Page 32 of Property of BamBam
I giggle because I didn’t know either, although once it became known, I could see all the signs. “We were probably so wrapped up in the story, we missed the indicators,” I muse.
“I’m gonna make some popcorn,” Marge states, standing to her feet. “Does Theo need a bottle yet?”
I glance at my phone and nod. “Probably wouldn’t hurt, although it’ll likely have him dozing off.”
“Eh, babies his age do that, they eat, piss, shit, and sleep,” Marge teases. “I’ll make one for him so we’re ready.”
“Thanks, Marge.”
“I know it’s not a Halloween movie, but I’ve always loved this one,” I say as the credits forPractical Magicroll. Sandra Bullock is so dang talented!
“She was pretty funny in those pageant movies, too,” Briley adds as she stands and starts picking up the trash from our impromptu movie marathon.
We took a break for dinner, which was pizza today, one of my favorites, then I gave Theo his last bottle, a bath, then put him down for the night. After that, we made a pitcher of frozen margaritas and watched movies. While I had girl friends in high school, most of them were in college when shit hit the fan for me, so hanging out with these women has given me a sense of acceptance. All of us come from a domestic violence situation, so it’s understood when one of us randomly bursts into tears for seemingly no reason.
“I liked her in theSpeedmovie. The original one, not the sequel,” Marge says.
“Tell the truth, Marge, it was really Keanu Reeves you were watching,” Ashley teases. Her ‘oomph’ as Marge throws a pillow at her has all of us giggling.
“Alright, ladies, I’m going to lock it all down while y’all clean up. See you in the morning,” Grace interjects.
“BamBam said something today, but I don’t know how to decipher it,” I admit as we end up in the kitchen to wash the dishes we used.
“Well, don’t keep us in suspense. Tell us what he said,” Marge demands.
“He said that while he knows I’m not ready for anything beyond friendship, me and Theo are his,” I reply. “What does that mean?”
Briley starts grinning before she blurts out, “It means he’s gonna make you his old lady, Livy!”
“But I’m not old!” I exclaim, which has all of them laughing. “What’s so funny?”
“Surely you’ve heard that expression before, haven’t you?” Marge asks.
“Yeah, BamBam told me that Issy was Rio’s old lady, only she’s not old either,” I mutter. My feelings are getting hurt because they’re all laughing and that’s something Jasper used to do whenever he felt I was being ‘stupid’, as he called it.
Ashley must see the look on my face because she walks over to me and grabs my hands. “We’re not laughing at you, Livy, not really. Bikers in a club tend to call their women their old ladies is all. It’s a cultural thing. For them, it’s more binding than a marriage is to us.”
“Really?” I ask, gulping.
“Yeah, really, and him saying that is letting you know where he sees y’all going as far as a relationship goes,” Marge advises me.
“Well, I um… I don’t know what to say, to be honest,” I reply.
“Talk it over with Beth,” Ashley suggests. “Okay, I’m turning in. Good night, y’all.”
“Night, Ash,” is repeated by each one of us as we all slowly separate and make our way to our respective rooms.
My mood is contemplative as I get ready for bed, thoughts of the time I’ve spent with BamBam rolling through my mind. By the time I slide underneath the flat sheet, I’m no closer to understanding how I feel than I was to begin with. The only thing I know for sure is he’s definitely someone I’d be willing to date.
First thing tomorrow, I’ll see if Beth has any tips for me because I don’t want to screw things up for either me or Theo. If thatmeans I stay single the rest of my life, or at least until Theo’s graduated from high school, so be it.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE
BamBam
I find myself making excuses to go into town now that Livy’s living in the apartment over the laundromat and working shifts downstairs. She moved in a week ago, and while I’ve noticed an increase in her overall self-confidence, it’s grown by leaps and bounds. She’s already added a few things to make customers’ lives easier, including a huge bulletin board with local services, as well as a small bookshelf that has well-worn books sitting on each shelf. Not only that, but one of the women, Marge, has been coming in and helping her as well. After bringing it to the table, we gave her a job helping Livy since the new services have been so accepted that Livy was initially snowed under.
