Page 67 of Lovetown, USA
She sighs loudly. “You’re so negative. My God. Me and your daddy…we just don’t take ourselves too seriously. That’s how you get through life. You gotta find the joy in things.”
“There’s nothing joyful about confusion, and that’s what this is.”
A man at the table next to me looks over. I give him a nod and lower my voice.
“I watched y’all go through a painful divorce only for you to be out here hopping in each other’s beds and going on trips together. How do you think that made me feel? How it makes me feel now?” I shake my head. “Sorry, I’m not celebrating that. What did you used to say? God is not the author of confusion.”
“Well, the Bible says that.”
“And you repeated it!”
“Relax,” she laughs. “Loosen up. You’re so uptight now, my goodness.”
“I’m good,” I say bitterly, trying my best to steady my voice before it breaks.
“Mm hm. You talked to Reginald lately?”
I nearly choke on my latte. “Why in the world would I ever talk to him again after what he did?”
“I still see his mother around,” Mama explains. “She always asks about you.”
Fuck her and the uterus her son rode in on. “Tell her I’m fine.Now.”
“I only asked because maybe…maybe he’s changed. People can surprise you.”
“Yeah, he surprised me, alright. Once was enough.”
There’s a pause before she shifts gears again. “How’s the assignment going?”
Finally, something I can talk about without feeling depressed. “Better than I expected. I think I found a real story here. Some kind of scam or corruption.”
She bursts out laughing. “Of courseyou’dturn something sweet into a conspiracy. So, what are we calling the article? Lovergate?”
“Gee, Mama, thanks for being so proud of me.”
“Oh, come on,” she laughs again. “I’m teasing.”
“You know I’m an artist. I’m sensitive about my sh—stuff.”
“I know, I know. Well I look forward to reading about the grand conspiracy.”
“As you should. It’s gonna be good. It might even get me out of this hole I’m in.”
Mama doesn’t respond to that, but I already know how she feels. As weird as she and my father are about their divorce, one thing I can say about that woman is that she always has my back. When I lashed out at Reginald, she cheered me on all the way. Some might call that enabling, especially since it cost me my career, but I call it a mama bear doing what she does for her cub.
After our call ends, I look up Mayor Daphne on a hunch, surprised to find that she has an MBA in finance. No law background to speak of. That’s a bit unusual for a politician.
But it makes sense. Mayor Daphne seems to be all about the numbers and the money that comes with them.
My instincts prickle as a smile breaks across my face.
I think I just found another clue.
22
Trey
Just when I thinkit’s safe to take a breather, Asia cracks open the door and leans in, her smile wide.
