“Oh my God! Are you serious?”
“As a heart attack. There was no sense in wasting those women’s time. Graham is really into you, so I really hope you give him a chance.”
Kindra picked up her phone and moved her fingers over the screen. I looked at Naomi, and her eyes were understanding. She had jokes for days and had no problem speaking her mind, butshe also knew what I’d gone through with Victor and understood my hesitancy regarding relationships.
“One date at a time, Sis. You know how to spot an asshole now, so if he shows any signs, you can bow out gracefully, with your heart fully intact.”
Before I responded, several kids and a few adults rushed into the party room. For the next hour, it was organized chaos, but the birthday boy and his friends looked to be having a great time.
After we sang Happy Birthday and had cake and ice cream, Kindra gave Trey the option to open his gifts or play for the final hour. He chose to play, and the party room was left to the adults once again. Naomi and I helped Kindra clean up while Graham and DJ took Trey’s gifts to the car.
“We may have to reschedule our dinner plans,” Graham said when he returned.
“Okay.”
“You’re not gonna ask why?”
“If you want me to know, I’m listening.”
“That son of yours beat me in four out of five rounds of Basketball Shootout, and not by just a few baskets. He barely missed.”
“What does that have to do with taking me to dinner?”
“He took all my money.”
“You were betting real money? Why would you?—”
“Chill, baby. I’m fucking with you. We didn’t bet real money, but that lil nigga can shoot. Does he play basketball?”
“He’s been to some camps, but he doesn’t like sports.”
He pulled his head back in surprise. “Really?”
“He loves to draw and paint, but his father has put him in football and basketball camps in the past. He doesn’t enjoy either of those sports at all.”
“Interesting. Has he tried any others?”
I shook my head. “He asked to take an art class this summer, so I doubt he’s interested.”
“You think he’d like boxing? The renovations are going smoothly, and I should be reopening by the end of summer. I’m starting a youth mentoring program for boys and girls to teach them the art of boxing but also give them a positive way to relieve stress and built-up aggression. They’ll also learn the importance of structure, discipline, respect, and things of that nature.”
“Wow! That sounds like it’ll be an amazing program. Keelan is a good kid, but I think that would be good for him.”
“Good. I’ll give you the details once we get up and running.”
“So, are we rescheduling dinner?”
“Hell nah. It was hard enough getting you to agree, and this might be my one and only chance to convince you to let me be your man.”
“You look pretty, Mom. You should dress up more.”
I looked at myself in the full-length mirror we had in the hallway, and I had to agree with Keelan . . . I looked pretty, and I should dress up more. I didn’t have many dressy clothes in my closet, nor did I have time to shop, so I decided to keep it simple.
The fitted, black cocktail dress was made of a satin-like material and stopped at my knees. The ruching in the middle camouflaged my small pooch perfectly, and my final accents were silver open-toed heels, a silver purse, and silver jewelry.
“Thanks, Son. I don’t go out much, so there’s no reason to get this dressed up.”
“Do you like Mr. Graham?”
