Alani lifted her eyes to his. “I just don’t invite people here,” she said, as she looked around the kitchen, slightly embarrassed.

“Because you value your privacy or because you’re ashamed?” he asked, frankly.

“I guess both,” she said.

“You own this house, right?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she answered. “It’s nothing to write home about, though. I bought it from the land bank with a tax return when my daughter was born. I moved around a lot when I was little. My mama showed me, exactly, what not to do when I became a mother. She was a prostitute, still is probably, if she’s still alive out there somewhere. We were always running out on a landlord, couch surfing with her friends, or staying with strange men. I hopped from school to school. I was always afraid because I didn’t have a safe place to retreat to. I was always sleeping in somebody else’s bed, eating someone else’s food. I didn’t want that for my daughter, so I bought this place to make sure she always had a consistent roof over her head. As you can see, my budget wasn’t very big, but at least she knew that she would sleep in the same place every night.”

“A small win is still a win,” Ethic replied. “You own this house, this land. It’s yours. There’s no shame in that. If you did it with this house, you can do it with the one next door and the one next to that. Before you know it, you’re a black woman with a whole block - with assets. This is the first step to building wealth. That’s something to be proud of. I’m sorry about your mother, by the way. That had to be tough.”

“It was,” she said, her eyes on her plate. “…but it made me stronger.”

She focused on her plate, scooping up a bite of homemade mac and cheese because she didn’t know what else to say. The conversation had gone to a heavy place, bringing up memories that she didn’t dwell on often.

“How is it that you’re not taken, Ethic?” she asked, as she cocked her head to the side, looking curiously at him, as she lightened the mood.

He chuckled. “It takes a lot to keep my interest. I’ve loved a great woman before. Not many women measure up,” he said, honestly.

“Do I?” she asked.

“Do you what?” he asked.

“Measure up to this great woman?” she asked.

Ethic set his fork down. “I don’t know if anybody will ever compare,” he said, honestly.

“Well, you seem to really love her,” Alani whispered. “She’s an idiot for letting you go.”

“She’s dead,” he admitted.