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She snapped out of her haze and cleared her throat.
“Both alive and happily married. My parents still live in Chattanooga, where I grew up, and most of my family still lives there. Except for my oldest brother, he’s in Nashville. My brothers are all married and have their own families. I’m the only one still flying solo.”
“Do you see them often? How did you end up in Atlanta?”
Reyna stared into her wineglass like I’d touched a nerve.
“Enough, I guess. I go up there every couple of months or so. I just really wanted to escape the small-town life. I love where I grew up, but I wanted more and I wanted to explore.” She let out a laugh that sounded just a little bitter. “I guess I didn’t end up far, really. Just a couple hours down the interstate. But after high school, I went to the University of Georgia, got a great entry-level job at a company in the city and you know the rest of my work history.”
Her smile didn’t reach her eyes, and I knew there was something she was leaving out.
“Any big relationships? Besides us, of course.” I smiled, trying to lighten the mood. But Reyna’s mouth dipped into a frown and I instantly regretted the question.
“One. A boy I knew in high school. We went to UGA together, but it didn’t work out.”
“Any hopes for settling down?”
“Of course, I have hopes, but it’s not like I’m desperate for it, or that it's a current, pressing goal. It will happen at the right time with the right person. I’m not in a hurry. It will happen when and if it happens. I'm happy either way.” I admired that she didn’t put a timeline on the whole situation like a lot of women I met.
“Does your family know what’s going on with us?”
She shook her head.
“Not yet. I have no idea how to even begin to explain all of this. My parents are pretty traditional. With four kids like us, they got somewhat used to our shenanigans, but nothing like this.”
“Does it bother you that they could possibly find out about this? It's on social media, after all.” I was suddenly concerned about what the fallout for Reyna could be with her family.
“Of course. But I took some basic steps, blocking them from my social media profiles and all of that. It’s not perfect but I’ll do my best. And if they find out? Well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
She looked down at her wineglass again and I took a chance, reaching out to tuck a stray lock of her hair behind her ear and stroking the soft, smooth skin of her neck.
“Anyway, I think that’s twenty questions from you. It’s my turn.”
“Go for it.” I would have agreed to anything Reyna asked me.
“Well, I know you’re an only child. But what about your parents?”
“They still love each other very much. I know I grew up very privileged, but I don’t have the usual rich kid sob story. Sure, my dad wasn’t around all that much when I was younger. He was always working and travelling for work. But when he was around, he was reallypresent.Present in a way that my friends’ fathers weren’t. So I always felt seen and loved. And my mom was always around. We had housekeepers and I had a nanny and all that, but it was my mom or even my dad, who tucked me in at night. So I guess I didn’t just grow up privileged in a material way, but ridiculously privileged in many ways.”
I let out a laugh, thinking about the last conversations I’d had with my parents.
“In fact, now that I’m an adult, they can be a little too involved in my personal business. Sometimes I wish I had siblings to take away some of that heat.”
Reyna laughed softly, dropping her hand to my knee and skimming her fingers over the skin where my shorts ended.
“So, you’re like a totally spoiled brat then, huh?”
“I could sometimes be described as that, yes.”
She laughed quietly again. I loved hearing her laugh. It was slowly becoming my favorite sound to hear.
“So, if your parents are happily married and you get along well with them, why this playboy persona? Just some rebellion?”
She asked the question that I was hoping she wouldn’t ask. I didn’t like talking about my love life.
“Eh,” I said, trying to shrug it off, acting casual. “I just don’t think love or partnership is right for me. I tried it once, got burned, so don’t really want to go through that again.”
I silently prayed that Reyna would change the topic, but of course, her interest was piqued.
