“Now see, I don’t think that’s fair. If you really like Troy, the least you could do is let him explain what happened, D. If you still feel that it’s too much after you hear him out, then let it be,” Ava reasoned. I thought that was dope of her to encourage Dawn to hear Troy out. I appreciated the fact that she validated me with that. That also let me know that whatever Dawn told her about how she feels about Troy must be good enough and worth it for Ava to side with us. “I was hoping that the two of you would hit it off. I was kinda looking forward to this being a double date. It would have been fun.”
“Ion know. I love the peace in my life as it is. It’s too bad for him because for the first time in a long time, I was actually starting to entertain the idea of kicking it hard with him. But baby mama drama is something that I’m not with. I don’t haveany kids, so he ain’t gotta worry about no dude disrespecting him on account of me, you feel me?”
“I see where you’re coming from, but I don’t think you should judge him off of one bad encounter,” Ava said.
As the two of them continued to talk, I responded to Troy’s message.
Troy: I’ll be there soon. I’m pulling up to valet now
Me: Okay, cool. Be ready to Keith Sweat her because she ain’t feelin’ the whole baby mama drama you got (laughing crying emoji)
The waiter stopped by our table to check to see if we were ready to order. We ended up ordering some appetizers since none of us had a chance to look over the menu.
“I’ma say this. I know my cousin like the back of my hand. If I would have thought for one second that he was gon’ do you wrong, I wouldn’t have brought him around y’all in the first place. You’re a very attractive woman, Dawn, and when I offered to help Ava move, I called him because I knew you were going to be there helping. I also know that you’re his type and that y’all would be good for each other. Troy is a good guy that just so happens to have a crazy ass baby mama. That doesn’t make him a bad guy in the least. I know you don’t have any kids of your own, but I’m sure you can understand that. No one is perfect, and now-a-days it’s hard finding someone that doesn’t have any kids. I hope that makes sense.”
“It does. It makes a lot of sense,” Dawn agreed.
“I believe he was just trying to get to know you better before telling you about all that he had going on,” I said, looking forward to Troy’s arrival so that he could take over this conversation.
“But see, the secret keeping part?”
“I don’t look at it like he was keeping a secret,” I reasoned. “I mean, when I was in the dating phase, I didn’t tell every singlefemale I met all of what I had going on personally. Some shit ain’t everybody’s business. Did you tell him every single detail about your life?”
“Not exactly, but I don’t have much to hide,” Dawn responded as Ava rolled her eyes.
“Everybody has done something in their life that they don’t jump at every opportunity to tell. No one is perfect is all that I’m saying.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Ava sighed. “I wish I didn’t have to share all that I had just gone through with my ex. If the shoe was on the other foot, and I was interested in dating someone that had gone through what Justin and Shane did to me, I can’t say that I would be okay with that. So, I totally get it.”
“I didn’t think about it that way,” Dawn responded. “We weren’t dating on a serious tip, but it could have gone that way. Had I known he had a crazy ass baby mama I could have been better prepared for her bullshit. I was taken completely off guard, and that wasn’t cool.”
“I agree one hundred percent, but at the same time, how long have y’all truly known each other? Like you said, things hadn’t taken a serious turn just yet, right?” I rhetorically asked because I already knew the answer. “Y’all been talkin’ what, a couple of weeks at the most? Is that enough time for either one of y’all to know where things are truly heading? From what I understand, tonight would have been y’all’s first official date, and a double date at that.”
“Dang, that is true, sis,” Ava said. “I get you being pissed off with ol’ girl. But maybe you should give him an opportunity to explain himself.”
“I guess you both are right,” Dawn agreed.
“I’m so glad to hear you say that.” Troy said from behind Dawn, startling both her and Ava. I couldn’t help but to laugh at the looks on both of their faces.
Troy had snuck up and was standing behind Ava and Dawn catching the last part of our conversation.
“Oh, wow! I feel a lil’ set up here,” Dawn snickered, but I could tell that she was happy by the sudden intrusion because she immediately started to blush when she saw Troy’s face.
“Hey, Troy, I didn’t think you were coming,” Ava said, giving me a funny look.
“And miss your celebration… no way! Congrats on the divorce, lil’ lady,” Troy said, bending down and giving Ava a hug. “What’s up, cuz?”
“Just coolin’,” I replied as Troy and I gave each other dap. “You got here at a good time. We only ordered apps, no dinner yet. I’ve been hanging with these beautiful women having a very interesting conversation.”
“Is that so?” Troy responded as our waiter walked up.
The waiter took Troy’s drink order, and we told him to give us a little more time before we ordered our dinner. He let us know that the appetizers were coming out soon, and I was glad to hear that because I was very hungry.
“Hey, can I talk to you for a second, pretty lady?” Troy asked Dawn, taking her by the hand. “Y’all don’t mind us stepping away for a second, do you?”
“Nah, not at all,” I said, as Ava smiled.
Troy held Dawn’s hand as she got up from her seat and they headed toward the bar area of the restaurant.
