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"There is definitely something wrong with you. " Mom crossed the room and sat down on the sofa. She put her feet up on the coffee table. "I really think this guy might be The One, Lo. "
Lauren thought she heard a crack in her mothers voice, but that wasnt possible. Men had always drifted in and out of her mothers life. Mostly out. Shed fallen in love with dozens of them. They never stuck around for long.
"I was havin drinks with Phoebe, and just gettin ready to leave, when Jake walked in. " Mom sucked in a long drag on her cigarette, exhaled. "He looked like a gunfighter, coming in to the bar for a shoot-out. When the light hit his face, I thought for a second it was Brad Pitt. " She laughed. "The next morning, o course, when I woke up with him, he didnt look much like a movie star. But he kissed me. In the light of day. A kiss. "
Lauren felt the tiniest of openings between them. Such a moment was rare, and she couldnt help moving toward it. She sat down beside her mom. "You sound . . . different when you say his name. "
For once, Mom didnt ease away. "I didnt think it would happen for me. " She seemed to realize what shed said, what shed revealed, so she smiled. "Im sure its nothing. "
"I guess I could say hi to him. "
"Yeah. He thinks youre a figment of my imagination. " Mom laughed. "Like I would pretend to have a kid. "
Lauren couldnt believe shed walked into it again. Or that it still hurt. She started to get up, but her mother stopped her. Actually touched her.
"And the sex. Holy shit, its good. " She took another drag, exhaled, smiling dreamily.
Smoke swirled around Laurens face, clogged her nostrils. She gagged at the smell and felt her stomach rise.
She ran for the bathroom, where she threw up. Afterward, still shaky, she brushed her teeth and went back to the dining room table. "How many times do I have to ask you not to exhale your smoke in my face?"
Mom stabbed out the cigarette in the overloaded ashtray and stared at Lauren. "Puking is a new response. "
Lauren grabbed her plate from the table and headed for the sink. "I gotta go. David and I are studying together tonight. "
"Whos David?"
Lauren rolled her eyes. "Nice. Ive been dating him for almost four years. "
"Oh, him. The good-looking one. " Mom gazed at her through the still-lingering smoke, and then took another drink of her Coke. For once, Lauren felt as if her mother were actually seeing her. "You have a lot going for you, Lauren. Trust me when I tell you that a hard dick can ruin everything. "
"Yeah. I think Mrs. Brady said the same thing to Marcia. "
Mom didnt laugh; neither did she look away. It was a long moment before she said softly, "You know what makes a girl throw up for no reason, dont you?"
"I CANT BELIEVE I LET YOU TALK ME INTO THIS DRESS," Angie said, studying herself in the mirror in their hotel room.
"I didnt talk you into it," Mama said from the bathroom. "I bought it for you. "
Angie turned sideways, noticed how the red silk clung to her body. The dress Mama had chosen from the sale rack at Nordstrom was one Angie never would have bought for herself. Red was such a look-at-me color. Even more outrageous was the pure sexines
s of the dress. Angie usually preferred classic elegance.
Normally, she would have refused to wear it, but she and her mother had had such a wonderful day. Lunch at the Georgian, facials at Gene Juarezs downtown spa, and shopping at Nordstrom. When Mama had seen this dress, shed screamed and made a beeline.
At first Angie had thought it was just a joke. The dress was a scarlet halter-style with a plunging back. Thousands of tiny silver bugle beads glittered along the bodice. And even at seventy percent off, the price tag was hefty.
"Youve got to be kidding," she said to her mother, shaking her head. "Were going to the theater, not the Oscar ceremony. "
"You are a single woman now," Mama said, coming out of the bathroom, and though she was smiling, there was a sad knowing in her eyes. Life changes, that look said, whether you want it to or not. "Mr. Tannen at the hardware store said Tommy Matucci was asking about you. "
Angie decided to let that pass. Hooking up with her high school boyfriend was not at the top of her to-do list. "So you think if I dress like an expensive hooker-- or a Hollywood celebrity, which is pretty much the same thing--Ill find my way to a new life. " Angie meant to sound flip, but when she got to the words new life, her smile shook.
"What I think," Mama said slowly, "is that its time to look forward instead of back. Youre doing a great job with the restaurant. Date night is a huge success. Youve collected enough coats for most of the elementary school children in town. For now, be happy. "
Angie knew it was good advice. "I love you, Mama. Have I told you that recently?"
"Not enough. Now lets go. Your father says we are late. "
