Page 99 of Kane's Awakening
Just like I’d seen in those old movies, we passed the food around the table and filled our plates, starting with Tracy and ending with Scott.
“This looks delicious,” I said as I placed a piece of chicken on my plate. The scent of lemon and a slight char hit my nose, making my mouth water.
“Thank you,” Tracy responded. “It’s one of Kane’s favorites.”
“Kane loves all food,” I said with a chuckle. “The man eats me out of house and home when he stays over.”
Realizing what I’d announced, I looked at his parents, hoping they didn’t read too much into that statement. With them being religious, I wasn’t sure if they approved of us staying the night together and doing… other things.
His mom didn’t miss a beat before saying, “Where do you think he gets it?” She pointed to Scott, and I grinned. “When this one’s grumpy, all I have to do is bake him a cherry pie, and he turns into putty in my hands.”
I looked at Kane. “Does that work on you, too?”
“I hate cherry,” he said, scrunching his nose up. “Make it banana bread or blueberry cheesecake, and I’m all yours, baby.”
Shaking my head, I took a bite and had to stop myself from moaning aloud. It was so good. There was a perfect balance of acidity on the juicy chicken, and the roasted red potatoes were to die for. Tracy had put a rosemary seasoning on them.
“So, Ryker,” Scott said after wiping his mouth. “Do you go to church anywhere ‘round here?”
My heart seized and I paled.This is it.
“No, sir.” Was my voice shaking? “I don’t go to church.”
“He’s not religious, Dad,” Kane added in a conversational tone. “He and I’ve discussed it already. He knows I’m Christian, and I know he’s not.”
“I see,” Scott replied, giving me a somewhat disapproving look. “To each their own, I suppose. Is there a reason why?”
“My family wasn’t religious,” I answered, finding my courage. “One time, my dad caught me praying—I think I was like five—and he jerked me up and beat me so bad I couldn’t walk for the rest of the day. Afterward, he said, ‘Where was your god then, boy?’” Admitting such a heavy thing made my heart pound harder. Faster. “Since then, I stopped praying and realized that the only person who could change my life was me. I was the master of my own fate, so to speak, and if I wanted a better life, I’d have to make it happen myself.”
Kane stared at me with watery eyes. “You never told me that.”
I shrugged and looked down, ashamed and uncomfortable at the same time.
Keeping it from Kane hadn’t been intentional; I just tended to block out those parts of my childhood. They were in the past and there was no sense in re-hashing them. But when asked, I’d be honest.
“No child should have parents like that,” Scott spoke, drawing my attention back up. “You seem like a great man with a good head on his shoulders who’ll be good to my son, and I reckon that’s enough.”
“Itisenough,” Tracy chimed in, smiling at me.
No more was said on religion.
Through the rest of dinner, Kane’s parents asked me other questions, but it never got heavy again. I told them about my job and the topic shifted to my kids. Talking about the twins made me miss them, and I made a mental note to call Anna when we left that day.
After we ate, Tracy brought dessert—banana bread—and we ate it while drinking coffee. Well, Scott had a beer and Kane stuck with his sweet tea, but Tracy and I had coffee.
By the time we left, it was twilight, and there was a chill in the air. Humidity was slowly working its way back in to every day, but it was relatively light that evening, making the slightly lower temperature feel even chillier.
As we found Molly and got in Kane’s truck, we were quiet. Not exactly a bad quiet, but more so, a pensive one. Much had transpired that afternoon, and it was a lot to take in.
“That went well,” Kane said once we’d gotten off the dirt road and back on the two-lane highway. “Before we left, Ma pulled me aside and said I better not let you go.” He peered at me with a crooked grin. “I told her I’d try not to. You’re a keeper.”
“Kane Matthews, are you flirting with me?” I asked, quirking a brow. “Such a rebel.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He focused on the road, but the side of his mouth was still upturned with a smile. “I’ll show you rebel when we get back to your place.”
