Page 109 of Wish You Faith

“What?” Rosie turned her face toward him. “Why are we stopping?”

He leaned down toward her. “I still can’t believe you’re here.”

“If you need me to pinch you or slap you, feel free to ask.” Rosie chuckled.

He laughed, knowing that she was joking.

“How about this?” Rosie lifted her chin toward his and gently kissed his lips.

Evan took it as an invitation to kiss her back, deepening his kiss.

When they both came up for air, Rosie cupped his face. “Now you know I’m really here.”

Evan enveloped Rosie in his arms. “I also can’t believe you get along with Mom.”

“You asked me this morning about her. I’ll tell you over lunch.” She led him forward. “Pick a place before it gets crowded and we can’t find seats.”

And over seafood lunch as they watched distant ferries on Elliot Bay, Rosie told Evan how it all went down. How Mei showed up uninvited at Founders Row, and how the two moms hit it off over mahjong.

“I’m not surprised that she showed up just like that.” Evan drank some mineral water. “She might not be so brave if Vanda is not with her.”

“Her assistant.”

“She’s also a trained bodyguard,” Evan added.

“That so? I had no idea. She looked like an ordinary assistant.”

“That’s the point. Vanda blends in.”

“I guess safety is always first,” Rosie said.

“That too, but Mom needs a bodyguard because she has enemies.”

“I guess the business world can be vicious.”

“Mom is vicious. She steps on everyone’s toes. She yells at everyone. She fires people on the fly. If you haven’t quit, and you survived, she gives out five-digit bonuses at the end of the year.”

“Oh. She didn’t show that side of her when we met yesterday.” Rosie looked surprised. “In fact, your mom and my mom are now Mahjong Mamas.”

“Yeah?” Evan chuckled. “I guess you broke her hard shell.”

“God softened her heart, you mean?”

“Right.” Still, Evan wondered how long until Mom’s nice behavior would crack. After the honeymoon phase, would Mom show her true colors? Or had she really morphed from mean to munificent?

Time would tell.

“God can soften Mom’s heart, and He can also change her heart,” Evan said. “Right now, Mom’s holding out, not letting me open a Cavanaugh Shipping branch in Savannah. I get it, though. A new company means new expenses. She keeps a tight control over our company finances.”

“Why not take over an existing company already operating at the Port of Savannah or in Georgia?” Rosie slowly enjoyed her crab cakes.

“That was one of the things I said to my parents when I first brought up the expansion proposal. Mom said no.”

“Because?”

“Because the suggestion came from me. Mom always has to be on the opposite side of me.”

“Are you sure about that?” Rosie asked.

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