All I Want Is You (20 page)

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Authors: Kayla Perrin

BOOK: All I Want Is You
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Gattis shook his head. “Sometimes our children have to learn things on their own, Etta.”
Etta heaved a deep sigh. “Malisa needs to focus on something other than business all the time. She already has a successful career but that is not going to keep her warm at night. She's met a nice man who will not only be good to her but who will also be good
for
her. She needs to be thinking about her future and how to make that happen.”
“And that's for Malisa to decide, Etta, not us. The problem our kids have is you trying to dictate what they should and shouldn't be doing.”
“The biggest problem with our children is they want to treat us like we are past our prime and need to be put out to pasture. They forget that we still know what we're talking about,” Etta concluded.
“That's not true, Etta.”
“And you're doing a good job of trying to make me feel obsolete too. I've got a few good years left in me, Gattis Ivey.”
Her husband laughed, moving to kiss her cheek. “Well, I certainly hope so.”
“In fact,” Etta said, nuzzling her body against his, “why don't we start the day late so I can show you what I've got left.”
Gattis nuzzled her back. “Now, see, that's just what I wanted to hear. You can worry about them kids later.”
Chapter 8
Waiting for the water aerobics class to begin, Etta sat on the side of the athletic club's pool, Lycra pretending to be a bathing suit stretched over her ample frame. Much to her chagrin, her daughters made her do this each week, and she imagined that in her new bathing suit, a Lane Bryant half-priced special with a bold floral print, she was probably a sight to behold.
From her perspective, and the one that looked back at her from the club's many mirrors, her thighs were flapping thick like two sides of ham, her expansive chest pushed up and out like large watermelons threatening to burst free and flap in the wind. She had curves and then some, and it was all that extra somethin' - somethin' that kept her husband begging two or three times each week.
Malisa seemed to read her mind. “That new swimsuit looks good on you, Mama. I saw the way Daddy was eyeing you before we left,” she teased.
Miss Etta smiled ever so slightly. Her focus was elsewhere as her daughter made small talk.
Dark shades covered her eyes so no one would know who or what she was watching. But Malisa knew her mother had her eyes on someone's child doing something he or she didn't have any business doing. What each of the children hoped was that Miss Etta would not single them out to be disciplined, but instead would tell the tale to the child's parent as soon as Miss Etta could get to a telephone or, even worse, to their front doorstep.
On this particular day, Miss Etta had her eye on sixteen-year-old Jasmine Pines. Her youngest daughter, Baylor, and Jasmine had been best friends since forever, but they had fallen out with each other over Asheville High School's star quarterback. He was a big, beefy boy named Sanford James, and Miss Etta thought he resembled a chipmunk with his round, chocolate face and bubbled cheeks. Baylor had been hot to trot after some Sanford James.
Baylor hadn't been the first of her daughters to be guilty of lusting after some teenage boy who played ball on the football field and the basketball court. Malisa and Anitra both had acted the fool over some little boy pretending to be a man and not knowing a thing a real man needed to know. And just like with her older daughters, Miss Etta had put Baylor's raging hormones on ice, squashing any notion the girl may have had about overstepping the boundaries she and the judge had laid down for her.
Miss Etta could see that Jasmine needed a little more parental intervention, her behavior on the other side of the pool leaving much to be desired. The string bikini that was more string than fabric needed to be addressed as well. She heaved a heavy sigh, air rising from deep in her midsection and swelling through her chest before blowing hotly past her full lips. Miss Etta made a mental note to give the girl's mother a phone call as soon as she reached home later. She also voiced such out loud.
“Remind me to call Shirley Pines when we get back to the restaurant,” she said to Malisa, gesturing in Jasmine's direction.
Malisa rolled her eyes skyward. “Mama, you need to leave that child alone. She is not hurting a soul. Let her have a good time.”
Miss Etta cut her eye at her daughter. “One day you might have a daughter of your own, and then I will remind you of this conversation,” she said.
Malisa laughed. “One day.”
Her mother cut an eye in her direction. “Speaking of, how did your evening go with Gabriel? He's such a fine young man,” she noted.
Malisa grinned broadly. “I had a very nice time. Thank you for asking.”
“Even with his ex-wife?” Miss Etta questioned, her eyebrows raised ever so slightly.
Malisa shook her head. “Does anything ever get past you?”
Her mother laughed. “No.”
The younger woman shrugged. “He's got some family issues, but they really aren't my concern.”
“Don't you believe that,” her mother responded. “His relationship with his child's mother will last until graduation and child support are finished and not one minute before. If you become involved with him, then his issues will be your issues.”
Malisa paused to reflect on her mother's words. She turned her focus to the clear blue water shimmering in the Olympic-sized pool. There was no denying that she'd been thinking the very thing her mother had spoken out loud. But wanting Gabriel had her ignoring any challenge that could potentially come between them. She twisted against the vinyl lounge chair, the plastic leather sticking to the flesh along the backs of her legs and across her shoulders. Her mother was still giving her the hundred-dollar version of her two cents.
Miss Etta sighed again, reaching to pull her bathing suit out of her posterior cavity, the material starting to rise up into her crack. She lifted her body up from her seat and threw herself into the pool with a large splash, quickly immersing herself beneath the icy water.
“Hot damn!” she cursed, swimming back to where Malisa now stood. “When are these people going to put some heat in this water?”
Malisa laughed. “You know it's cold for only the first few minutes. They'll have you sweating up a storm before you know it.”
Miss Etta grunted, rolling her eyes. Before she could comment further, the familiar faces that made up the early morning class dropped into the water to join them.
Malisa and her mother both smiled and nodded their hellos as people began to greet them. Both women didn't miss that Irene Hill was the only one who didn't have anything to say, not even bothering to look in their direction. Miss Etta had had just about enough of Irene's rude behavior, and it wouldn't take much more for her to say so, she thought.
“Let me tell you a story,” Miss Etta started, leaning against her daughter's shoulder. “Now, we done told you a dozen or more times about how your daddy and I met up, but I don't remember if I ever told you about me and Beau Hill.”
Malisa shook her head. “No, I don't think you did.”
“Well,” the woman started. “Before I met and married Gattis, Beau Hill used to chase after me like a chubby kid chases cake. This was before he was married to Miss Irene over there.” She gestured at the woman with her head and a raised eye. “Wasn't my fault old Beau was all worked up over me. I just had it going on like that!”
She grinned and winked at Malisa as she continued. “But it didn't take me long to figure out that Beau wasn't worth my energy, so I had to let him go. Hard! You would have thought I'd broken up with Irene the way she be actin'. The woman still burns hot with spite that I had him before she did!”
Malisa chuckled, her head waving from side to side. “And then you met Daddy?”
“That's right. See, what Beau had to offer didn't amount to more than a bland frankfurter with no bun. Two bites and you were done with it, the taste not even lingering against your tongue. I like a man who comes with the works: chili, spice, onion, and slaw. A man who leaves you wishing you had ordered just one more of him with a side of fries and a thick milkshake. Your daddy was like that, a full meal with leftovers!”
Malisa laughed heartily.
“And Gabriel Whitman, well, daughter, know it when I tell you, that man is an all-you-can-eat buffet special with free sweet tea and banana pudding for dessert. He'll keep you fed and fed well for a good long time,” she said with a wink of her eye. “This is not an opportunity you want to pass up, Malisa.”
She started to move toward the center of the pool as she tossed one last look in Irene's direction. “Irene's problem,” Etta concluded, laughing softly as she propelled herself through the water, Malisa trailing behind her, “is, she needs to slip out and get herself a real meal instead of settling for that snack she's married to.”
 
 
The kitchen was suddenly warmer than usual, and Malisa knew it had nothing to do with the heat wafting off the large, black burners or coming from inside the oven where fresh biscuits were starting to rise in their pan. Her temperature had risen with a vengeance the moment Gabriel and his son had walked into the restaurant for breakfast.
Since she'd first laid eyes on the man, every thought of him caused her temperature to rise, and this time was no exception. She shook the sensation, taking another deep breath. Her mother had greeted him, the older woman excited to race back to the kitchen to let Malisa know he was there and wanting a moment of her time.
After brushing her flour-stained hands against a clean dishtowel and double-checking her requisite apron, she made her way to his table, greeting the father and his son warmly.
“Good morning, you two! What brings you here so early in the morning?”
“Trey and I thought we'd come get a great breakfast this morning,” Gabriel said, trying to contain the excitement in his tone.
Trey laughed. “And Dad wanted to see you!” the boy chimed teasingly.
Gabriel tossed his son a look, his head waving from side to side.
Malisa laughed. “Well, I'm glad you both did.”
Just then, Brenna, the waitress on duty, arrived with pen and paper in hand to take their breakfast orders. After convincing them both to try her infamous breakfast casserole and sweet-potato biscuits, Malisa sat with them briefly, chatting easily about the previous day, Trey's gifts, and his plans for the New Year. When Brenna returned with orange juice, a carafe of hot coffee, and a basket of hot biscuits and pastries, Malisa politely excused herself and almost ran back to the security of her kitchen.
As she passed her mother, the woman chuckled softly. “Yes, yes, yes, daughter! A whole darn buffet!”
Malisa heaved a deep sigh as she turned the stove down low. She placed a cover on a pot of simmering grits, satisfied that they were thickening properly. She reached for her coffee, enjoying the last few sips remaining in the cup.
Anxious to take her mind off the man seated in her dining room, she sat down at her desk, pulling pen and paper in hand to make a list of things she wanted to accomplish during the week. As she sat pondering, her cousin Darryl came in through the back door. Contrition painted his expression as he lifted his hand in a slight wave.
When he'd first arrived for his shift, Malisa had reamed him good, still furious about her impromptu ride on Christmas Eve. After giving him a good piece of her mind, docking his pay, and threatening to send him straight to the unemployment line, her mother had interceded, reminding Malisa that Darryl wasn't the sharpest knife in the silverware drawer. The boy's saving grace was that Malisa was still flying high from having met Gabriel.
“You still mad at me, Malisa?” Darryl asked, his gaze flitting over the floor.
Malisa shook her head, gesturing in his direction with a ballpoint pen. “No,” she said, a bright smile spreading across her face as she rose to her feet.
Darryl leaned in to kiss his cousin's cheek. “You know I'm sorry, right, Malisa?”
She nodded. “Yes, Darryl. Now you need to go help the girls out front so I can get some work done. I need to start prepping for the New Year.”
Darryl nodded. “I went and got the box back like you said, and it was still sitting on the loading dock! It's in the van.”
“Well, you need to bring it inside, please. Put it back in the bakery.”
Darryl nodded, turning an about-face. He laughed warmly as he went out the door. “Malisa got locked in the box! Hahahaha!”
Malisa rolled her eyes skyward, still tempted to cut all ties with the kid.
From behind her, Gabriel's familiar voice chimed warmly. “Well, it was funny. You have to admit that.”
With her hands perched atop the curve of her hips, Malisa spun around to face him, Gabriel having made his way into the kitchen area.
“You're starting early, I see.”
He grinned broadly. “Figured I would get your day started on the right note.”
She nodded. “Did you enjoy your breakfast?”
“I did,” he said as he stepped in closer, moving his body against hers. “And since you're hiding back here in the kitchen, I figured I'd come get dessert myself. Your mother told me it would be all right.” He eased an arm around her waist and pulled her to him. His seductive smile seared heat straight through her.
Malisa pressed her palms to his chest, clutching at the front of his T-shirt. Gabriel leaned in as if to kiss her, then paused, drawing back as he stared into her eyes. He did it a second time and then a third, moving Malisa to hold her breath in eager anticipation.
When he finally kissed her, his touch was easy and gentle, a light brushing of flesh against flesh. When he drew back, he hummed his appreciation. “That was very sweet,” he whispered, leaning his forehead against hers as the two stood holding each other tight.
Malisa nodded. “You're going to make me burn my biscuits,” she said after a few minutes. Stepping out of his arms, she hurried back to the ovens to peer inside.
Gabriel chuckled, leaning his back against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest. “So, do you plan to be here all day?” he queried, his expression eager.

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