The Bingo Queen Spoils Dinner
Friday Camille left work early. The door to the elevator in her building opened and she squeezed between several men wearing dark suits. When the elevator made it to the first floor her feet quickly strode across the marble lobby floor making her way to the exit.
She found her Ford Mustang and got into it and started the engine. Slowly she made her way through traffic.
She arrived home and dropped her purse down on the bed in her bedroom. She quickly changed into a pair of jeans and an oversized faded denim shirt and headed for the kitchen. Camille turned on the double oven wall unit. Then walked over to the refrigerator and retrieved the prime rib roast and placed it in her bottom oven. The four-ribbed roast could feed at least six people and would cook in under an hour. But Eris loved her roast chicken so much that she prepared it too. She placed the baking dish holding the roasted chicken in the top oven on a lower heat.
She turned from the ovens to the chrome double sink, and quickly peeled some small potatoes and placed them in the stove with the chicken. Next, she quickly sautéed some green beans and placed them in her favorite serving dish. She cleaned a head of lettuce. She strained it well and began tearing it apart into a salad bowl.
A half-hour later, the table was set, and dinner was just about done. She checked the clock. It was quarter after six. She toyed with the idea of changing her clothes and twenty minutes later, she put the finishing touches on her makeup and gave her attire the once over. She decided to wear a soft black sweater with a soft rhinestone sweat-heart neckline that looked simple and elegant.
Back in the dining room, she finished setting up the buffet table with her chafing dishes and looked over her setting. With the centerpiece of miniature pumpkins and dried leaves befitting the fall season, it looked warm and inviting.
At ten minutes to seven, her doorbell rang and when she opened it. Desmond Garcia stood their holding four bottles of wine.
“Hi,” he whistled. “You look sweet and delicious.”
“Thanks, that’s the look I was going for,” she shyly laughed. “Here, let me help you with those wine bottles. Do you think you have enough?”
Desmond gave her an apologetic look. “I wasn’t sure what Eris likes to drink and, so I guess I got a little carried away.”
“No problem, I’ll put a bottle of Chardonnay and a white Zinfandel in the crystal ice bucket on the buffet table in the dining room. They’ll be chilled before you know it. If you fill up that third ice bucket in the kitchen on the counter and bring it to the dining room, we can put a bottle of red wine in it and put that bottle on the table. I know you like your red wine chilled,” she said.
“My woman does know me,” Desmond grinned.
At exactly seven o’clock Eris Simeon arrived.
“Something smells wonderful. Camille, you cooked. Good, I’m starving,” Eris said, giving Camille a quick hug and then peeling off her faux fur cheetah walking jacket and handing it to Camille.
Eris turned and looked Desmond up and down. “Well Desmond, since Camille invited her two best friends over I guess you are officially Camille’s boyfriend or should I say, man?” Desmond chuckled puzzled. “Ah, her two best friends? Here for dinner tonight?”
Camille inwardly cringed and stepped on Desmond’s foot to get his attention. “Tell you what, let’s all three of us have some salad,” Camille said nudging Desmond.
He caught her understanding as he looked back into her mesmerizing hazel eyes. “Oh yeah, I forgot. I’m looking forward to dining with Camille’s two best friends,” he softly said. “In fact, I’ll go and open the wine.”
A half-hour later they sat discussing issues of the day and had almost finished the first bottle of wine.
Eris looked up and caught Camille’s hazel eyes watching her. “Camille you’ve got to face it,” she said all at once.
“Face what?” Camille asked with a perplexed expression.
“That Tiara isn’t coming for dinner tonight. So, we might as well eat,” Eris said with a wave of her hand. “I wouldn’t have set a place for her if I were you. You know how Tiara has been canceling on us lately.”
“Yeah, you are so right, Eris. I don’t know what I was thinking about when I sat that extra place setting,” Camille nervously shook her head and eyed Desmond as she inwardly cringed. It looked like Desmond’s friend was a no-show.
He shrugged and took a sip of his wine. “Yeah, He hasn’t… I… I mean she hasn’t called or anything,” he said raising his glass. “I agree with Eris. We should just start eating.”
Silently, Camille agreed as well. “I’ll bring in the main course,” she said, heading for the kitchen.
“And don’t forget the roast chicken,” Eris suggested. “You know my nose knows when it smells your roast chicken, Camille.”
“Yes, I’ll bring the roast chicken too,” Camille nodded.
Minutes later they were all enjoying the meal and chitchatting about nothing when the front door suddenly opened and closed.
“Hellooooooo?” a woman’s voice called. “Anybody home?”
“Oh my God,” Camille moaned.
“Yes, Mother Gabby, we’re in the dining room,” Eris yelled, laughing hard. “This is getting good. Bingo must have let out early.”
“What’s so funny?” Desmond asked.
Camille turned and grabbed Desmond’s hand. “Well Desmond darling, dinner is now officially spoiled by the Bingo Queen. I’m so sorry but you’re about to meet my mother, Gabriela Baptiste. Everyone calls her Gabby and you are about to find out why.”
Seconds later, Gabby Baptiste walked into the dining room, walked over and swapped air kisses on each of Camille’s cheeks.
Gabby was a tiny woman in her early sixties. She was an attractive woman. A frizzle of soft graying strands lightly highlighted her temples. She was wearing a red hat cocked over one eye with a large purple plume. The feather was so large it made her look funny. She sported her favorite bright yellow jumpsuit with a purple jacket.
Camille thought her mother looked ridiculous. “Mother, I take it bingo night is over?” Her mother frowned. “I wore my lucky yellow jumpsuit for nothing. That Mildred Lane ruined the whole evening. She won the grand jackpot. It was five thousand dollars. And instead of just taking the money and going home, like I would have done. That old cow had the nerve to buy a bunch of Instant poppers.”
“What are instant poppers?” Desmond asked out loud.
“Instant bingo tickets,” Gabby grinned and looked at him like he just arrived on planet earth. “Let me finish what I was saying, young man, before you start asking some dumb questions. Anyway, that Mildred won another fifteen hundred dollars, from the poppers and the thirty-two-inch flat screen television from the night’s raffle,” she said in one breath. “That heifer went to Madame Zenobia’s and got herself a good luck Mojo. I just know it.”
Eris laughed.
Camille threw up her hands. “Mother please don’t curse. We have a guest.”
Gabby grew silent as she looked around. The spread of food on the table caught her attention. “Oh, my goodness, there is enough food here to feed an army.”
Camille knew it wasn’t good seeing the excitement gathering in her mother’s face. Her mother headed for the telephone.
“Mom what are you doing?” Camille asked curiously.
“I’m going to call Myrtle Duncan on her cell phone and tell her to turn that car of hers around and bring the ladies back to have a bite to eat. There’s enough food here to feed an army.”
Camille rose quickly and closed the distance between them. She grabbed the telephone. “Mother please come over to the table and have a seat.”
Startled, Gabby looked curiously at her daughter. “Oh, my goodness, you called me mother, again. This must be serious.”
Gabby gave Eris a calculative glance as she sat down. “Eris what’s going on? Who’s your friend?”
Eris shrugged. “It’s not my place to say. But he’s not my friend.”
“Mother I need to introduce you to someone,” Camille said.
Gabby nodded politely and stared.
Camille took a deep breath. “Mother this is Desmond Garcia. Desmond this is my mother Gabriela Baptiste.”
Puzzled Gabby cocked her head to the side. “I beg your pardon. Is Desmond someone I need to know?”
“Desmond is not only someone you need to know. He is dating your daughter,” Eris added.
Gabriela stared openmouthed.
Eris added. “Yes, mother Gabby our Camille has gotten herself a handsome man.”
Grabby began to grab her chest and cough violently. She swooned.
Desmond rose quickly and rushed to her side.
Camille’s eyes widened like plates as she reached out. “Mommy! Mommy! Are you okay? Here, have a drink of water.”
Gabby laughed out and grabbed Desmond’s hand. She winked at him. “Now you see my daughter was putting on airs calling me mother. But let her think I’m about to have a heart attack and I’m plain old mommy, just like I like. Welcome to the family Desmond. By the way, I love bingo, so please feel free to add to my bingo funds anytime.”
Eris laughed out. “That’s mother Gabby.”
Camille gasped, “Oh my God, mother, don’t start begging for bingo money.”
Desmond shook his head with laughter and winked at Camille. “Somebody please pour me a drink,” Gabby commanded, quickly grabbing an empty glass. Camille leaned over and poured wine into her mother’s glass.
Gabby took a big gulp. “Hmmm… what kind of expensive wine is this? It tastes high society and French.”
“It’s Château Charmail,” Camille said.
“Figures,” Gabby said, greedily gulping down the rest of her wine. “Here gal fill it up. My glass is empty.”
Camille rolled her eyes. It was going to be a long night. Slowly, she took a swallow of her wine and then emptied her glass.
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