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We move through the line, which has red rice, crab cakes, and okra stew, in addition to veal cutlets, chicken breast, potato salad, baked yams, fresh fruit, and green salad. I grab a plate with a little bit of everything. River gets green salad, chicken breast, and a nearly overflowing bowl of okra stew. I raise a brow at his food selection and he flashes me a grin. "The stew smells better than anything else here."
Look at him going for strong flavors! I’ll civilize this man yet.
"Damn straight." I follow him to the twenty-four-person dining room table, which has been elaborately set with glasses, silverware, and beautiful pink and white flowers in lavish gold vases.
I look around for my mom and wave her over. "Come sit by me!"
My mom frowns. "Aunt Glory and Aunt Delta are already sitting together outside."
I look around the room. Most of my family must be sitting outside together, because I see a sea of white faces here. I’m a little saddened by that fact. I know that I can’t control people like they are chess pieces I can move around their board. But I would have encouraged any of my family to continue the social mixing that happened earlier.
"Okay." I wave Mom away, a little sad. "Have fun."
She's already out of the room by the time I'm finished speaking. I end up next to River, with River's step dad beside me and River's mother beside him.
"Thank you for throwing us an engagement party," I say as I sit down.
Sam's lips purse. "Of course. You're family. Isn't that what family’s for?"
I laugh. "True."
He smiles a bit ruefully. "I was talking to Miss Glory for a minute. She said that y'all don't really do engagement parties."
I nod. "She's right."
"Can we pray?" Aunt Delta's voice cuts through the chatter from clear outside. "Everybody, bow your heads, please."
I do it instantly, closing my eyes. Aunt Delta leads us in the Lord's Prayer and then we all say 'Amen'. When I look back at Sam, he's giving me a calculating look. "Young lady. Do you believe in Jesus?"
River looks over quickly. "Sam."
"I just want to know," Sam defends himself.
"It's okay." I put a hand on River's arm. "I am spiritual. But I don't go to church. I try to live as close to the way I would imagine God wanted me to live as possible."
Sam nods his head slowly. "And if you brought up my grandbaby? Would you take her to church?"
I blink at him. "Uhh..."
River cuts in. "Don't answer that, darlin’. He's just trying to get your goat."
"Am not," Sam fires back. "I want to know."
I pick up my fork, swallowing. This is a man that's probably going to be pissed to find that not only did I raise River's kid without taking him or her to church, but that I raised their grandbaby without actually telling any of River's family about it. Honestly, until this very moment, I had simply never considered the possibility.
"That's something that we'll settle between ourselves," River says. "Now for everyone's sake, let's change the subject."
Sam looks at me, arching his brow. "I'm just trying to talk to Pearl. Make sure we have similar ideas when it comes to the important stuff."
I feel my face growing hot, but wrap my arm around River. "I care about the only thing that you want me to care about. River's happiness."
His brows lift. He seems unsure what to say for a second. "That is important, yes," he eventually allows.
I lean over to River, hugging him around the waist. "As long as you know that, I think we can let everything else slide. Can't we, River?"
River pins Sam with his eyes and clears his throat. "That sounds about right."
Looking down at my hands, I notice I am trembling. Maybe an after-effect of lying through my damn teeth.
