The Space In Between(46)

I patted my stomach and sat back in my chair. Even if I wanted more stuffing, there was no way it would be able to fit in my gut. Mrs. Evans knew how to cook. I hadn’t had such a wonderful tasting Thanksgiving meal since my mom…
“No, thank you. I am stuffed with stuffing.”
Betty reentered the dining room with a huff and puff holding a chocolate cake. No, not just a chocolate cake. A triple layer, chocolate chip, dark fudge chocolate cake.
I couldn’t be positive, but I was pretty damn sure I drooled.
“Are you sure, honey? There’s cake! I made it this afternoon.”
I rubbed my hand across my face, narrowed my eyes, and poked my bottom lip out, making it look as if I were really thinking of not having the delicious dessert. Hell, I didn’t even have to taste the cake to know it was outstanding. There was no way I wasn’t going to have any of it. But I smirked and nodded. “You know what, Betty? I think I’ll have a small slice.”
She smiled, quite pleased with my reply, and went to get plates. I looked over to the stunning girl sitting across from me and winked at her. Her rosy cheeks which followed my wink made my night.
I looked over to Andrea’s dad, who was reading a car manual. During dinner he told me how he had planned to learn how to fix cars. Andrea informed me that he was Mr. Fix-It. Walter only grinned and informed me that he was Mr. Try-It-Break-It-Throw-It-And-Then-Sometimes-Fix-It.
She loved her dad.
He loved her just as much.
Nothing wrong with a good father figure.
As Betty reentered with the plates and sliced us each a piece I began to devour the hell out of dessert.
I smiled as I watched Andrea ever so nonchalantly rub her finger against her plate pick up the remains of cake crumbs, and eat them. Betty’s eyes sparkled with excitement when she saw this, and she watched as Andrea reached for another piece. In that moment, Andrea made her mama really happy. After they finished, Andrea helped her mom clean off the table and they left us two men to ourselves.
“Walter, your wife really has a way with cooking. This was probably the best meal I’ve had in a long time,” I praised.
Walter sat back in his chair and removed his glasses, placing them on the table. “I lucked out. A perfect wife.” Walter wiggled his nose towards Betty, who was smiling towards him from the kitchen.
“How long have you two been married now?”
“Thirty-six years.” He grinned. He was proud to call her his. And she was equally proud to call him hers. I couldn’t imagine. Iris and I were only married for four years and damaged to the core.
“What are your secrets?”
He thought for a moment. He rubbed the bridge of his nose and narrowed his eyes. His voice lowered to a whisper and I waited for the wisdom. “Whiskey.”
I laughed out loud as he smirked and continued. “But really. The secret is to listen to what she doesn’t say, see what she doesn’t do, and hold her when she doesn’t cry.”
Solid advice.
“And, each night, two shots of whiskey.” I chuckled again at his joke. But I was quick to notice his stern look and I knew the shots of whiskey truly were the key to his successful marriage. If I were to ever get married again, I would need to discover my own secrets to success that didn’t involve drinking.
I saw Betty head back into the room and Andrea walk off down the hallway with her cell phone glued to her ear. Walter raised a brow, nonverbally asking where his daughter was going.
“She’s on her phone, talking to her friend Ladasha.” Her lips frowned when she said Dasha’s name and Walter shook his head.
“Betty, don’t start.”
“What is it?” I asked. I couldn’t stop wondering what it was they were exactly saying without saying. That must be exactly what Walter had been talking about for a successful relationship—listen to what she’s not saying. But I wasn’t trained that well. I needed it to be spelled out for me.
“I don’t feel comfortable with Anders being out in New York with this friend we’ve never actually met until yesterday. And she seems like a nice girl but…” Betty paused and placed her hands in her lap. “I’m not racist.”
“Of course not,” I said.
“And Ladasha seems like a fine girl. But it appears like she has a dark past.”
“Don’t we all?”
“Yes. It’s true. But some people don’t come out of it. And I want Andrea to be able to come out of the dark past and have a future. And I wish I could feel as if Ladasha was a good influence.”
I lowered my brows and rested the tip of my thumb between my teeth. “With all due respect, Mrs. Evans, I had the opportunity to sit down and speak with Ladasha. And her path was carved into shape before she had a chance to inhale her first breath. The odds were stacked against her, but she keeps smiling. She doesn’t live in self-pity and she doesn’t blame the world. She strives to be her best. She keeps pushing to be better, and if I had to choose a best friend for my daughter, if I had one, there would be no doubt in my mind that I would choose Ladasha.”
She rubbed her bottom lip and bit it. I saw where Andrea picked up a few of her traits. “I’ve embarrassed myself,” she said. She had, it was bullshit the way she judged Ladasha. But, I told her she shouldn’t feel that way. Her cheeks became red and she picked up a glass of water to sip. “It’s just, I worry, that’s all.”
“I would, too. About a lot of things. But if I could go ahead and ease some of your worries right now…Ladasha is not something you should worry about.” I grinned and watched her sigh with relief.