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“Damn, you wanna leave? What you wanna do?”
“Uh, he wants me to hang around so we can have a proper introduction.”
“Huh?”
“I know.”
Just then, the mystery guy and Mama descended the stairs and joined us in the foyer. Mama stared at Ryan, and it took me a moment to realize she had no idea who he was, so I said, “Mama, this is Ryan Boyé, my, well…we just started dating. Ryan, this is my mother, Lisa Strickland.”
Ryan took her hand and kissed it. “Mother? I don’t believe it. Nevertheless, it’s great to meet you.”
“Oh, I’m definitely her mother. You from Louisiana?”
Ryan grinned. “The accent, huh? Can’t get away from it.”
“You shouldn’t want to,” Mama said. “It’s nice. Hmm, you’re Creole?”
Ryan nodded. “Yes, ma’am. On my father’s side.”
Was my mother flirting with Ryan? Seriously? When did she get so hot in the ass?
“Well,” she began, resting a hand on the mystery guy’s arm. “This is Lamar Anderson. Lamar, this is my daughter, Angela.”
He reached for my hand and gripped it in his. “You’re the middle daughter, right? Heard a lot about you. Nice to finally meet you.”
“Yeah, same here,” I said, and then turned to my mother with raised eyebrows.
“Um, would you gentleman excuse me and Angela? We’re going to step into the kitchen for a moment,” she said.
I sat at the table across from her and waited for an explanation. She offered none. So I said, “Mama, how long’ve you been seeing him?”
She shrugged. “Five or six months.”
“What?! Does Nicky know about him?”
“No. She’s barely ever home, out running her wild behind around with any and every man she meets. I fault your father for her being the way she is. She’s so much like him…”
I leaned forward. “Okay…okay, Daddy’s wrong for the way he treated you. But, um…you’re still married to him. How is what you’re doing any better than what he’s doing?”
“It’s not.”
“And how old is Lamar? I mean, you’re beautiful, Mama, but you need to be careful.”
“He’s twenty-seven, younger than you and your sisters, and I’m not tryna marry the man. I just needed…something, Angela. I don’t expect you to understand, but I’ve sat up in this house for years, alone and lonely. I had dreams and goals, but I gave them all up for your father. Please don’t ever, ever do that to yourself. Don’t sacrifice your life for a man.”
“I don’t plan on it. Not anymore.”
She nodded. “Good. Ryan seems nice. He’s definitely handsome. Gorgeous.”
“Yeah…I like him.”
“And that accent? Mmm…”
“Mama, I’m worried about you.”
She reached across the table and covered my hand with hers. “Don’t be. I’m fine. I’m not going to do anything stupid.”
“But doesn’t Daddy still have a key? Should you be doing…you know, up in here?”
