“Vickie has news,” Tara whispers.
“Why didn’t you start with that? By the way, why is our mother hounding me because Vickie won’t call her back?”
“I’ve been busy, and this isn’t about Mother. Listen.” They both shut up while I tell them about me, Colt, and his plans for the summer. “It’s too fast, right?” I ask them after I tell them everything.
“You’re asking the wrong person,” Tara says. She’s known Ethan less than a year. They moved in together only two months after meeting. She’s right. She’s the wrong person to ask.
“Alan?” I ask my twin. He’s smart and rational.
He shrugs and runs a hand over his head. “I haven’t had a girlfriend in two years. If I don’t get some soon, I might die, so I’m not the right person to ask either.”
I take a paperclip and toss it at the iPad screen. “Not helpful.”
“I like Colt, but you’re going against all your rules. You have to ask yourself if he’s worth it,” Alan says. “He comes with a five-year-old, a career that takes him out of town a lot, fangirls, his public lifestyle, his—” Alan clears his throat. “Ahem, southern heritage. I’ll be honest, twin. I don’t think he’s exactly your type.”
That’s Alan. Smart, rational, and direct when he’s not being a goofball.
Tara puts a hand on mine and says, “Before you respond to that, let me say one thing. You like him, and don’t you dare deny it. And sometimes people come into our lives that don’t look like what we expect. It’s okay. And I know Colt a little bit. He’s sweet and a great dad. And he’s managed to destabilize your wall.” She nudges my shoulder. She knows I’m a sucker for a good dad, and Colt is that. He talks about his son constantly, and I know he feels guilty about leaving him to work. And he has the cutest picture of the two of them as his screensaver. They’re both sticking their tongue out at the camera.
“What wall?” I shrug and pretend to be confused.
“Oh, please. We all have abandonment issues. We won’t call it the wall. We can call it Mother, but this isn’t about her. Not anymore. This is about you. You deserve love. You deserve companionship. And no, you don’t need a relationship with a man to be complete, but take it from me, it’s wonderful when you find it. I never thought that man would be Ethan. I never saw him coming, but when he came into my life, life got so much better.”
I look around the fancy penthouse and wave my hands around. She nudges me with her shoulder.
“I guess that’s not bad advice,” Alan says to Tara. “But I have a date to get ready for.” He wiggles his eyebrows at us. “This unwelcomed bout of celibacy is about to be over. You two know I’m a breast man.” He raises a hand as if he’s cupping something. “It’s going to be like holding two cantaloupes. You know that’s my favorite fruit.”
“Don’t make us vomit,” Tara says.
Alan gives us the finger again and says, “Gotta go shave my balls,” before he hangs up on us.
“He wants me to meet his mother,” I whisper to Tara.
“I figured that when you said he wants you to go to Alabama. I know he’s close to her. He put her on speakerphone one time when he was here. She was really sweet. And she’s crazy about Colt.” Tara lowers her voice and says, “I also know he has a tense relationship with his older brother, but I don’t know why.”
I lie on Tara’s sofa and stare at the ceiling. After taking a deep breath, I throw my arm over my face. “I’m so fucking sleepy,” I moan.
“That happens when your boyfriend is an NBA player who wants you at all his games.” She sits at the end of the sofa and puts my legs across her lap.
“Ugh. Boyfriend. Blech.” Tara starts to laugh, and so do I. “Fine. Okay. Boyfriend, but I hate the celebrity aspect of his life. There are pictures of my pimple on the internet. Someone took a picture of my ass and said Colt’s not with me for my butt. Why do people even care?”
“Because people are assholes, and you’re fabulous so they are all jealous. Come in the kitchen. I’ll get us a snack.” She stands, takes my hand and pulls me up.
“Speaking of.” My phone buzzes and I pull it out of my pocket. I expect to see another text from Tamron, but it’s our mother. “Yes, Mother,” I say into the phone, exasperated and extremely tired.
“Oh, well I’m sorry to bother you, Victoria. Imagine my surprise when I saw my kids at a basketball game, and no one bothered to invite me. Am I still your mother or what?” I have her on speaker, and Tara rolls her eyes while she pulls something out of her fridge. She grabs a bottle of white wine and waves it in the air.
“Mother, we’re still waiting on that spa day,” I throw in. “What happened with that?” Tara hands me a wineglass, and I take a huge gulp. Mother starts to babble something about being sick, but I interrupt her. “Sorry, Mother. My Uber is here. I’ve got to go.”
“Oh, stop lying. And I don’t know about you and that Colt. I have nothing against him, but Gerald—”
“Mother, goodbye.” I end the call.
* * *
It’s notuntil after ten that my new driver drops me off at home. Colt sent me a text earlier with the driver’s information, reminding me that I’d promised not to go off on my own anymore. Five minutes later, Cynthia, an amazon of a woman called and introduced herself. The snacks and drinks at Tara’s turned into dinner once Ethan and Vincent got home. My eyes are heavy when I get to my front door, but I’ll need a hot shower before I climb into bed. There’s a tall plant waiting for me at my front door, and I pick it up, knowing exactly who it’s from.
Queen Vee,
