Chapter 5 Kamryn
Kamryn
Saturday afternoon, Kamryn sat on her sofa with her head on Tariq’s shoulder. “I love that your mom wants to have this dinner,
but you know she also called me with a list of things we need to do—finding a dress, selecting invitations, booking the church and reception venue, getting started on the food and
cake tasting. Oh, and she also mentioned going to a few of those bridal expos.” She shuddered with the thought of navigating
through masses of people all vying for the same things. “Can we just elope instead?”
Tariq laughed softly. “She’s just excited. I recall her being the same way with Giselle—or she tried to be—but Giselle’s family
is a trip, and my brother had to intervene with the two mothers more than once.”
“Oh, great. Now I have to add feuding mamas to the list?” She didn’t need that kind of headache.
“No. Giselle’s mother kept trying to add all this expensive stuff to have for the wedding, but she wasn’t paying one dime
for anything. Mom wasn’t having any of that and let her know she could pay or it wasn’t happening.”
“That makes me feel better. My mom would never do something like that.” It made her wonder if Giselle had the same mindset.
Though Kamryn wouldn’t have to deal with Giselle’s family, she still had to deal with Giselle, especially since her future mother-in-law wanted to include her and Taylor in the whole dress shopping thing.
Kamryn didn’t mind having Taylor along, but she didn’t have the patience or inclination to deal with someone who barely talked to her and kept flirting with her soon-to-be husband.
“I still vote for eloping or finding a venue to have both wedding and reception so people don’t have to drive to two places.”
“Whatever you want to do, I’m down with it as long as it means I don’t have to wait too long for you to be my wife.”
The possessive way he said “my wife” always made Kamryn’s heart skip a beat. And she didn’t want to wait either. “I was thinking
since neither of us want a long engagement, maybe we could do something intimate. This summer. Maybe in Santa Barbara or someplace
similar.”
“It’s already April.”
She sat up. “I know, but I really loved Santa Barbara when we went, and we could find a nice hotel near the beach and have
our families and close friends there. And I can head off all these parties and events.”
Tariq stroked his jaw. “Actually, I like the sound of that.” He reached for his phone on the coffee table. “Let’s see if we
can find something.”
Smiling, she leaned closer. They searched for a good twenty minutes before finding a few hotels with potential.
“Are you good if we find somewhere closer like Marina Del Rey where you live, San Pedro, Malibu? San Diego is a possibility
too.”
“Absolutely. What do you think about having a sunset wedding?”
He caressed her face. “Seeing your beautiful face walking toward me with the backdrop of the sunset . . . I can’t think of
anything I’d like better.” He placed a soft, lingering kiss on her lips.
It took a moment for Kamryn to respond. The impact of his words hit her squarely in the heart. “If you keep saying stuff like
this, we’re going to be booking a hotel for next weekend.”
He grinned. “Hey, I’m there. Just say the word. Not sure how happy our parents would be, but . . .” He shrugged.
“Yeah, my mother would lose her mind,” she said with a laugh. “Okay, back to summer then.” They found a few more, then called
around to check the availability for their timeframe before settling on one in San Diego.
“It looks like the second weekend in August is it,” Tariq said. “With it being closer to where Austin is stationed, I hope
he’ll be able to make it.”
“I hope so too. So when are we telling your family?”
“We’ll tell them when we get there.”
“I’m going to let you tell your mother. I feel like I should take another cake or something to distract her.”
Tariq smiled and shook his head. “It’ll be fine. What about your mom?”
“You heard her. She said it will be our day, and whatever we plan should be what we want.” Times like this made her appreciate
her mother even more. If she ever had children, she hoped to support them in the same ways her parents had done for her. She
could vividly recall instances when they’d intervened with overbearing teachers or with the salesman who’d tried to sell her
a lemon when she’d purchased her first car. Kamryn had always been able to talk through her concerns and be assured of receiving
the best advice.
He glanced at his watch. “Ready to head over?”
“Yep.” Except she felt even more nervous than the first time.
When they arrived, only Vincent’s car was parked in the driveway.
“That boy is always the first to arrive when it comes to family dinners,” Tariq said as they started up the walkway.
They turned at the sound of another car, and Kamryn was pleased to see Taylor had been invited. She and Tariq waited until
Taylor reached them before continuing to the door.
“Hey, y’all,” Taylor said.
“What’s up, girl?” Tariq hugged her.
“I’m so glad you could come,” Kamryn said as they embraced.
“She’s family, so I expected her to be here. Ain’t that right, little sister?”
“Aw, see, that’s why I like you, Tariq.”
The trio continued to laugh and talk as they entered the house.
“There they are,” his mother gushed. She rushed over and engulfed them in a warm embrace. Before she could say anything else,
Shawn and Giselle entered.
“What’s up, family?” Shawn asked as another round of greetings ensued.
“I love having all my family around, especially for celebrations like this one,” the matriarch said.
“Thank you so much for dinner, Mama Yvonne,” Kamryn said.
The woman waved a dismissive hand. “Honey, you’re now my daughter, and it’s my pleasure.”
“Do you need any help?”
“Not this time. You’re the honored guest tonight.”
“You’d better take that guest pass,” Vincent said, greeting them. “She doesn’t give them out very often.”
“Well, since I’m not a guest, what do you need me to do, Mama Yvonne?” Taylor asked.
“Everything is just about ready, so there’s not much to do.”
Everyone followed her to the kitchen, where the wonderful aroma of what she’d prepared hit Kamryn’s nose. “Oh my goodness.
It smells so good.”
“Amen,” Shawn said. “Nobody cooks like Mom.”
Tariq wrapped an arm around Kamryn’s waist. “Except maybe my baby.”
“Yeah, and I was kind of hoping you had another one of those pound cakes,” Vincent said.
Smiling, Kamryn said, “Maybe next time.”
A loud roar went up from the guys, and Mama Yvonne said with a chuckle, “We might have to make you the official pound cake
baker for holidays.”
“I’d be more than happy to, along with anything else you want.”
“You could’ve asked me to bring something, Mama Yvonne,” Giselle said. “You know I’m always willing to help and plan the family
get-togethers.”
Kamryn’s smile faded when Giselle directed a quick glare her way. What is up with this woman? Determined not to let it get to her, she turned and made conversation with Vincent and Shawn about their favorite Mom dishes
and their jobs until dinner was served.
As they ate, Papa Aaron went around the table asking each person about their day and generally just checking in.
It gave Kamryn a glimpse into what their family had been like and reminded her a lot of family dinners with her parents.
As an only child, she felt a small pang of envy and could imagine how much fun it would’ve been to have a sibling or two.
It had been lonely at times, not having anyone, especially a sister with whom she could share secrets, watch movies, and brainstorm ideas.
Of course, she’d had friends and enjoyed spending time with them, but it wasn’t the same.
Her mother had understood and made sure Kamryn had ample opportunities to socialize with others her age.
“Mama Yvonne, I forgot how much I love your rolls,” Taylor said with a satisfied moan. “I could live on these things. I was
going to ask for the recipe, but I know mine wouldn’t turn out the same. There’s something about the way a mother cooks that
just can’t be duplicated.”
Kamryn laughed. “I say the same thing to my mom, and she always comes back with ‘It tastes the same.’”
“Exactly.”
“And this is why I needed some daughters. I love my boys, but they just shovel down the food and disappear. They don’t care
about recipes or how long it takes to prepare, as long as it’s on their plates.”
“Hold up, Mom,” Tariq said. “Not all of us disappeared.”
“You’re right. You and Austin learned a few things. But I’ll write down the recipe for you, Taylor. I’ll give it to Giselle
and Kamryn too. I’m so happy I’ll finally be able to pass down some of these recipes.” She smiled.
The conversation turned into a discussion of Mama Yvonne’s family recipes, and Vincent said, “Since I’m rolling solo, does
this mean you’ll still be cooking some for me, Mom?”
She pointed her fork his way. “You could learn how to do it yourself, or see if that cute woman from work is interested.”
Laughter broke out.
“Really, Mom? What? I’m just supposed to walk up to her, introduce myself, and ask if she wants to come to my family’s dinner
because my mother wants another daughter-in-law?”
“I hadn’t thought of it that way, but sounds good to me.”
“You need some dating tips, baby brother?” Tariq asked. “Shawn and I will be more than happy to help you out.”
“That’s right. We got you.”
Vincent scowled. “I don’t need y’all’s help.” He shoveled another forkful of red beans and rice into his mouth.
“Have you two started making wedding plans?” Giselle asked. “It took over a year to plan mine.”
Kamryn finished chewing. “Actually, neither of us want a long engagement.”
“We’re getting married the second weekend in August in San Diego,” Tariq finished.
Mama Yvonne stared. “Of this year?”
He nodded. “Yes. We already had the hotel hold the date, and we’ll talk with their event planner next week. We want to have
a sunset wedding overlooking the water.”
“With everything that goes into a wedding, I don’t think four months is going to be enough time,” Giselle said. “It takes
that long to get the dress ordered and delivered, unless you’re just going to grab something off the rack. There’s no telling
how many people have tried on those things.”
Kamryn stifled the urge to roll her eyes. “It’s plenty of time for what we want. It’ll be an intimate gathering of our families
and closest friends. The hotel takes care of all the details, so we don’t have to worry about them. As far as the dress, I’m
sure I can find something I like, whether it’s from the rack or not.” Giselle made it sound as if selecting a dress that was
in stock was some kind of faux pas. She hazarded a glance at her mother-in-law-to-be, who still seemed shocked. “And, Mama
Yvonne, this way you won’t have to go through all the hassle of planning so many different things. We can just have the family
shower, and that’ll be fine. We’ll still pick a day to go dress shopping soon. Taylor and Giselle, I’d love for you two to
join us.”
Taylor waved a hand. “Count me in.”
Everyone turned Giselle’s way. She said, “Sure.”
Her lack of enthusiasm made Kamryn wonder if she was making a mistake in inviting her. But she wasn’t going to let those few
comments steal her joy.