CHAPTER SEVENTEEN #2
“So it’s a surprise for you too?”
“Yep, I’m sure it will be good though,” Kiara said. “Angie has always loved to cook, so I have a feeling she’ll have found something interesting to make for us.”
“You don’t like to cook like she does?”
“Though I know how to cook pretty well,” Kiara said, “I never really enjoyed it the way Angie did. I think that was partly because I had to cook. Jim insisted that Angie and I do all the cooking. And if he didn’t like it… well, there were consequences.”
“You can always eat at the main house if you don’t want to cook,” Julian said. “I’m pretty useless in the kitchen myself, so I’ll be relying on Mrs. Stevens.”
“I actually want to start cooking again,” Kiara said. “I have a home with a beautiful kitchen, and with a child on the way, I feel like I shouldn’t be relying on other people to cook my meals.”
They reached Jude and Angela’s before they could continue the conversation, and Jude answered the door when they knocked.
“C’mon in,” Jude said as he stepped back, opening the door wider.
Julian laid a hand on Kiara’s back, urging her to precede him into the house. As he followed her in, he glanced around. He’d never been in the house before, but he’d always assumed that it would be a rather stark environment.
However, the place had a homey vibe going on, with pictures on the wall and bits of decor on a small table in the hallway.
As they moved further into the house, he saw colorful throw cushions on the overstuffed furniture in the living room.
There were candles and framed pictures sitting on the end tables.
Everywhere he could see touches of Angela. Or at least he assumed it was Angela’s touch because he didn’t think Jude cared about that sort of thing.
As they headed for the kitchen, there was another knock on the door, and Jude turned to answer it, welcoming Annie and Benji into the house.
“Hey, you two,” Annie said, greeting them with a smile. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good,” Julian said, then turned to Kiara.
“I’m doing good too, and so is baby boy.”
“No name yet?” Annie asked.
“Not yet,” Kiara replied. “We honestly haven’t really talked it over, but I have some ideas.”
Julian didn’t have much of a preference about the name.
Considering Kiara was doing all the work of growing the baby, he kind of thought maybe she had more of a right to choose the name.
Plus, he didn’t even remember their time together that had led to the pregnancy.
This whole thing felt more like her show, and he was just along for the ride.
“Are you taking any suggestions?” Annie asked.
“People are welcome to offer suggestions, but I can’t guarantee we’ll take them,” Kiara said.
“Hey!” Angela came from the kitchen, approaching them with her arms open wide. She first hugged Kiara, then Annie. “I’m so glad you could make it.”
“It smells delicious,” Kiara said. “And I’m hungry.”
Angela laid a hand on Kiara’s belly, then bent over, her head close to the bump. “Hey there, little guy. Are you making Mommy hungry?”
Kiara chuckled, and for a moment, Julian was stuck on the word Mommy. Kiara was Mommy, and he was going to be Daddy. It was a stunning thought.
“Let’s go sit down,” Angela said, gesturing to the large table that was set with enough places for all of them.
“Can I help you with anything?” Kiara asked.
“Nope. Jude’s going to help me,” Angela said, reaching out to take her husband’s hand. “He’s been my assistant all day, and he’s done a great job.”
She beamed up at him, and a small smile crossed Jude’s face before he leaned over and pressed a kiss on her forehead. “She’s been a pretty good boss.”
Julian had a hard time believing Jude would let anyone boss him around, but there was something between the married couple that brought out a softness in the man. A side of Jude that Julian wasn’t sure he’d ever seen.
As Jude and Angela went to the kitchen, the rest of them made their way to the table. Julian pulled out a chair for Kiara. She gave him a curious look as she sat down and allowed him to help her scoot the chair closer to the table.
Julian had been taught how to treat a woman, but he realized that Kiara hadn’t been exposed to that type of treatment, especially from him. However, as the mother of his child, she deserved the best treatment he could offer her.
“It smells good,” Benji said as he sat down on the chair across the table from Julian. “And I’m hungry too.”
Jude came to the table with a large casserole dish, steam rising from its surface. After he’d set it on the table, he returned to the kitchen. Over the next few minutes, the couple carried in the rest of the meal.
After pouring them drinks—the options being water and juice—Jude and Angela sat down, each of them taking a seat at opposite ends of the table.
“Let’s pray,” Jude said, surprising Julian for a moment. He’d known Jude and Angela were both Christians, but sometimes he forgot that.
As he listened to his brother-in-law pray, Julian was reminded of Elijah and the many conversations they’d had about Elijah’s faith and what it meant to him.
Once the prayer was over, Angela said, “I made baked chicken with spinach dip and mozzarella cheese, roasted parmesan potatoes, honey-glazed carrots, and a Caesar salad.”
Also on the table were buns, which Julian suspected Angela had made herself.
Unlike the multi-course meals they often got at the main house, all the food was served at once. Julian found that he liked the more casual meal, and everything was delicious.
“This tastes great, Angie,” Kiara said. “Did you make the spinach dip yourself?”
Angela nodded. “I found a recipe for it. We had something similar when we were on our honeymoon, and I loved it so much that I decided I wanted to recreate it once we got home.”
As Angela spoke, Julian saw a radiance in her. A happiness that eased some of the pain he carried for his actions all those years ago.
Conversation flowed easily as they ate, more easily than Julian might have thought it would with Jude being part of it. It gave him a glimpse into his siblings’ lives—as well as his wife’s—that he hadn’t had before. Or maybe he hadn’t wanted to have before.
Now, with his mind and his emotions free from the hold of alcohol, his interest in life had been renewed. Where previously his only interest had been in his work, now, he wanted to have these connections with the people in his life.
After they finished the meal, they all got up to help clear the table before Angela brought dessert to the table. It was a brownie cheesecake, which was the best Julian had ever eaten. When he told Angela as much, she beamed at him.
“I’m glad you like it,” she said. “I’m having fun learning new recipes and trying them out on Jude.”
“My kitchen has never gotten as much use as it has recently,” he said with a chuckle. “And I’ve had to work out twice as hard to offset all the great food I’ve eaten.”
“If you’re going to have a dad bod soon, you’d better have a kid to go with it,” Benji said with a smirk.
Jude scowled at the teen. “I’m not going to have a dad bod.”
“But I’m not opposed to having a baby soon,” Angela said as she grinned at her husband. “There's no reason to wait.”
“It would be nice for baby boy to have a cousin close in age,” Kiara said, running her hand over her bump. “So don’t wait too long.”
“Well, that’s two votes for getting pregnant ASAP, love,” Angela said.
Annie’s hand went into the air. “Three!”
“Four!” Benji called out.
“Let’s make it five,” Julian said, enjoying seeing Jude’s expression turn incredulous.
“We’re not making a decision about having a child by group vote,” Jude growled.
“I think it’s the perfect way to make this decision,” Annie said. “We’re family, after all.”
Laughter filled the room as everyone seemed to enjoy having fun at Jude’s expense. It was something Julian had never experienced before, especially with his family. He’d kept his distance from Annie and Benji over the years, using alcohol to cope with the secret he couldn’t share.
But now, the family bonds were tightening. However, for once, they didn’t feel like a noose.