Good Woman Blues (27 page)

“Remember I told you first,” Roz said. She
brushed cheeks with Erikka in a place of a kiss, to avoid smudging
her lipstick.

‘Told me what?” Erikka carried her overnight
bag in one hand and her purse in the other.

“That you would roar back better than ever,
that’s what!” Roz took the bag from her.

“I don’t know if I’ve roared back. Maybe a
little meow as I stick my head in an inch or two.” Erikka locked
the door and followed Roz down the hall.

Roz went into Erikka’s old bedroom and
dropped the bag in a closet. “Nadine needs you, sugar. Otherwise,
she would have hired your replacement.”

‘True.” Erikka sat on the bed. “Old Leather
Thong isn’t the charitable type when it comes to business.”

“Leather enthusiast, huh? Oh Lord.” Roz threw
back her head and laughed.

Erikka’s grin widened. “According to a former
male intern.”

“Serves her right for choosing her lover
poorly. Get them too young, and they’re likely to brag.” Roz
continued to chuckle as she unpacked Erikka’s things.

To preserve her privacy, Erikka jumped off
the bed and took over. “I’ll do that. Where’s Dad? I can’t wait to
see him.”

“I love this suit. That shade of blue has
always been your color. You know I haven’t dusted in here for a
week. I hope your allergies don’t kick in.” Roz went into the
bathroom.

Erikka hung up two outfits and turned around.
“I can always dust myself you know. Roz, where is Craig?”“He’s
staying with his father. You know he’s single again. Edward needs
to slow down. A man his age divorcing his third wife—” She stopped
when Erikka sucked in a breath and scowled at her. “Sorry,
habit.”

“How bad is it?” Erikka felt a sinking
sensation in her stomach.

Roz pursed her lips and did not answer for a
few seconds. “I suppose it’s silly to protect you girls as though
you’re still children. Craig and I need to work some things
out.”

“Craig moved out?” Erikka clenched her fist
hard. “Yes.” Roz gazed ahead, and then shrugged. She smiled. “But
don’t let that spoil your triumphant return.”

“Huh?” Erikka blinked rapidly as though
trying to clear her vision. Roz seemed eerily calm.

Roz hummed softly as she looked through
Erikka’s travel jewelry case. “Look in my jewelry armoire if you
need anything else, sweetie.”

“Mama, what have you been up to?” Erikka
strode over to her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Hey,
I like these.” Roz held up a pair of silver dangle earrings to her
face and stared at herself in the mirror. “I might want to borrow
them sometime.”

Erikka watched Roz model earrings. Then she
tried on a pair of Erikka’s sexy three-inch sandals. “Okay. Tell me
about this third party.”

“I’m not proud of how it happened, but women
get lonely, too.” Roz squeaked when Erikka yanked her to the bed
and pushed her down on it. “You’ve lost your mind, manhandling your
mother that way.”

“I want to know what happened.”

“Erikka, really. I hardly think discussing
such a thing with my daughter—”

“How could you hurt Craig that way? This is
unbelievable.” Erikka paced in front of her. Then she stopped. “Who
is he?”

“You need to get hold of yourself, Erikka
Deneé,” Roz snapped.

“Roz,” Erikka said glaring at her, hands on
both hips. “Please. You have always sided with Craig whenever we
had fights. Don’t try to deny it,” Roz said when Erikka opened her
mouth to do just that.

“Not always.” Erikka lost some of her steam.
They both knew it was true.

“I can’t blame you. Your father was a no-show
dud. You were hungry for a father figure, a man to dote on you. All
little girls need that.” Roz gazed at her. “Big girls need it,
too.”

Erikka swallowed hard. Somehow she had a
feeling Roz meant more than flowers and a peck on the cheek. She
looked away. “Listen, it’s not my business—”

“Craig works long hours. He hasn’t been very
attentive either. There could be another woman. I just haven’t
cared enough for months now to push the issue.” Roz lifted her
chin. “And why the hell should I always be the one begging for
attention? I’ve made that mistake with men for thirty years.”

“Oh.” Erikka wondered who this woman sitting
in her bedroom could possibly be. She’d grown up watching Roz
thrive on the attention of men, preferably handsome men with money.
Everything Roz ever wore, right down to the color of polish on her
toenails, was always calculated to draw male interest and female
admiration. Women dressed to attract men and impress other women,
that was the lesson Erikka had learned.

“I know what you’re thinking; an affair isn’t
the way to make our marriage better. It’s not like I planned it.”
Roz looked down at her still-lovely hands. She twisted the platinum
wedding rings on her finger.

“You’re still seeing this man? Oh I’m don’t
believe this.” Erikka threw up both hands.

“Sit down and take deep breaths, dear. You’ll
feel better.” Roz patted the surface of the floral comforter.

“The world has gone mad,” Erikka said
finally. She fell into the wicker chair across from the bed and
gaped at her mother. “You’re trippin’. I’m upset, and you have this
‘It’s all good’ attitude.”

“I don’t take the prospect that my marriage
might end lightly. I still care about Craig. But I’m tired of
performing tricks like a trained poodle just to get him to notice
me. For the past few years he’s taken me for granted.”

“So, you found someone else,” Erikka said.
Her tongue felt numb just uttering the words.

“Woman to woman. Would you give up your new
man to deal with Vaughn’s crap again?”

“Vaughn isn’t my husband.” Still, Erikka
instantly felt her point as much as heard it.

“I know it’s tough, but don’t think of Craig
as your daddy. He’s a man with faults just like any other man.” Roz
nodded.

“Turning to someone else isn’t the answer.
Not for either of you,” Erikka added, since Craig might be having
his own fling. His long nights away from home on business didn’t
seem so plausible suddenly.

Roz heaved a sigh and sat back. “At least we
haven’t had the usual finger-pointing or shouting matches. After a
cooling-off period, we might try marriage counseling.” ‘To be
honest I’d feel better if you were your usual drama-queen self,”
Erikka said without thinking.

“I beg your pardon,” Roz snapped, sounding
more like herself again. “I don’t make scenes and scream at people.
Even though Craig probably had a little bit on the side long before
I met Hakeem.”

“Hakeem? Oh no you didn’t.” Erikka sat up
bolt straight in the chair.

“Hakeem is two years older than you. He—”

“What’s his last name?” Erikka’s eyes
narrowed to slits. “Hakeem Matthews. Yes, you went to high school
together.” Roz did not seem the least bit embarrassed.

“I had a mad crush on him when I was a
sophomore. You said he was too old for me, that he wasn’t going
anywhere. You said his biggest career move would be from sweeping
up a burger joint to working the french fryer.” Erikka’s voice rose
with each word.

“Turns out I was wrong. Hakeem owns four
franchise fast-food restaurants.” Roz nodded slowly when Erikka let
out a squeak.

“Have mercy.” Erikka took a few minutes to
recover. “Successful or not, think about the life you built with
Craig. Vaughn and I had a few hot nights.”

‘Too much information,” Roz broke in, to
stall more details.

“But we didn’t have years of marriage,
children, and family to consider. No comparison.”

“Craig always talks about how I need to
change, my mistakes, blah, blah, blah. Right now it’s not looking
too good, but we’ll see.” Roz frowned. “Listen, you talk to Jaci.
Leave out a few details though.”

“Let me guess, the part about you having a
hot affair with a man half your age.” Erikka crossed her arms.

“He’s not half my age,” Roz said defensively.
“Hakeem is so understanding. He offered to back off for a while
before I even said anything. Even if it means losing me, he wants
me to be happy.”

“What a saint,” Erikka wisecracked. “Except
for that part about sleeping with another man’s wife, of
course.”“You’re no angel, dear heart. I know all about that little
week of whoopee with Jeanne Chabert’s husband.”

“Fiancé,” Erikka said quickly. All the same,
she’d been checkmated.

“One month later he was her husband, and
still calling you from the gossip I heard.” Roz waved a hand. “I
set a bad example for you girls, I know. Just don’t worry about
this. Whatever happens, you and Jaci will still have us both, with
all our love as usual.”

“Right.”

Erikka did not feel any better as she
accepted Roz’s kiss on the cheek. Her mother went on about dinner
plans while Erikka tried not to feel like a lost kid again.

“Houston’s it is. I feel like barbecue. Let’s
say sixish? I have a few business calls to make. I might be a
single working woman soon.” Roz left without waiting for Erikka to
answer. She already had other things on her mind.

Erikka sat stunned, staring at nothing in
particular. “Hakeem?” she said aloud.

Chapter 16

A week later Erikka wanted to yank her hair
out by the roots. Nadine was pressing her to

start work, yet she seemed stuck in
Loreauville. The probation office had her paperwork all fouled up.
She had to get their blessing once again, which made no sense. Both
the judge and probation department had been suspicious of having
her beyond their reach. Now they questioned her move back to New
Orleans.

“Stupid friggin’ bureaucratic—” Erikka hit
the keys of her laptop as though they were to blame.

Malik came into the den with a soccer ball
tucked under one arm. “Hey, cuz.”

“Hi, shorty,” Erikka said. She gave the lanky
youngster a smile.

“You in a bad mood, too. What are the odds?”
Malik dropped the ball onto a chair.

“That thing better be clean, or Darlene will
skin you.” Erikka nodded at the chair upholstered in a striped
pattern. “And what odds?”

“I wiped it off.” Malik slapped the ball onto
the floor anyway. “Mama came in, went straight to her bedroom, and
slammed the door. She walked by me without saying a word. I don’t
think she even saw me.”

“Maybe she had a rough day at work. Lord
knows I can relate.”

Erikka clicked on an icon in the spreadsheet
application and saved a file. She was going to wrap up her work
with Ryan Wilson this week if it killed her. The wannabe player was
tap dancing on her last nerve. Each day he tried to come up with
reasons to be alone with her or to delay their work. Erikka was
beginning to wonder how long she could resist smacking him. Better
not. Her probation counselor would not be pleased, not to mention
the judge. Sometimes life was just too hard.

“Go check it out, Erikka. I would, but—”
Malik lifted a shoulder.

“But what?” Erikka started a final report.
She swore when the pile of sheets on her lap slipped to the
floor.

Malik gathered them for her. “I kinda messed
up. The teacher overreacted, too, though,” he added quickly. “I
mean, so I missed a couple of assignments. My final grades are
still gonna be pretty good.”

“Malik, going down to a C average is not
‘pretty good.’ You’re smart.” Erikka was about to go on when it hit
her. She sounded like all the adults that had lectured her through
the years. That depressed her.

“I know. I promised Mama I’d straighten up my
act. I’m gonna do two projects for extra credit during the summer
break. She’s still kinda steamed.” Malik dropped heavily onto the
sofa, another of Darlene’s rules broken.

Erikka winced and hoped the frame hadn’t
cracked. Still, she resisted the urge to remind him. “I gotcha. You
want me to risk getting chewed up and spit out.”

“Yeah, that’s about it.” Malik grinned.
“Serious, though. Maybe she could use some help.”

“Well, it can’t be about anything you did.
Maybe Brandon?” Erikka stopped writing about cash flow and expense
projections.

“He usually tells me when they’ve had it out.
Last time I talked to Brandon they were cool.” Malik stood. “I’m
thinking it’s one of those women things. Hormones. You can
relate.”

“Malik, you must be through all your chores,”
Darlene said sharply from the door.

He sprang to his feet. “Almost. Just takin’ a
break. Uh, break over.”

“And get that ball out of here. You know
where it belongs.” Darlene watched with a frown as he scooped up
the ball and hurried out.

“Yes, ma’am.” He shot Erikka a significant
look as he left.

“Malik thought you’d had a bad day. He was
wrong. You’ve had a bitch of a day.” Erikka looked at her.
Darlene’s face looked pinched with trouble.

“The center’s checking account is overdrawn.
Checks bouncing all over like soccer balls.” Darlene waved a hand
in the direction Malik had gone.

“Your bookkeeper and I went over your account
last week. We got the United Way check deposited two weeks ago.
Moved six thousand over for expenses and—”

“My phone has been ringing all day, Erikka.
The bank president called me, too. Thank God Alexis is so
under-standing. She’s switched them over to the savings account.
She’ll let us slide on the fees this time.” Darlene was about to go
on when the phone rang. She left.

Malik came back a few minutes later, looking
over his shoulder. “What’s up?”

“A normal bad day would be welcome right
about now,” Erikka said, with a frown.

Darlene came back. “The interest-bearing
checking account is empty, too.”

“Daa-yum,” Malik blurted out.

“There must be a mistake. Sixteen thousand
dollars doesn’t just go poof. Not overnight.” Erikka went to
Darlene. “Probably one of those slip-of-the-finger mistakes bank
employees make. Just relax. I’m sure tomorrow they’ll track down
the error.”