Chapter Thirteen
Lucinda
I know damn well I didn’t let Aldris talk me into this, I thought, changing outfits for the tenth time.
Everything had come along well for me. I enjoyed my classes, did wonderful on my new job, and Aldris and I were good. Then he decided he wanted me to meet his mother because she’d begun questioning him about missing his Sunday visits with her. He was usually with me on Sundays since that was my official rest day. Having Aldris at the house with Nadia and me had become routine, and our relationship had flourished. I loved the way he just completed me. Even the simple things, like our corny-ass inside jokes, solidified our relationship. Got a chick like me feeling that Ella Mai for real. Yeah, “Boo’d Up” was definitely in heavy rotation on my Spotify playlist.
Still, I didn’t think I was ready to meet his mother. What if she was pissed because I was Hispanic? Let’s face the facts on this one. I may have been from the hood and had all black friends, but the only thing that granted me was a ghetto pass. It in no way “entitled” me to have a black woman’s most precious commodity—a black man. Black friends or not, I realized that most black women are offended when a black man dates outside of his race, especially if they have someone like Aldris on their arm.
You don’t think so? Let me just state the facts one more time. What if she thought I was too low-class for her son because of my lack of education and upbringing? What if she didn’t appreciate that I had a ready-made family? And heaven forbid she find out about Spanish Fly! Now all of that may have been cool if the chick were black, but let her be of another ethnicity and the first thing that came to mind was that timeless comment, “A good-looking, successful black man wouldn’t dare date a sista with all those issues.”
I’d heard the comments in my own neighborhood from people I grew up around. They’ve seen Aldris pull up in his BMW 750i, with his fresh-to-death outfits and killer good looks, and instantly I was public enemy number one. Fuck that I grew up in the hood right along with them. I was used to the hate. If it weren’t because of Aldris, it would be for another reason, so I embraced my relationship despite my insecurities. However, meeting his mom was some next-level shit, and all those same insecurities came raging back.
“Mami, are you and Mr. Aldris going on another fancy date?” Nadia asked me as she sat on the bed looking at me.
“No, it’s not really a date at all,” I said, looking in the mirror.
“So why are you trying on all those clothes?”
I turned to face her and smiled. “I’m meeting Aldris’s mom today, and I want to look presentable.”
“What is presidual?”
I giggled. “It’s ‘presentable,’ and it means to look appropriate. Or you could say to dress the part.”
“Oh, like on Halloween when I have to put on costumes or we won’t get any candy,” Nadia related.
Kids say the darnedest things! “Yes,” I laughed. “There’s a time and a place for everything. You wouldn’t wear your Halloween costume at Christmas, right?” She giggled at that. “What do you think?” I asked her, settling on the jeans and a short-sleeved batwing top.
“I think you looked prettier in the dress,” Nadia told me.
“You may be right,” I said. I snapped my fingers and changed into the spaghetti-strap sundress. “Now what do you think?”
“I like it! Don’t worry, Mami. Mr. Aldris’s mami is going to like it too.”
I hugged her. From your lips to God’s ears.
About five minutes later, Aldris knocked on the door. “Hey, two of my favorite women in the whole wide world. Are you ready?” he asked, placing a soft kiss on my forehead.
Nadia sighed. “Not me. Peter gets on my nerves. He thinks he’s my daddy. I know he’s my uncle, but we’re almost the same age.”
I leaned on Aldris’s shoulder. “Ay. The woes of having a younger brother and a daughter.”
Looking at me with admiration, he smiled. “You look beautiful,” Aldris complimented me. “We could just bring her with us.”
I shook my head. “I want to make it through this initial visit myself. Next time we’ll bring Nadia.”
“Are you nervous?” he asked in shock.
“As a whore in church who screwed the pastor last night.”
“Mami, what’s a whore?” Nadia asked me.
“None of your beeswax. Go get your bag,” I scolded her. She pouted and walked away, and Aldris laughed.
He could tell by my expression that I was not amused. “Hey, you said it in front of her, not me. You know Nadia has a supersonic ear.”
“And a big mouth,” I added, grabbing my purse.
“She’s just inquisitive,” Aldris defended her.
“Mr. Aldris, what’s inquisify?” Nadia asked, emerging again.
“It’s ‘inquisitive,’ and that is exactly what you are,” I chimed in.
“What am I if I’m inquistafive?” Nadia asked again.
“It means you ask a lot of questions,” Aldris explained.
“And that means you’re nosy,” I added. “Now, let’s go.”
Nadia looked at Aldris as if to ask what my problem was, and he just shrugged his shoulders, and we left.
At my mom’s, Nadia and Peter started up their arguments before they could get in the house good. We waved goodbye, and I told my brother Jose to look out for them.
“You really are on edge about meeting my mom?” Aldris asked.
“Kinda,” I replied, staring out of the window.
“Only kinda?”
Turning my nervous face to him, I confessed, “Okay, I’m petrified. How did you know?”
“Well, you were a little snappy with Nadia back at the house, and you haven’t said two words to me since we left your mom’s.”
Exhaling the nervous energy, I admitted, “Yeah, I know. I just don’t think I’m ready for this.”
“So you tell me. When would be a good time?” he asked.
Leave it to him to hit me with a question that I had not considered an answer for. “I really do not know, Aldris.”
“That makes today as good a day as any.” He rubbed my knee with his hand for encouragement. “My mom’s a sweetheart. She will love you.”
“So you say.”
“Have I ever lied to you before?”
With an eye roll, I had to admit, “No, you haven’t.”
“So trust me now. You’ll be fine,” he assured me.
With my fake smile plastered on my face, I gave him a flash of my dazzling whites so that he wouldn’t see that, regardless of what he said, I was utterly and completely terrified. “Have you told your mom anything about me?”
He shrugged. “Only that I’ve been dating a beautiful woman who used to work for me. She knows your name is Lucinda, and she knows that you must keep me happy since I’m staying away from her cooking,” he joked.
“You haven’t told her any major details?”
“Major details? She’s my mother, not a detective.” He laughed. “No. My mom knows she raised me to make good decisions in that area of my life. She’s not a snoop. I mean really, baby, we’re just having Sunday dinner with my mom. It’s not a federal investigation.”
“I sure as hell feel indicted,” I mumbled.
“Huh?” he asked since he was unable to interpret what I’d said.
“Nothing,” I answered, opting to leave the conversation alone, and we rode the last fifteen minutes in silence.
We pulled up to a beautiful home that sat on a freshly cut, manicured green lawn. The house had amazing curb appeal with its elegant circular driveway, where a C-class Mercedes was parked. She may not have been rich, but from the house, the car, and the neighborhood, she damn sure wasn’t hurting. I could totally see Aldris fitting right into this type of environment. He was born into success and bred to be nothing less. Now I was officially freaked out.
“Hey yo, Mama,” Aldris yelled as we came through the front door. “Where you at? Company in the house!”
Soon a gorgeous, caramel-complexioned woman with almond-shaped brown eyes and long brown hair came around the corner. She appeared to be in her fifties, and Aldris looked just like her. There was no mistaking it: this was his mother.
“I’m right here, Al, so stop yelling through the house.” She grinned and hugged him tightly.
“Yeah, Al,” I joked because I knew he hated that nickname.
“You know I hate that name, Mama.”
“And you know I don’t care. Shut up and let me bask in my hug,” his mother said. Then she stepped back and looked at me. “And you must be Miss Lucinda.”
“Yes, Mom. This is Lucinda Rojas. Lucinda, this is my mother, Lily Sharper,” he introduced us.
I extended my hand for a handshake and greeted her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Sharper. Aldris has told me such great things about you.”
Sweetly, she waved my extended hand away. “We don’t shake hands in this household. We hug,” she said and embraced me. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Lucinda, and please call me Lily.”
“What’s for dinner?” Aldris asked, cutting our introduction short.
His mom laughed. “No ‘How are you doing?’ or anything. Just straight to the food. Can you believe this son of mine?” she asked.
“I’m sorry, Mama. How are you? How’s everything going—”
“We’re having fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, collard greens, black-eyed peas, white rice, cornbread, and banana pudding, and it’s not finished yet,” his mom said, cutting him off.
“Oooh weeee! That’s what I’m talking about,” he exclaimed and planted a kiss on her forehead.
“Lucinda, I hope you’re not one of those salad-eating girls, because we eat soul food in this household.”
His mother’s comic relief tickled and calmed me, causing me to release a chuckle. “No, ma’am. I love soul food.”
“Do you cook?” she asked me.
Now I was getting nervous. I cooked, but mostly Hispanic dishes. Although I could make some mean fried chicken and macaroni and cheese, I usually got all of the other stuff from my girls’ houses. Still, I decided to be honest instead of claiming to be a jack-of-all-trades.
“Um, I dabble with soul food. I must say fried chicken and macaroni and cheese are about as deep as I can get. My specialties are arroz a la cubana, frittatas, and escabeche.”
His mom looked at me and then at Aldris and smiled. “I’m sorry. I don’t know anything about arrow and escape. Oh Lord, child, come with me. We’re going to have to teach you, and then you can maybe teach me your dishes and how to pronounce them.”
Aldris rubbed my shoulders. “Don’t knock it until you try it, Mama. Frittatas are the bomb!”
We all went into the kitchen to help finish up dinner, and that’s when the questions began. Of course, she wanted to know my exact nationality, and she asked a lot about my heritage. Realizing it was my nerves and not any disrespect, I tried not to let it get the best of me.
“I’m going to run to the ladies’ room really quick. You all can go ahead and set the table in the dining room,” Ms. Lily said to us.
“Quick question,” I said as soon as his mom was out of earshot.
“What’s up, baby?” Aldris asked, handing me three plates.
“Have you ever dated outside of your race before?”
“Why does that matter?” He scoffed.
“Does everything have to be a sidebar with you? Can you just answer the question?” I asked, getting a little frustrated.
“When I was in the tenth grade, I dated a girl for three months who was half black and half Dominican, but other than that, all of my girlfriends have been black.”
“Did you tell your mother before today that I’m Hispanic?”
He shrugged. “No, because it doesn’t matter.”
Setting down the plates, I reared back and crossed my arms. “Oh, since when does it not matter to a black woman that a black man is dating outside of his race?”
“Does it matter to you?” he shot at me.
“Of course not.”
“And it doesn’t to me either, so that’s all that matters.” He removed the remaining saucers from the curio, set them on the table, and walked to stand beside me. Lifting my hand into his, he gently urged me to face him. “I can’t help who I am attracted to, and I certainly am not trying to live up to anyone’s standards but my own.”
Still filled with uncertainty, I quizzed him again. “So it’s cool with your mother that I’m not black. Is that what you’re telling me?”
His head fell back as he groaned from my continued line of questioning. His gaze returned to me, and he shrugged. “I haven’t really asked her about it. I guess I’ve never had to, but my mom is cool. She doesn’t care who her kids date as long as they are happy.” He glided his thumbs across the tops of my hands. “And I am happy,” he said, kissing me on the lips. “So stop worrying, okay, beautiful?”
I nodded in agreement, and we continued to set the table without any further questions from me about the subject. Aldris was a chatterbox, and I remained silent, content that it was better for me to be quiet than to keep drilling him for something that appeared to be more an issue for me than him. I only prayed it wasn’t an underlying issue for his mother.
When his mom returned, we all made our plates. After saying grace, his mother lightened the mood by offering plenty of stories of her family. I listened to several different stories about Aldris’s dad and found out a lot about Aldris’s childhood. I even got to see some old photos that I was sure he wished had gotten lost over the years. It felt good watching him and his mom reminisce about the good times. This was the kind of family I wanted so badly, and since I couldn’t have it, I desperately wanted it for Nadia. Aldris seemed to be right about his mom, because she was so welcoming and inviting that I let my guard down and began to feel at home. That was, until she started questioning me on my life.
“How did you and Aldris meet again?” she asked as we ate.
“He actually used to be my supervisor at National Cross.”
“Yes, she was my top employee,” he chuckled.
“You don’t work there any longer?” his mother asked.
“No, I work from home for a group of orthopedic surgeons. Essentially, I do the same job but make a lot more money. It gives me the opportunity to finish college,” I explained.
She flashed a beautiful smile. “Oh, great! What are you working on? Your master’s?”
Here we go. This is what I was afraid of. The expectation. She’d already assumed that I was college educated and was simply furthering that education. This was what I meant by major details. People can act like they don’t matter, but they do. They always matter. I gave Aldris an “I told you so” glare and drank a swig of my lemonade.
“Umm, actually I’m in technical college. I’m earning my associate’s.”
“Okay. That’s wonderful,” his mother said, but it seemed far less enthusiastic than when she thought I was working toward a master’s degree.
“But I’m considering getting my bachelor’s. It just depends on how things go in the household,” I explained, trying to make up for the fact that I really didn’t have anything under my belt.
That’s when she raised her own eyebrow in curiosity. “You aren’t still living with your parents, are you?”
I waved my hands, happy to be able not to disappoint in that area of my life at least. “No, I have my own apartment.”
“I was about to say. I thought you were twenty-one. There are plenty of young people who still live at home, but I always told my sons you have to learn to be independent,” she said with a chuckle.
“Oh yes, I’ve been independent since I was nineteen. It’s just my daughter is getting older now—”
“Daughter?” she asked, shocked. “Well, where is she?”
Open mouth, insert foot. I just knew Aldris didn’t have me up in his mother’s house and had not revealed that I had a child. If I could’ve slid up under the table, I would’ve. There was absolutely no way I would make it out of this dinner unscathed at this point.
Nervously, I answered, “Um, yes, I have a five-year-old daughter named Nadia. She’s at my mother’s house right now, but she lives with me.” I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“So, you had her in high school?” Ms. Lily asked, quickly tabulating her age against mine.
Damn it! My reckless mouth again. Of course, if she didn’t know I had a child, she clearly wouldn’t know that I had her in high school. This night got worse by the second. “Yes, ma’am.”
Aldris reached over and gently gripped my hand. “Lucinda is a great mother and a hard worker. I’m so proud of her for accomplishing everything she has on her own,” Aldris said encouragingly when he noticed the shift in my comfort zone.
“That is wonderful to be able to rise above your obstacles.” She nodded her agreement. “Is Nadia’s father in her life?”
Yep, worse on the way to worst. It was all downhill from here, so why not pour on the remaining bad news? “He’s ordered to pay support, but he’s not a good father to her,” I admitted without going into details.
“It’s such a shame when men don’t take care of their responsibilities,” she remarked, shaking her head.
“I agree,” I said, drinking more of my lemonade, which I wished was wine at this point.
Just then, her doorbell rang. Hell, I was happy for the relief, but Aldris furrowed his brow.
“Who could that be, Mama?” he asked.
She snapped her fingers. “Oh, your friend Mike stopped by here asking about you. He said you hadn’t returned any of his calls. I told him that you had begun dating a young lady, so you were probably just on hiatus. I told him that you and Lucinda were stopping by for dinner today, so he said he’d try to stop by and speak to you. Excuse me. Let me grab that,” she said and backed her chair away from the table.
“Mama, why did you tell him that? This is our time,” Aldris asked, and I noted the irritation in his voice.
She looked at him strangely and scoffed. “Nonsense. You and Mike have been friends since you were in grade school. He’s practically a member of this family.” With that, she rushed off to answer the door.
“Who is Mike?” I asked Aldris, noting his tense demeanor.
He smoothed his hand over the top of his head as he sat back in his chair. A look of uncertainty graced his face as he reached over and caressed my hand. “Don’t freak out, but he’s the one who set me up to see you dance at Club Moet that night.”
Instantly, my palms got sweaty, and my bottom lip began to quiver. There was no way in hell I was going to be able to sit here staring at this dude who knew me as Spanish Fly while I tried to win over Aldris’s mom. She’d already confirmed that Mike was basically an honorary member of the Sharper clan, so there was no battling that. I’d been happy for the break, not realizing I was welcoming the “worst” that I’d been expecting all night. At this point, we were beyond worst. We were at a wreck, a whole-ass train wreck.
“What? Does he know about us?”
Aldris continued grudgingly, “The reason I haven’t talked to him is because I told him about how we knew each other. I had already told him about my crush on you, but after the whole club fiasco, he told me not to get involved with you. I told him that I made my own decisions and that you were more than just a stripper at a club. We exchanged a few words, and that’s the last I spoke to him and the reason I haven’t called him back,” he confessed to me.
My stomach did monkey flips as I could literally hear the steps that his mom and Mike took toward the dining room. Thinking quickly, I tried frantically to plan my escape, but the only way out was the same way in. I bit my bottom lip to quell the wave of nausea that threatened to spew from my mouth and wiped my hands on the handkerchief.
“Don’t be nervous. I got your back,” Aldris whispered to me as if that was supposed to make me feel any better.
Lo and damn behold, not only was it Mike but the other dude who had rained money on me too! I could’ve crawled up somewhere and straight died!
“We are eating in here,” Ms. Lily said as she ushered Mike and the other guy inside.
“Hey, man,” the two guys greeted Aldris.
“Sup, y’all,” he responded unenthusiastically.
“Long time no hear from, Dri baby,” Mike said, patting his shoulder.
“Yeah, you went from not hanging with the fellas to not talking to us either,” the other one added.
“It’s probably because of this beautiful young woman. Stop being rude, and introduce Lucinda to your friends,” Ms. Lily insisted.
“Um, Mike Johnson and Rod Campbell, this is my girlfriend, Lucinda Rojas. Lucinda, this is Mike and Rod.”
“Hello. It’s nice to meet you both,” I said softly.
“It’s nice to formally meet you,” Mike said as he smiled at Rod.
“Yeah, it is,” Rod agreed.
“Do you guys want to sit and eat?” Ms. Lily asked.
“No, Mama. I’m sure they just wanted to speak and leave. Ain’t that right, fellas?” Aldris asked as more of a command.
“Actually, I’m pretty hungry. How about you, Rod?” Mike said.
“I could use a helping of your mom’s good fried chicken and collards,” Rod added.
“Then it’s settled. Have a seat,” Ms. Lily said and got up to set two more plates.
Once Mike and Rod had a place at the table, the phone rang. “I’ll get it. You boys help yourselves,” she said, dashing out to the living room.
“Why are you two here?” Aldris demanded quietly.
“What is she doing here?” Mike retorted, pointing at me.
My mouth flew open at that blow. I had to check and make sure I was still sitting in the seat and awake because I nearly fainted. Torn between embarrassment and anger, I tried to reason with Aldris’s so-called friends. “Look, fellas. I don’t want any problems. I understand this is a weird situation for all of us, but I really do like Aldris,” I said, erring on the side of caution, but I really wanted to fuck up these two hijos de putos.
“And like I told you, Mike, I like Lucinda. There is a lot more to her than you know. This is my choice, and I’m proud of it,” Aldris said sternly to them.
“Oh, so your mom knows your little girlfriend here was the number-one hot show at Club Moet? Are you proud of that?” Rod countered.
“Man, we’ve known you and your family a long time. I don’t know if it was the booty or the español, but you can do so much better,” Mike said, smirking at me.
“Oh, and have two different kids by two different baby mamas like you, Rod? Both of whom didn’t graduate high school and collect welfare for a living? Or would it be like you, Mike, tied down to the same woman for the past five years with three kids and not looking for anything long term because she’s put on some weight and works a minimum-wage job?”
“My point exactly. They were mistakes. The same kind we’re trying to bail you out from, college boy,” Mike fumed.
At this point, my head throbbed, and I rubbed my temples to relieve the ache. “I knew this wasn’t a good idea.”
“See, even she knows.” Mike pointed at me.
“Shut the fuck up,” Aldris said to him. He turned to face me and lifted my chin so that we were eye to eye. “This is me and you. I don’t care what they say or what they think. I know your heart. I know you,” Then he looked at them. “I promise you both gon’ get dealt with later.”
Just then, Aldris’s mom walked back in and noticed the tension. “Is everything all right?” she asked.
“Actually, I really need to go. Ms. Lily, everything was great, but I can’t stay,” I said and scooted my chair back.
“But you haven’t even had dessert yet,” she said to me.
“I thought she was the dessert menu,” Mike laughed, and he and Rod high-fived.
“You know what? Y’all two clowns need to fucking bounce. Now!” Aldris hollered and jumped up.
“What the hell is going on in here?” Ms. Lily asked tensely.
Out of nowhere, tears sprang to my eyes, and I had to get out of there. “Ms. Lily, I’m sorry,” I apologized and ran out of the house.
Inside of Aldris’s car, I cried my eyes out. This was why I didn’t want to date Aldris. This was why I should’ve stuck to my guns on our first date and continued to run for the hills. It was too good to be true. Nothing good ever followed me, and if it did, it never lasted. I had to be a complete idiot to believe I could go from deadbeat-ass Raul to dapper Aldris. But Aldris made me feel as if I were fucking Princess Diana knowing damn well I was more like Cardi B. Hell, and broke Cardi at that. I couldn’t wait for him to bring his ass out of that house so I could go home to my baby, cut my losses, and stay the fuck in my lane.
Although I sat in Aldris’s car for what seemed like forever, I refused to get out and snatch his ass. But if he didn’t come on in the next five minutes, I was calling an Uber. I had my escape mapped out until a knock at the window scared the hell out of me. It was too late to pretend I was asleep since I’d jumped and looked to see who it was. Reluctantly, I rolled down the window.
“Get out of the car,” Ms. Lily commanded. “Let’s take a walk.”
Though I had no desire to do as she’d commanded, I obeyed and got out of the vehicle. We walked into her backyard. She didn’t speak a word, and neither did I. I didn’t know what to say or do. Finally, we stopped at a plant. She watered it, checked the soil, and repositioned it in the sunlight.
The silence was torture, and I needed to get things off my chest before she put me out of her house. “Ms. Lily, I’m sorry—”
“You see this plant?” she asked, pointing to the one she’d finished nurturing.
“Yes,” I replied, halting my previous statement.
“You know, my husband bought this plant. I’ve always had a green thumb. He, on the other hand, killed things that were nonliving,” she joked. “One day, he decided he wanted his own plant. He tried, but God rest his soul, he was awful at it, and the plant slowly wilted and began to die. Daniel was a proud old man. I don’t know if it was the years in the corps or a man thing, but he never wanted to be defeated and refused to ask for my help. Finally, when the plant was on its last leg, he asked me for help, and I gave him advice. At first, I didn’t believe he’d be able to turn it around, but he did. Heaven help me, it’s the biggest and most beautiful plant out here still, to this very day, and all it needed was a little time, guidance, patience, and love.”
She turned to face me before she continued. “Plants are much like people, you know. We may think we know all there is to know about them based on the things we see on the outside, but when we get down on the inside, that’s when we see their full potential. That’s when we realize that if we had just taken the time to guide them, love them, and be patient with them, they would grow to be the biggest and prettiest of them all.”
Her words were so refreshing and soothing that I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing as I tried relentlessly to wipe them away.
Gently, she placed her hand on my arm in a motherly way. “I haven’t lived on this earth for fifty-four years for nothing. I learned a little along the way. I learned that you judge people by who they are on the inside and not their circumstances.”
“Aldris told you,” I said, downhearted.
She looked at me and cradled my face. “Let me ask you this: do you care about Aldris?”
I smiled brightly and nodded. “Yes, I really do.”
“Then, to me, that’s all that matters. I know that Aldris truly cares for you, and if you give it a little time, guidance, patience, and love, you’ll see how much he cares for you too. That’s the way Aldris is. He measures the heart of a person. He’s a good son. We raised him well. He’s strong enough to carry the burden for both of you because he’s a man. That’s why I don’t worry about him. What you’ve done in your past to sustain a life for you and your daughter is no one else’s concern because it doesn’t matter that you fall down. It matters that you got up.”
Overcome with emotion and grateful for her kind words that penetrated my heart, I hugged her tightly. “Thank you,”
“You’re welcome.” She patted my back before pulling back and looking at me confidently. “I believe we’ve yet to see how big and beautiful you will become, and if you know you are more than what they claim, why would you let two people who don’t know you tell you any different? Now, dry your eyes, go inside, and handle your business. Mike and Rod are like sons to me, but they have their own issues, and they can’t throw stones living in a glass house.”
Her words were like a healing balm to my soul. Now I understood what Aldris had tried to preach to me this entire time. How could I doubt the genuineness of Ms. Lily when Aldris was a product of her? And she was absolutely correct. I tried so hard to gain approval, but the only thing I really needed to do was be me. I laughed to myself. Mike and Rod wanted to see Lucinda. They asked for it.
Now confident of my place and acceptance in the Sharper clan, I bossed up to go and give those two in there a piece of my whole mind. “Are you coming?” I asked.
“No, I’ll be out here for a bit to give you all some time to clear the house. I’d love it if you would get Nadia and bring her over here, though, so I can meet her.”
I smiled. “I can arrange that.”
“And, Lucinda, if you plan on staying with my son, I need you to do some things for me. First, you’ve got to teach me those recipes so we can have cook-offs, and second, I wouldn’t mind learning a few of those Spanish Fly dances either.” She winked at me.
“Ms. Lily!” I gasped.
She moved toward me and leaned close to my ear. “Between you and me, I’m dating a man too, and if you were able to clinch Aldris—who I swore would be a rolling stone—then, honey, you are one bad mutha shut yo’ mouth! So I need some tips,” she joked.
“I got you covered.” We shared the laugh before I hugged her again, and I strutted into the house where Aldris and Mike were going back and forth.
“And you’re back again? Ms. Lily didn’t run you off?” Mike sneered.
I put my hand on my hips. “As a matter of fact, she didn’t. Regardless of what you think of me, I’m with Aldris, so you better get used to the fact that I am around.”
Aldris pulled me to him by my waist. “Baby, you don’t have to argue with these fools.”
“It’s no argument, baby,” I corrected him, turning to face Mike and Rod with one hand on my hip and the other pointed at them. “You know what I think? I think you both wish you had a little Spanish Fly in your lives. Your babies’ mamas ain’t putting it down, and you mad because your boy gets all the perks without having to go deep in his pockets. Well, guess what? You may have had your little fun at Club Moet, but the only person reaping the benefits from this point on is Aldris. And trust me, I am just fly enough to keep him. So you two putos can kiss my entire Hispanic Spanish butterfly ass!”
Aldris laughed hysterically. “I guess now you can leave, bruhs.”
“Whatever, man. You gon’ wish you listened,” Mike said as he motioned for Rod to leave before storming out.
Rod looked at me and shrugged. “I’m man enough to admit it. Yeah, I am jealous. Can’t you just break up long enough for me to get one private dance?”
“Nigga, if you don’t get the hell out of my mama’s house…” Aldris yelled.
“My bad. Take care of it, bro, ’cause I’m honest when I say if you slip, I’m right there,” he said, grabbing some cornbread before he left.
“Can you believe those two?”
“Can I believe you is the question,” he said, turning me to kiss him. “I love the way that hood chick, as you can say, handled that. Got me feeling kinda horny.”
“I guess that means you’re ready to get caught in the Spanish Fly trap.”
“I’m always ready,” he laughed. “You and my mom straight?”
“Me and Ms. Lily are cool,” I said, hoping it stayed that way.
Just then, his mom came into the dining room. “When are you going to get Nadia?”
Aldris looked at me.
“She wants to meet her,” I told him.
“Mom, let’s make it next Sunday. I’ve got to get Lucinda home,” he said hurriedly.
“What’s the rush?” she asked.
“Nothing. Just gotta get things ready for tomorrow,” he answered, taking our plates to the sink in the kitchen.
She looked at me and winked. “Mm-hmm.”
I laughed. “Stop it, Ms. Lily.”
“You ready, Lucinda?” Aldris asked, pulling out his keys as I nodded. “Why are you two smiling?” he asked us.
“Nothing,” we laughed.
He shrugged. “All right, Mama. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“You call me too, Lucinda, so we can hook up on those . . . recipes.” She hugged me then Aldris.
“Will do.” I winked at her. “Again, it was a pleasure to meet you.”
“Likewise, sweetheart.”
Once in the car, Aldris lightly grabbed my hand. “You cool?”
“I’m just upset about your boys, but you can’t please everyone.”
“Exactly, and the only one you need to worry about pleasing is me. Trust me, you handled that so proper.” He lifted my hand and kissed it.
It wasn’t the perfect dinner as I’d hoped, but confession is good for the soul. I just hoped Aldris didn’t get the notion to listen to his friends’ warnings. I put on a good front like I was past the outcome because Ms. Lily and I were in a good space. But with his friends’ negativity, how long could we really last? And in the back of my mind, I wondered, was I really right for Aldris?