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“Oh Sophie! So glad to see my guilt trip worked. I was wondering if I still had it.” Before Sophie could say a word, Ma had squeezed her into another tight, welcoming hug. “So good to see you again. Dang girl, you smell so good, what is that? Doesn’t she smell good Stone?”
I glared at the twinkle of mischief in her eyes and she laughed. “Don’t know. All I can smell is this delicious dish Sophie brought to share.”
“It’s nothing,” she insisted. “Just a little enchilada casserole. We don’t have to eat it,” she said nervously.
“Nonsense. Stone made garlic mashed potatoes, so we’ve all contributed to tonight’s dinner.” Ma chattered away as if she was oblivious to the awkwardness and the tension that had suddenly taken up residence in the kitchen. “How’s work, Soph?”
“Pretty good. I’m always tweaking the algorithm to make sure our clients get the best experience possible, and the latest change has produced more compatible matches.” Her soft voice talked more about things I didn’t really understand. But I couldn’t look away from he way Sophie’s face lit with passion when she talked about her work.
“You don’t have to sell me, sweetheart, I met some hotties at your mixer party.” Ma laughed and I went back to chopping the salad ingredients, listening with half an ear as she and Sophie caught up, almost envious that they still had that easiness between them.
By the time dinner was ready, I was half tempted to shovel the food in my mouth to get it over with as quickly as possible. The food was as tasty as it always was, but the tension was so thick you’d need a butcher knife to slice through it.
“Well?” Ma looked at me expectantly and I blinked, looking up in confusion. “I asked what new movies you’ve seen for movie night?”
“Oh.” I knew what she was doing, but this was my mama and I couldn’t just call her out. “Nothing new. The last few movies have been old ones you’ve probably seen before.”
“Like what?”
“Goodfellas.” My gaze met Sophie’s, and I wondered if she was thinking about that night, our last normal night as friends. As just friends. Some days I wondered if I should’ve just kept my feelings to myself and found someone else to love since that was the plan anyway. If I had, at least things wouldn’t be so strained today.
“All right dammit!” Ma’s fists landed on the table and she had on her angry voice, disappointed glare aimed at me and the Sophie. “This is ridiculous. You two are best friends, been joined at the hip since you were ankle biters, and now you can barely even look at one another.”
“Ma, it’s fine, well it will be fine. Eventually.” Sophie’s shoulders fell in disappointment, and I felt my heart give a little kick at the sight of those sad brown eyes.
“Eventually isn’t good enough. I want you two to talk this out. Right now.”
“Oh Mags, that’s not necessary. We are, as Stone said, figuring it out.”
Ma smiled, but it was full of mischief. “I know you are, because you’re going to hash it all out right here. Right now.” She stood and pulled another glass casserole dish from a cupboard, filling it with a little bit of everything. “I’m going to have a visit with Mirabelle and eat some of this good food in peace, and you two will stay here until you’ve figured your crap out. Got it?”
I laughed. “Ma, you can’t make us stay, and you can’t make us talk.”
“Oh, can’t I?” She turned on her heels and left the kitchen in favor of the living room. Ma yanked her purse off the hook on the wall, slipped her feet into her favorite pair of red sneakers and hoisted the dish under her arm. “I guess we’ll just see about that.”
“Ma, stop playing. Just come back in and we’ll have a nice dinner. Full of conversation.”
“Oh no, it’s too late for that. I’ll be back whenever I get back. Don’t forget to wash the dishes when you’re done eating. Nice to see you again, Soph. Hope to see more of you later.” Then she stepped outside with her keys in hand and locked the door. In fact, she took her time to make sure all three locks were engaged. “Bye now!”
A few moments later, the engine sparked to life and Ma was gone. Probably to tell Mirabelle all about how she’d given us a stern talking to.
“She does realize we can just leave whenever we want, doesn’t she?” Sophie’s voice was full of amusement, and I resisted the urge to face her.
“She locked the deadlock. And took the key.”
Sophie’s eyes widened in shock. “She didn’t!”
“She totally did, but we can make our escape out the back. After we clean up.”
Sophie nodded her agreement. “Maybe we should at least finish the meal first?”
