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"I know you're just trying to help. And it is helping, as hard as it might be to see it from my responses. I'm just nervous because I don't want anything to mess up what Oji and I have going."

"That's understandable," Ruth said. "I don't know if you've noticed that you two have been getting lots of admiring stares from people today. They're watching y'all almost as much as they're gazing at the couple who actually got married. Is that getting to you at all?"

"It's very thoughtful of you to notice," Martha replied. In the preceding months, she had grown accustomed to the endless inquiries about her future with one of Macon's most eligible bachelors, but attending a wedding with him in her neighboring hometown of Edin seemed to increase the usual interest in the couple. "Oji and I pick up on the looks too. I don't mind them so much, but it is a little weird when people make comments to us. Can you believe Sister Johnson told us she expects to hear about another Gardin wedding soon? She is always getting in somebody's business. The first lady of the church should know better than saying that to us at a wedding, of all places! She—"

"Hold up," Mary said. "Have y'all started talking about getting married? As much as we've prepared for today, you never mentioned that. Not once!"

Martha thought carefully before answering. She didn't want to be untruthful, but she also didn't want to let on more than she was willing to share. Her sister and Ruth knew her well enough to read between the lines if she said too much, and she didn't want to seem shallow.

Although Oji hadn't explicitly agreed to it, they had talked about the future, and Martha had a feeling he was thinking about proposing. They had daily talks about issues that popped up in their families and in their relationship, as well as things at work. He had asked Martha's opinion about an offer he received to purchase his real-estate investment company, and he gave her objective advice about her role as the medical consultant for the teaching kitchen in Mary's new restaurant. Martha felt as if she and Oji had become each other's confidantes, and she valued the friendship at the foundation of their romantic connection.

Martha loved Oji, but, so help her, she also viewed their potential union as a fast track up the social ladder she so desperately wanted to ascend. Gardin Family Enterprises had done quite well over the past ten years, but Martha grew up comfortably not wealthy. She looked up to Eve, who had been born into one of Macon's wealthiest families.

By marrying Eve's son, Martha would achieve her dream of being part of a power couple, which would provide the status and influence she craved. And those things not only would bring her personal prestige but also could help with her work. As a Black female physician, Martha faced a myriad of daily challenges in her quest to improve health outcomes among people who were disproportionately affected by health conditions and had very limited access to health services. She had learned early in her career that it took more than goodwill to make change. She needed to know the right people who could help open the right doors.

"I've dropped a few hints, and I think he caught them. He's started to say we a lot when talking about stuff. And remember him giving me this for my birthday?" Martha asked as she extended her arm to show off the gold bracelet with three large freshwater pearls that adorned her wrist. "It's by a brand named Isshi. And it's called the Someday bracelet. I found the website where he bought it from, and the description said something like 'Embrace what will be.' Do you think he was thinking about that and, uh... us...when he picked it out?"

"Maybe?" Mary said, with the inflection of someone who didn't want the responsibility of chiming in. "Or maybe he just liked the bracelet. I don't know."

"Time will tell," Ruth said. As she spoke, the string lights in the trees and those forming a canopy in the pavilion switched on, illuminating the expansive area on the estate under the cloudy skies.

"Talk about timing!" Mary proclaimed. "Apparently, Ruth is onto something," she said with a giggle.

Martha leaned back on the sofa. She clasped her hands and drew them to her chin. Everything she desired seemed so close that she could almost touch it. But she felt like it was just beyond her reach, and she suspected Eve Greenwald might have a little something to do with that.

"I've never dated a guy whose mom didn't love me," Martha said. "Usually, the mom is all in from the first time she hears about me, but the guy takes some time to figure out what he wants. Even when I made some recommendations about Mr. Greenwald's health, Oji's mom was polite but didn't warm up to me. I just can't get a good read on her. That's why I was hoping y'all would be able to help me figure her out."

"What did Oji say after you brought up the health stuff about his dad?" Ruth asked.

Martha tilted her head. "He actually said his mom and I are a lot alike, but I don't really see it."

"Is that so?" Ruth asked. "Most men are the last ones to see the similarities between their mom and the woman they're dating. So if he sees it and admits it, my guess is it's probably very true."

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