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“You’re dating a bartender, Saona.” David’s mom seems scandalized. Her son and my brother-in-law share a mocking look.
I squash the heat stoking up my chest. How dare that fucking deadbeat judge Jax? But when I answer Mrs. Peña, I do it with pride and a smile. I happen to love my bartender man. He’s a hard-working and talented man, who can do miracles in home improvement. Not to mention his awesome ability to make me come in ways her son never could.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Wait, my man? Did I just think of him as my man?Well, that’s what he is.Hold on, do I love him?
My heart is beating so fast now and when I look at him, he’s frowning and holding my hand. I don’t know what’s being said but I’m caught up now in his eyes and I smile. I smile so big because I do. I do love him for coming here and being patient with my mom and all the ways he’s sweet to me.
“Jax, I think we need to go.”
“Saona, can I see you in the kitchen for a second?” My mother is using her no-nonsense tone.
I open my mouth to tell her it will have to wait until we see each other again because I’m about to go home. I need to tell Jax how I feel and hope I don’t scare him off.
But he lets go of my hand and my mother has already started walking.
“We’ll go when I get back, okay?”
He nods. I head to the kitchen, sending my sister a meaningful glance. She knows it means she needs to watch out for Jax while I’m gone and the vultures are around.
I enter my mother’s galley kitchen and she’s waiting for me. One hand braced on the counter and the other at her waist.
“I wish you had told me this man is not your friend but something of a different nature. I wouldn’t have invited David and his mother over. Do you know how bad this looks for you?”
I bristle. “I wish you had told me you’d invited them. I wouldn’t have come and I wouldn’t have put Jax through this. This doesn’t look bad for me. I’m not married to David. At least we’re divorced when he sees me with someone else.”
“He’s paid for that mistake. But you can’t throw your reputation away or your marriage because you’re angry and scorned.”
“What? First…” I remember who I’m talking to and adjust my tone. “There’s no marriage. We are divorced. We’ll never be together again. I am not scorned. I got fed up with him lying, cheating, mooching off me. Why is that so hard for you to understand?”
“I don’t want you to throw your life away, and for a bartender.”
“Mom, Dad was a cab driver. Jax has two careers because there are things that are meaningful to him and he wants to take care of them. The man you want me back with has one job but it is only enough to pay for his Hunts’ Point hookers. He lived off me for six years.”
“Does Jax expect you to help him take care of those things?”
“No. What part of ‘he’s working two jobs to do what he needs’ didn’t you hear?”
“Watch the way you talk to me. And stop acting like a naïve girl. He has you and the half a million dollars you make every year where he wants you. He won’t need to work that hard pretty soon.”
I back up until I bump the kitchen archway. I speak between my clenched teeth because if I don’t I’m going to scream and once I start yelling at her I won’t stop.
“What is wrong with you? All you see is money. Jax doesn’t know how much I make. He doesn’t care. He won’t even allow me to buy him dinner. Meanwhile, your protégé out there…” I wave my hand in the direction of the living room. “…took advantage of my salary. Jax’s hard work reflects on his beautiful house. Your darling David spends his money on five-dollar ass.”
“I told you to watch your mouth.” Her voice rises high but I don’t care anymore.
“You love him and his mom so much. Did you know I used to pay for their airplane tickets to DR, and his vacations so he could go cheat on me? You’re my mother, not David’s. You should be on my side.”
“Why do you think I’m doing this, Saona? I want you to be okay and not taken advantage of. David made a huge mistake but he’s not a guy who’s not on your level. And all he does is paw you, not caring that I’m the same room? That’s a user waiting to happen.”
“He hasn’t done any of that. He’s barely touched me here. I’m the one that touched him.”
“I noticed that too. You’re acting like an oversexed teenager, not an Ivy League graduate. This is not what I raised you to be. You’re supposed to be a lady at all times. I understand you have sexual urges and that whatever happened with David has you exploring them but that all goes away. You’ll get tired of him and I want you to stop this before you get tied up to him for good.”
She knows exactly where to push to make me irate. It’s futile and I have had enough. “I’m going to take my oversexed teenage self and my pawing boyfriend home.”
