Angelique relaxed again in his embrace. She stroked his forearms with their coating of silky hair, and said so softly that he could barely hear her, "Yes, I will, Adonis. But not right away, let's wait after the baby comes. We'll have a real ceremony and everyone we love will be there and it will be beautiful and meaningful. And I love you very much for thinking of it. You're a wonderful husband" she murmured and turned her face up for his kiss.
"That's because I have a wonderful wife. I love you, Angel," he said before kissing her beloved face. "But I think you need to get into bed now, because your mom's flight comes in early tomorrow. Are you excited about her coming?"
Angelique yawned and said that she was. "I'm really looking forward to seeing her. I hope we have a good time," she replied and then fell asleep on her husband's shoulder. He continued to hold her for a long time before taking her to bed, just loving the fact that she was in his arms.
***
Lillian wasn't quite sure what to expect when she came to stay with Angelique and Donnie, but it wasn't what she got. Their house was immaculately clean, and this was before the housekeeper's visit on Tuesday. Angelique had cautioned her about Jordan and Pippen, but dogs, even big ones, didn't bother her.
"Didn't I tell you that we're now the proud owners of two black Pomeranians? Bill was so crazy about those little dogs of Vera's that he went out and got two little ladies. He named them Ella and Sarah and he takes them everywhere. I think he plans on taking them to the golf course next," she said, shaking her head.
In any case, Jordan and Pippen had won her heart by giving her their winning smiles and holding up paws to shake when she got to the house. They were being perfect gentlemen and the fact that Angelique had taken them to the groomer also helped. Their coats gleamed like every other surface in the house. Lillian had to admire the way the house looked, especially the room they were fixing up as a nursery. Angelique showed her the wallpaper that had come out of the room; she'd kept a piece of the hideous burgundy stripes as a memento. Now the room was all peach and aqua and yellow, soft pastel shades that made it look fresh and pretty. Angelique's bedroom furniture was going to be put into storage and they were going shopping for baby furniture soon.
Angelique kept Lillian busy for the first few days, taking her to see the Cochran building and her studio, touring the new developments in downtown Detroit, shopping at the Somerset Town Center, lunching at a different restaurant every day, visiting Renee and Andrew and Big Benny and Martha; she practically ran her mother's legs off. She was checking off things like a travel agent with an itinerary. The two women were now in the dining room, where they'd been looking at books of baby furniture.
"Tomorrow I thought we could go to Windsor, Mama. They have some great shopping there, and some really good restaurants. Did you bring your passport with you? You have to have it just to cross the border these days," Angelique reported.
Lillian finally threw up her hands. "My goodness, Angel, we don't need to go to another place. Let's just stay home and talk tomorrow," she said firmly. "I come up here to see my only daughter and I get Superwoman instead." She laughed. "I want to know how you're doing, my love. I want to go shopping for my grandchild, not for me. I want to talk about your wedding, even though it's not until next Valentine's Day. I just want to sit and relax with you, is that okay?"
"It's fine with me, Mama. Are you sure you're comfortable in your room? Do you need anything?" she asked anxiously.
Lillian assured her that she was fine. There had been fresh flowers in the room, a basket of current magazines and several novels and another basket with towels and toiletries. In addition there was a flat-screen television and an iPod dock.
"No, darling, I don't need another thing. You and Donnie have spoiled me shamelessly. In fact, I'm making breakfast tomorrow so you can get some rest. Expectant mothers need as much rest as they can get, you know." She smiled at her only daughter and said truthfully, "I'm so looking forward to being a grandmother. This is so exciting, Angel."
"Mama, you have thirteen grandchildren already and another on the way, or did you forget that Vera is also expecting?"
"Fourteen is a boring number, we need number fifteen. Besides, my daughter is having her very first child so that makes it a miraculous event," her mother said fondly. "And sixteen has always been my lucky number," she added with thinly veiled meaning.
***
The next morning Donnie was surprised to find his mother-in-law in the kitchen when he got up to make Angelique's herbal tea. He liked to get the water on so that when she arose she could have it right away. Instead, Lillian was bustling around the kitchen, making what looked to be an elaborate Southern feast. He was struck, as always, by her startling resemblance to Nancy Wilson, with her deep, rich coloring and the distinctive blaze of white hair in the front.
"Good morning, Lillian. Something smells wonderful."
"Good morning to you, Donnie, there's coffee already made," she said in a cheerful voice.
"Thanks, but I'm not drinking coffee right now. Angel can't have it so I drink herbal tea with her. I was just about to put the kettle on for the tea," he explained.
"Oh." Lillian was nonplussed that she hadn't thought of that herself, but she rallied quickly. "Well, I'm making her favorite breakfast, cheese grits, sausage, scrambled eggs and fresh biscuits," she said proudly. She noticed a flicker on Donnie's face and asked if there was a problem.
"Well," Donnie said reluctantly, "she really can't tolerate too much grease right now. Sausage would really upset her stomach. She can handle a little ham, if it's really lean. And for some reason she can't stand butter right now, just the thought of it makes her sick. So she's been eating a lot of dry toast. She usually has fruit, dry toast and oatmeal with no butter. The thing is, she'll eat anything you give her, so you have to kinda watch what you put on her plate."
Lillian looked slightly chagrined as she looked up at her handsome son-in-law. "I should have thought of that," she admitted. "I've been so busy trying to prove that I'm a good mother that I didn't even ask if she had a restricted diet."
She sat down at the kitchen table, looking so crestfallen that Donnie sat down with her. She looked at him with a hint of tears in her eyes and confessed her fears. "I don't think I've been a very good mother to Angelique," she said quietly. "I've never known her as well as I should; we weren't as close as a mother and daughter should be. I always felt like I failed her as a mother, that I should have been able to get through to her, to communicate with her better. But I never could." Her sadness was so evident that Donnie felt compelled to give her an awkward hug.
"Lillian, you have to know how much Angel admires you. She adores you; she thinks you're the most perfect woman in the world. All she ever wanted to do was be like you, that's what she told me. More than once, I might add. Despite what you think, you were a wonderful role model for her and you are the person she respects more than anyone else," he told her.
"I don't see how, Donnie. I just wasn't there for her when she needed me," Lillian said sadly. Her smooth brown face puckered in distress. "When Angelique's father died, I went a little bit crazy. I don't think anyone knew how much his death affected me. I was pregnant, you see, and I lost the baby. It just seemed like the last straw, him dying the way he did and then me losing our baby, the last piece of him I would ever have." She took a long, shuddering sigh and stopped for a moment to compose herself.
"Poor Clay, he drove himself crazy trying to keep everything hushed up over the way his father died. It really wasn't necessary; I knew what his father was like. I knew he had a roving eye, I knew that he had women in different places, so when he died in that hotel room in California, it wasn't as big a shock to me as Clay believed it would be. I should have told him then, but I was too numb, too wrapped up in myself. I'm very ashamed of how I conducted myself back then.
"I should have been stronger, been less selfish, especially when it came to my baby, my only little girl. By the time I was ready to act like a mature woman again, her brothers had taken over and she was an angry, confused little girl. I don't think she's ever gotten over it." She sniffed. "I think I need a tissue." Donnie obliged by handing her a fistful of paper towels. He flushed at the look of amusement on Lillian's face.