“So, I work at Clark too,” she says to spark conversation again. “I’m in sports management.”
“You like it?”
“I do. What girl wouldn’t love a job where she’s surrounded by toned and sexy men all the time.” She laughs nervously. I don’t laugh at all. “It was a joke,” she says.
I should have taken what she said lightly, but the thought of her being around other men makes me feel more possessive than I should right now.
“My first job was at Auburn University, but I moved to Atlanta for more money and to get away from my mother,” she adds, and the same sadness I saw at Keith’s reception is back on her face. Something wavers in her eyes every time she mentions her mother. I want to know more about that but decide to leave it alone for now.
“Is your family from Auburn?”
“No, we’re from Lafayette. It’s a small town about twenty miles away from Auburn. Where are you from?”
“Oh, I’m Atlanta born and raised. Dekalb County.”
“Sometimes, I like being here. I just wish I had a helicopter so I can get through traffic in a decent time. The traffic is really my only complaint.”
“I feel you on that one. Atlanta’s traffic is a beast.”
“So, about this Christmas dinner…” She steers the conversation back to her primary concern, telling me about her mother, brothers and their families who will be at this Christmas dinner. She also tells me about her late father and how he was always there for her. “Mom wants me to find someone like my dad, but I know that’s going to be a hard job.”
“He sounds like a respectable man, someone I would have liked to meet.”
“You would have loved him. Everyone did. He dressed classy, like you.”
“So, your pops had swag?”
She laughs then pauses to swallow the lump in her throat. “He did. My mother had a little to do with that too. She made sure he was dressed in his best. She’s actually lovable when she wants to be. She’s just overbearing.”
“They sound like quite the couple.”
“Yeah.” Silence.
“So tell me, who does your mother think I am?” I ask.
“She thinks you’re the perfect guy who’s going to implant her grandbabies in me.” She laughs.
“You told her that?”
“Not exactly, but this is what she thinks. She also thinks we’ve been dating for four months and that you’re in love with me. You’re a professor at Clark University, and at least that part is true. Oh, and we’re considering marriage. She’s hoping for a proposal at Christmas dinner, but don’t worry about that. Once Christmas is over, I’ll tell her that we broke it off, so I don’t have to pretend anymore.”
“What if I don’t want to break up after Christmas?” I ask. “You wouldn’t be pretending if we’re really dating.”
“Omega.” She laughs.
“I’m not joking.”
“We’re not technically together, so we can’t break up for real. Remember, this is just for my mother’s sake.”
“I’m going to your Christmas dinner to give you what you need at this moment. Be open to what develops between us though. It’s going to be more than what you think it is.”
“O-okay.”
“Also, I have a request. Are you ready?”
“I think so.”
“Spend every night with me until Christmas.”