chapter 7

For Valentine's Day, Shawn planned a trip to Paris.

I knew what was coming next. I could smell it.

He asked if he could treat me to lunch one day.

Oh, boy.

This was gonna be it.

I nearly leapt outta my chair when he asked me.

He showed me a picture of it and burst out into tears and sweat.

"You can't take her down dark alleyways wearing a thang like that, you hear me?"

He just laughed.

"As my wife, I will always protect her."

That was enough for me.

I drove those two love birds to the airport and watched my daughter waddle her way to the terminal, the contrast of her Herculean man beside her an absolute shock. Tiny white girls would pass him and shoot a second glance at his figure, and then his rotund companion. They were confused and jealous. I liked to imagine that he'd fatten them jealous bitches up too.

I would later find out that Shawn had booked them three seats for the flight. Dani would tell me it was so that they could cuddle and stretch out, but I knew it's cuz that man knew she wasn't fitting her wagon into one of those tiny airplane seats. (I've always needed a seat extender, but Dani? That must have been a new experience for her...)

I had put what I had seen in the kitchen outta my mind. He was a good boy, who cares if he liked a little junk in the trunk? As long as they were happy.

Dani was texting me photos of the sights and food they was eating. It was a barrage of everything. Photos of her at a Cafe, walking down the street, all with some sort of pastry in her hands. I saw on her Instagram that she was drinking champagne from the bottle and smoking a cigarette. I did not care for that.

I had a good chuckle how in the photos, there was always one pedestrian looking at my girl with a sour face. "Big fat American" was what their eyes read. Damn right she was.

She called me one afternoon SCREAMIN.

"MAMA I'M GETTIN MARRIEEEEEED!"

I screamed right back.

"WAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA. To who?"

She facetimed me and showed me the rock that I had already seen. I had never seen my girl so happy. She was bouncing.

"Easy child, if you keep hopping like that you're gonna fall out of your top."

They said their goodbyes, and I welcomed him to the family. They quickly rushed off the phone to go drink more and fuck like rabbits.

"We want to get married quickly, we don't want to drag it out," Dani babbled, "I'm thinking...sometime in the next 4-6 months?"

I guffawed. "What's your rush girlie?"

A devilish smile crept on my girls face that I couldn't quite place.

"Oh, no reason. Just don't want to waste any time."

Shawn looked at her, and I saw him gulp.

"Love you mama."

"Love you, Dani DooDoo." I chimed back.

As they hung up, my stomach turned. My girl was getting married! I called my sister, I called my friends, I called my church, I called everyone.

I had never been so happy in my whole life. Their love was infectious!

The picture she put up on her facebook was pure magic. Dani had the ring hand thrust forward, her leg kicked up behind her, and Shawn's arms around her waist.

I couldn't help but notice how his palms hovered just off her belly and the top of her backside. It was as if he was showing the world markers of what was to come next.