Cornbread & Crossroads

“This committee’s purpose is for all options to be presented. Even the hard ones.” She pointed between herself and David. “We want to help no matter what.”
Clementine wrote a few things down before saying anything. “I will add this to the notes to present to the council. I believe I speak for all of us here that we appreciate the information, but at this time we need to find alternative housing without creating a bigger problem. Thanks for everything and especially for your time. See y’all tonight at the park.”
With a bright smile, my cousin adjourned the meeting. Blythe stayed behind to clarify a few things with Clementine before she waved a quick goodbye to me and rushed off to continue helping with our housing situation. I hugged David around the shoulders, knowing how much he craved a touch of friendship and approval. After receiving assurances that what he said wasn’t bad, he left the room with less weight on his shoulders. I waited for everyone else to leave so I could finally congratulate my cousin.
“You did great,” I gushed, releasing her from a long hug. “Especially with your mom. I gotta admit, I almost whooped and hollered when you stood up to her, Clem. Not in a million trillion bazillion years did I think I’d ever witness such courage.”
My cousin chuckled and fussed with her stack of papers to cover up her embarrassed joy. “Believe me, there was a time where I thought I’d never find my own voice. But living my life with Tucker has allowed me to…I don’t know. But things feel different.”
“It’s allowed you to grow. To blossom into the person you were always meant to be,” I finished for her, squeezing my arm around her shoulders. “I’d offer to buy you some coffee and something deliciously sinful to celebrate at Sweet Tooths, but I actually forgot to prepare something for the potluck. I need to hustle home and whip up some cornbread for tonight.”
“Well, if you can also whip up a glass of sweet tea for me, then I’d be happy to accompany you to your place,” she offered. “I don’t want to miss out on our gabfest, especially after what happened today.”
In less than fifteen minutes, Clementine sat at the small table in my kitchen while I warmed up my two cast-iron skillets in the oven so the crust of my cornbread would be nice and crispy. While they heated, I mixed together the rest of the ingredients to pour in once the iron was good and hot.
“You don’t add sugar to your mix?” she asked, interrupting our lively discussion about the possibility of a fairy mound.
I whistled long and low. “Ooh, no. Nana would threaten me with one of these here heavy skillets if I did. She taught me to use a stone-milled cornmeal rather than a heavily manufactured one that’s ground too fine and loses its flavor. Trust me, my cornbread won’t need the sugar.” I handed her the bag of cornmeal so she could smell it.
“Can I tell you a secret?”
“Always,” I assured her, stopping my mixing and giving her my full attention.
Clementine leaned forward and spoke in a loud whisper, “Mom uses a store-bought mix most of the time.”
I widened my eyes in mock horror. “No!”
My cousin giggled. “And she never uses a cast-iron skillet. Just a regular baking tin. Which is probably why hers never tastes that good.” She covered her mouth with both hands as if knowing she’d let out a huge family secret.
It warmed every inch of my heart to know that my mama and grandmother taught me right. A tiny, petty part of me took pleasure in being able to create something that my aunt couldn’t.
I crossed my heart with my fingers. “I’ll never tell her what you told me. You’re already out of her good graces for kicking her out of the meeting. And she probably hates that you’re here, slumming it with me.”
Clementine’s smile dropped a little. “I don’t know what it takes to be in her good graces. Or if she has any at all to begin with.” She let out a long sigh. “But spending time with you is non-negotiable. It’s one of my favorite things to do.”
Not that long ago, my cousin had been a stranger to me. An instrument of frigid standoffishness wielded by my aunt to wound me. I never expected for Clementine’s marriage to my former fiancé to be the catalyst of healing between us.
“It’s one of my favorite things, too, Clem,” I added with warmth. “But I wish your mother wouldn’t bother you so much.”
My cousin drained her tea, the cubes of ice clinking against the glass. “If you think she’s gonna be upset by me keeping her out of today’s meeting, what do you think’ll happen when she finds out that Tucker and I are going to move back into his old place and give up the Hawthorne’s family homestead to house more newcomers?”
Her admission almost made me drop my mixing bowl. She rescued it from a fall, her eyes sparkling at my reaction. With her hand, she closed my gaping mouth, took the wooden spoon from me, and finished blending the ingredients.
“Now, let’s add one more thing to bother Mother,” Clementine said with a little glee fueling her. “Teach me how to make the perfect Southern cornbread.”

Chapter Three
Music floated down the street from the park while I walked with Beatrice. Beau hovered nearby in his bat form, flying with the three pixies who were staying with me. Nug, Mug, and Bug would zip ahead a little and zoom back to us, fussing in high-pitched tones. Best I could tell from their body movements, they scolded Bea and me for taking too long.
With a little poof, Beau transformed and shook his head a little, the wisps of hair on his scalp waving in the breeze. “I like them, but they’re a little too energized for me. I might be a wee bit too old to