Page 49 of Honey's Special Roux

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“Stir the Alfredo sauce while I finish up the tails in the garlic butter sauce,” I instructed my cute, sous chef.

He used the whisk to stir the white sauce in the pot. I prided myself on my son’s diverse pallet. Most six-year-olds were stuck on chicken nuggets and French fries. Quis loved a good nugget, but he would also eat a ribeye steak and asparagus.

After dinner, we watched an episode of the cartoon we’d started together in the theater room. Then we did our bedtime routine. We brushed our teeth, he had a bath, and I tucked him in and read him a book of his choice.

My home in Los Angeles was breathtaking. For it to be just the two of us, I had five bedrooms, a restaurant style kitchen, a dining room with a chandelier, an indoor and outdoor pool, and several themed rooms. There was a theater room with three rows of reclining seats, a game room, a spa room, and an indoor gym.

“Ready to call Granny and Pawpaw?” I asked as I picked up my phone.

“Yes,” Quis replied softly. He had hung in there during the book, but I didn’t think he’d make it through the call.

I tapped the family group chat, and within a few moments, my parents and Chamille were on the line. Granny was usually the first to answer, but her square had disappeared after a few moments.

“Do we need to wait for Granny?” I asked.

Silence greeted me. Something was wrong.

Daddy finally spoke. “We can do bedtime without her. Q looks like he can barely keep his eyes open.”

I nodded. “Okay. Say hey, Quis.”

“Hi, Pawpaw. Hi, Gwanny. Hi, Te Te.”

They all spoke to him with enthusiasm and pure joy. It was weird being so far from my family, but we traveled often to see them. I may not have wanted to be around Marquise’s folks, but I made it my mission to keep Quis in touch with my family. We visited around his schooling. Whenever he was on break, we were catching a flight almost every week.

They talked for a few minutes before Quis lost his battle with sleep. I tucked him in and kissed his forehead. Once his nightlight was on, I exited the room and went to the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” I asked as I propped the phone up and started cleaning up the mess from dinner.

“I’ll talk to y’all later,” Chamille rushed out before she left the call.

“I’m going to let your mother talk to you. I love you, Sweet Tea.”

My nerves were bad. I stopped cleaning and gave my parents my full attention. “I love you too, Daddy. Mama, what’s going on? Please, just tell me.”

Mama hesitated. She took a few deep breaths and cleared her throat. “You should sit down.”

“Please don’t do this. Just tell me.”

“Your grandmother passed away last night.”

My ears rang. No. That couldn’t be right. We’d talked briefly on the phone. She’d told me she had Perry Mason on the television and couldn’t wait to see my segment on LeAnn’s show. She couldn’t be gone. There was no way.

“What?”

“Your Aunt Judith went to go check on her this morning. The coroner said she’d passed in her sleep peacefully.”

Tears burned the rims of my eyes as I covered my mouth and fell to my knees. No. This had to be a sick joke. Not my favorite lady. Not the woman who influenced who I am today. This couldn’t be true. This couldn’t be happening.

“No.” The sob escaped my lips in a deep tone. My heart shook and my lungs screamed for air as I clutched my chest and felt the pain of losing my first best friend.

“I’m sorry, Honey. We knew you had your interview, so we didn’t want to tell you before you had to do your thing. We didn’t want to upset Quis, so we wanted to wait until he’d gone to bed. I’m sorry, baby girl.”

I wiped at my face and composed myself enough to grab my phone and sit back on the floor. “I’m coming home. I have to be there for y’all right now.”

“You’re on tour?—”

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