She shakes her head. “No way, Pearl. You’re too young to be done with men.”
“Now you sound like Aunt Fee.”
“Well, it’s true. I’ve seen the way men look at you. You are a very attractive woman.”
“Why, thank you. You are, too, Mama Carla.”
“For a sixty-two year-old, I guess I’m all right.” She puts her hands on either side of her face, pushes up her cheeks. “If only I’d had the money for a facelift. I might have had a chance.”
“Now, Mama Carla. You still have a chance.”
“Maybe one day. But right now I have to think of my daughter. I told her I’d be there this weekend. I know it’s terrible timing with school just getting started, and our first home game, but she’s my child. She needs me.”
“Of course she does. Nobody can take the place of your mama.” Hearing my own words makes me miss my mama. If it weren’t for Aunt Fee, I’d be out of my mind.
“You never stop needing a mother, do you? No matter how old you are.” She turns around in her chair to face me, tucks her Kleenex under her thigh, and puts both hands on my knees. “Do you have plans this weekend?”
I think about it for a second. “Let me check my date calendar.” I laugh, pull out my phone for fun, and check. “I’ll be right here working the game.”
“I mean the whole weekend. I’m wondering if you might fill in for me while I’m gone.”
“As housemother?”I’m so shocked I don’t quite know what to say.
“Sure, why not?”
I just look at her. We both know why not.
“You’re every bit as qualified as I am. And you know my job backward and forward.”
“You’ve got a point there.”
“Patrice lives down in Ocean Springs. It’s a five-hour drive down to the coast so I won’t be home till late Sunday evening. I can pay you fifty dollars a day.”
That’s one hundred and fifty dollars toward my tires. I blurt my answer before I have time to think it through and talk myself out of it. “Why sure I will, Mama Carla. I’m honored you asked.”
“The girls will love it. You’ll sleep right here in my bed.”
Now that I’ve said yes, doubt creeps in. I’m quite sure there’s a faraway look about me, but Mama Carla doesn’t seem to notice.
“And don’t hesitate to reprimand Kadeesha if she needs it. I’m not so sure about her anyway.”
I’d been wondering when this would come up. “Better tell her that. Matter of fact, please tell that to everyone on staff. I don’t want any of them saying I think I’m better than they are.”
“The only one with more seniority than you is Ophelia, and you and I both know she’ll be happy you’re subbing for me.”
“All right then,” I say, feeling better about my decision. “I guess I have myself a job.” I relax into the wingback chair, feeling the soft cushion against my head.
“You’ll be fantastic, Pearl,” Mama Carla says reassuringly. The last time I had a compliment like this is hard to remember, but I know one thing: Mama Carla trusts me more than I thought.
She lays her head back, too, and stares up at the ceiling. She’s thinking hard on something, so we sit in silence until she says, “I miss my daughter and grandchildren. As much as I like this job, it’s hard to be so far away. Especially when they need me like they do now.” She sighs. “I’m not sure how much longer I can keep doing this.”
Hearing her say the words out loud doesn’t necessarily surprise me. She’s alluded to it in the past. “I understand. Family comes first.” With the exception of my cousins, all my family is right here in Oxford.
We talk a little longer, then I move over to the door, put my hand on the knob. After a pause I turn back around. “You sure about this?”
With a stiff spine and her chin held high, she looks at me confidently. “Of course I’m sure.”
“You don’t have to ask anyone’s permission?”
