Page 29 of The Marriage Deal
"Hi darling," she said to Elvira. "I have never met any of Levi's girlfriends. I was starting to think my son is gay."
Elle's gaze darted between my mother and me. "I'm not—"
"Shouldn't you be in London, then?" I said.
"Your boyfriend doesn't like it when his mother ruins the date," Mom said in a conspiratorial tone to Elvira.
"It’s not a date," I said, taking Elvira's hand. "I wanted to give her a book and then leave this dastardly place."
"Leave?" Her eyes widened in horror. "And not have dinner with your poor mother?"
"Yes, leave. We can't stay too long."
"Why not? Aren't schools closed in America? It's not like you have classes to teach."
"Mother, there's more to academia than just teaching."
"And academia will be fine without you for a few more hours. Plus, I want to get to know your girlfriend."
12
Elvira
LEVI'S MOTHER WAS NOT at all what I expected her to be. The woman I had heard a few times over the phone and little else from the few details Levi dropped over time was nothing like the woman who sat opposite me in the grand dining room of Redwood Hall. She was not as shallow as I thought she would be. And the relationship with her son was the most fascinating of all. While she tried her best to be forthcoming, her son was not having it. Levi was cold to her.
"So how's work?" she had asked a variation of the same question a couple of times before, and she got the same response the third time around.
"Fine."
"It must be such a taxing job. Teaching college students."
"There's more to it than that, Mom." Levi reached for the bowl of potatoes and added a couple to his plate.
"And you said you two work together?" Rebecca asked me this time, realizing that drawing information from her son was like drawing it from a stone.
"We work in the same department, yes."
Levi and I had agreed to keep up the ruse of being girlfriend and boyfriend to his mom. Which I eventually agreed to because how were we going to explain the kiss? I couldn't explain it to myself. One moment we were talking about history, the next Iwas slobbering all over him. I can't even blame him this time around; I kissed him.
"And are you a history professor as well?"
"I am a teaching assistant. I'm currently doing my PhD."
Her face brightened. "Oh wow. What's it about?"
"Africans in medieval Europe. It's a study of their lives and the impact they had on the culture of Europe."
"What a smart girlfriend you have."
"Yes, she's very smart," Levi said affectionately. I could have easily been fooled into thinking he was being sincere if I didn't know that we were making up a ruse.
"Levi was always deep in a book when he was young," Rebecca trilled. "Obsessed with history. I wasn't surprised when he went into academia. He knew a lot about stuff." Rebecca sounded proud of her son, but Levi either didn't see it or didn't want to receive praise. "What got you into the field, Elvira?" she added.
"I don't know. My parents owned a pawnshop, and being around antiques made me curious about them."
"Fascinating." She glanced at Levi, but he ate in silence as though he weren't part of the conversation.
Rebecca soon gave up on the small talk, and we ate the rest of the dinner in silence. After we were done, she invited us to the drawing for a drink. Levi stayed in the dining room for a call. I followed Rebecca to a room with beautiful Georgian turquoise silk wallpaper. It matched the upholstery of the Georgian chairs and chaise lounge. Portraits of different sizes hang on the walls. They show men and women from various times. Some of them vaguely resemble Rebecca and Levi. Even the games tables were of that time period. The finishing touch was a giant crystal chandelier in the middle of the room. It was as though I were lost in time. "This room is beautiful. As is your entire house."
