She shook her head again. “No way. He lived with his sister. The one time we talked about moving in together I told him he would have to come up with half of whatever the rent was. When he told me that wasn’t possible, it gave me another reason to stop seeing him. Now when word gets back to him that I was seen with another man, maybe he and his circus will bring down the big tent sooner rather than later and leave town.”
Lamar wondered if her ex really knew whom he’d been involved with. Not only was Nydia a feisty, educated, independent woman, but she lived by a certain set of standards, and she wasn’t going to lower them just because she’d dated him.
He gave Nydia’s fingers a gentle squeeze. “And just to mess with him, I should download Smokey Robinson’s ‘Tracks of My Tears’ and ‘Tears of a Clown’ and post them on his Insta-gram.”
Nydia slipped her hand out of his and put an arm around his waist. “That’s cyberbullying.”
“What he needs is a good thumping. What he’s put you through is humiliating and reprehensible, and he’s lucky your brother didn’t jack his ass up.”
“I don’t want to talk about Danny anymore.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Us, Lamar.”
“What about us, Nydia?”
* * *
Nydia did not want to think Lamar kissing her was for any other reason than what it was: to prove to the reporter she’d rejected Danny’s proposal because she was involved with another man who could possibly be her husband. And if the scenario had been different, Nydia knew she would have kissed him back.
“I doubt if anyone’s going to recognize you in a cap and sunglasses, but what if they do and identify you as the one who kissed me while we were being filmed? What are you going to say to them? I told you before I don’t want to involve other people in this . . . this . . .”
“Crazy shit,” Lamar said, completing her sentence.
Nydia couldn’t stop fingers of heat stealing across her face. “I have to stop saying that,” she whispered.
“What? Crazy shit?”
“Yes.”
“Well, sometimes shit can get crazy, and we nerds are entitled to let loose every once in a while.”
“Yes, we are,” she said, smiling.
He’s good for you. Her silent voice confirmed what she was beginning to feel about Lamar. He was the first man she’d met with whom she felt comfortable enough to be herself. With him she did not have to censor whatever came to mind or out of her mouth. Outspokenness and sincerity had become the bedrock for her friendship with Tonya, Hannah, and Jasmine. They did not bite their tongues when they told her to get rid of Danny, because she could do a lot better than dating a man who wasn’t able to come to the table and pull his own weight in an adult relationship.
She’d heardDid you kick his ass to the curb?so often that it had become a catchphrase each time they’d asked her about Danny. Even when she confirmed she was no longer seeing him, Jasmine would look at her sideways as if she didn’t believe her. Nydia was only able to confirm the breakup once she moved out of the furnished Bronx apartment and in with Tonya. It was then her friends realized the separation was final. It had taken her a while, and despite what she’d gone through with Danny, she’d learned from the experience and vowed not to repeat it with another man.
Cultivating a relationship was not a priority at this time in her life. Her focus was on becoming an innkeeper. The instant she downloaded the signed contract with Hannah she knew she had been given a second chance to start over.
“Did you say something?” she asked Lamar as he led her down a side street.
“I asked if you’re all right, because you seemed to zone out for a few minutes.”
“I was thinking how my life is going to change once I move to New Orleans.”
“Do you think the change will be that dramatic?”
“Not as dramatic as different.” Nydia glanced up at Lamar staring down at her. “I won’t get to visit with my family as often as I’d like, and I don’t have to take public transportation to my job, because I’ll live onsite.”
“You’ll be living at the inn?” Lamar asked.
“Yes. Hannah set aside six suites for personal use and twelve for her guests.”
“I had no idea her home had that many rooms.”
“There are eighteen rooms and two guesthouses on the property.”
