A Good Dude (31 page)

So Candace drove back with Leila and her mother. Her father followed behind in a brand new Lincoln Navigator. Even fifteen hundred miles away from home, Candace’s parents were used to a certain level of luxury.

The ride back took forty-five minutes, during which Candace told her mother everything she wanted to know about her new life. Candace told her about the city and the few friends she made since moving down there. They talked about school and her job at Pappadeaux. The conversation eventually made its way to her love life, and Candace couldn’t keep a smile off her face when she talked about Tino. Katherine could tell she was seriously smitten.

“But don’t tell Dad,” Candace tacked on at the end. “Why?”

“Mama, you know how he is.”

“Girl, Gerald never had a problem with anyone you went with until you messed up with that
rapper
.”

“I know,” Candace said. “But after Rilla, I don’t want him to know I’m going out with someone else. He’s going to think ‘
Okay, here we go again
.’ ”

“Not if you talk to him,” Mrs. Hendricks said. “This new boy sounds like a totally different person. He’s in school. He’s your age.”

“He is, Mom. He’s special, a real good dude. But I don’t want Dad to worry about me. I’ll tell him when y’all get back to New York.”

“Candace.”

“Seriously. Don’t tell him. Please.”

“Haven’t you had enough secrets?” her mom asked. “
Please.
”

“All right, Candace,” Mrs. Hendricks said, but she didn’t sound convincing at all.

* * *

They went straight to Candace’s apartment, where she wowed her parents with her homemaking skills. Not only was her apartment exceptionally clean, but Candace had baby supplies in abundance. Her father went through everything. He even investigated the refrigerator and cupboards.

“When’d you start eating brussels sprouts?” he asked as he pawed through the freezer. “And baby corn?”

“What do you mean?” Candace asked.

“You didn’t eat this stuff in New York.”

“I had a nutritionist when I was pregnant,” Candace said. “He gave me a diet plan so I could eat healthy for Leila. After she was born, I guess I kept eating like that.”

He turned and stared at her oddly. “Who the hell are you? And where’s my daughter?”

Candace laughed. “So does this mean you’re proud of me?” She stared up at him like a much younger child.

“Yeah, baby,” he said and kissed her on the forehead. “I’m very proud of you.”

* * *

After checking out her apartment, Candace’s parents left to get their own sleeping quarters situated. Candace wanted to go with them so they wouldn’t get lost, but her dad got a map with the rental car. Plus the Navigator had a GPS tracking system. He figured that was all he needed.

“If I can find the Panama Canal by submarine, I can damned sure find the Great Western off Lancaster.”

Mrs. Hendricks rolled her eyes. “We’ll call you if we get lost, honey. Keep your phone on.”

“All right,” Candace said. She walked them outside with Leila on her hip. Back in the apartment, she fed the baby, bathed her, and put her to sleep in the crib, but her parents still weren’t back when she got done. She called Tino to keep from worrying.

“Hey.”

“Hey! What’s up, Candace. Are your parents here yet?”

“Yeah. I just got them from the airport.”

“Great!” he said. “When do you want me to come over?”

“Come
where
?”

“To meet your family. You do want me to meet them, right?”

“Tino, you can’t come over here. I haven’t told my dad about you.”

“Oh. Okay. When are you telling him?”

“I don’t know,” Candace said. “I don’t want to tell him until they go back to New York.”

“What am I, the hunchback you keep in the basement?”

“Don’t be like that.”

“You really don’t want me to meet your family?” The news was obviously a shock to him.

“Tino, it’s nothing against you. It’s
me
. I don’t want to tell my dad I have a new boyfriend because he’ll think it’s gonna be like it was with Rilla.”

“I’m nothing like him.”

“I know, but everything is good right now. Everybody’s happy.”

“And you don’t want me around to mess it up?”

“Don’t say stuff like that.”

“What is it for real? He doesn’t like Mexicans?”

“My dad’s not racist. Why would you say that?”

“It hurts my feelings that you don’t want me to meet your parents,” Tino said. “I know I’m a guy and I’m not supposed to talk about my
feelings
, but I do what I want.”

“Tino, I’m sorry.”

“It’s cool,” he said. “You don’t get to meet my mama now.”

“You’re not serious.”

“I don’t know, Candace. I’m starting to think you don’t like me like I like you.”

“That’s not true.”

“Am I supposed to believe what you
tell me
or what you
show me
?”

“What does that mean?”

“It means—”

But someone knocked at Candace’s door. She knew it was her parents. “Hey, I gotta go, Tino. I’ll call you back.”

“Yeah, exactly,” he said.

“Don’t do that, please.”

“Bye, Candace.”

“Tino, are you mad at me?”

“Just hang up. Go do what you have to do. ”

“All right. I’ll call you back on my way to work.”

“Whatever,” he said and disconnected.

Candace rushed to the front door and was surprised by the stern look her father greeted her with. She thought it was because she took too long to answer, but that wasn’t the problem.

“So,” he said. “I understand you have a new boyfriend.”

Candace looked to her mother and Katherine Hendricks shrugged like,
Yeah I told him. And? What about it?

“Um, yeah. I do have a boyfriend,” Candace said.

“We’re not leaving until we meet him,” Gerald said as he entered. In the living room he turned to face her with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Okay,” Candace said. “That’s fine.”

“When
?
” he asked.

“I’m off tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow’s perfect.” With the matter settled, his cheery grin came back. “All right, where’s my grandbaby?”

* * *

Candace’s parents wanted to keep the baby while she was at work. They said they would stay at Candace’s apartment rather than take Leila to their hotel room. Candace didn’t have anything in there she was worried about them finding, so this arrangement was fine with her. It felt good not to be hiding anything from them anymore.

She left at five-thirty and had to stop by Trisha’s house because her babysitter still didn’t have a home phone. Trisha was cool with getting the night off, so Candace didn’t feel bad about the late notice. She left her friend’s apartment in a great mood and called Tino on her way to work.

“Hello?”

“
Hey, baby
,” she said.

“Hey, baby? What’s that about?”

“C’mon, Tino. Don’t stay mad at me. I have good news.”

“What? You’re going back to New York?”

“That would be good news to you?”

“No, but maybe it would be for you.”

“All right, Tino. I’m sorry. I should have told my parents about you. I am not ashamed of you at all. I think you’re the perfect guy. And I’m not going to hide you from them. I told my dad about you, and he wants to meet you tomorrow.”

“You told your dad?”

“Well, actually my mom told my dad, but I told my mom. Let’s not split hairs.”

“He wants to meet me?”

“Yes. Tomorrow. Is that cool?”

“Yeah, but now
I’m
kinda scared. He was in the army, right? You said he’s real big?”

“It was the navy, and I know you’re not tripping after the way you acted.”

“I’m just saying. It’s one thing for me to want to meet him, but now I feel nervous. He’s going to have all of these expectations. Ask all these questions.”

“And you’re going to speak intelligently and smile, and once he sees what a great guy you are, he’s going to fall in love with you just like I did.”

“You fell in love with me?”

Candace felt like her whole car got a little warmer. “Yeah, Tino. I did.”

“Interesting,” he said.

“So? You’re in love with me, too,” she said. “You were in love with me a long time ago.”

“I was, and I am. But you didn’t tell me you felt that

“I was going to.”

“Cool,” he said. “Cool,” she said.

* * *

Candace had a good day at work. When she got home, she found her father lying on his stomach on the living room floor. Leila was on her stomach facing him.

“C’mon,” he urged. “C’mon, girl.”

“What’s he doing?” Candace asked her mom.

“He’s trying to get her to crawl,” Katherine informed her.

Candace tossed her purse on the couch and rushed to the bedroom. She came back with a camera and got a quick shot of the peculiar scene. Since she had the camera out, her parents posed for a multitude of pictures with their grandbaby. Katherine got behind the camera and took pictures of Candace and her father, and then Gerald took pictures of Candace and her mom.

Candace promised to send duplicates of all the photos, but Gerald said there was a Walmart close to their hotel. He said he would develop them in the morning and have duplicates for Candace when they came tomorrow. She said that would be fine.

When her parents left for the night, Candace was glad to be alone with her baby. But Leila fell asleep shortly afterwards. Candace called Tino, who was always up for a chat. They stayed on the phone until the late
late
show went off.
i

Candace had classes on Thursday, so her parents couldn’t visit until after one. When they got there, Gerald had the pictures he promised, and he had a few of them framed already. The chosen three were Candace with her father, Candace and her mother with the baby, and the two grandparents with the baby. Candace set the frames up decoratively in her living room. They were the first display photos in her home.