Charisma watched Michelle's eyes light up with enthusiasm and wistfully remembered when she'd felt the same way. "Really? Oh, thank you Senator Tagherty. I'd like that... I'd like that a lot."

"Aunt Chari, if you've finished charming my girlfriend, could I have her back now? Adam and I need her to finish this race."

"Harley!" Michelle exclaimed with embarrassment, slapping him on the shoulder. Charisma just chuckled.

"Remind me to get you a card after dinner, all right, Michelle?"

"Thank you, Senator Tagherty. Thank you so much."

Charisma just smiled and nodded her head before moving over to where four more children were working on a huge puzzle from four different sides. Each child stopped for a moment to speak to her, but mostly, they were too engrossed in trying to fit pieces in to give her more than cursory attention. Instead of interrupting the ones who were reading, she walked around the room and checked on them, smiling when each of them at least paused to say 'hi'.

When she reached the door, Patrick's voice stopped her again. "Satisfied, Little Girl?"

She smirked. "Yes, Daddy. Now let me go see how long until dinner." Then she disappeared down the hallway in the direction of the kitchen. The boys watched her go and Hunter and Patrick exchanged a significant glance. The rest turned back to the discussion... all except Kent. He followed Charisma into the hallway, catching her hand and pulling her to a stop.

Charisma cocked her head in his direction and gave him a half smile, though she left her hand in his. Kent squeezed it lightly, before releasing his grip. "Are you all right, Charisma? You've seemed off-balance since you got up this morning."

"Yes... I'm sorry, Kent. Not sleeping last night really threw me off."

"Anything I can help with?" wondering what had kept her up... especially since he was confident she'd been sleeping well enough until then, even with them being forced to share a bed.

She smiled at him and cupped his cheek briefly. "No. I just need to keep a closer watch on my caffeine intake, I think," removing her hand from his face.

Kent nodded. "I did the same thing the other night," he confided, "when Mama served that molten chocolate cake." He paused, and the silence grew awkward. He cleared his throat. "Speaking of... you'd better get to the kitchen before Mama comes looking for you."

She nodded. "Thanks, Kent." Then she headed back to the kitchen without looking back. Kent watched her go, wondering again what had upset her badly enough to put the pensive look on her face. With a sigh, he resolved to keep an eye on her. Then he returned to the playroom to wait with the rest to be called to the dinner table.

************

"So there really is a difference," Danielle commented softly when Esmeralda was done. "In how you perceive your relationship and how you treat it."

"I believe there is, yes," Esmeralda said softly.

"I'd be tempted to agree with you," Margaret agreed. "Especially given your penchant for studying human nature," her words causing those who'd missed the conversation that morning to look at her. "Don't look at me like that - she's probably a better observer than Kay," causing every eye in the room to turn towards Kay as she straightened up from her quiet conversation with Brianna. She smiled and cocked an eyebrow, sauntering over to join the other women in their discussion.

"That's quite a compliment, Margaret." She focused on Esmeralda. "May I ask what it is you do for a living, Esmeralda?"

Esmeralda met Kay's dark eyes directly. "I'm a custodian in Charisma's and Brianna's Senate Building. I take care of their floor, in point of fact."

"Have you always been a custodian?"

"Since I started working, yes."

Kay smiled kindly and looked around the room with interest. "Margaret is right. I may have the schooling and the knowledge, but Esmeralda has the experience." She turned back to Esmeralda again. "You could probably write a book."

"Again... no thank you. I actually like what I do."

"Order out of chaos," Kay murmured.

"Oh," Theresa moaned. "You must be an angel... or a miracle worker. If you were a freelancer, I'd hire you in a New York minute. - I could use some order in the chaos that having three boys under one roof is." She turned to Okasa. "And can you believe Hunter is talking about wanting another?"

Okasa smirked. "I hope you don't think I wouldn't encourage him. It would be nice to have more babies around here again."

"Not from me!" Theresa exclaimed, garnering laughter from everyone in the room. "My boys are closer to being out of the house than they are to being in diapers. I would prefer to let them and their cousins have the next round of babies in a few years."

"I'm not gonna disagree with Theresa, Mama... sorry," Danielle offered.

"Me either," Cindy piped up. "Sorry, Mama. You're going to be one shy of a dozen in the grandkids department unless Charisma decides to have another baby."

"Or Brianna could," Charisma volunteered as she crossed the threshold into the kitchen, glancing Brianna's way briefly before looking around at the women seated around the table and counter bar. "Because Charisma isn't having any more children. One's enough, thanks."

Her sisters-in-law exchanged rolled-eye glances, but didn't bother to argue the point. Instead, Cindy looked at Brianna. "What about it, Bri? Have you ever wanted kids?"

Brianna blinked and removed her stare from Charisma, wondering what she had seen in those blue depths. She turned her attention to Cindy and her question. "No... no thank you. You've all been kind enough to let me play 'Auntie' to all of yours and that's enough for me. I don't want to be responsible for someone who depends on me for everything twenty-four hours a day until they're grown. It's selfish, but I like my life... even as a temporary politician," she added with a smile, hoping to lighten the atmosphere just a little.

Okasa snorted. "Until they're grown?? Brianna, in case you haven't noticed," motioning around the room, "they still come home when they're grown and they bring more with them when they come," garnering smiles from the girls and a chuckle from Margaret and Kay. "The biggest difference is that at some point they all go back to their own homes until the next visit - which I cherish, by the way... both parts. It's a shame you don't want to be a mother, though - I think you'd make a great one. After all, you've got years of 'Auntie' practice under your belt."

"I miss not having children," Esmeralda offered into the silence and feeling Saphira come up behind her and wrapping her in strong arms. She leaned into Saphira's body and turned to Okasa. "Thank you for inviting us into your home today and allowing us to be a part of your holiday celebration. I can't tell you what it means to both of us to be included like this."

"I suppose now would be a good time to tell you that this is like a lifetime commitment in this family," Charisma said with a smile in her voice. "Just ask the girls - they came home with the boys once and now they're expected here every holiday AND for weekly dinners."

"Yes, but they're family," Saphira said. "We're just...."

"... family," Okasa assured them, reaching over the table to squeeze one of Saphira's hands that was still wrapped around Esmeralda's body. "You may not have been born into it and you may not have married into it, but I like to think that we can choose parts of our family as well. We chose Brianna, we chose Kay and now we're choosing you."

Blue and green eyes widened; Esmeralda tilted her head back and Saphira angled her head down until their glances could meet. The women in the room watched their silent conversation in awe, not surprised when tear-filled green eyes looked back at Okasa a long moment later.

"Thank you, Okasa... all of you," as she met the eyes of each woman in the kitchen. "We can't tell you what this means...."

"You don't have to," Brianna assured them both with a smile. "We know."

Saphira chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you do."

"Well," Okasa said, clearing her throat and beaming. "I think one of you needs to go tell Paddy it's time to carve the turkey," looking pointedly at Esmeralda and Saphira. Saphira tapped lightly on Esmeralda's belly.

"You go get Patrick. I'll sharpen the knife and help Okasa start serving up. I'm the professional, remember?"

"Just be careful not to sharpen it too much," Esmeralda cautioned as she slipped from Saphira's grip. "You know what happened the last time...." Saphira flushed when all eyes turned her way.

"That wasn't my fault," she muttered.

"Be that as it may, please do not give the knife a razor's edge. Not everyone is as proficient wielding a blade as you are."

"I kinda like to hear that story," Brianna said as Esmeralda exited the room to fetch Patrick.

"Me too," Charisma and Kay agreed together. Then Charisma continued alone. "However, I'm not going to ask the knife wielder to tell it. Family or not, I'm not that brave... or that reckless."

Brianna and Kay snorted and it wasn't long before their chuckles caused Charisma to break into laughter as well. The rest started asking for the joke, but they couldn't stop laughing long enough to reply, and looking at one another or Saphira only made them laugh harder. Saphira, who had heard every word, maintained a straight face and just kept sharpening.

It was to this scene that Esmeralda returned with a grinning Patrick in tow. He was thrilled that Okasa had made them officially part of the family. He looked around the kitchen full of cackling women and shook his head. After all, the family could use more laughter, right?

Then he crossed over to where the turkey was resting on the counter and accepted the blade from Saphira. The sooner he was done cutting, the sooner they could eat. And judging by the sharpness of the knife, Saphira knew her business. He nodded his thanks and started slicing, only pausing when he realized everyone had stopped and was watching him intently.

"All right, the lot of you - find something else to do. You're giving me performance anxiety!"

This caused another round of laughter, but several of them took his words to heart and started moving food to the dining room, while the remainder went to round up husbands and children to wash up for the meal. It was finally time to eat.


Chapter LXI

Okasa took care of seating everyone, spacing everyone out so they were mixed together well. Only Adam was seated next to his mother - the rest of the children were interspaced among the adults they weren't related to parentally.

She had put Saphira on her right and Esmeralda with Patrick, which of course put them at opposite ends of the table. It also unintentionally gave them the best unobstructed views they could hope for short of being seated on the end.

Brianna and Kay were seated across from one another in the middle of the table, and Kent was across from Saphira on Okasa's left hand. Adam held that place of importance on the other end, putting him between Patrick and Charisma, sitting in a regular chair with several thick tomes beneath him as he felt he was too grown up to use the high chair any longer.

Francesca - Forrest's youngest child though she was still several years older than Adam - was seated next to Esmeralda. Esmeralda felt her stare all through grace, and as soon as the family repeated the 'Amen', she turned to the little girl, even as she reached for the dish in front of her.

"Is something wrong, Francesca?"

The little girl tilted her head and frowned. "Mommy said Aunt Theresa said you was an angel. You do kinda look like the picture of the angel that's in my Catechism class," narrowing her eyes and peering at Esmeralda closely. She studied her face, then craned her neck to look behind her, then returned her gaze to Esmeralda's face once more. Esmeralda never lost her calm demeanor; she simply arched a questioning eyebrow in Francesca's direction. Francesca giggled.

"You look like Aunt Chari," pointing to the woman across the table. Charisma looked up with a cocked eyebrow and smirked. It was all Esmeralda could do to keep a straight face. Francesca looked behind Esmeralda once more and frowned again. "Where's your wings?" she asked loudly during a lull in the conversations going on around the table.

Cindy blushed and sighed. "Francesca!"

The little girl looked at her with an innocent expression. "Yes, Mommy?"