Jai sighed and buried her face in her hands. “Rissa, we are not about to let a man come between us. We never have and we won't start now.”
"I agree,” Rissa said, picking up her drink and gulping down the last swallow. “Hell, it was just a dance. We'll probably never see him again. It's not like you gave him your phone number or anything.”
Jai's silence told Rissa everything she needed to know. Rissa slammed down her drink and grabbed her purse.
"See you tonight,” Rissa said to the bartender, then stormed off.
"Rissa, wait!” Jai called to her.
"Oh, no,” Rissa said. “You stay here and dance the night away with the Italian Stallion over there.”
"Rissa!” Jai called as Rissa stomped her way out of the club. Jai sat at the bar, shaking her head. She couldn't believe Rissa had actually made such a scene. On top of that she was about to have a one-night stand with the slimy bartender. The guy's gut was so bulgy that it looked as though his water was going to break any day now. He had a bushy black mustache with matching greasy brunette hair. When a woman's ego was bruised there was no telling how low she would go to restore it.
Rissa could get any man she wanted, and was used to doing just that. Sloan being interested in Jai and not her was the ultimate low blow. Using the bartender to repair her ego for the night would be one of those mistakes women sometimes made.
Jai couldn't wait to get home and relax in a long hot bath with some soothing bath salts. Rissa had purchased Jai an African American greeting card for her birthday. Inside the card was a bag of bath salts. The aroma was unlike any that Jai had purchased in a bath and body store. Jai used them sparingly for those days she was in overdrive. Today was one of those days.
Showers were Jai's norm, but Mondays always called for long hot baths. Jai threw an armful of case files onto her big cushioned sofa she had gotten from Aaron's Sales and Leasing. On her salary, she couldn't afford to go out and buy the leather sectionals that most of her welfare clients somehow seemed to decorate their Section 8 homes with.
Jai picked up the phone and entered the code to check her voice-mail messages. Her sister, Joi, who Jai nicknamed Sissy, called wanting to borrow fifty dollars until next week. Her dad called wanting to know if she ever got her bathtub knob fixed or if she was still using pliers to turn the water on and off, and one of her credit card company's called to offer her two months free of her favorite three magazines. Jai, with disappointment, hung up the phone. There was not one message from Rissa, who still hadn't returned any of Jai's calls.
Not since their college days, when the two met, had they gone this long without speaking to one another. Jai and Rissa had always been inseparable. Back in college if you saw one, you saw the other. When the two eventually dropped out of college together to start their own so-called door-to-door cosmetic business (that they never saw through), they were even roommates for a couple of years. Never had they gone this long without communicating.
Jai had already called Rissa three times. Jai could picture Rissa staring at her phone number on the caller ID box and letting the call go to her voice mail. Rissa was just that simple to do something that silly. Jai shook her head. She didn't have time to fool with Rissa's nonsense, mad at her over a guy she spotted first. . . it's not like he was her ex or something (which would have been a violation of girlfriend rule number two: no dating one another's ex). Besides, if Sloan had really been interested in Jai, he would have called her by now. Hell, he probably just approached Jai on a dare from his friends. If Rissa wanted to act irrational over a man neither of them would ever see again, then it was her waste of energy.
Jai lit her melon, triple-wick candle and sank her body down into the steaming hot water, slowly, letting her body adjust to the heat. Times like this made her feel like Farah, a character she had read about in one of her favorite books, Use Me or Lose Me. She loved reading about women who had some of the same issues she did: no kids and no man to help produce any and if she did luck up on a halfway decent guy, nine times out of ten, he was somebody else's.
This was one of the reasons why Jai hadn't been in a serious relationship in the past few years. Along with men came drama and she had enough drama with work. She didn't need any in her personal life. She had dated a fella here in there, but she never allowed herself to get too involved. And she made damn sure she didn't put herself in a position to send any mixed signals that she wanted to get too involved either. There was no spending the night at his house or him at hers. A courtesy phone call here and there to keep in touch, dinner, and a movie was pretty much the extent of any relationship Jai had had. But she hadn't even engaged in those minor activities with a man in over a year.
After her bath, Jai cut up some lettuce to make herself a salad. She added some shredded cheddar cheese and bacon bits, drowning everything in Italian dressing, and headed into her living room. Jai turned on a court TV show and flopped down on the couch next to the pile of files. Times like this she didn't mind her own company.
About forty-five minutes later Jai was torn away from a case file she had started to work on by the ringing of her phone.
"Hello?”
"May I speak with Jai?” the caller asked.
"This is she,” Jai said as her heart began to beat one hundred miles per hour. It was a man, which meant only one thing. It was Sloan. No other man, besides her father, would be calling Jai.
"This is Sloan,” he confirmed Jai's hopes.
"Yes, I know,” Jai said, smiling.
"What are you up to?” Sloan asked.
"Umm, nothing much. Just sitting here watching the game,” Jai said quickly, thinking he would find that more interesting than court TV.
"Oh yeah?” Sloan said. “Who's winning?”
Caught off guard, Jai's mind raced frantically.
"Uh, can you hold on a second? That's my other line beeping.”
"Sure,” Sloan replied.
Jai hit the mute button and burst out laughing. She felt like a silly high school girl trying to get the captain of the basketball team to notice her. She shook her head with a smile, took a few seconds to compose herself, and then hit the mute button again.
"Sorry about that,” Jai said.
"It's okay. So you're watching the game, huh? I wish I was there watching it with you,” Sloan said, his voice low and seductive.
"Is that so?”
"Yes, it is.”
"Are you beating around the bush for an invite?”
"It was that obvious, huh?”
"Most obvious.”
"I'm sorry. I'm just not used to beating around the bush.”
"Then don't,” Jai replied.
"Can I come over?”
Once again Sloan had caught Jai off guard.
"Hold on a sec,” Jai said, putting down the phone and hitting the mute button again. She then proceeded to scream.
She didn't mind her own company, but throwing a man into the equation never hurt either. Jai had to stop and think to herself for a minute, If that fine ass man comes over here, I know I'm going to have sex with him. I can't even go out like that. Jai hit the mute button again.
"I'm back,” Jai said.
"And do you have an answer for me?” Sloan asked.
Jai wanted to say “no” as the word “yes” forced its way out of her mouth. Before Jai knew it she was spitting out her address, giving blow-by-blow directions to her house, and changing out of her cow printed pajama shirt and into a white button-up blouse and some Baby Phat jeans. She just hoped she knew what she was getting herself into.
Jai prepared some microwave popcorn and dumped it into a bowl. She placed it on the octagon-shaped glass table along with a bottle of hot sauce. After doing so she stopped and thought to herself, Italians probably don't eat hot sauce on their popcorn, I'm sure. Jai picked the hot sauce back up with the intent of returning it to the cupboard. Fuck it...
I'm black and I eat hot sauce on my popcorn, she thought as she put it right back do
wn on the table.
Initially Jai had set out two wineglasses for the bottle of wine she had chilling in the fridge to make the setting a bit romantic. She decided that the more romantic she set the scene, the more the chances were of her finding herself butt naked riding Mr. Italian like a stallion so she decided against the wine. Jai convinced herself that a man and a woman could enjoy a couple hours of television without jumping each other's bones and that every evening phone call wasn't deemed a booty call.
Headlights shone through Jai's living room window announcing Sloan's arrival. Jai took a quick survey of the house, quickly turned the television channel to a game of basketball, and took a deep breath.
"Just a minute,” Jai called, when her doorbell rang. She took a second to straighten herself up, pulling her blouse down over her stomach, and opened the door.
"Well, hello,” Sloan said, smiling. He had a six-pack of Corona in hand. “I brought you a little something to enjoy with the game.”
"Thank you,” Jai smiled from ear to ear. “Please, come in.”
Jai moved aside and allowed Sloan to enter. He looked like he belonged on a runway as he walked in with his crisp creased jeans and Polo golf shirt. . . and umm, there was that scent that drove her crazy. Yes sir, Jai was sure in definite danger of giving up the panties tonight.
"Nice house you've got here,” Sloan said, looking around.
"Thank you. Do you have a house?” Jai asked.
"An apartment. I'm not much into maintenance and yard work so if we ever get married, I hope you'd be happy with a condo,” Sloan said with a grin.
Jai's heart began to pound. A man as fine as him did not need to be making marriage jokes.
"Is everything okay?” Sloan asked and Jai realized that she had been just standing there staring at him.
"Oh sure, I'm sorry. Please have a seat,” Jai said, pointing to the sofa.
"Do you mind if I sit on the floor? That's more comfortable to me.”
"I don't mind at all.”
"What about my shoes? I want to be as comfortable as you,” Sloan said, referring to Jai's bare feet. “By the way, nice toes.”
"Thank you,” Jai said, wiggling her piggies. “Feel free to kick your shoes off, relax.”
Sloan smiled as he removed his shoes and the jacket he was wearing.
Jai flopped down on the sofa.
"I know you're not going to have me sitting down here by myself. You're not one of them stuck-up chicks are you, too good for the floor?” Sloan smiled again. “Let me guess, not afraid of getting a lil' ole rug burn are you?”
Up for the challenge, Jai slowly slid down next to Sloan on the floor, grabbing a fistful of popcorn on her way down. Sloan grabbed a handful after her, tossed it in his mouth, and then cracked open two bottles of Corona.
"I shouldn't have assumed this, but I take it you don't have any kids,” Sloan said.
"Nah,” Jai said, though she longed for them.
"Yeah, me either. Someday though, with the right woman,” Sloan said, even though he had convinced himself that there was no right woman. Most of the females he had dated were more concerned about what was already at the table than with what they could bring to the table. So lately he had pretty much stayed focused on climbing the corporate ladder, without a woman weighing him down. Doing so enabled him to skip a few steps. Besides that, two of the head honchos at the insurance company where he works are women in their late thirties (a little older than he is)—one who would love to have a thing with Sloan and the other actually had a thing with Sloan back when he first started working for the company. Seeing that Sloan wasn't a womanizer, showing up with a different lady friend at every company function, always made them feel like Sloan was genuinely dedicated to the company, and that they had a chance with him, even though they didn't have a chance in the world. But, of course, Sloan didn't lead them on to believe otherwise. Although they were hardworking, educated women, he saw neither of them as women he could settle down and have children with.
Jai smiled. “Yeah, me too. I'd love to have children someday.”
"Have you ever dated an Italian guy or white guy before?” Sloan asked suddenly and Jai damn near spit her mouthful of Corona out.
"Uhh, no,” Jai said, wiping her bottom lip. “Have you? Ever dated a black girl?”
"No.”
Jai bit her lip. “Then why me?”
Sloan turned to face her, looking directly into her eyes.
"I didn't see a black girl. I saw a beautiful woman I wanted to get to know.”
By this time Jai's panties were getting a little moist.
"So I guess it's my turn to ask 'why me'?”
"I don't know. You were just this guy who forced me onto the dance floor and who I found myself deeply attracted to.”
"Oh, I forced you onto the dance floor, huh?” He smiled. “Next you'll be saying I forced you into a relationship and then marriage. You know how you chicks do it.”
He had said it again. He said the “M” word and nothing happened. Jai was certain that this time his face would swell up and his eyes would become puffy and watery, but nothing happened. Sloan just sat there eating popcorn, sipping on his brew, and watching the game.
"You're doing it again,” Sloan said.
"What?”
"Staring at me like I'm transforming into a little blue Martian or something.”
Jai laughed. “I'm sorry.”
"That's okay. I could sit here and stare at you all night, too. I'm just a little bit more discreet than you are.”
Sloan continued to speak but Jai only saw his lips move and his dimples flash. Her heart fluttered as she visualized ripping off her blouse, buttons shooting across the room, and climbing on top of Sloan to ram her tongue down his throat. Okay, now her panties were soaked.
"Excuse me,” Jai said, interrupting him. “I'm going to go put the rest of these Coronas in the fridge.”
Jai grabbed the remaining beers and carried them into the kitchen, setting them on the countertop. She placed her forehead against the refrigerator and took a deep breath. She had to relax and stay focused.
"Lemon,” Sloan said, startling Jai. She whirled around to see him standing behind her. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. Is everything okay? Are you not feeling well?”
Sloan put his hand on Jai's forehead to check for a temperature. His being that close to her made them both feverish.
"You were saying something about lemon,” Jai said breathlessly.
"Oh, yeah. I forgot I had brought a lemon for the Coronas. It was in my jacket pocket,” Sloan said, handing Jai the lemon.
Starring into Sloan's eyes Jai slowly removed the lemon from his hand. He couldn't resist pulling her close to him and planting a luscious kiss on Jai's lips.
"I don't know if your coming over here was such a good idea,” Jai replied, unable to control her heavy breathing.
"Come on. I'm diggin' you, girl. I know you're diggin' me, too,” Sloan said, licking his bottom lip.
The lemon slipped from the palm of Jai's hand and rolled across the floor as Sloan's hands slid down her body.
"Seriously,” Jai said. “You need to go before something happens that I don't want to happen, not on the first date anyway. If that's what we can even call this.”
"I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do,” he said seriously. “Like the way I forced you onto the dance floor.” Then he smiled.
Jai caressed his shoulders. “That's the problem, I want to do it.”
"Do what?” “It.”
"What's it?”
"Stop playing,” Jai said, pushing Sloan playfully.
Sloan tilted his head to the side and licked his lips. “You really want me to go?” Sloan asked.
"My body doesn't, but I do,” Jai told him.
"Okay, it's cool. I'll go. But I'll be back,” Sloan said as he winked and headed back into the living room.
Girlfriend, don 't you let that fine hunk of a man walk
out of that door, Jai's alter ego scolded her.
Good girls don't go to bed with a guy that they just met. The longer you make him wait the more he'll respect you, Jai's conscience preached.
What do we look like here? Aretha Franklin? Damn respect, we want some hot steamy sex, Jai's alter ego reminded her.
Jai shook her head and reassured herself that she was doing the right thing by sending Sloan home. She pulled her shirt down over her stomach and headed back toward the living room where Sloan was sliding on his shoes.
Sloan didn't speak to Jai. He just looked up at her with a puppy-dog expression on his face and grabbed his jacket.
"I had a cool forty-five minutes with you,” Sloan said, looking at his watch.
"I'm sorry,” Jai said, walking slowly toward Sloan. She tried to be sexy with her steps but ruined it when she kicked the coffee table and stubbed her toe. “Ouch!”
"Are you okay?” Sloan asked, walking over to her. He picked her up and laid her across the couch. Sloan sat down and placed Jai's feet on his lap.
"Is it this one?” Sloan said, rubbing Jai's big toe.
Jai flinched. “Yeah, right there.”
Sloan rubbed more gently. Jai was in heaven. Sloan took his index finger and traced it down the center of Jai's foot, from the big toe all the way to the heel, then back up again. Jai squirmed. Foot action had always been her downfall.
"It feels better now,” Jai said, trying to pull her foot away from him.
"Uh uhh,” Sloan said, raising her foot slowly to his lips. He glazed his tongue across the tip of her toes, then in between them.
Fuck ///jai thought as she fell limp to Sloan's toe-licking technique.
Sloan teased Jai's toes with his tongue a little while longer with a lick here and a lick there before sucking them one by one. He watched her, her eyes closed, as she squirmed and wiggled. When Sloan put pressure on the meaty part under Jai's big toe, Jai went insane and knew it was time for Sloan to leave, for real this time.
"Yep, all better now,” Jai said, tugging her foot from Sloan's hands. Sloan smiled, then stood up with jacket in hand and walked over to the door.
An All Night Man Page 9