That Man of Mine (Whispering Bay Romance 3)

“You?” Bettina stared, dumbfounded. Finally. After all these years Mimi had managed to shut her up. Then Bettina started l

aughing. “Oh, Mimi! I always forget what a…strange sense of humor you have!” She yanked Tofu back to her side and bent over to pick her up. “Tofu and I have to go. See you next week!” She scurried off to her BMW and waved before getting into the car.

“Good lord,” Mimi muttered. Bettina had some nerve. Was she totally clueless? Or did she know how petty she sounded? She had to know. No one could be that dense. Could they?

Mimi pulled out her keys. She walked up to her car door and was ready to unlock it when she felt something warm and mushy beneath her feet. She glanced down at her shoes. Great. Tofu had left her a present. And Mimi had walked right into it.

*~*~*

Of all the places in the parking lot and nearby grassy areas that Tofu could have used to do her business, she’d chosen that tiny little spot that Mimi was sure to step into. Coincidence? Hardly. It was like…Bettina and Tofu shared one evil mind between them.

Mimi parked the minivan behind Claire’s car in her parents’ driveway. Momma always served dinner at exactly six p.m. with no deviation, and since Mimi didn’t want to get into it with her mother tonight, instead of going home to change shoes, she’d settled for a pair of flip flops she kept in the back seat of her car. She opened the front door to her parents’ house and followed the smell of fried chicken all the way to the kitchen.

Daddy hovered over the stove, stirring a pot of his famous gravy. He laid down his spoon and went to hug her. “Whatever happens tonight, please remember, I had nothing to do with this,” he whispered in her ear.

Mimi stiffened. What was Momma up to now? Alex Powers might be over six feet tall, but he was no match for his wife. At least, not in the pants department. “Why do I get the feeling I should get back in my car and drive away?”

The sound of familiar voices drifted in from the dining room. Mimi went to check it out. The table was set with the everyday china, but it was upstaged by Momma’s special-occasion-only light blue linen tablecloth. Claire and Cameron were already seated at the table, which was set for six. Somewhere in the back of Mimi’s brain, a little warning bell went off.

Momma noticed her eyeing the extra setting. “Guess who’s coming to dinner?” she asked gleefully.

“Gosh, I almost hate to answer that.”

“And all this time we thought Luke was the smart one,” Daddy joked, placing the gravy boat at the corner of the table. He winked at Mimi, so she didn’t take it personally.

Besides the fried chicken, there was mashed potatoes and corn and the green bean casserole that Momma only made for Thanksgiving. A nice meal to be sure. But certainly not one to merit the blue tablecloth.

“We’re having a celebration!” Momma said.

“Awesome,” Mimi replied. “What are we celebrating?”

“Why, you being mayor of course!” Now it was Momma’s turn to wink at her. “And you know, that other thing, too.” A second bell went off, this one a little bit louder.

Momma’s gaze took in Mimi’s form fitting peach silk blouse and her tan skirt. She frowned when she got to the flip flops. “Is that what you wore to work today?”

“My shoes met with an accident.”

Before Momma could respond, there was a knock on the front door. “I’ll get that,” she said quickly. The bells in Mimi’s head now clanged louder than a five-o-clock alarm. Fried chicken, gravy and green bean casserole. Of course. They were all Zeke’s favorite comfort foods.

Sure enough, Momma came back accompanied by Zeke. She proudly held up a bouquet of flowers to show to Mimi. “Look what Zeke brought me!” She leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. “You are just the most thoughtful son-in-law in the entire world!”

Mimi could have sworn Zeke’s face went red. He deflected any embarrassment he might have felt by handing Daddy a bottle of wine. “For you, Alex.”

Daddy took the wine and clapped Zeke on the back, man-style. “Thanks, son.” If Mimi didn’t know any better it was like they suddenly liked him better than her.

“Hey, Dad!” Cameron said happily.

“Hey, dude.” The two of them bumped fists, then Zeke bent down to kiss the top of Claire’s head.

“Hi, Daddy,” Claire said quietly. She hadn’t noticed before but Claire’s blue eyes looked red rimmed. Had she been crying? If it wouldn’t draw too much attention, Mimi would pull Claire aside. But it would, so she’d just have to wait till they got home tonight.

“You want to know what we’re celebrating?” Momma said, “Besides this being your second month anniversary as mayor, we’re also celebrating our reunion as a family!”

Mimi and Zeke eyed one other uncomfortably. It was the first time since Saturday night that’d she’d seen him and a myriad of emotions roiled through her. She had to admit, he looked nice. He wore dark pleated trousers and a freshly starched long sleeved blue oxford shirt that she didn’t recognize. She used to tease him that if it wasn’t for her he’d never go shopping to buy anything and that one day he’d end up in nothing but rags. Obviously, that wasn’t the case. It seemed that Zeke Grant could get along just fine without her.

“Momma, can I see you in the kitchen for a minute?”

“But the chicken will get cold.”