“First of all, Brenda ain’t homely. I beg to differ with you, Howie. I’d stand her up against any of them orangutans you been known to spend time with, so shut up.”

“To each his own,” Howie says, chuckling. “Just something to ponder on.”

I know he don’t mean no harm. But I say, “Don’t cause me to thank too much, now, Howie. I got enough on my mind. I’ma have to quit this job at Harrah’s, ’cause I thank the IRS is fixin’ to garnish my little piecey check. But back on the subject: I don’t thank Brenda would lie to me about something like this.”

“You ain’t known her that long to say no shit like that, Cecil—now, come on.”

“Well, she got a good heart, though.”

“We ain’t talking about nobody’s heart right now.”

“I know. But it could be my baby. I thank.”

“How pregnant is she?”

“I don’t exactly know.”

“Well, watch the calendar, is all I gotta say about it. Don’t be no old fool, now, Cecil, you hear me?”

“I hear you.”

“What your old ass gon’ do with a baby, anyway? That’s what I wanna know.”

“I don’t know. What every man do with one: raise it and love it.”

“You might be dead before you get a chance to do much raising, but you didn’t hear it from me.”

We both get a chuckle outta that one. I take a few sips of my ginger ale. It’s good. They even put some lime in it.

“But tell me something, man,” Howie asks, hunching over, like I’m about to tell him a secret or something. “What’s it like getting it from a youngster?”

“To be honest, it all feel the same, Howie. Just a few different moves and a younger face.”

“That’s all?”

“From what I gather.”

“Then you ain’t doing it right.”

“How can you sit there and tell me how I’m doing it?”

“Okay, wait a minute. Now, looka here. We all know that Viola’s a big woman.”

“That’s putting it nicely.”

“She ain’t fat. She just husky,” Howie mumbles.

“She fat,” I say.

“Okay, you said it, I didn’t. But Brenda don’t look like she got a drop of fat on her. Don’t that make some kinda difference?”

“Not really. Well, wait. I’m lying. I’ll be honest. I like the cushion a body like Viola’s provides. But in me and Brenda’s case, I’m the one providing it, so it all average out.”

“You feel like you really in love, Cecil?”

“You mean the way I loved Viola when I loved Viola?”

“Yeah.”

“Naw, this love is different. It’s smoother, easier. I ain’t crazy this time.”

“You think?”

“I know. But whatever kind it is feel pretty good. Better than the war I been in for the past few years at my house. I hope the old broad is feeling better, though.”

“Check on her from time to time, man. Ain’t nothing wrong with that, is it?”

“Naw. I don’t guess.”