39. He Went to Lunch #2
Gwen and Noah got warm smiles from him like they were a snuggly blanket and hot cocoa on a frosty winter morning.
All that warmth cooled when Elias’s gaze drifted away from the baby propped on my hip to meet mine.
He nodded at me with his mouth pressed into a grim line.
Too bad for him. I dazzled him with my best smile and stepped closer to Gwen, wrapping my free arm protectively around her waist. When she leaned into me, my smile grew even wider.
Take that, Loafer Boy.
The cheese platter shook a little when Gwen held it out.
Elias accepted it with a laugh. “You shouldn’t have,” he said. “ Really . Mama’s been cooking all morning. She tends to, uh…overdo it…a bit.”
“Nothing’s changed then?” Gwen laughed.
“No—”
“She’s here?” An excited voice called out. “Oh! I need to get this apron off!”
A tiny woman—Catalina Serrano—came flying around the corner in a flutter of orange.
The pattern on her dress reminded me of the colorful mosaic tiles you see in fancy kitchens.
She had a mass of gray curls and the same deep-set, dark eyes as Elias, but a sunny smile crinkled her face.
I smothered a laugh when she almost knocked Elias off his feet as she shot past him to throw her arms around Gwen.
When Catalina stepped back, she swiped away a flood of tears.
“Well, Little Miss Gwen from Number 16. My boys told me you were just the same, but no, I don’t think so.
” Gwen withered beside me, but Catalina patted her cheek.
“All grown up. Even more lovely. And a lawyer! Liam always shares his clippings with me. You’ve won so many big cases! ”
“H-hello, Mrs. Serrano.” Gwen smiled. Or she tried to. She looked shell-shocked.
“None of that!” The tiny woman scoffed. “Mama. Or Cat. No airs and graces in this house, thank you very much!” She hugged Gwen again, beaming a watery smile. “Now, introduce me to your handsome men!”
“Um, t-this,” Gwen stammered, “is, um—”
“Toby!” Cat beamed before her greedy eyes landed on the real prize. “And this must be your little boy.”
Noah held out a chubby fist like he was offering to shake hands. Cat clutched his hand and gave it a gentle shake. I wasn’t sure she could cry more, but fresh tears streaked her cheeks.
“Oh, he’s a dear little boy! So precious.” She ran her finger over the rolls of Noah’s plump arm and then tickled his tummy. He threw his head back, squealing with delight. “And so healthy ! Your mama did so good. Yes, she did. So good!”
“Would you—” Gwen cleared her throat. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen her so nervous. “Would you like to hold him?”
“Could I?” Cat clasped her hands together under her chin.
I held Noah out, and he hung there, his sneakers dangling for barely a second until Cat snuggled him into her side like she’d done it a thousand times before.
“Oh, darling little boy!” she cooed, swaying as she walked toward the kitchen. “Look how handsome you are in your overalls. And these adorable little shoes! Do you like your shoes?” He babbled something back at her very earnestly, and she beamed. “Oh, yes, you do! Yes, you do!”
As we trailed behind Cat, Elias leaned closer to Gwen, the little imp. “I promise you’ll get Noah back before you leave.”
I narrowed my eyes on him. He better not get too cute with my wife…
We followed Cat into an open-plan kitchen and dining room. The sliding doors pulled wide open, an unbroken path stretched to the strip of grass and plunge pool squeezed into the tiny backyard. A Balinese-style pergola sat tucked in the far corner, half-hidden by leafy palms.
Marnie flittered among the guests out back.
When she saw us, she called out, waving an excited hello.
I didn’t recognize any faces in the group surrounding her, though.
I’d half expected Liam to be swanning around with them.
I nearly fell over when I actually laid eyes on him.
He was inside, scouring the spread of nibbles on the dining table, looking almost like a normal person in slim-fitted navy trousers and an ugly red knitted sweater.
He’d just popped a piece of cheese in his mouth when Cat rounded the corner.
“Liam!” she barked.
He shot up, standing as straight and tall as a soldier. “ Oui, Maman ,” he said slowly, trying to hide that his mouth was full of cheese. “ Salut .”
“No French!” she said. “No one except the butcher you worked for as a boy understands a word you say.”
A ghost of a smile hinted on his lips. “ Si , Mama.”
“No Spanish, either!” she hissed. “And leave that table alone! I told you to wait until all our guests arrive. There won’t be anything left if you keep helping yourself!”
Frowning, Liam slid a glance to the table. For once, he and I were on the same page. He could graze for a lifetime and never eat his way through all the platters Cat had crammed on the red-checkered tablecloth. Our cheese platter found an awkward spot squished on the edge.
I was positively thrilled when Elias excused himself to head outside.
Good riddance . But the overly familiar hand he touched to Gwen’s arm as he passed just about had me launching out of my skin.
What the hell was that bastard playing at?
I was standing right there , and he thought it was perfectly fine to waltz around, touching my wife.
My gut clenched. Was she, though? Mine?
I tilted my head, thinking.
What were we? I lived at the house most of the time, staying at the apartment only a couple of nights a week.
We talked. We touched—not sexual, but… I sighed.
We were stuck in a strange limbo somewhere between marriage and separation.
Were we just friends ? I was crazy in love with Gwen, and she’d told me she still loved me, but that didn’t mean she was in love with me.
Cat tapped my arm. “Is your friend still coming?” she asked. “With his little ones?”
“Yeah.” Her smiles were so infectious I couldn’t help grinning back. “Zach should be here any minute.”
“Oh! I can’t wait! Gwen.” She flapped an excited hand to get my wife’s attention. “Let me show you what I set up for the little ones!”
Almost bouncing, Cat tugged Gwen to the play area she’d set up in the corner of the dining room.
It was safely enclosed—no escapee babies on her watch—and there were soft toys, dolls, and a bucket of plastic books that squeaked arranged neatly inside.
She was delighted when Gwen nodded her approval.
“This is all so wonderful,” Gwen whispered.
“What’s wonderful is that you’re finally here. All of you.” Cat’s arm wrapped around my wife’s back and hugged her close. “You should’ve been here all along. He needs you, even though he’ll never admit it, stubborn boy.”
Gwen’s rigid soldier stance relaxed, and as the two of them talked in hushed whispers, she held her head high again. I smiled. That’s my girl.
A flash of red tore my eyes off the perfect sight. Liam’s outstretched hand snuck toward an olive skewered with a toothpick. The second I snapped my head around, his hand disappeared behind his back.
I sidled up beside him. “I saw that,” I said under my breath.
“You saw nothing.”
Liam was such a complete weirdo. “Nice sweater, by the way.” I smirked. It really wasn’t.
“I was informed suits aren’t allowed on Sundays,” he grumbled. “And choose your words wisely about my sweater, sweetheart. It’s delightful. Mama knitted it for me.”
I stifled a laugh.
“Don’t laugh too loudly,” he replied through gritted teeth. “Unless my sister has the sense to get rid of you, you’ll be receiving your very own sweater this Christmas. And you will be expected to wear it.”
“Oh, har har.”
“You think I’m joking?” Liam hummed thoughtfully. “If you don’t play nicely, perhaps I’ll mention to Mama how much you loved the charming snowman design with falling snow pompoms she knitted Elias when we were fourteen.”
My smile vanished. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll tell Mama that you want extra pompoms on yours.” The toothpick reappeared from behind his back, and he popped the olive in his mouth with a satisfied smile.
Sunday lunch had well and truly started.
Game on .