Tonya stared at her husband, perplexed as he stared at the tables before him and looked questionably at something she couldn’t put a finger on. She watched a bit longer, hoping he would move and give her a clue to what was running through his head. Instead, he shrugged his shoulders and walked towards her in the kitchen.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing, just making sure there was enough room at the table.”

“We can always set up the folding table at the end if you like. It will make it a little tight in there, but if you think we need it, we can do it.”

“We should be okay. I was thinking about how much space Uncle James and Jamarr take when they eat.”

Tonya laughed and returned to slicing the vegetables. The couple was hosting Father’s Day dinner in their new home, and her husband was nervous for reasons she couldn’t answer. He’d spent nearly three hours shopping for groceries and changed the menu multiple times before deciding that he would barbecue some of the meat and cook the rest.

“We can always just set up outside if you think that will work better?”

“Nah, the weatherman says there’s a chance for isolated thunderstorms this afternoon.”

He was looking up towards the clouds, but there were no windows near where he stood. He turned and headed out the back door to check the food on the grill, and Tonya said a little prayer to help them both get through the day.

Father’s Day was a huge deal in the Flagg family; the men in the family rotated the hosting duties, and this year, Brandon stepped in for the time. He and Tonya were married the year before and purchased their first home in March, so it felt natural to host the men from both families for Father’s Day. Tonya thought it may be too soon to host such a huge gathering, but Brandon felt it was only right to open their home and celebrate the men who were not only great fathers, but husbands and brothers, and of good counsel to him.

The guest list was as follows: his parents, her parents, his Uncle James and Aunt Theresa, his brother Jamarr, along with his wife, Sherry, and their twins. Also in attendance were Tonya’s brother, Twinkie, whose real name was Thomas Jr., her sister, Sonya, and her husband, Corey, along with their two kids. Of course, he had to invite Tonya’s uncle, Alvin, and his wife, Alma, as well as his best friend, Shawn, and his wife, Syleena, and their kids.

Brandon decided it was important to celebrate not only the men in his family, but also his wife’s. He turned this year into the biggest Father’s Day celebration the family had seen. The only problem was that his house wasn’t big enough to hold all the guests. He secretly hoped that a few would decline the invitation, but everyone indicated they were coming, and now he was back in his dining room, trying to figure out how to seat everyone.