tired. I donât feel like arguing any more than you do.â
Lisa couldnât help but laugh. If her mother being tired was the only reason they didnât get into it about Chanelle tonight, then thank goodness for fatigue! She quickly dialed RJâs cell. âItâs me. . . Iâm calling to let you know Iâm home.â
âIâm glad you made it safely. Did you have fun?â
âYeah, we had a great time.â
âThis um. . .friend of yours, did he have any trouble finding the place?â
âNot that itâs any of your business, but my friend was actually a she ; and no, she didnât have any problems getting to Metamora. Itâs not the first time weâve been.â
RJ sounded somewhat relieved. âSince you seem to be a regular tourist, maybe one day we can ride down there. . .the two of us and Chanelle, of course. Itâs been a long time since weâve done anything as a family.â
The nerve he had to suggest family time made Lisa sick to her stomach. âYou have yourself to thank for that. Anyhow, I just wanted to tell you that Iâm back. What time are you bringing Chanelle home?â
âUm, babyââ
âYou mean, Lisa. â
He sighed in defeat. âWhatever. . .I dropped Chanelle off hours ago. She should be there.â
âWhat!â Just as Lisa was digesting RJâs statement, Chanelle walked through the front door. âI have to go. Sheâs here now.â Lisa hung up the phone and turned toward her daughter like a lioness ready to attack its prey. âWhere have you been?â
CHAPTER 9
W.W.O.D.?
A fter talking toârather going off onâChanelle, Lisa found out that sheâd snuck out with Kyle once more. This time he had picked her up and they went out to a movie, so Lisa was told. Chanelleâs plan was to pretend that she had still been with RJ. Apparently, she had been banking on the lack of communication between her parents and was downright stunned when Lisa confronted her. To Lisaâs surprise, instead of copping an attitude, Chanelle had been more cooperative about getting busted for being out with Kyle this time than she had been previously. Any order Lisa barked was immediately fulfilled without question or hesitation. The girl probably knew she was treading on thin ice. Had Lisa not already spent a lot of money planning this graduation party, she would have been tempted to cancel it to prove a point.
âGirl, I donât know what Iâm going to do about Chanelle,â Lisa confessed to Olivia who had dropped by her office Monday afternoon after coming from her weekly board meeting. âPunishing her is not working. Sheâs graduating in a few weeks and will turn eighteen in August. And on top of that, sheâll be living on campus when school starts. Nothing I say or do fazes her because sherealizes sheâll be moving out soon. I have no idea how to keep her from this boy.â
Liv sat across from Lisaâs desk as calm as still, blue waters. Sheâd been listening to Lisa vent for at least forty minutes now and as irritated as Liv was about Chanelle sneaking out with Kyle again, she had yet to break a sweat. Oliviaâs ability to stay composed under pressure was one of the things Lisa loved about her best friend. Dressed in a pastel green short-sleeved silk shirt, cream dress pants and a pair of open-toe Manolos, Liv was beautiful. At age forty-nine, she didnât look a day over thirty. Her caramel brown skin was wrinkle- and surgery-free.
After patiently listening to Lisaâs woes, Liv finally spoke up and said, âYouâre going to have to take a more drastic approach if you want to keep the little bum out of her life.â
âGirl, Iâm open to any and all suggestions. Short of ordering a hit, Iâm not sure what to do.â
âA hit can be arranged if need be.â Olivia smiled
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