by E. N. Joy
Mrs. Vanderdale didn’t speak. She just nodded.
Paige opened the door and walked inside the room. There was no mistake that Paige had entered the master bedroom of the home. It was huge, almost like a five-star hotel suite. The area where the bed sat was separate from the sitting area, where Mrs. Vanderdale was currently seated. The sitting area was the size of a living room in the average home. Off to the right was a walk-in-closet that had a sitting area of its own. The closet rivaled a small, classy boutique. The attached bathroom had a shower-tub combo, as well as a Jacuzzi. Talk about his and her sinks, Mr. Vanderdale had his own sink on his own side of the bathroom, and Mrs. Vanderdale had hers.
Mrs. Vanderdale remained still on the couch. She was looking down at something in her hands. As Paige walked over to her, she realized that what Mrs. Vanderdale was holding was a picture. Standing behind the couch, Paige looked over Mrs. Vanderdale’s shoulder and saw that the picture was of Norman.
“I miss my boy,” Mrs. Vanderdale said. “I know it’s been a few years, but I miss him all the same.”
“It doesn’t matter how long it’s been. It’s understandable that you miss him. You were his mother. You are supposed to miss your son for the rest of your life.”
“I am his mother,” Mrs. Vanderdale snapped. “It’s not I was his mother. I still am!”
Paige jumped back. “I’m sorry,” she replied, apologizing.
“Forgive me,” Mrs. Vanderdale said in a calmer tone. There was silence as Mrs. Vanderdale continued staring down at the picture. “I knew this day might eventually come. I was hoping it wouldn’t, though. I knew one of these days some nice fellow was going to come and sweep you off your feet and take you away from us. You’ll be having dinner with his family instead of ours. You’re going to start your own little family and forget all about us.” Mrs. Vanderdale began to weep.
“Naomi, that will never happen,” Paige was quick to say.
“I know you’d like to think that it won’t happen, but what man is going to be okay with his wife hanging out with her last husband’s family?”
“A man who loves me and my girls and understands that you all are a part of our lives. You all are our family, no matter what. That’s never going to change. You have to believe me.” Ryan knew how close Paige was to the Vanderdales. Heck, she spent more time with them than with her own parents. Paige hadn’t thought to ask Ryan whether he felt awkward in any way about that. But with Ryan being who he was, if it were a problem, he certainly would not hold his tongue about it. Still, Paige made a mental note to be sure to discuss the issue with him.
“You say that now, but visits will become far and few between. That’s just how life is.”
“Not my life,” Paige said. She walked around to face Mrs. Vanderdale. “Look at me,” she ordered, and Mrs. Vanderdale lifted her face and stared at Paige with her red eyes, tears still flowing. “This family has been my rock. It goes back to what we told the girls. I don’t care about color. We are family. We are connected by blood. Nothing, absolutely nothing can ever separate us. Ever. I love you. I love all of you.” Paige held back tears. “I wouldn’t be able to breathe without you guys. If you ain’t breathing, you ain’t living. I can’t live without you guys. You have to believe me.” She took Mrs. Vanderdale’s hands in hers. “You do believe me, don’t you?”
Mrs. Vanderdale took in a deep breath and then exhaled. She nodded as a smile spread on her face and her tears turned into happy tears. “Yes, I believe you. I believe you.”
Paige exhaled. The last thing she wanted to do was lose a family in order to gain one. In her world, they were all going to be one big happy family. But little did she know that her world was about to come crashing down.
Chapter 18
“Thank you again for the flowers,” Adele and Norma said in unison, following Paige’s instructions. They’d already said thank you once, when Ryan first arrived with his two sons in tow. He’d come bearing a bouquet of roses for Paige, and each of his sons had carried a bouquet of daisies for the girls. That had been the start of what turned out to be a beautiful evening.
During a dinner of baked chicken, loaded baked potatoes, and a side salad, the six of them talked, laughed, and told knock-knock jokes. The girls had decided they didn’t want to have a tea party. “They’ll think we’re babies,” was their reasoning.
After dinner in the TV room, Ryan had this great idea that they would allow each child to share something about their parent and something about their sibling. After the kids took turns, Ryan and Paige shared things about each of their children. This drew lots of laughter and was an opportunity for them to get to know one another.
When Ryan announced that it was getting late and that he and the boys needed to get going, the girls whined their disappointment.
“When are you coming back?” Norma asked.
“Yeah, and can we take a picture again? All of us together,” Adele said.
Adele and Norma bombarded Ryan and the boys with questions all the way to the door. Paige had to put a stop to their badgering and tell them to thank the young gentlemen for the flowers again.
“You girls are so very welcome,” Ryan said to them.
“You’re welcome,” the boys told them in unison, all smiles.
“Thank you for having us, Miss Paige,” Deron said.
“Thank you,” Lionel repeated after him.
“You boys are always welcome in our home,” Paige told them.
“Our home . . . That means it’s everybody’s,” Adele said. “That’s what Ms. Duncan said.” Adele was referring to her first-grade teacher. “That means you can come whenever you want.” She looked up at Paige. “Right, Mommy?”
Paige smiled and rubbed Adele’s head. “Right, sweetheart.” Paige looked at Ryan, who was over the moon about how well the girls had taken to him and the boys. “You heard her.” Paige nodded at Adele. “It’s our home. . . everybody’s.”
Ryan leaned in and kissed Paige on the cheek, then whispered in her ear, “We’ll discuss the living situation at a later date.”
Paige chuckled.
“Uh, do you guys mind?” Lionel said, rolling his eyes up in his head. “Come on, Deron. Let’s go to the car.” He elbowed his brother.
“Here’s the keys,” Ryan said, giving the boys the keys to unlock the car.
“Thanks again for dinner, Miss Paige,” Deron said.
“It was delicious,” Lionel added.
“You are welcome, boys,” Paige said. “I’ll see you later.”
“Bye,” the girls shouted and waved.
“Bye,” the boys said to the girls and then made their way to the car.
“Well, ditto to what the boys said,” Ryan said to Paige.
“Ditto to what Adele said.” Paige winked. She looked down at the girls. “Adele, Norma, go on upstairs and start getting your clothes ready for bed.”
“Okay, Mommy,” Adele said.
“Good night, Mr. Ryan,” the girls sang.
Ryan waved to the girls before they ran off to do what they were told.
“Man, they are getting so big,” Ryan said. “And cuter by the moment.”
“And they seem to adore you and the boys.” Paige exhaled. “It’s just more confirmation that we are supposed to be. Everything is just coming together without a hitch.”
Ryan took Paige’s hands in his as he continued listening to her talk.
“I told you about my telling the Vanderdales about you, and my talk with Mrs. Vanderdale that followed.”
Ryan nodded.
“You didn’t say much about how you feel about the Vanderdales, though.”
He shrugged. “What’s there to say? They are the girls’ family. The girls are going to be my family, which means we’re all family.”
“Yeah, but they are my family too,” Paige said. “I just want to make sure you understand that even if I wasn’t the mother of their grandchildren, they’d still be a huge part of my life.”
&n
bsp; Ryan released Paige’s hands and rubbed her chin with his hand. “You don’t have to sell the Vanderdales to me, honey. I get exactly who they are in your life. Am I intimidated by the fact you were married to their son? Absolutely not. Do I feel as though I will have to compete with your deceased husband’s family? No more than I feel I’m competing with your ex-husband, Blake. I’m the one who is here with you and for you now. I know what it feels like not to have you in my life. I wouldn’t wish that upon my worst enemy, let alone people who love you as much as I do. So I wouldn’t dare ask you to remove yourself from their lives. You are mine, and everything that comes with you. Former in-laws, credit card debt . . .”
The two laughed.
“That’s why I love you, Ryan,” Paige said.
“I love you too, soon to be Paige Coleman.” He planted a kiss on her lips.
“Mommy’s going to marry Mr. Ryan! Mommy’s going to marry Mr. Ryan!”
As they stood there in each other’s arms, both Ryan and Paige looked toward the top of the steps, where they saw Adele and Norma dancing around in their T-shirts and underwear.
“Girls, didn’t I tell you to go wait for me?” Paige scolded. “Get y’all’s naked butts in that bathroom and wait for me.”
“We were just coming to tell you we were ready,” Adele said.
“Okay. Now get on.” Paige made a shooing motion at them.
They ran off, giggling and singing, “Kissy, kissy, poo-poo.”
Paige turned around and faced Ryan. “You ready for them?”
“I was ready yesterday,” Ryan said, then sealed their evening with one last kiss.
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Paige asked as she rode in the passenger seat as Ryan drove to the Vanderdales’ home.
“Yes,” Ryan said, doing a double take at Paige. “And would you please stop biting your nails? You weren’t this nervous when I met your parents last week.”
“This is different, and you know it.”
“How so?”
“A guy meeting his girl’s parents is normal.” She looked into the backseat to make sure the girls weren’t listening. They were occupied playing patty-cake. “A guy meeting his girl’s late husband’s parents, not so normal.”
“Well, it’s our normal. Now, stop biting your nails. And why didn’t I know about that nasty habit of yours?”
“I guess I’ve never really been nervous around you,” Paige said. “But when I am, depending how nervous I am, the urge comes and goes. I guess that is what it’s like with cigarette smoking.”
“You don’t have a secret smoking habit, do you?”
“Of course not,” Paige said. She spit out a piece of nail she’d just bitten off.
“Disgusting,” Ryan said. “I still don’t understand why your nerves are eating at you, making you eat your nails. It’s not like it’s their first time meeting me. I was at their house before, for the photo shoot, remember?”
“Well, it’s your first time meeting them as my fiancé.”
He turned his head to the side. “I guess you have a point there. But stop worrying, love.” He placed his hand on Paige’s knee. “Everything has been working out just fine. What makes you think something will go wrong now?”
Paige looked out the window as they turned onto the Vanderdales’ private drive. She didn’t know what would make her think something would go wrong now. But for some reason, she just did.
Chapter 19
“Ryan, it’s good seeing you again, buddy.” Mr. Vanderdale stood from his chair and greeted Ryan as Mrs. Vanderdale escorted him and Paige into the parlor.
Even though Paige had told the Vanderdales that Ryan had two boys, Ryan and Paige had decided they’d introduce the boys at a later date. The Vanderdales had met Ryan before, but only in the role of photographer, not fiancé. They didn’t want to overwhelm Mrs. Vanderdale in any way by having Paige show up on their doorstep with a whole new family.
The girls had already run off with Samantha after she greeted Ryan. She had assured him she wasn’t being rude by not hanging out with them in the parlor before dinner and had revealed that her nieces didn’t share when it came to her attention. Ryan had given her a pass and had informed her that the wonderful company of Mr. and Mrs. Vanderdale would make up for her absence.
“It’s good to see you again as well,” Ryan said, shaking Mr. Vanderdale’s hand.
“It’s been a couple years.”
“Yeah. By the way, how did that horse contest thing go?”
“Oh, yeah. Sunrise got most photogenic. First place.”
“Good. Congratulations,” said Ryan.
“Couldn’t have done it without your wonderful photography skills.”
“Well, thank you for that.”
The two men looked over at the women, who were just standing there with huge grins on their faces, watching them interact. Paige and Mrs. Vanderdale were all hugged up like two high school cheerleaders on the sidelines who were watching their boyfriends play in the homecoming game.
“What are you two up to over there?” Mr. Vanderdale asked, giving the women a mischievous look.
“Oh, nothing,” Paige said. “By the way, where’s Miss Nettie?”
“That woman has been running around here like she’s about to explode, hasn’t she, Norm?” Mrs. Vanderdale looked at her husband.
“I’d say she hasn’t been her usual self these past couple days,” Mr. Vanderdale agreed.
“She said she has a surprise for us at dinner,” Mrs. Vanderdale said.
“She will be joining us at the dinner table, won’t she, and not just serving?” Paige asked. “You know I consider Miss Nettie like blood. I want her to get the chance to meet and connect with Ryan also.”
“Oh, yes. She’ll be joining us,” Mrs. Vanderdale assured her.
“Good.” Paige looked at Ryan and smiled.
“So come on. Let’s all sit until Stuart calls us for dinner,” Mrs. Vanderdale suggested.
They all sat in the parlor and talked for a few minutes. Samantha, Katie, and the girls eventually joined them, and then shortly after that, Stuart ushered them into the dining room, announcing that dinner was served.
“You are going to love Miss Nettie’s cooking,” Paige said to Ryan as they all headed to the dining room.
The men were sure to pull the women’s seats out for them.
“Everything looks delicious,” Mr. Vanderdale said, admiring the food that had already been set on the table.
“That Nettie really outdid herself today,” Mrs. Vanderdale said as she admired the spread. “She was running around here at a hundred miles per hour, like she had ants in her pants.” She laughed. “By the way, where is she?”
On cue, Miss Nettie entered the dining room, slowing down from a light jog. “Here I am,” she said.
“Will you slow your row and sit down?” Mrs. Vanderdale said to her housekeeper. “Enjoy some of this delicious food you’ve been wearing yourself ragged to prepare.”
Paige gave the table the once-over. “Yes, Miss Nettie. It looks like you have made every item in your cookbook.”
The table was covered with everything from soul food to traditional American fare. It wasn’t a cohesive banquet at all, but instead about three full meals spread out.
“I wasn’t sure what his favorite foods were,” Miss Nettie said. “And I wanted to make sure I had something he liked.”
“Well, all you had to do was call me and ask me, Miss Nettie,” Paige said. “I would have told you this man can eat everything.” She play tapped Ryan on the shoulder, and he smiled. “But since you actually made everything, anyhow, we’re good.”
“No, not him,” Miss Nettie said. Then she looked at Ryan. “Although I’m glad you approve of today’s menu.”
Ryan nodded and smiled.
“I wasn’t sure what my son’s favorite foods were,” Miss Nettie offered.
“Your son?” Mrs. Vanderdale said with a surprised tone. While she sounded surpri
sed, the expression on her face indicated that she was a bit hurt.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Vanderdale,” Miss Nettie said, not looking at her boss and thus not noticing her hurt look. “I know I was supposed to give you a heads-up that I was inviting kin, but as you can see, there’s enough food to invite the homeless from under the bridge.” Miss Nettie frowned. “And sadly enough, that’s where I found my boy.” Her frown turned upside down. “But I found him nonetheless.”
“Oh, Miss Nettie,” Paige said, clutching her heart with happiness and relief. She knew how much finding her son meant to Miss Nettie. She was glad the mother now had some closure to the matter. Of course, Paige had no reason to feel hurt upon hearing about Miss Nettie’s son, since she had been instrumental in helping the woman find her boy.
Mrs. Vanderdale inhaled and tried not to be selfish by making this moment about herself. Apparently, this was the news that had had Miss Nettie on edge. The last thing Mrs. Vanderdale wanted to do was ruin the moment by expressing her feelings about Miss Nettie not sharing the fact before now that she had a son. Instead, she opted to show her support and celebrate with her friend. She stood and walked over to Miss Nettie.
“Nettie, hush your mouth about not asking permission to invite your son to dinner. I’m just shocked to hear that you even have a son.” She looked at her husband. “Norman, did you know about this?”
Mr. Vanderdale shook his head. He had talked to Miss Nettie for countless hours during their counseling sessions. She had never held back. She had shared with him everything about her life that she could remember, everything that hadn’t disappeared into some dark corner of her mind. According to Mr. Vanderdale’s diagnosis, Miss Nettie wasn’t running from her past. Her past was hiding itself from her. Mr. Vanderdale didn’t take Miss Nettie not sharing with them the fact that she had a son as personally as Mrs. Vanderdale was taking it. But then again, by knowing Miss Nettie’s mental health history, he was privy to information that others weren’t. There were some things in people’s lives that they struggled with and had a hard time coping with, and the last thing they wanted to do was tell others about it.