“Just don’t eat too much of it,” I said with a wink.
“Mommy, can I have pancakes?” Kira asked.
“How would you like to eat traditional Irish pancakes?” I asked. Kilyn beamed.
Crinkling her nose, Kira asked, “Are they good?”
I shrugged. “Depends. Do you like strawberries and chocolate?”
Nodding her head, Kira replied, “Do I ever!”
Laughing, I motioned for her to follow me over to the stove.
“You know how your mommy likes to make crepes?”
Kira nodded.
“These are kind of like that.”
“Oh,” Kira said.
Kilyn laughed. “They are that!”
Leaning in, I whispered, “Don’t listen to her. The Irish pancakes are special.”
Kira’s eyes grew wide. “Why?”
I looked around as if to make sure no one could hear me. “They have magic in them.”
“Cool! What kind of magic?”
“Good luck magic.”
Kira was entranced. I loved having her help with the pancakes. It reminded me of when I used to help my mother make breakfast sometimes. Plus it gave Thano and Kilyn a little bit of time to enjoy breakfast on the back porch, just the two of them.
Kira sat at the kitchen island and ate her pancakes as I went back to work.
“Have you always liked to cook, Aunt Gabi?”
My heart seized in my chest. Aunt Gabi. I loved being called that!
I nodded. “Yep. When I was your age, my grandmother used to teach me everything she knew about cooking. Baking is what I really loved to do though, so we would make the most amazing Italian desserts. She hardly spoke English, so I had to learn Italian to be able to speak to her.”
“That’s cool! Can you still speak Italian?”
“I can. Not as well as my parents, but I can hold my own.”
She laughed and finished eating her pancakes while I finished up on a few other things. Phoebe would be by later with the cake she had decorated.
“Do I get to stay for the baby shower?” Kira asked.
“I think so. Your Mitera and Pappou will be here. Plus Yiayia.”
Kira smiled with delight. It warmed my heart to see how much she loved her grandparents. It also made me sad knowing they were all she had since Kilyn’s parents had died.
The doorbell rang and Kira jumped down to get it.
Kilyn came into the kitchen with a confused look on her face. “Who could that be? The shower isn’t for another three hours.”
“Mitera!” Kira called out.
My hands went to my hips. “Why is she here?” I asked.
Kilyn tilted her head and gave me a dumfounded look.
Katerina walked in with her best friend Maria, Aunt Agnes, and Aunt Maria. I would never get used to all the Maria’s in this family.
“What are you guys doing here so early?” Kilyn asked.
Katerina glanced over to me and smiled. “We came to help Gabi of course.”
I added the last touch to one of the desserts and stood tall. “Done. Everything is ready to go.”
All eyes landed on the desserts.
“Everything looks amazing!” Aunt Maria whispered. I could feel my chest stick out a little bit more as pride raced through my veins. Even I had to admit everything looked amazing.
Katerina walked over and stared down at the cake. “You baked all of this, Gabriella?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“It all looks amazing.”
Smiling, I said, “Thank you, Katerina.”
She eyed the other desserts then turned to the other Greek women in the room.
“All right, ladies. Let’s get everything set up and we can start bringing in the food.”
“Food?” Kilyn and I both asked at once.
Katerina glanced over her shoulder at us. “Yes. You can’t expect people to eat only cake and ice cream.”
My jaw dropped open and I took a step toward her, my finger in position to tell her off. Kilyn stepped in front of me, blocking my move.
“Um, Katerina, I thought we decided to only do desserts. That was the plan.”
She waved her hand to dismiss Kilyn.
“Nonsense. People need food. A good Greek salad and some meat will do them wonders. You can’t live on desserts alone.”
Kilyn turned to face me after Katerina left the kitchen. “I’m so sorry.”
I was still glaring at the spot where Nic’s mom had just retreated.
“Oh. Oh, it’s on now,” I mumbled.
The rest of the day was spent with me and Katerina trying to shove desserts and food down people’s throats. In the end, it turned out to be a beautiful baby shower and Kilyn had a wonderful day. So, that was all that mattered.
Sitting back in the chair, I kicked my feet up onto the other chair and smiled. Thano came walking in.
He stopped walking and looked down at me. “If that isn’t a victory smile, I don’t know what is.”
Blowing on my knuckles, I rubbed them against my chest. “Not one piece of dessert left. Nothing. Nada. Zero. But there is a shit ton of food left. I won!”
He laughed. “I wasn’t aware there was a contest going on.”
“Neither was I until your mother showed up with her gang of Maria’s and tried to take over. Well, not today! Victory was mine!”