Afterburn

Her mother wriggled her mouth around like she was trying to find her tongue and bellowed out, “How the fuck are you?”

“I’m fine, thank you.” I held out my hand. “I’m Yardley Brown. You must be Rayne’s mother.”

“Fuckin’-A, I am.” She glared at my hand and refused to reach for it. Instead, she turned around and headed deeper into Rayne’s place. “So you’re the latest panty sniffer, huh?”

Rayne had told me very little about her mother; like she was ashamed of her. Now it was obvious that her mother had a drinking problem; evidenced by the bottle of vodka she picked up from the coffee table and started guzzling down.

“Excuse me?” I asked, not quite believing that she’d actually asked me if I was a panty sniffer.

“Panty sniffer!” she repeated, shouting it louder this time. “Pussy hound! Cat chaser!”

Rayne took a deep sigh, livid from her mother’s comment. “Momma, go sit down!”

“Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to? I’m Arjay Waters, the heifer that birthed you! You go sit your ass down!”

Rayne took my hand and guided me over to her dining room area. “Yardley, I’m so sorry. I’m not going to be able to keep our date tonight.” Rayne looked like she was close to tears. “I wasn’t exp

ecting Momma. She simply popped up.” She moved closer to me and whispered, “More like touched ground like a tornado.”

I embraced her tightly. “It’s no problem. I understand.”

“Do you really?” She leaned back from me so she could see my eyes.

While I didn’t really understand, being that Rayne was a grown woman and her mother had decided to barge in without notice, I still lied. “Sure, I’m disappointed. But I understand, Rayne.”

She kissed me on the cheek and I craved her to do more than that; not a possibility at the moment. I did take her face in my hands and plant one long, soft kiss on her lips and then let her go.

She blushed. “Thanks. You’re so sweet.”

We stood there, captured by one another. I could tell that she wanted me as much as I wanted her. Damn, why did her mother have to show up!

“Hey! Hey!” her mother yelled out at us from the sofa, where she’d decided to take a seat despite Rayne ordering her to do so.

Rayne broke our gaze and turned to her mother. “Yes, Momma?” she asked, disgust permeating her voice.

Her mother crossed her legs and took another sip of her vodka. “Ya’ll don’t have to cancel your plans. We can still hang out.”

“We?” Rayne asked in dismay. I was sure that Rayne wasn’t about to have either one of us sitting in a cozy restaurant on Valentine’s Day with her mother in between us, ranting and raving loudly.

“Yeah, we.” Her mother pointed at us and then back at herself. “Rayne, Harley, and Arjay. The three musketeers.” When neither one of us responded, she added, “I know your ass doesn’t expect me to sit up in this shithole by myself.”

Rayne started for her and I managed to grab her by the elbow and pull her back. “Momma, first of all, my apartment isn’t a shithole. You need to take a look at your own home before—”

“There you go again, smart ass!” Arjay catapulted up off the sofa and came for Rayne, since I’d stopped her. She got within a foot of us and asked me, “Do you see the way my baby talks to me, Harley?”

“His name is Yardley, Momma. Yardley!” Rayne screamed out in anger.

“Harley! Yardley! What the fuck ever!” She still stared at me with bloodshot pupils. “Do you see the way she treats me?”

I wasn’t about to get into the middle of the mess between Rayne and her mother. The embarrassment Rayne was feeling was obvious by her facial expression.

“Mrs. Waters. That is your correct name, right?” I asked, knowing she had already stated it earlier. I was trying to change the subject anyway I could.

“Yes, and I like being addressed that way. It makes me feel like a lady,” Arjay replied, smoothing her dress down over her hips. Then she looked at Rayne and added, “Now that’s what I’m talking about. A brother who acts like a gentleman. He might have some potential after all.”

“Ma’am, my parents raised me that way. In fact, it would be an honor to escort both you and your lovely daughter out to dinner this evening.”

“Yardley, you don’t have to do that!” Rayne exclaimed. “We can do it another time.”