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I let out a quiet “Well damn. I see why she wanted to show us this garden. It is amazing.”
The heavy, intoxicating scent of pollen swathed the floral perfumed air.
Yet, the tranquility of the garden stood in stark contrast to the tension-filled atmosphere we’d left behind.
Why had Baba been so adamant about Paolo staying away from here?
Up ahead, Delphine came to a halt at the edge of the garden and kept her back to us.
“Here we go,” Max whispered. “Stay alert.”
We closed the distance between us.
With a grandiose sweep of her cane, Delphine gestured towards the garden. “Welcome to Creole Eden.”
“Thank you for bringing us here.” I smiled. “This space is truly beautiful.”
Next to me, Kaz remained silent with his gaze locked on Delphine.
In all honesty, his silence unnerved me.
Relax. Everything will be okay. This will be good.
Max, meanwhile, surveyed the expansive garden and then folded his arms across his chest. “Go ahead, you guys. I’ll hang back here.”
I quirked my brows. “For real?”
He nodded, not taking his wary eyes off the garden. “Yeah. Something’s off about it.”
A creased hit Delphine’s forehead. “Grandnephew, I would like to show you the garden too.”
Max shrugged. “I see the garden just fine from here.”
“There’s nothing in that garden that will bother you, boy.”
“That doesn’t mean I’m going in there.”
I stood at a distance, watching this odd exchange. I’d known Max for a long time, and he wasn’t one to shy away from a garden. Yet, there he was, lingering on the periphery, looking uncomfortable.
“Okay.” I shrugged and looked at Delphine. “That’s fair. If Max isn’t feeling it, then we won’t make him.”
She directed her view my way. “You are very protective of my grandnephew?”
“Of course. He’s family.”
Delphine curved her lips into a small smile. “But he is not your blood.”
“Blood doesn’t define family for me. It just means that you share some DNA.”
“Is that right, Emily?”
“Real family is created from going through shit together and having each other’s back the whole time.”
Delphine studied me. “You believe in creating your family on the basis of love?”
“I do.”
Delphine put her view back on Max. “I was hoping to get some lemon seeds from your tree, but I didn’t feel the tree’s presence on my property today.”
