"Bourbon pecan pie," Amila said, carefully sitting the ceramic dish that held the desert on the kitchen island in front of the woman that bore the man that had her thinking about her plans for the future.

"Pie!" Dominic's dad, Syrus, quipped. He sidled next to her with a saucer and a cake knife. They met in the foyer, he welcomed her in a big hug that felt like a hundred embraces or maybe she just missed being in the arms of a father that cared about their children. The man radiated warmth and love; and though she was a little skittish about being in the company of new people he felt like someone she'd know all her life. He reminded her of her own dad. Greedy for food and greedier for the company of people.

"Let me see if it tastes as good as it looks." Syrus positioned the knife over the dessert but before he could spear it into a toasted, sugared pecan his wife interjected.

"Sy, don't you do it." Dominic's mom declared, looking up from the massive aluminum pan she was spooning the Dirty Rice out of. She pointed the big, wooden spoon at the graying man that had halted with knife and spoon in hand. "You already had cake. Now, you pushing it. Run your sugar up...all I'm going to do is call 911."

"Tina, it's the holidays." He protested with his words but sat the small plate and utensil down.  He frowned at his wife then turned back to Amila, his smile resumed. "A yearly physical was supposed to be a good thing but I'm not seeing the benefits."

"Your health," Amila said. "More time with the ones you love."

The last word sent Syrus' gaze back to his wife draped in a festive burgundy apron with her hair kept out of sight under a deep green scarf that was elaborately tied and matched beautifully with her deep brown skin. He went soft like a man that had just fallen in love all over again and Amila wished her future husband would look at her like that when they hit sixty, had grown children and grandchildren running around.

"I'm going to watch the game since I can't eat like a king." He ambled away from the island, gave his wife a kiss on her cheek, and whispered something to her. Amila caught the word queen at the end and fell in love with the older couple even more.

Once the man had left the kitchen and his sweet tooth behind, Amila pointed to the decorative ceramic dish Valentina was spooning the spicy cajun rice into. "Do you need any help?"

Valentina looked over at her with a sincere smile that prompted Amila's mouth to quirk up. "I'm fine, sweetheart. You should go in there and enjoy yourself...that is if you like football." She deposited another heap of the seasoned rice and ground beef mixture into the dish.

"This house has a beautiful path to a lake through the tree." She pointed out the window by the breakfast nook with her spoon free hand. "And as my eldest grandbaby said...it's fit for TikTok. I don't know what a clock has to do with walking but I enjoyed it."

Amila's smile grew brighter and then she shook her head. "I wouldn't feel right just sitting down while you're busy here by yourself."

"Nah, I'm not putting you to work." Valentina refuted with a shake of her head as she paused from scooping. "You're our guest and anyway the food is done. We're about to eat."

"And I don't know how he does it." Danielle's voice pulled them to her presence as she walked over to the island. "Nicky always arrives when the food is finished. He did it when we were growing up, never around during the prep but always the first one with a plate."

Danielle peeked into the oven, "The dressing is done." She turned off the oven and heaved the dish out. Once she had it securely on the countertop she joined the back at the island. "How long have you and Nicky been together?"

"Uh..." Amila's mouth opened but her voice halted as her eyes narrowed. She thought back trying to remember the day Dominic walked into the coffee shop. What month was that? The answer found her and she said. "September."

"Almost three months." Danielle nodded with a grin. "Ya'll must be really serious for him to—"

"Dani, don't badger her." Her mother cut her off.

"I'm not." Danielle proclaimed with her hands going up. "I'm just interested, you know Nicky hasn't brought anyone to meet us since Jade. This is big. Really big."

"Why is it big?" Amila asked. "And who's Jade?"

"He hasn't told you about her?" Danielle inquired with shock and mystification warring on her face which matched the same expression her mom wore.

Amila glanced between both of the women knowing she was missing some key information about Dominic. Her heart felt as if it dropped an inch down her ribcage growing closer to her stomach.

"If he didn't tell you about her then..." His mom ended the brief seconds of silence that fell upon them. She covered the dish with the glass lid. "....it's not our place to do so."

Amila's mouth twisted, her interest piqued. She wanted to know who this mysterious woman was then Danielle's voice dashed some of that curiousness.

"She was his fiancee. It ended badly." Sadness swelled in Danielle's eyes as she toyed with her own engagement ring. Her mom shook her head at her and she didn't utter anymore about the woman.

"He was engaged before," Amila said more like a question because she wanted to know more. He never told her he was engaged. She didn't know he wanted to marry someone once.

"He was." His mom slipped her hands in the pockets of her apron that matched her all-black attire nicely. "But that's something you need to talk to him about. It's not for us to share. Okay."

"Yes, ma'am." Amila nodded, her hands going back to the sides of the pie dish remembering the fun they had making the sweet dish and the many times she shared about her past but he didn't. "It's okay."

"I'm just grateful," Danielle said with a genuine smile on her face. "That he's healing from the hurt." She turned to her mom with a finger pointing to her. "I told you that date he went on last year would get him moving in the right direction."

"What date?" Amila asked, her eyebrows knitting.

"With some ballerina that ghosted him," Danielle said with a dismissive flick of her wrist as she moved behind her mom to get to the fridge. She let out a chuckle as she opened the door. "He called me after and told me everything. I knew he was bit by the love bug."

"Bit by the love bug?" Amila asked. "After one date?"

"Oh, baby girl, Nicky falls hard and fast." Danielle grabbed the pitcher of tea from the shelf and closed the door with the other hand. "What happened to Jade made him cold but you seem to be thawing him out."

Amila smiles back at her. "It seems that way."

"Dani, if you feel that you have told enough of your brother's busy can you tell everyone it's time to eat."

"It'd be my pleasure." Danielle quipped, grinning all the way out of the kitchen.

Valentina watched her daughter leave the kitchen then turned back to Amila. "He does look happy. Happier than he has been in a while and I'm thankful for that. Thank-you, for that."

"Oh, I don't need any thanks." Amila quickly refuted.

"I'm still thankful." She said, taking off the apron. "Now, let's eat."

Amila left the kitchen with the motherly woman with a heaviness on her shoulder. Should she be thanked? Why should she be thanked? Who was Jade? And what happened between her and Dominic?

She hoped all those questions didn't give her indigestion.

What do you think happened between Jade and Dominic?

Should Amila worry about what happened between the two? Why do you think she's curious about it?

Do you think Danielle is right that Dominic was bit by the love bug from the date with the ballerina that ghosted him?

Is Valentina right, Amila should take those questions to Dominic, or should Amila left it alone since she's not actually his girlfriend?