Page 89 of Happy Endings

“You think?”

“When we’re together, I feel free. Don’t have the weight of bills and responsibility on my shoulders. I forget about them for a while.”

“Must be some good sex.”

Andre threw a light punch into Xavier’s shoulder.

“She’s doing big things,” Andre spoke into his half-empty pint glass. “I don’t want to hold her back.”

“Do you love her?” Xavier asked.

“Yes, I love her.” Andre bit his lip. “But she didn’t choose me. She chose District Market.”

“She didn’t choose District Market, you idiot. She chose herself and her dream. If you want to save Mama Hazel’sandwin the girl, you have to fight.” Xavier grabbed his shoulder. “You can’t run away when things get too hard.”

Like how he ran away to New Orleans. Xavier didn’t have to say it out loud. They both knew why he left. He couldn’t handle the pressure of being Mama Hazel’s boy and heir to the restaurant. Xavier had been kind enough not to call him out on it back then.

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks for the pep talk.” Andre rolled his eyes.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, that lovely lady over there has been making eyes at me all night.” Xavier tipped his head at a woman lounging on an armchair on the other side of the room. “You mind if I say hello?”

“Go. Have fun.” Andre waved him off. He could trust Xavier to always be Xavier.

Andre was glad to drop the conversation. All those beers made it too easy to get sucked into his feelings. He tried to concentrate on the amateur guitarist, but he wasn’t feeling it. Maybe Xavier was right. He’d spent most of his life trying to make the people around him happy. It was time he did something for himself. Screw responsibilities.

Except he’d promised Mama he’d keep her legacy alive. A deathbed promise.

His chest tightened. His throat closed, making it hard to breathe. The empty space his mom left felt gigantic. Andre would not let his mother’s memory disappear.

The walls started to close in on him. Andre needed to get out.His legs wobbled as he stood up. How many beers did he drink? He’d lost count. He tried to wave at Xavier to say he was leaving, but Xay was completely focused on his new lady friend. Xavier didn’t need a wingman.

Whenever he missed his mother, he baked a peach cobbler. Not just any cobbler, but her recipe that was passed down from her mother. That’s what his mom did whenever he needed cheering up. He needed the comfort of sweet peaches topped with a fluffy, sweet dough.

Andre pulled a couple of twenties out of his wallet and set it on the bar. He waved good night to the coffee-shop owner. The handwritten recipe card was in the safe in his office. They’d just received a delivery of late-season peaches on Monday.

He’d have the entire restaurant to himself to bake the cobbler. Maybe even eat the entire thing without being forced to share it with Keisha. Mama Hazel’s was only a couple of blocks away.

Chapter 32

Any questions about what we’ve discussed so far?” Trixie asked after she passed around the final toy. The women were one of the liveliest bunches she’d ever taught. Though they’d asked for a pop-up, she kept the structure closer to one of her clinic classes. More education and less selling.

“So, tell me more about this Whimsy toy.” Mrs. Moore winked. “I got a gentleman I want to try it with.”

“Mrs. Moore! I didn’t know you were seeing anyone,” Keisha gasped.

“I might be seventy-two, but I still have needs!” Mrs. Moore laughed. “I’m courting a seventy-year-old, and I need to keep up before he finds himself a younger floozy.”

“My man needs one of them cock-ring things,” Mrs. Allen added. “That old thing is so wrinkled and floppy you’d think it was already dead.”

The women cackled. Trixie grinned and glanced over at Keisha. The horrified look on Keisha’s face was priceless. Keisha covered her ears.

“I’m never going to be able to look at Mr. Allen again.” Keisha shook her head.

Trixie’s chest bubbled with laughter. The last hour and a halfwith these women had been a laugh riot. They were sassy and didn’t care what anyone thought of them. Watching them tease each other reminded Trixie of her aunties. How they sat in a circle at family gatherings to gossip and rib each other. Though if her aunties talked about sex around her, she’d be as embarrassed as Keisha was right now.

An ache grew in her chest. Andre and Keisha were so lucky to have an extended family who loved them for who they were. This was the first time since she’d moved to DC that she truly missed her family.

She’d call her mom soon. As frustrating as their conversations were, Trixie missed her mom’s voice. There was so much to do to get her co-op store ready. Once it was set up, Trixie would send pictures to her family. Then they could see that she figured out what she wanted and actually succeeded.

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