Page 25 of Rounds
“You’re right. I’m sorry. Well, umm . . . you wanna crash with me? You can sleep in your old room.”
I was shocked. I fully expected her to tell me to figure it out. It was what she considered tough love. Maybe she had a heart after all. “I’m just getting settled with a friend from the hospital. Thank you for offering, Mom.”
“Of course. I hate I missed your call earlier. Do you need anything?”
“No, Mom. I’m okay now. How have you been?”
“I’ve been good. I just got back from Denver.”
“Oh. What were you doing there?”
“I have a new boyfriend. He lives there. So I went up for a quick visit. He’s supposed to be here next weekend. Maybe you can come over and meet him.”
This was different. It was rare that my mom actually invited me in on her personal life. “Wow. Sure. I would love to. Just let me know what day and time.”
“Okay. You can bring your friend you’re staying with too. It can be like a double date.”
I frowned. “Umm . . . How do you know I’m staying with a man?”
“Delaney, I’m your mother. I know you well. I raised you. The only woman you would consider staying with is me. You don’t trust people easily. So if you’re staying with someone, it’s more than you just staying there. Just because I don’t address certain things, doesn’t mean I don’t know.”
I chuckled.Well, I’ll be damned.“Okay. I guess youdoknow me.” I laughed, and she did as well. “His name is Glover Israel.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“He’s my PCP. He’s hot!”
I laughed even louder. “This is crazy!”
“Right! I just switched to him a few months ago, so I’ve only had one visit, since I’m healthy. I’d heard a lot of good things about him and how he treats his patients. You met him at the hospital?”
“Yes. We literally bumped into each other. That was how it all began. He saw all my crap in my car when I came back from lunch and practically demanded I stayed with him until my apartment was ready.”
This felt good. I’d never really had a relationship with my mom to where we could talk about things like this. It was always less detailed conversation, like I was talking to a stranger. I couldn’t help but think that this man she was seeing had influenced this change in her.
“That’s really sweet.”
“It is. He’s sent me flowers a couple of times, and he treats me with respect. I just hope things stay that way.”
“If they do, will you still move out to your apartment?”
“Most likely. I need to have my own space for a while. I need to heal from the heartache Jaunté put me through. That doesn’t mean that I won’t move back eventually.”
She chuckled. “I really hope for the best. Jaunté really didn’t impress me the couple of times I was around him, but that wasn’t my business. You looked happy, and that was all that mattered to me. Knowing he put you through turmoil angers me. But one thing I know, you handled things your way.”
“I did. He caught me off guard when he put me out, but I refused to beg him to stay. That’s not my style. I held my head high like I had it all figured out and packed my shit and left.”
“That’s my baby. Well, I need to unpack and get ready for my day tomorrow. I’ll let you know what day next weekend. Most likely Sunday afternoon.”
“Okay, Mom.”
“I love you, Delaney. If you need anything, let me know.”
“Thank you. I love you too.”
“Oh, and don’t hesitate to call Cedric. He’s been out of town, too, but he’ll be back tomorrow.”
