Page 126 of Left Behind

“Is Ava asleep?” Linette asked, as Wiley slipped back into their bedroom and closed the door.

He nodded. “Yes, curled up in her covers. All you can see of her is from the nose up. Do you think your parents liked us?”

Linette patted the empty side of the bed. “Lord yes. Mother is besotted with you. You have charmed her straight to hell and back. Daddy begrudgingly approves of you, but he’ll die before he admits it, because he’s jealous. But Mama will take the starch right out of him for his attitude tonight, and the next time you see him, he’ll be your long-lost friend.”

Wiley laughed as he crawled into bed beside her. “Well, that’s quite a lot to live up to.”

“You don’t have to worry about them another second. I’m the woman you need to please, and it would please me greatly to die a little bit in your arms tonight.”

He reached across her and turned out the lights. “I hear and obey,” he whispered as he slipped his hand between her legs.

***

“They’re happy,” Angela said, as she pulled back the covers and crawled into bed.

Chuck Elgin sighed. “I saw that.”

“He’s different, Chuck. Different from any men I’ve seen in years. Like a throwback to a different time. He’s not pretending to be something he’s not, and he’s a bona fide hero. Did you know about that hospital lockdown?”

Chuck shrugged. “She talked about it tonight after they put Ava to bed. It’s the first I knew.”

“He saved her life in that bank robbery, and he saved her life in that hospital. All you have to do is see the way he looks at her to know she is his heart. He is loyal to the core. I am never going to worry about our daughter again.”

“I don’t know about all that,” Chuck muttered. “A father is always gonna worry about his daughter.”

“Well, that’s your prerogative, if you feel the need. But Linette is a grown woman, and the man who will look after her and love her now is Wiley Pope. I can’t wait to meet the rest of the family.”

“Is that tomorrow?” Chuck asked.

“Yes. Tomorrow is Saturday. We’re having lunch—they call it dinner—at his mother’s house. Apparently, his immediate family will be there,” Angela said.

“Good. You can tell a lot about a man by the woman who raised him. I’ll reserve judgment,” he muttered.

Angela plopped down into bed beside him and turned off the light. There was a brief moment of silence before she fired her last shot in a voice devoid of emotion.

“Charles Elgin. You do not go up that mountain with judgment on your mind. You will pretend you are not an occasional bigot. If you see something that you disapprove of, you will keep it to yourself, or you will answer to me when we go home, and it is a long-ass drive from here to St. Petersburg. Do you get my drift?”

Chuck hadn’t heard that tone in her voice in years, but he knew what it meant.

“Yes, honey. I didn’t mean anything I said as an insult to the man. I’m just—”

“You’re just jealous. So, grow up. We made her. We loved and raised her, and she’ll always be our daughter. But she is his now. He cherishes the ground she walks on, which is more than I can say for how you treat me.”

“But, honey—”

“You take me for granted and you know it,” Angela said. “But I love you, so I put up with it. Now shut up and go to sleep. Tomorrow is an important day for Linnie, and we aren’t going to embarrass her. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Angela snorted beneath her breath, then rolled over on her side and closed her eyes.

***

Shirley Pope knew Linette’s family was coming to visit, and that they were coming to her house for dinner tomorrow. Even B.J. was taking off a day, leaving the assistant pastry chef in charge. Aaron and Dani were coming. Amalie was closing her office for the day.

Shirley had also invited Cameron and his family, Aunt Annie and Uncle John Cauley, Marcus Glass, and Ray and Betty Raines and their son, Charlie. It was the first get-together she’d hosted since Aunt Ella’s passing, and her absence would be felt by the people who’d loved her.

Shirley had baked a ham yesterday and would make the beef roast and vegetables today, along with a half-dozen sides to go with it. Amalie and Sean had helped her last night and were at it again this morning, and Aunt Annie was bringing desserts from the bakery. It was also Shirley’s first big meal to cook since she’d gotten rid of the walking cast, and it felt good to be whole again.

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