Chapter 79

He ran to the kitchen to take some deep breaths and check on all the food he’d made. His mom joined him there.

“You don’t do things halfway, son.”

Terrell surveyed the food. “Apparently not.” He’d used every stove burner, and he had three casserole dishes in the oven. He’d used the slow cooker, too, and every one of his mom’s mixing bowls contained some type of salad.

She leaned over one of the pots on the stove and made an appreciative sound as she inhaled the aroma of the food. “This is quite a coming out party.”

Terrell stood up straight. He hadn’t told her yet. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t look at me like that. You know, that Southern thing where a girl would have a party to introduce herself to society. I’m not trying to compare you to a girl. It just reminded me because everyone’s here.”

“Everyone’s here all right.” Terrell couldn’t keep the dark tone from his voice. His mother gave him a sharp glance.