Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
He eyed his woman while she perused the menu, her beige and clear fat bangles clanking against one another.
“What are you lookin’ at, turkey?” she quipped, a sexy smile on her face.
“Something delicious that ain’t on the menu.” He ran his hand along her back, dragging her close to kiss her cheek.
“You nervous?” she asked without looking at him.
“Strangely enough, no. I don’t feel much at all.” He brought his hands to his lap and clasped them, sighing.
“Is he late?” She glanced at her phone, placed it flat on the table, then grabbed her glass of lemon water.
“Not yet. Got a couple more minutes.” He imagined what was floating in her head. The things she refused to say, not wishing to throw gasoline on the flames. If I were meeting my possible son for the first time, I’d be an hour early… Why would he wait ’til the last minute to show up? Is he coming at all?
Those same thoughts rented a room in his brain, but he paid their loud music and boisterous chatter no mind. They’d be evicted soon. No love lost. Just as he was getting comfortable with the notion of being stood up and not giving a hot damn, the front door swung open once again and there stood a tall, older man with a younger guy behind him. Caspian watched as the two went up to the hostess desk, and then she turned around and pointed in his direction. He didn’t have to nudge Azure—she’d already noticed.
They both stood at the same time, their bodies colliding. As the two men approached, the older one slowed his gait, then stopped walking. The younger one paused and turned to the man who bore his same facial structure. After a brief conversation between the two, they continued to approach.
Once the man was standing directly before him, he was certain he was supposed to feel something. A jolt of familiarity upon taking in the salt and pepper hair and full silver beard that should hit him somewhat like electricity. A heightened pulse. Perhaps they’d have the same smile, and he’d tear up. Instead, his chest expanded normally. His heart rate remained level. His calmness was a cool creature comfort.
“Caspian, I’m Harrison McKinlay.” The man’s deep voice broke in half and tears welled in his hazel eyes. He extended his hand and Caspian shook it. His skin felt calloused and hard.
“Nice to meet you, Harrison. This is my girlfriend, Azure. Here for emotional support and to make sure I don’t do something ridiculous,” he offered with a chuckle. Azure shook Harrison’s hand, too.
“Nice to meet you,” she stated with a soft smile.
“Nice to meet you too, Azure. This here is Jasper. My son.”
Caspian regarded the man and noticed that Harrison and Jasper had similar noses. He had the same nose, too.
“Nice to meet you two,” Jasper said, decidedly more soft-spoken than Caspian expected. The man who’d sounded the alarm. The whistleblower. It was he that made his father aware of the situation. Perhaps he, too, was loud on the inside.
“Damn if you don’t look just like your mama.” Harrison shook his head as if he were seeing a ghost right before his eyes. “She was a beautiful woman. Shoulda been a model. Was a good person, too. God bless her soul. The resemblance ’tween the two of you is uncanny. Jesus. Cheyenne treated you like God and made you in her image. She spit you straight out.”
Caspian nodded and pointed to the table. “Please, have a seat.”
The four of them sat down, and a waitress showed up fast to gather drink and food orders, offering beverage refills for Caspian and Azure.
After a bit of small talk, an uncomfortable silence fell amongst the foursome. Harrison had a strange way of thumping his hand against the side of the table, and blinking more than was called for. He then started to crack his knuckles.
“We’ll take a DNA test but, uh, somethin’ tells me that you’re mine,” Harrison choked out, then coughed into his hand. He sounded convinced, but also still alarmed. In a state of shock.
“Uh, I saw your post online, Mr. Emory, and—”
“…Just call me Caspian. We’re ’bout the same age, Jasper, so no need for all of that.”
Jasper nodded. “I saw your post online, Caspian, and I recalled my father livin’ in that area at the time, over there in the West End, and havin’ a girlfriend named Cheyenne. After Pops and my mama divorced, he brought Cheyenne up several times over the years, so I knew about ’er from some stories he told. He never brought you up though, so at first I was thinkin’, well, it’s just a coincidence, or you had a different father. But then, I kept lookin’ at pictures of you online, Caspian.” Jasper paused and shook his head, as if he needed a moment to regroup. “Daddy had a couple photos packed up of your mama. You look a lot like her, that’s true, but you got somethin’ familiar… It’s that nose.”