Read Online Good Woman Blues by Lynn Emery - Free Book Online

when you come back to New Orleans. Or
wherever you decide to settle,” Darlene added, when Erikka glanced
at her.
    “Yeah, sure. Let’s go. Mrs. Horton’s house is
on our way.” Erikka held up the keys she would drop off.
    Darlene’s eyes softened with sympathy, but
she said no more. She picked up two lightweight boxes. “Right. Make
sure you haven’t left anything,” she called over her shoulder on
her way out the door.
    Erikka followed her without looking back.
“Why bother? What hasn’t already been pawned, repossessed, or
packed, I don’t need.”
     
     

Chapter 4
     
     
    Erikka looked up and down the main street of
Loreauville. Why was she expecting traffic? She could cross the
street with her eyes closed. Just as she was about to give it a
try, a horn blew.
    “Have you lost your mind?” Monique leaned
across the passenger seat and looked at Erikka over her designer
sunglasses.
    “Moni, have you not been paying attention? I
just got out of the nuthouse,” Erikka shot back. She walked over to
the car.
    “Well, take your damn medicine, girl. Get in
this car.” Monique hit the master control button that unlocked the
doors.
    “Sure, since you asked so nicely.” Erikka
climbed into the Mustang. Seconds later, Monique hit the gas, and
they headed down Main Street.
    Monique glanced at her. “Thought I’d take a
few hours off and connect with my favorite cousin.”
    “You have a job. I specialize in getting me
fired. I don’t freelance, okay? You lose that cushy position with
the state, it won’t be my fault. Just wanna get that out on the
table.”
    “I’ve got a proposition for you. The judge
says you have to have a job as part of your probation, right?”
Monique turned into Darlene’s driveway.
    “Him and about eight of my
less-than-understanding creditors. Not to mention I have to do two
hundred hours of community service. Darlene got me a gig
volunteering where she works at the local senior citizens’ center.
I should have begged for mercy and asked for a jail sentence.”
Darlene was the director of the center with a small staff and even
smaller budget.
    “Can’t rescue you from little old ladies, but
I do have a job for you. Remember I went to the Chamber of Commerce
convention in New Orleans three months ago?”
    “Yeah.”
    “I met a guy who owns a public access TV
station in Lafayette. I saw Ryan at the local Black Business
Association cocktail mixer Friday night. He told me he’d just fired
his bookkeeper.”
    “I don’t know, Monique.” Erikka shook her
head and walked to the front porch.
    Monique followed close on her heels. She
stood in the yard while Erikka climbed the steps. “What don’t you
know? You need a job, and he needs an accountant. I’d call that a
perfect fit.”
    “Wait a minute. Let me guess, Ryan is
superfine and you’re going for extra brownie points.” Erikka looked
at Monique with her arms crossed.
    “No.” Monique groaned when Erikka continued
to stare at her. “Okay, so I’m trying to get in with his fine older
brother Clifford. But that isn’t the point.”
    “Uh-huh.” Erikka waved at her and unlocked
the front door.
    “Come on, Erikka. We both win here.” Monique
grabbed her by the arm and pulled her around until Erikka faced
her.
    “Moni, you can’t be this desperate. Don’t
sell your kinfolks for a man. They can’t be that scarce.” Erikka
tugged free and walked to the kitchen. She took a pitcher of
lemonade from the refrigerator.
    “Cuz, I want a man who has a steady job, all
of his teeth, and doesn’t live in a tiny trailer in his mama’s back
yard. Help a sista out,” Monique pleaded.
    Erikka laughed out loud. “Here’s a thought,
move to New Orleans.” Then she stopped laughing when she considered
her experiences. “Might as well stay here.”
    “Do this for me.”
    “I’m still not sure.” Erikka took two
tumblers from a cabinet and poured lemonade in both. “When I tell
him about my recent troubles—”
    “I