“No. Valerie’s mother was a runaway who’d had her at fifteen. She delivered her in the hospital, and two days later walked out and left a newborn baby girl with a positive toxicology for heroin. The baby spent several weeks in the hospital detoxing. She should’ve been quickly adopted by couples waiting for a newborn, but her medical history made her a risk for future mental and physical manifestations. She went into the foster care system and was shuttled from one family to another until she was eight.
“An elderly couple finally adopted her. They became the parents she always wished she had. Both passed away a year after she graduated high school, and once again she was orphaned. Evie and I had gone to the same high school, and she introduced me to Valerie when both were flight attendants. We dated for a year and then married. A year later we had Kendra. She was overjoyed at being a mother, but after two years she complained that she missed flying. She interviewed a few nannies, and after hiring Ramona, Valerie went back to work. I really beat up on myself because as much as I’d tried, I couldn’t convince her not to go to work that morning. If she’d stayed home she would still be here.”
“Do you really think you could’ve avoided what was destined, Lamar?” Nydia asked him. “We all have an expiration date, and it’s a good thing we don’t know when it is because we would stop living to prepare for the inevitable. There are bumps and obstacles in the road we call life, and it’s up to us to learn to navigate them to reach our goals.”
Lamar stopped, pulled her close to his body, and rested his chin on the top of her head. “I said it before and I’ll say it again, you missed your calling,querida. You should’ve become a therapist rather than an accountant, because you’re so easy to open up to.”
Nydia buried her face against his warm throat and inhaled the sensual fragrance of the cologne that blended so well with his body’s natural scent. Everything about Lamar was so overwhelmingly masculine that she wanted to stay in his embrace for more than a few minutes as she delighted in the muscles in his back and chest. “Maybe it’s because you feel comfortable enough to confide in me.” She eased back and smiled up at him. “I have a practice not to date for a year after a breakup, but I’ve decided to change my mind.”
“When will it be a year?” Lamar asked.
“November.”
“That’s only six weeks away.”
“Six weeks to find out if we really like each other,” Nydia said teasingly.
“I liked you the first time I saw you.”
“That’s because you liked what you saw.” Nydia did not want to remind him that he’d confessed to getting an erection when they first met.
“No shit!” Lamar drawled. “I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have said that.”
A shadow of annoyance settled between Nydia’s eyes. “Don’t ever apologize for what you say, Lamar. Because what comes out of your mouth comes from your heart. I appreciate honesty, even if it’s something I don’t agree with. I’ve had enough deceit from men with whom I’ve been involved to last me a lifetime, and I don’t want to have that with you.”
“You really don’t bite your tongue, do you, Nydia?”
“No and never. What you see is what you get.”
Attractive lines fanned out around Lamar’s eyes when he smiled. “And you know I like what I see.”
Her hand moved from his chest to his waistband. “Just make sure a certain part of your body doesn’t decide to make an unscheduled appearance.”
Throwing back his head, Lamar laughed loudly. “You’re so naughty.”
Nydia scrunched up her nose. “Only sometimes, and you like it, don’t you? Haven’t you heard that naughty girls are a lot more fun than the goody two-shoes?”
“Hell yeah!” Lamar kissed her hair.
A couple bumped into them, and Nydia knew they were impeding pedestrian traffic. “How far is the French Market from here?”
“It’s about ten blocks. Do you want to go there?”
Nydia nodded. “Yes.” She wanted to see what produce was available for her potential cooking projects.
“I’m going to take you back to pick up the car. After you visit the market I want to take you to my home, which is also in the Upper French Quarter.”
Lamar’s offer to take her to his house had caught Nydia completely off-guard, but she recovered quickly. She should not have been surprised, because she and Lamar had agreed she would give him and Kendra cooking lessons.
“Let’s go, McDuff.”
Lamar placed his arm over her shoulders. “You like the bard?”
“I love the bard. I definitely would’ve become an English lit teacher if I hadn’t majored in accounting.”
“Should I assume you like British drama?”
Nydia held onto the hand resting on her shoulder. “I love, love, love them!”
