Miss Opportunity - Ch. 36.2

After bidding Franco goodbye, Millsap returned to the car where Cami awaited. He found her on the phone in the middle of asking Towanna if she and Roe wanted to double date with them on Thursday after work. Respecting their phone call, Millsap gave Cami a silent nod of approval and started up the car. It was time to go home now. Home to Cami’s house.

“You can’t go? Why not this time, Towanna?” Cami said, having gotten a similar rejection the last time she extended such an invitation.

“Roe doesn’t like to leave Littleview,” Towanna replied, doing her best not to outright lie to her friend. Roe really didn’t like to venture outside of Littleview due to all the lies he’d told in Enfield. Which was also why they had all their dates in his current city of residence.

“That’s okay. We don’t mind the commute. Millsap’s dad lives in Littleview. It’ll give me the perfect excuse to visit him again,” Cami replied, unaware that her friend was lying in bed beside Millsap’s father right now.

Towanna frowned. “I’m sorry, Cami. But the truth is, Roe isn’t a very sociable person,” she lied, feeling awful inside for doing so. With her cell phone still up to her ear, she exited the bed, leaving a guilty looking Roe behind.

“Oh, okay,” Cami conceded, frowning at that obvious lie. She remembered Roe very well from that Littleview club. The man had been very sociable that night. In fact, he’d had enough friends with him at the club for each of them to memorize a separate digit of Towanna’s phone number.

“But that doesn’t mean I can’t socialize with you and Millsap. Matter of fact, I’d like to cook Sunday dinner for you both,” Towanna said, trying to do something to make amends as she sat on the cushioned window seat of Roe’s bedroom.

“We’d love to have you cook Sunday dinner for us. At my house or the boarding house?” Cami asked, willing to accept that olive branch. Especially since it would give her an opportunity to find out why Towanna was hiding her new man out in Littleview so much.

If it wasn’t that, Cami would find out if the problem rested with Roe instead. If maybe he thought he was either too good or too old to hang out with Towanna’s friends. After all, Cami and Millsap were much younger than Roe. They were younger than Towanna, too, but only by four and six years, respectively. Roe had to be knocking on fifty’s door. Hard.

“Your house, of course. I can’t wait to dirty up that brand new stove and all those fancy pots and pans you just got.” Towanna chuckled, trying to lighten the mood some.

Cami smiled. “You can dirty up anything you like in my kitchen as long as you help me bust some suds afterwards.”

“Deal,” Towanna replied, relieved that their friendship was still intact.

“Hook us up with that chicken cordon bleu!” Millsap suddenly shouted, putting in his order before the ladies hung up the phone. That was his favorite Towanna dish.

“Tell your man that chicken cordon bleu it is,” Towanna told Cami, laughing at Millsap’s outburst.

“I will,” Cami chuckled, before saying her goodbyes.

“I’m sorry, Tootie,” Roe told Towanna as soon as she hung up the phone.

“Yeah, I know.” Towanna rose to her feet and headed for the bathroom. She needed some alone time right now to think about a few things. Particularly about if she loved Roe enough to keep lying to her friends. About if she had enough patience to wait for him to stop lying to his own loved ones.

© 2008 by Suprina Frazier