I Wish I Had a Red Dress by Pearl Cleage

Author:Pearl Cleage [Cleage, Pearl]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction, General
ISBN: 0380804883
Google: UPA16NkkyKQC
Amazon: B000FC128W
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2009-03-17T00:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-EIGHT

just friends

WHEN I CALLED NATE to set up a time for me to introduce him to Lynette and Geneva, he told me Anita Lattimore had just turned up at the principal’s office because her son Jarvis had been suspended for a week after he got caught smoking dope in the boys’ locker room. Anita took issue with the decision to interrupt her boy’s education, although Jarvis was not known around Baldwin High School for his academic prowess.

The principal, a small, perpetually exhausted man whose good intentions had long since been overpowered by the day-to-day realities of American public education, called Nate for backup when Anita threatened to whip his ass unless her son was allowed back in class by tomorrow morning.

“What did you tell her?” I said.

“I told her that issuing terroristic threats was against the law and if she didn’t want to go to jail she better find another way to express her displeasure.”

“Did that work?” If I knew Anita, all that did was add fuel to the fire.

Nate’s rumbling chuckle told me I was right.

“Well, she offered to whip my ass as soon as she got through whippin’ Bernie’s, so I don’t know how much help I was.”

“Congratulations.”

“On what?”

“You are now an official resident of Idlewild,” I said. “You’ve had your first official run-in with a Lattimore.”

“I’d hate to think that’s all that’s required,” he said.

“It’s not. You’re also required to meet the Smitherman twins, which we can take care of Thursday, if you’re free.”

“I’ll be done here by five-thirty. Is that too late?”

“That’s perfect,” I said. “Why don’t you come by my house first and we’ll ride over together?”

Even as I said it, and he agreed, I hoped the offer sounded properly neutral. Just one friend introducing another friend to two more. Nothing wrong with that, so why did it make me feel the slightest flutter of butterflies? Maybe Sister’s right. I need to get out more.

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