“Well, where is your young man?” he asked, turning to face her.
“I wanted to talk to you alone first. Have a seat.” Tamika motioned to the sofa.
Linwood’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Sounds serious,” he said, sitting down.
“Would you like something to drink?” Tamika asked, purposely not responding to his comment.
“No, I’m fine.”
She joined him on the sofa and folded her hands in her lap. Despite being a grown woman of twenty-nine years, her father’s approval was very important to her.
“What do you think about the apartment?”
“It’s nice, what I’ve seen so far. I’m glad you got rid of that Calvin fella.”
“Yeah, me too,” Tamika muttered.
“I warned you about playing house with that boy, didn’t I? Didn’t I warn you?” her father said, lifting a bushy eyebrow.
They were off to a bad start. “Yes, you did,” Tamika answered dully.
Her father grunted. “Now you’re doing the same thing with this other one—what’s his name?”
“Anton,” Tamika supplied, though she’d told him his name at least a dozen times before. She suspected her father was pretending not to know his name.
“Yes, Anton.” Linwood shook his head.
“This situation is different.”
“How is it different? I’m worried that this is a rebound thing, and not only for you but for him, too. You found comfort with each other after being cheated on. Nothing is wrong with that, but you didn’t have to move in with him.”
“I know, but at the time I didn’t have anything.”
“What you mean you didn’t have anything?”
She winced at the affront in his voice. She hadn’t told her father about Calvin stealing her money because she didn’t want to hear another round of “I told you so.” But since her life had turned around, unburdening her soul became easier. She told her father about her stolen savings and included the eviction. When she was finished, Linwood’s eyebrows were pushed so far down over his eyes, he looked like a caricature of anger.
“Why didn’t you tell me? You went through all of that and didn’t say a word to me? We talk every week, Tam Tam.”
“I know.”
“Did you think I wouldn’t help you?”
“I know you would have. That’s the problem. You kept telling me to come home.”
“And what’s so wrong with that? You wouldn’t have to worry about rent or bills. You know that. You could stay with me and find a job, save your money, and then go out on your own again.”
“But that’s not what I wanted.”
Linwood sighed heavily and turned away from her. “I don’t understand you,” he muttered. “I would do anything for you, but you don’t seem to want my help.”
Tamika touched his forearm and brought his attention back to her. “I need to be able to do things on my own. To grow up. I need to be able to make mistakes and learn from them.”
Growing up, her father had been so protective, she had practically lived in a bubble. She lived at home when she attended Augusta University, so moving to Atlanta had been the first time in her life that she’d been on her own, and she let loose in a way that she couldn’t have while under his roof.
“And what exactly did you learn from that loser, eh? By the way, he better hope he never runs into me, I know that.”
“I learned what it’s like to be in a relationship that doesn’t meet my needs. Yes, Anton and I are living together like Calvin and I did, but Anton is so much different. He’s really good to me, daddy. He reminds me of you.”
