell you like I told your other cousins. As long as he treats you right and respects you, he’ll always be welcomed in our home.”
Hours later, Christina dried the last pot with a sigh of relief. Every Sunday the women took turns with clean up duty. Today it was Christina, Peyton, and Martina’s turn, but as usual, Martina found a way to do just a little to claim that she helped and then she disappeared.
“Alright, I’m out of here. See you tomorrow,” Peyton said on her way out of the kitchen. At least they were on speaking terms, but there was still some underlying tension between them. Jada said Peyton was probably jealous of Christina’s relationship, but Christina wasn’t sure that was true. Something else was going on with her sister.
“Hey, baby. You almost ready to go?” Luke walked up behind her and placed a kiss near her ear, the warmth of his breath sending a sweet thrill through her body.
“Perfect timing.” She turned to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Has everyone else left?”
Luke shook his head. “Not quite. I just finished playing pool with Jerry and there are a few people still downstairs playing Spades.”
“Oh, that’ll probably go on for another two hours.” Christina stepped out of Luke’s arms and grabbed her handbag from the lower shelf in the pantry. “Let me just say bye to my grandparents. Hopefully, they’re not upstairs changing clothes yet.”
Christina and Luke headed toward the front of the house hand in hand and ran into her grandfather on the way to the door.
“Hey, kids. Are you two leaving?” he asked over his shoulder.
“In a few minutes. We just wanted to say bye to you and Gram before we left.”
“Okay, give me a second. This is Walter at the door. He has a piece of art that he’s insisting I see before your grandmother and I leave.”
Tempting the Artist Page 10