Page 22 of Finding You

Petite with a mocha skin tone and short, curly salt and pepper hair, Aunt Nancy looked so much like Raven’s mother, Gladys. They even dressed similarly around the house in long, colorful kaftans. Being with her aunt, it was hard not to think of her mom who she missed dearly.

Raven’s attention drifted to where the babies were sitting in their carriers. Feeling sentimental, she wondered what her mother would think of her life choices. No doubt she’d be proud that Raven had started her own virtual assistant business. Shewould also adore her grandbabies. However, she wouldn’t be happy about Raven having kids before getting married.

No, she believed people should be married before having babies. Aunt Nancy was the same and had voiced her opinion on the subject more than once, especially when she found out Raven had gotten pregnant last year.

Raven grimaced at the memory and the lengthy speech that she’d had to endure. She was okay with hearing her aunt’s opinion, but she didn’t like that she had a holier than thou attitude and could be judgy. It was only a matter of time before she started in on Raven again, and they ended up in a heated disagreement. It was inevitable and happened almost every time they talked or got together. Aunt Nancy had already made one comment about how much she loved the twins—that it was too bad they were bastards.

Raven had ignored her, knowing if she didn’t engage on a subject, her aunt would move on to the next one. Still, it was better to be there than to be back at the B & B where all Raven could think about was Zion.

It had been two days, and she still couldn’t seem to get him and their disagreement out of her mind. She had accepted his apology, but he had hurt her feelings by still questioning her integrity. There was no way she’d lie about him being the twin’s father.

It wasn’t that she didn’t understand where he was coming from. He had every right to want to wait for proof before acknowledging the babies were his. It was just the way he sounded each time he alluded to not believing her that bugged the heck out of her.

Raven turned to the stove where the kettle was beginning to whistle. She poured the hot water into the mugs, loaded them on a serving tray, and then set the babies’ bottles next to the mugs. She had prepared them while in the kitchen knowing the littleones would be ready to eat soon. Zanaya might be asleep now, but she would be hungry the moment she woke up.

“He is such a happy baby,” Aunt Nancy said as Raven entered the living room.

“Yes, he is. Thankfully, they both are.” She set the tray on the coffee table. As soon as she checked the bottles to make sure the milk wasn’t too hot, Andrew started to fuss. His pacifier fell from his mouth as he scrunched his face and wiggled in his seat. Raven was fairly sure he was beginning to recognize his bottle.

“What’s with the bottles?” her aunt asked. “Don’t you usually breast feed them? Or is it just because you’re not at home?”

“No, I stopped breastfeeding a month ago.”

Raven braced herself for the judgment that was sure to come, but with this particular topic, Raven was prepared. It seemed like even women Raven didn’t know thought it was okay to give their opinion on the subject. When technically it was no one’s business whether she breast-fed or not. It was her decision to stop.

She couldn’t stand self-righteous folks who thought just because they preferred to do something a certain way, that everyone should fall in line.

“You should’ve kept breastfeeding them at least until they were two years old. I read…”

Raven picked up Andrew while she half listened to her aunt give her thoughts on the subject. It reminded Raven of an incident at the pediatrician’s office weeks ago. She was feeding NayNay with a bottle instead of whipping out her breast. A woman sitting nearby had said something about it not being a good idea to switch between breast milk and formula. When Raven mentioned the babies were only on formula, the woman’s gasp of disapproval could be heard around the waiting area. One would’ve thought Raven had announced she put a shot of tequila in the baby bottles.

The lady went on to spew statistics as if she was reading straight out of a book while Raven tried to ignore her. She let her talk, but the moment the nurse called for her to bring in the twins, she grabbed the carriers and left the woman to talk to herself.

At least the kids’ doctor hadn’t judged her when she inquired about going a hundred percent with formula. The doctor had eased Raven’s worries by telling her that breastfeeding was a choice. Yes, there were health benefits to the babies, but ultimately, Raven had to do what she thought best for herself and the kids.

From day one, she had struggled with breastfeeding. Early on, there were times it left her in tears because it had taken awhile to get the hang of. Eventually, she did but when the babies were almost two months, it seemed Andrew wasn’t getting enough to eat. After a discussion with their pediatrician, Raven decided to move to formula for both babies. She was happier, and they were just fine.

“Aunt Nancy?” Raven interrupted the woman’s monologue. When her aunt stopped talking and glanced at her, Raven said, “You can stop. My decision has already been made. So how have you been? I know you said you didn’t break any bones when you fell, but how’s your hip?”

She waved Raven off. “Oh, it’s fine. It only hurts when my arthritis acts up.”

For the next hour, they snacked on tea, homemade coffee cake, and fruit as they got caught up with each other. Raven filled her in on the latest with Maximus and how she had moved on, but he hadn’t.

“I don’t see why you two can’t still be friends.”

No matter what Raven said, her aunt wasn’t trying to hear anything negative about Maximus. She was crazy about him. Aunt Nancy had bought into the charming facade he’d shownher the two times she had visited Houston while he and Raven dated.

Not wanting to argue, Raven let the topic drop, and told her about the B & B. It was impossible to talk about the beautiful establishment without bringing up the Priestly family. They’d been so kind to her. They went beyond the call of duty to make sure she had everything she needed. And watching all of them with the babies made Raven’s heart sing. She had met two of Zion’s sisters, including Dorian, who she saw often. Today, Raven had met his sister, Nyla, who owned a jazz club.

Though they all were great, Raven had noticed all of them stayed clear of topics regarding Zion fathering the twins. She assumed he must’ve had a talk with them, especially Mrs. Priestly. After that first night, Raven thought for sure the older woman would ask her again whether Andrew and Zanaya were her grandbabies. She hadn’t. Still, she spent time with them every day and treated the twins like her own. Even Mr. Priestly had been spending more time at the B & B than he’d been the first couple of days since Raven arrived.

“Maybe you shouldn’t let those folks get so attached to the kids, especially since you’re going back to Houston.”

“Aunt Nancy, I told you we’re moving here. Just because Nika’s boyfriend doesn’t want us staying with them,” she said of her cousin who was Aunt Nancy’s daughter, “doesn’t mean I’ve changed my mind about moving here. On the contrary. I was already planning to relocate here so we could live closer to you. I’ve already started looking for places. Now that I know Zion and his family are here too, I’m planning to make the move sooner than later.”

“I love having you here, but I’m not convinced Zion will step up and be a father to these kids. He doesn’t even believe they’re his. Besides, you need to focus on getting back with Maximus. Iknow it was a while ago that he asked you to marry him, but if he’s still coming around, it means he’s still in love with you.”

Raven shook her head, wishing she had kept her mouth shut about Maximus and Zion. But Aunt Nancy had been like a mother to her after losing her parents. They might not agree on everything, but they could usually talk and share things with one another.

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