“Sounds good. Do whatever you want.”
 
 “You’re a natural beauty. Loose curls?”
 
 “Sure.”
 
 “Why aren’t you taking a date?” Amy asks me, and I groan.
 
 Megan laughs. “Bad topic?”
 
 “Why should I take a date if it isn’t someone special? All that does is create more work for me when I get there,” I say so convincingly, I almost believe it myself.
 
 “You need date. Work too hard.” My mama points at me and gives me her unapproving look.
 
 I need Megan to help me out. She’s done my hair for a long time and knows me fairly well. I’m thankful when she says, “What’s going on in the real estate market?”
 
 I spend the remainder of the appointment focusing on real estate, my hair, makeup, and avoiding the topic of anything to do with men.
 
 Before my mama and I part ways, she pulls back from the hug and says, “Why no date, Vivian?”
 
 Sighing, I realize I’m not going to get out of this. I’ve never gone to an event alone before, and my mama knows it. “The man I want to be with isn’t here.”
 
 “Boyfriend?” My mama eyes me suspiciously.
 
 “No. He won’t be, either.”
 
 My mama recoils. “No? He lucky with you.”
 
 I change the conversation to Greek, even though we are in public, and she usually would disapprove. “We aren’t together.”
 
 “Why not?”
 
 I shrug. “It’s complicated.”
 
 My mama focuses on me. “Vivian, he’s not married, is he?”
 
 I jerk back. “No!”
 
 She nods in relief. “Then what is the problem?”
 
 I can’t tell her the truth. So I lie. “He lives in New York.”
 
 She scans my eyes. “You met when Charlotte got into her accident?”
 
 “Yes, we met then.”
 
 “That was a long time ago.”
 
 “A while, yes.”
 
 “You’re in love with him?”
 
 I look away.
 
 She grabs my hands. “Vivian?”
 
 “Yes.”
 
 “Then why isn’t he here?”