Chapter Twenty-Six
twenty-six
Lanie
“You know someone who lives around here ?”
There were five of them, Lanie, Gemma, Gem’s friends Shanice and Marissa and Fatou, who had joined them for a late lunch, who walked like little ducks in a row, down the long line of rainbow-colored terrace houses on Ridley’s street. Lanie gaped at the large homes, all decorated in different pastel colors with stark front doors, frequently painted a primary color. Gemma nudged her in the side.
“I do too. My great-aunt Heléne lives three streets over,” Fatou said with indignation. “Which reminds me, you never saw me around these parts, yeah?”
They all chuckled.
Lanie looked down at the text exchange again. “We’re looking for thirty-five,” she announced.
“Well, this is forty, so can we figure out if we’re going up or down? My feet hurt and these bags are getting heavy,” Marissa said.
“And I have a baby to get back to before my tits explode,” Shanice whined.
“Okay, okay.” Lanie scanned the tranquil tree-lined street.
It reminded her of one of the stately brownstone-lined blocks in Harlem. She dreamed of living in a house like any of these. After three decades of living in a tight two-bedroom apartment, four floors of space was a luxurious fantasy.
“Here!” Fatou said, pointing at a cheerful daffodil-yellow house with a small wrought iron gate and three short steps up to a small portico with an electric-blue front door.
Above the portico hung a veritable jungle of plants and vines, some of which overgrew their pots and hung down, wrapping around the columns as if reaching for the ground, trying to reclaim the house for nature. Lanie wondered absently when last anyone had been out on that balcony to do any pruning.
“Well?” Gemma said impatiently.
“Sorry,” Lanie said, dropping her handful of shopping. She rang the bell twice before she could hear any footsteps approaching. Her heart raced in anticipation.
Besides Dash, she’d never met anyone in Ridley’s life before. It went both ways, of course; he hadn’t met any of her family either. And this would only be his housekeeper, Mrs. Handa, but the idea was still daunting. When the door opened, however, it was not the older South Asian woman she expected.
“B-Bea?” Lanie said, her heart now at a gallop.
“Yes.” The teenager smiled at her warmly. “Are you Melanie?”
The girl’s brown eyes were so huge they seemed to take her in all at once. Bea was absolutely adorable with a heart-shaped face, high cheekbones, full lips and eyes that were downturned in the corners. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and crowned with assorted multicolored clips to keep her flyaways under control. She wore a grass-stained white soccer uniform, complete with knee socks and cleats.
“You’re American.”
She couldn’t be sure, but Lanie thought she caught surprise in Bea’s eyes.
“I am.” Lanie nodded. “Nice to finally meet you! Your dad talks about you all the time.”
Bea gave a frown so fleeting that if Lanie hadn’t been looking directly at her, she would have missed it. But then she smiled and looked past Lanie, down to the small gaggle of chattering women on the street.
“My friends. We were shopping in the neighborhood,” Lanie explained. “See the one in the middle?”
Bea nodded.
“She’s my cousin. She’s getting married soon.”
It was far more information than Bea needed but Lanie sometimes rambled when she was nervous.
Bea smiled. “She’s pretty.”
“She certainly is,” Lanie concurred. “Well, your dad said I could grab my bag?”
“Sure.” She turned and headed back into the house. “Come in. Your friends can come too.”
“I’m sorry. All Barbz are middle-aged now,” Bea said to jeers around the room. “There, I said it.”
Lanie didn’t know where the time had gone when she heard the front door opening. She had in no way planned to be still sitting in Ridley’s— spectacular! —kitchen debating 2010s-era female rapper fandoms with a fourteen-year-old when he finally got home. But somehow, as frequently happened when she, Gem and Fatou got together, things just spiraled out of control to the point that they were all huddled over a picked-over box of pizza two hours after they’d arrived. But Lanie would blame Shanice and her urgent need to pump, if it came to it.
“Middle-aged!” Gemma screeched in faux outrage. “How dare you!”
“Nuh-uh! Somebody come get this child!” Fatou demanded.
“Bardis are the wave,” Bea doubled down, holding her own surprisingly well for a teenager among five adult women.
“Boogie Down representation. As a Bronxite, I’m wit’ it.” Lanie gave Bea a high five for their mutual love of rapper Cardi B.
“OMG, you’re from the Bronx?” Bea said with a level of excitement and awe that Lanie could honestly say she’d never encountered before.
Naturally, Ridley did know they were there. Lanie had cleared their presence with him shortly after they arrived to find Bea there without Mrs. Handa, who’d had to rush home to tend to an ill Mr. Handa. But still, they hadn’t planned to stick around quite that long.
“Hey,” Ridley said cautiously as he entered the living room, walking toward the lively kitchen.
It had been two days and yet Lanie’s insides felt like they were turning into a gelatinous puddle at the sound. It was hard to remember what so offended her about Dash’s suggestion that they have “a little fun” when she turned and saw all six feet three inches of him approaching.
I like fun. I really like fun.
He looked a little confused by their group for a moment, before his eyes settled on her and softened. “Did I miss pizza?” Ridley’s large palm grazed Lanie’s lower back as he circled the table to reach Bea on the far side. Lanie stiffened, resenting how every nerve ending she possessed went on high alert just from that glancing contact.
“Dad, did you know that Melanie has a STEM degree?” Bea quizzed him without missing a beat, as if he’d just been in another part of the house all along. “In physics! From Empire University! It’s on my list of American schools.”
Lanie had been ready to fall out of her chair when she found out Bea had not only been looking at schools in the United States for college but had heard of EU, specifically.
“Degrees!” Gemma clarified.
“Our Mel is a proper egghead,” Fatou offered.
“No, I’m not,” Lanie countered.
“Wanted to work for NASA.”
“A very long time ago,” Lanie cut in, embarrassed by how ridiculous that probably sounded to a man of Ridley’s achievements. To any real adult, honestly. It was like saying you wanted to be an astronaut when you grew up. Even if her dream was only to work in the Science Mission Directorate there.
“I think I did.” Ridley looked at her with uncertainty as he walked up and kissed his daughter on the top of her head.
Lanie shook her head. She’d only told him she worked at EU.
He shrugged. Sorry , he mouthed to her over Bea’s head.
Fatou and Shanice clocked the exchange and looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Lanie groaned inwardly, knowing she’d hear all about that later.
Just then, she caught a stray elbow to the ribs as Gemma looked at her expectantly.
“Ouch! Ridley. Let me introduce my cousin, Gemma. And our friends, Fatou, Marissa and Shanice.” Lanie rubbed her side as they all waved at him.
“You have a beautiful home, Dr. Aronsen,” Shanice said, smiling broadly, already besotted.
Shanice needs to remember she’s already married . Lanie wanted to sulk. Having need of a quiet room to use her breast pump in, Shanice had managed a look around while briefly installed in the upstairs study by Bea.
“I’m so glad I got to finally meet you,” Gemma said. “We were wondering where Mel was always sneaking off to.”
Lanie’s face burned. “I haven’t been sneaking anywhere.”
“She’s been with me.”
They both spoke simultaneously then looked at each other.
“You two need to work on your story,” Fatou said, winking with a sly smile.
Oh God. Lanie’s face flamed white-hot. It was completely innocent, but Gemma and Fatou had a way of making nothing into something. Which would be bad...in front of his daughter.
Where was a hole to jump into, or better yet, throw them into, when she needed one?
Bea frowned at them all, looking a little confused. Lanie used that opportunity to distract her. “Bea,” Lanie said, grabbing her attention. “You should have your dad bring you along on one of his trips to New York. Have you ever been?”
She shook her head, seeming to still be mulling the previous conversation.
Ridley glanced at Lanie but his attention remained with his daughter. “We’ve been talking about it. Right, Bean? Maybe next summer.”
“Yeah,” Bea said, her enthusiasm for the topic returning. “I have a list of all the places I want to see. Dad said maybe we’ll make it a road trip.”
“Or maybe a train trip instead?” Lanie remarked, remembering how nervous he’d said he was driving to Philadelphia. “The less time you spend behind the wheel, the better. Right, Doc?”
Bea gave her another curious look, her smile faltering for another moment, before nodding. “Dad doesn’t usually admit he doesn’t like to drive.”
Lanie didn’t know what she’d said wrong, again , but Bea’s shifting mood definitely felt like a cue. “Anyway, it’s after seven, maybe we should go.”
Ridley paused in his reach over Bea’s shoulder for the lone remaining slice of cold pizza. “Really?”
Lanie looked around at her companions pleadingly.
“I have a six-month-old that I have to get home to,” Shanice said, saving them all from an awkward exit.
They all began to rise from the table, nodding in agreement.
Ridley and Bea walked them to the door.
On the stoop, Lanie turned back but avoided Ridley’s eyes. “Thank you for being an amazing hostess, Bea.”
“Yay, Bea!” the ladies chimed in from the street below, waiting on their Uber.
Bea beamed.
“Thanks for my bag,” Lanie added, unsure how to wrap this up with five pairs of eyes on them.
“Sorry again that you had to come all this way to get it,” Ridley said. “I’ve just been swamped at work this week.” His arm was draped over Bea’s shoulder as they both stood in the doorway, precluding any greater conversation. “And thank you for staying with Bea.”
“It was our pleasure.” Which was true. Bea was fun, cute and supersmart. The best kind of kid as far as Lanie was concerned.
“For God’s sake, just shove the shopping in the boot, Marissa!” someone, likely Gemma, yelled, then there was a honk. Lanie turned to see the others were piling into the car.
“Gotta run.” She tried being casual, giving a little wave as she ran down the steps and through their gate onto the street.
“Budge up,” Fatou ordered, making room as Lanie gave Bea another little wave before climbing into the crowded cab.
Fatou broke the silence a moment later, as the car started down the street. “He a peng ting, bwoy!”
They all laughed.
“Seriously, that man is proper leng!” Marissa concurred, slapping Fatou’s hand.
“And posh.” Gemma turned, eyeing Lanie from the front seat. “Um, how is this the first time your cousin is hearing about ’im?”
“I thought you knew, since you were running your mouth to Gran?”
That shut her up .