Mr. Tan

Chapter 63: Bride To Be

Its been a while and I must say that things are going good, no great. Its July the 3rd, a day before my 20th birthday and needless to say, I am so excited to be turning a new leaf into my young adult years. Ava has completed her sixth grade year in middle school without anymore incidents. Earl and I have been making so many plans for our little family. Not only are we planning a small wedding in our backyard, we are also going house hunting. There is talk of perhaps leaving Cleveland and starting somewhere new, but there's no definite plans regarding that just yet. I went with Earl yesterday to a casual meeting at a local diner regarding his new juke joint business plans. Maynard Nolan flew into town yesterday morning and he was accompanied by two private contractors and an older black couple who was ready to retire and sell their dry cleaning business which has seen better days. They were the Monroe's, Hunter and Janet Monroe, a couple in their mid 70's. They also wanted to sell their home as well. What some of you who read my story may not know is that the Mississippi Delta is one of the poorest regions  of one of the poorest states in the U.S. Some folks are starting to leave the Delta if they could afford it, folks like the Monroe's who are uprooting their lives so they could move to St. Louis to be closer to family. One by one; folks were packing their belongings, selling what they owned if they owned anything at all, and heading to bigger cities or heading up North. Even the young lady, little girl and her fiance managed to sell their trailer and move to Memphis. Anyway, I digress, let's move on because I have a 20th birthday to be excited about. Earl wanted to take me out to a nice romantic dinner at Sheldon Bros. Steak House then take me dancing at a Jazz Club in downtown Cleveland. Sheila Rae flew all the way from Atlanta just to be here with us. She stayed at the trailer with us and she's been here since this morning. She wasn't due to fly back to Atlanta until Friday morning. She volunteered to watch the kids while Earl and I went out. Sheila Rae is an AMAZING house guest. She cooks, she cleans, and she's quite entertaining to talk to and she walks Duke on a daily basis. Earl still works with Rhett and he's been quite busy helping Rhett train a new mechanic. On most days Earl doesn't get home till after 6:00 in the evening. Even though he's tired, he still makes time for us. Roman Tan is the crawl master and he now manages to get into everything. Most summer days are spent chasing after him before he can harm himself by getting a hold of something that can send him to the hospital. Sheila Rae, Ava and I keep him tuckered out during the day. He's so wonderful and adorable, he naps like a newborn puppy. Wherever I go and I have Roman with me, people stop and bestow him with compliments, especially about his eyes. His hair has gotten thicker and more curlier. Every once in a while, Earl has to trim a few uneven pieces with a pair of scissors. Earl is starting to get gray in his beard, which makes him look even more sexier. The salt and pepper 5 o'clock shadow comes in perfect contrast with his nicely bronzed complexion. Lately, Ava has expressed interest in wanting to get her ears pierced. She wants to get them pierced before she starts her 7th grade year. On the morning of my birthday, we laid in the mess of sheets and the comforter after we made sweet love. Our bodies were damp with sweat as Earl and I gave each other soft kisses as the last bits of our climax fizzled out like a firework. 

"Happy birthday, baby", Earl crooned as he pulled me closer to him.

"I love you, Earl Tan", I said as I rested my head, which still felt light, on his chest. 

Our love making was sweet and passionate, yet fiery. As I rested my head on his chest, he reached behind my head and I felt his fingers delicately play with my short golden blond baby doll curls. I had my hair professionally styled yesterday. Before I went to bed last night, I wrapped my hair in a pink silk scarf. However, the scarf came lose during the throws of our love making.