"It possible to have fun working out in other places besides the bedroom."
She scoffed and left me standing by the door. "Really?"
"I'd tell you I'm open to suggestions, but we'd end up inside these four walls because you don't want to go anywhere. Tell you what, let's compromise. We'll go to the gym now, and later you get to decide what we do."
"Sounds good to me."
"Don't think you're going to con me into staying in."
"I wouldn't dream of it," she said over her shoulder as she headed to the bedroom.
***
"IHEAR YOU'VE BEENcausing some dangerous disturbances in the Chu household," Vance said, dropping into the chair opposite me in his living room.
I wasn't sure how to take his comment, but I remembered that he was the joker in the group. "That wasn't all on me," I said. "When you put two strong women together, anything is likely to happen."
"That's not what I hear," Vance said, "According to Garth, Aunt Rose nearly burst a blood vessel when Gina left Chuville like a bat out of hell, carrying her suitcase."
My lips twitched. I had to admit Vance painted an entertaining scene.
"I'm liking you more by the minute," Vance continued. "Anybody who can take the heat off Garth has my endorsement."
His fiancée, Ayisha, a slim, pretty woman with honey-gold skin came and sat on the arm of the sofa where he sprawled. "Stop provoking, Kofi. He's our guest."
"That's not what I'm doing. I'm initiating him."
She looked at the ceiling and tried hiding a smile. To me, she said, "Please excuse him, he's only thirty-three regressing to thirteen."
It took me a few seconds to get what she was saying. Her comment amused me. "It's okay, I have a brother who's always making jokes."
I wondered what kind of heat Garth had been taking, but I guessed that if his mother had resigned herself to the woman who'd soon be her daughter-in-law, then their challenge had to come from something else.
Anna-Lise had the same mocha-tinted skin as me, which I figured had been a problem before Mrs. Chu accepted her—assuming the older woman had gotten past that.
"So, what did you do over at Chuville to make you persona non grata?"
I put up both hands. "I didn’t do anything other than turn up there with Gina."
Looking sideways at me, Vance narrowed his eyes. "And you didn't convince her to abandon the homestead for you own selfish reasons?"
"No, I didn't."
Vance folded both hands over his chest. "You're sitting there all innocent trying to convince me you didn't start Armageddon in the Chu's house, but you must have done something."
A smile lifted my lips as Garth, Anna-Lise and Gina walked into the living room.
Gina sat next to me, her gaze swiveling between Vance and me. With suspicion in her eyes, she studied Vance.
"Ayisha, can you tie Vance up someplace where he can't cause any mischief?" Gina said.
"I would, except he'd never let me get away with that. Remember, this is his house."
Raising both hands Vance protested. "All I did was ask him about the drama at your house."
Gina cut her eyes at him. "For your information, there is no drama at my house."
"Seriously?" Vance laughed, throwing back his head. "Aunt Rose's crown princess is back in townandtoting a man and you're telling me things aren't hopping over there? Tell that to somebody else."
