Sitting here imagining my characters eating lunch with me. Tess would be using a knife and fork lest she soil her gloves; Bashelle would be telling “cheesy” jokes; Martina would be peeking out the window to see what’s going on; Verdandi would be on her third sandwich and ready for her fourth, to fuel her teenage appetite; Neviah and her kitchen boys would be serving fresh pots of tea. And Hugh would be sitting to the side, sipping slowly from a porcelain teacup, hungrily watching Tess’s lips.








