After Olivia

8

The aroma of sautéed beef, tomatoes, and onions simmering in a red chili sauce lingered in the air while fresh cut potatoes sizzled in a pot of boiling oil. Matilda hurried through the final preparations for dinner. The table was set for three and a jug of sangria chilled in the refrigerator.

"Oh, what's all this?" Sherry asked. "It smells good. Where's it from?"

"It's a dish from Peru called Lomo Saltado."

"No, what restaurant?" Sherry asked as she looked about in search of takeout containers.

"I... I made it," Matilda replied as she stirred the contents of the skillet.

"You made it? Let's hope it tastes as good as it smells," Sherry grumbled as she looked at the items on the stove top. "Peru, huh. So, it's like tacos?"

Matilda furrowed her brow and glared at her mother before responding. "No, not tacos. It's a popular Peruvian meal. It's like a stir fry."

Sherry shuffled through the kitchen then back towards the hallway. She seemed restless or expectant. After some preening in the reflection of a small mirror she had retrieved from a drawer in the kitchen, she continued to pace the floor. Matilda grew suspicious when she noticed her mother's odd movements and clothing. She wore tightly fitted yoga pants and shirt with a deep neckline that showed plenty of cleavage and midriff. It was the type of thing she might wear to impress a man, not the usual Sunday family dinner attire.

"Where's grandma?" Matilda asked. "Is she getting home soon? Everything is ready."

"Oh, grandma won't make it."

"What?" Matilda said with a disappointed tone that seeped into her expression. "Well, there's going to be a lot left over then."

When Matilda started to put the extra plate back in the cupboard, her mother intervened and said, "No, don't put that away. We have a guest coming."

As if on cue the doorbell rang. Sherry giggled like a giddy schoolgirl and cheered, "That's him now."

Sherry pulled and tugged at her shirt to create a better view of cleavage and hints of her black lace bra before she dashed towards the door. Matilda watched and began to wonder if her mother was seeing someone new. It had been months since she had brought home a man and with the way she was acting, there must have been something special about this one.

Matilda scooped rice into a cup then tipped it onto a plate to form a mound in the center. As she repeated the process on the second and third plate, she heard his voice and felt a knot form in her gut.

"Sherry, you look good," Kevin said with the o's of 'good' drawn out a little too long.

"Matilda, look who's here," Sherry said as she guided Kevin into the kitchen.

"Hey!" Kevin said, "What smells so good?"

"It's a special dish. It's from Peru," Sherry replied with feigned intelligence.

Kevin peered at the mixture in the skillet and took in a deep savoring whiff. "Mmmm. Looks good. So it's like, fajitas?"

"That's what I thought!" Sherry said with a laugh as she parked herself in a chair at the table. "Matilda is always cooking something. She knows the way to a man's heart."

"No, not fajitas. Not tacos," Matilda responded as she scooped the mix onto a plate. "Sit."

Matilda carried two prepared plates to the table and placed one in front of Kevin and the other in front of her mother. She noted the puzzled look that crossed Sherry's face as she complained, "You put the fries in with the meat 'n stuff."