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now, but I didn’t know how. I didn’t want to hurt you.”
    â€œYou are a little too late for that, too. And to tell you the truth, I already knew about you and Leon before anybody else told me. I saw you and him coming out of that fancy restaurant on Price Street a couple of weeks ago, hugging, kissing and everything. I got the picture….”
    â€œOh. Um…I know you will find someone else,” I said quietly. “And I hope you will be happy with whomever that is. You’re a good man, Robbie.”
    â€œBut not good enough for you.” Robbie’s voice sounded so hopeless, I almost changed my mind.
    â€œRobbie, don’t do this to me, or yourself. I didn’t plan to fall in love with another man. It just happened. But…I hope that…uh…you and I can still be friends.”
    â€œI still love you, Renee. Whether I marry another woman or not, I will always have a place in my heart for you. You were my first love, and that’s something I won’t ever forget.”
    â€œRobbie, I think we should end this conversation right now. You take care of yourself. Do you hear me?”
    â€œYou, too, Renee. And, uh, you tell that IRS henchman that if he don’t treat you right, I’m going to whup his black ass.” Robbie laughed again. “Bye, Renee.”
    It would not have done Robbie any good to try and talk me out of breaking up with him. I was a little disappointed that he didn’t even try. Now I was glad that I’d severed the relationship. But I had no idea that my decision was going to come back to haunt the hell out of me.

CHAPTER 11
    T he Sunday following my breakup with Robbie, I brought Leon to meet Mama after she and my sister, Frankie, got home from church. We’d arrived at the little one-story gray shingled house that Mama rented on Maple Street just as she and Frankie were getting out of Mama’s old Chevy, still clutching their hymn books. Mama had on a hat that looked like a small umbrella. She snatched it off and started fanning her face as soon as she spotted Leon and me walking toward her.
    Frankie, who was as cute and as sly as a fox, stood behind Mama, with an amused look on her face. My sister had already made it her business to meet Leon. She’d come to my apartment several days earlier, interrogating him like he was a suspect. Once she realized how generous Leon was, she didn’t waste any time joining his team. She didn’t know that I knew she’d called Leon up at work two days ago and asked him for a hundred dollars so she could get her hair braided. I planned to speak to her about that later.
    â€œThat’s a nice suit you got on, Leon,” Frankie chirped, trying hard not to look at me. To a lot of people, a spoiled baby sister was a thorn in the side. Frankie was no different. “Where’d you get it?”
    â€œDon’t be nosy and rude!” I snapped, glaring at Frankie, wondering why Mama was taking her time to speak. Especially since she was looking Leon up and down, shading her eyes with her hat.
    Mama had told me more than once that she didn’t trust men who wore suits outside of a church or an office. “Young man, did you just come from church or work?” she asked, looking at Leon out of the corner of her eye.
    â€œNeither, ma’am,” Leon mumbled, giving me a sideways glance. “I wanted to make a good impression on you, ma’am, so I decided to wear my best suit,” he added. I had told him how my mother felt about suits.
    â€œOh,” Mama said, obviously pleased to hear this. “Well, I hope you don’t spill nothing on it at my dinner table,” she told him, with a broad smile on her heavily powdered face.
    Getting through dinner was tense. For a while, Frankie was the only one who seemed to be enjoying the turkey wings and greens that Mama had prepared earlier. After a few awkward moments, Leon really dug into the dinner,