Page 65 of Leave It to Us
There was that fuzzy, staticky sound for the first few seconds as the needle moved over the record. Then the guitar started the intro that would be recognized for generations after its original 1964 recording, and seconds later, David Ruffin’s voice blasted throughout the room: “I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day.”
Tami and Lana both walked in at that exact moment. Yvonne moved away from the record player and stood in the center of the new dark-wood floors. She’d traded her sandals for thick, purple fuzzy socks that didn’t match her green pajama pants and T-shirt, so she slid a little as she made her way to where she needed to be. Tami acted first, squealing as she ran across the floor to stand to Yvonne’s left. The black-and-white-striped boxer shorts and white tank top she wore were a contrast to Yvonne’s colorful ensemble, but she loved Tami’s Wonder Woman slippers.
“I remember Daddy used to play this for us, and we’d all get up and hold hands in a circle, dancing with him because we werehis girls!” Tami continued to squeal as she took Yvonne’s hand and they started to dance.
Yvonne laughed. “I know. I was thinking about him earlier today, and tonight it just seemed like the time to spend with him,” she said, and then looked over to where Lana was still standing in the doorway, hands at her side like she was somehow frozen to that spot.
“C’mon, Lana, you know our circle was never complete without you,” Yvonne said.
She extended her free hand to her sister just as Tami started crooning, “My girl, my girl, my girl!” in her very off-key voice.
“We can’t let her sing The Temptations like that,” Yvonne continued. She and Lana had always been the better singers, even though Tami loved to sing the most and the loudest.
“Oh, don’t hate ’cause y’all can’t hang with me,” Tami said, and launched into the next verse.
Lana’s face broke into a frown then, but she started walking toward them, shaking her head. “Girl, Grandma Betty didn’t teach you a thing about singing, did she?”
Lana wore hot-pink silk pajama pants and a matching top, with black slippers on her feet. She came closer to them and grabbed Yvonne’s and Tami’s hands to make their circle complete.
They danced and sang the entire song, laughing and holding tight to each other’s hands just like they used to do when they were here with Daddy. And when that song went off, Tami rushed over to the record player.
“What else did you bring down?” She picked up the stack of albums and flipped through them. “Oh yesss, hunty! Yes! This was my jam, but Lana hated it.”
Which meant Tami was definitely putting that one on next. Yvonne only shook her head because she knew exactly what record was about to play. Lana must have too, since she rolled her eyes and moved to her place in the center of their circle this time. And right after Tami ran over to join them, they were each ready to extend that arm with their hands up, palms facing forward as they sang in unison, “Stop—in the name of love.”
Lana was always Diana Ross—and not just because Mama had declared she had the singer’s eyes, but also because Lana really was the best vocalist of their trio. And while Lana had claimed she despised thissong and any of the others that Grandma Betty had used to play by the Supremes or the Boss, she absolutely got into her role, moving her hips and stepping in front of Yvonne and Tami just like she was the leader of the singing group.
They were all laughing and out of breath by the time that record ended, and Tami, now insisting she was the DJ for the evening, ran over to the record player again. But this time, while they waited for her to put on the next record, the distinct sound of breaking glass caught their attention.
Chapter 23
LANA
Lana grabbed one of the extender sticks that had been added to the paintbrush a few days ago when the parlor had been painted. Tami had moved away from the record player and found one of the spatula-scraper thingies, which she now held in her hand like a knife. Yvonne had found a loose wood plank and was ready to wield it like a baseball bat.
There’d been a second loud crash, and as she looked at her sisters, Lana knew their hearts were racing right along with hers.
“There’s somebody in the kitchen,” Tami whispered.
“No shit, Sherlock,” Lana snapped.
“Shh,” Yvonne chastised.
The three of them stood close, taking baby steps that would lead them out of the parlor. Lana suspected they probably looked like the Three Stooges, with their ridiculous weapons, going off to fight who in the hell knew who—but they weren’t backing down, that was for damn sure. Something else crashed, and then there was a thump and a curse.
Shit! There really was someone in the house.
But they were on an island. Were there break-ins here, like in the city? Did they even have a police force? Someone to help them if therewas a gun-toting murderer in their kitchen? Because if the intruder had a gun, they definitely didn’t stand a chance with their weapons.
Oh, Lord, please don’t let this intruder have a gun.Maybe it was just someone looking for a meal, and that’s why they came in through the kitchen. If that were the case, they could feed that someone and get them the hell out of the house.
“Maybe they left,” Tami said as they continued walking through the foyer but hadn’t heard another sound from the kitchen.
Yvonne shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
“We’ve gotta check it out anyway,” Lana said. “They definitely broke something trying to get in here. Probably the window.”
“Oh no, not the new windows and doors we just had installed,” Tami moaned. “That’s gonna cost us more money to replace.”
