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“All jokes aside, it’s a dream come true working for myself though, Iris. I know I get a decent retirement check, and I saved up well from all those years of working, but this is nice. It allows me to do more of what I want to do. Oh, that reminds me—they fired Lawanda.”
“Lawanda lost her job again?” Lawanda was another of her cousins. She was known in the family to have five or six different jobs per year, on average, due to being let go time and time again.
“She’s getting too old for this mess, Iris.”
“What happened this time?”
“She cussed out a customer. They told her, ‘Lawanda, we got to let you go.’ And she sit up there and say, ‘Go where? Where we going?’”
Iris burst out laughing again and fell onto her side, her belly aching as tears of mirth welled in her eyes.
“Lawanda is a fool. She’s so funny. I give her credit, though. She always manages to get another job.”
“True. I don’t know how with her crazy work history. Anyway, baby, I’ll let you finish unpackin’. Call me if you need me. I love you. You take care now.”
“I love you too, Aunt Blue.” She ended the call, placed her phone on the nightstand, and yawned. After sitting there for a bit, she grabbed Jude’s abandoned bottle of water and took a sip. She looked around at all the boxes she needed to unpack and shook her head in dismay.This is going to take forever.She could hear music playing from somewhere else in the vast house. It sounded like a country song. Ayanna was at her friend’s house, and Jude was on the first floor while she tried to sort out her life.
Okay, let me sit here a couple of more minutes, then start on this big ass walk-in closet.
Through the open closet doors, she studied the section he’d cleared just for her. In fact, she had a little over half the space after he moved some of his things to a guestroom. So sweet of him. She looked around the bedroom, thinking about where they’d put the crib. Jude had suggested by the main window near the built-in bench and bookshelf, an area with plenty of room to put a rocking chair in. The baby’s room was being prepped for painting, too.
After a while, she got up and stretched. As she drew closer to the bedroom door, she heard Jason Aldean’s, ‘Tonight Looks Good On You.’
She took another sip of his water, then began opening boxes and bags, slipping clothing on hangers, and placing things just as she wanted them. She felt accomplished as she cleared box after box, and bag after bag. Jude walked in while she was playing a podcast on her phone, working at a good pace. He stood in the doorway holding a beer.
“How’d you like this label, baby?”
“I wish I could taste it,” she teased. “Is that the new one? The lager?”
“Yeah. What you think, though? The label?” He stretched his arm out to show her.
“Eh, it’s all right.” She shrugged as she grabbed another bag and peered inside it.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“It’s a little plain is all. I’d pass it by. Just a blue square with white writing and that little mountain at the top. You know what I’d do?”
“What?”
“Add another color. Like maybe, I don’t know… red?”
He studied the bottle.
“I don’t think red would work, but I see what you’re saying. It’s a prototype.”
She nodded in understanding, then opened a dresser drawer and placed a few of her nightgowns inside.
“Jude, I know the cleanin’ lady is coming in a couple of days, but I gotta get some of this dust up. It’s like something came through the vents and blew mess everywhere, and it sure is bothering my allergies.”
“I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about, but I can dust.”
“If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then how you gonna clean it up?” She put her hand on her hip and smirked.
“I ain’t got to know what you’re talking about to get rid of no dust, baby. I’ll go get some Pledge.”
“Naw, I already got everything.” She pointed at the desk in the room. “Besides, you won’t do it to my liking.”
The man rolled his eyes, tooted the beer up to his mouth, and took a hard swallow.
