Page 26 of The Secret to a Southern Wedding

The words were innocent. They referred to her taste in beer. Yet the wildfire in her body increased in temperature, and her breathing hitched. She shouldn’t have come here. This man was a threat to her good sense.

Still smiling, Cyril pushed back from the bar. “Ladies, holla if you need something.”

He turned and walked away to help the new group of people who’d sat at the other end of the bar. As soon as he was out of earshot, Halle and Tracey leaned closer to Imani.

Halle spoke first. “What was that?”

Imani took another sip of her ale before trying to ask nonchalantly, “What was what?”

“Nah, girl, quit playing,” Tracey said in a no-nonsense voice. “There’s a vibe between you two. Are mother and daughter about to be hooked up?”

Imani scoffed. “What? No! Not at all. I mean...if they get married, we’ll be related.”

Tracy shook her head. “Y’all ain’t related.”

Halle raised a finger. “Facts. I can confidently say that man has never been to any of our family reunions and is not kin to you.”

Imani held up a hand. “Can you stop. I’m not interested in Cyril. Other than to find out what’s up with him and his dad and why my mom is completely different.”

“Happiness makes people act differently,” Tracey said. “I’ve known your mom all my life and I don’t ever remember seeing her this happy.”

“I agree,” Halle said. “She wasn’t even this happy when Uncle Barry was around.”

Imani frowned at her cousin. She remembered the time before. When her parents had been viewed as one of the town’s perfect couples. “What do you mean? Before my dad...before that incident, my mom was happy.”

Halle raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “Not like this. She’s kind of like Tracey was before her wedding back in the day.”

Imani shook her head. “Nah, no one can beat Tracey. She was the queen of rainbows, unicorns and happily-ever-afters.” Imani chuckled and looked at her friend.

Tracey looked away. “Yeah. I was kind of ridiculous back then.” She sipped her beer.

“But you’re still together after everyone said you were too young. Myself included,” Imani said pressing a hand to her chest. “I’ve already admitted I was wrong on that.”

Tracey lifted a shoulder. “Your mom knows her mind much better than I did back when I decided to marry Bernard. Instead of speculating about the reasons why, talk to her.”

Sighing, Imani ran her finger through the condensation on the side of her glass. “I’ve tried. She’s also the queen of deflection. She doesn’t care about me understanding her reasons. She just wants me to go along with this and act like it’s normal.”

Her mom had done the exact same thing after her husband’s indiscretions came to light. Linda refused to talk about what happened and acted as if he’d never been in their lives. From the moment she came home from the hospital, every trace of Imani’s dad was removed from the house. Pictures, books, clothing right down to a stray sock was tossed out. Even during the trial and subsequent conviction of her dad’s mistress she referred to him as “that man.” If Imani asked her mom how she felt, she got a clipped “I’m fine” and a change of subject. Linda acted as if the change was nothing more than one less plate to set for dinner every night. Imani wasn’t sure if her mom ever truly processed what happened in her efforts to move on. Imani wasn’t sure if she’d ever truly processed it.

“That’s Aunt Linda,” Halle said by way of excuse. “My mom was just like her. Act like everything’s okay until it’s not okay.”

Imani patted Halle’s back. “Remember when we vowed to not be like that. That we’d always be open and upfront about what we want in life and how we feel?”

Halle laughed and nodded. “I remember.”

“Didn’t we write that vow down somewhere and bury it?” Tracey asked.

Imani’s brows drew together then she gasped. “Oh my God, we did! We buried it in the peach field.”

“Lord, I forgot all about that,” Halle said chuckling. “Those vows to our future selves. They’ve probably rotted away now.”

“Just like our dreams,” Tracey muttered before taking another sip of her beer.

“Our dreams haven’t rotted away,” Imani protested. “We are thriving and doing great. That’s what we vowed, remember? I’m a doctor, Tracey has a beautiful family and business, and Halle is still giving back to the community through her work at the school. We’re great.”

Halle leaned an elbow on the bar and propped her head on her hand. “Honestly, I don’t even remember what I wrote on that thing.”

“Me either,” Tracey agreed.

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