Page 48 of Forever Mine

Chapter 17

Angel violated all our table rules as she chatted with Mom at dinner. Both elbows rested on the place mat while she talked a mile per minute.

“And Uncle Scott said he’s going to show me some other stuff when he comes back.”

Laying a hand on her arm, I chided gently, “Don’t talk with food in your mouth.”

She nodded, was silent for a bit as she chewed and then picked up a half minute later, waving a lettuce leaf.

“I know, Mommy, but I have to tell Grandma this stuff before Renée comes and we start playing.”

Tonight, we had a double girls' night. Rita and I would go out together, while Mom watched Angel and Renée for us. The girls loved having sleepovers, especially when Mom supervised them. Between the two of them, they’d convince Mom to let them have more of everything than was good for them.

I didn’t bother to remind Angel that she talked to Mom all the time, since she picked her up from school most days. She’d only come up with some other reason to continue talking.

Scott was probably on the way home now. He'd promised to text me when he arrived in Miami. He’d barely been gone two hours, but I missed him already, which didn’t sit well with me. I stayed away from relationships because of what I was going through now. An independent woman didn’t need a man to make her complete. Yet, Scott had dug his way in deeper than I thought. This restlessness in my spirit made me out of sorts and I made up my mind I was going to have a good time with Rita.

Someone knocked at the door, and I crossed the living room and opened it.

“Hi, Auntie,” Renée said and hustled past me. Her hair was pulled into a puff on top of her head that bobbed as she moved.

By the time I answered, she was seated at the dining table talking with Angel. Both girls leaned toward each other as if sharing secrets. They both went to the same school, but nobody would have known it by the way they were acting.

“You ready?” Rita asked, standing inside the doorway.

“Yeah, let me get my purse.”

When I returned from the bedroom, Rita had promised Mom we’d have a great time.

“So where are we going?” I asked when we pulled out in her car—a Suzuki Swift identical to the one my mother drove.

“Since we haven’t had a real heart to heart lately, and I want to hear all about Scott, I figured we’d go to the gaming lounge and have a few drinks.”

I looked across at her. “You expect to hear me talking to you in all that noise?”

“The restaurants and gaming rooms aren’t as noisy. It’s the disco that’s deafening.”

I threw her a warning glance. “I hope you don’t have dancing in your plans. I’m not in the mood.”

Rita laughed. “Your mood and being out and about aren’t gonna mesh. You better get your head right or I’m going to think Scott took your mojo with him.” She frowned and gave me another glance. “Speaking of which, you didn’t tell me he was white. That picture of the two of you knocked me sideways.”

“What difference does it make? Are you sure? I could have sworn … ”

“Nope. I would have remembered something like that.”

The streets were still busy, and she waited until she made it through a four-way crossing before sliding me a sly smile. “The two of you are cute together, though. Taking selfies and all of that.”

“We were just fooling around the other night—”

“I hope that isn’t all you’re doing by now.”

The thought of what we’d already been busy with made my skin flush at the memory. “Come on, Rita.” I feigned innocence, hoping she wouldn’t dig deeper. “We haven’t known each other that long.”

“You’re just about at what ... the six-week mark?”

“Yeah.”

Now, she gave me a wicked grin. “That’s plenty of time for some people.”

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