Without waiting for a response, Tamara turned and walked away.
She asked the valet to alert her driver that she was ready to leave. While she waited, Tamara struggled to keep her tears at bay.
When her car arrived, she got in and returned to the hotel.
Tamara waited until she was in her hotel suite before breaking down in tears. She had not been prepared to face Micah’s wrath. She never considered that those seeds of rejection she planted in him had sprouted into a wall of bitterness.
He actually hates me enough to try and ruin my career.
The thought saddened Tamara as ten long years of regret assailed her. He was no longer the man she knew in college. That much was obvious.
Grief and despair tore at her heart over the loss of a man who was once a very dear friend.
How could she have been so stupid?
She should have realized all along that Micah was still upset with her. It probably would have been a good idea to insist on talking to him before making the trip.
Tamara sighed, then gave a resigned shrug.
She considered calling Samantha, but it was three hours later on the East Coast—well past midnight in Atlanta. Besides, she had no idea how to explain what happened. Tamara ignored the heavy feeling in her stomach and began to pack.
“What happened to that reporter girl?” Sunni asked when she walked backstage to join Micah.
“She’s not a reporter girl, Sunni,” Micah stated. “But to answer your question, Tamara’s probably out front at our table.”
Sunni shook her head. “No, she’s not. I just left there.” She played with her curly tendrils. “Matter of fact, I haven’t seen her in a while. I thought that maybe Tamara had come back here to talk to Justice or hang up under you.”
His eyes searching around the room, Micah pulled out his cell phone and called his secretary. “Bette, have you seen Tamara?”
“She left about twenty minutes ago, Mr. Ross. Would you like me to contact Ms. Hodges for you?”
“No,” Micah stated. “I’ll take care of this myself.”
“What are you going to do?” Sunni asked after he ended the call.
“I need to leave for a little while, but I’ll be back before Justice performs.”
A thread of guilt ran down his spine over the way Micah had treated Tamara. It was childish, and he now regretted his actions.
Sunni glared at him. “I can’t believe you’re going to run out on me like this. You’re going after her, aren’t you? Micah, is there something going on that I should know about?”
“Look, Sunni, she was an old friend of mine from college and I haven’t seen her in almost ten years. We had a misunderstanding,” Micah explained. “I need to apologize to her.”
It was clear that Sunni was not happy about this sudden turn of events. “I’m sure it can wait until after the party. There is no way that I’m letting you abandon me—the media will be all over something like this. Besides, I doubt Tamara will be going anywhere tonight. She wants you to come running after her.”
“Sunni, this is not your call. I won’t be gone long.”
“Whatever,” she muttered; her eyes were stony with anger.
Micah had his driver take him to the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles. The car had barely stopped before he was out and rushing into the lobby. He took the elevator up to the sixteenth floor suite and knocked on the door.
Tamara opened the door as if she had been expecting him, but the expression on her face told him otherwise.
“I thought you were room service,” she said. “Micah, what are you doing here? I figured after the way you were treating me earlier that you didn’t want to be around me. If you came to kick me out, then you don’t have to bother. I’m flying home on the first flight to the ATL.”
“I’m here because it’s my turn to apologize to you. May I please come inside?”
Surprised, Tamara stepped aside to let Micah enter the room and then closed the door. “You should be at the release party. There’s no need to worry about me. I’m a big girl.” She stood with her hands on her hips, waiting.
“I’m sorry, Tamara. I don’t want to ruin your career—that was never really my intent.”
“What was your intent then?” Tamara asked, folding her arms across her chest.
A loud knock on the door placed a temporary break in their conversation.
Micah glanced over at her. “Are you expecting someone?” He hoped that Sunni hadn’t decided to up and follow him to the hotel.
“It should be my food,” she announced. “I ordered room service.”
Micah took care of the bill despite her objections.
After the server left, Tamara sat down at a table and removed the lid covering her meal. “Have some,” she offered. “I remember how much you used to love French fries.”
He smiled. “No thanks.”
Micah sat down in a nearby chair.
Tamara’s eyes traveled to the clock sitting on the mantel of the fireplace. “Micah, you should probably get back to the club. Justice will be performing soon.”
“Look Tamara, I would still like you to do the interview. Eat quickly.”
“Are you sure about this?” Tamara wanted to know. “I’m not in the mood to go back and forth with you on this, Micah. I know things ended badly ten years ago and that’s one of the reasons I’ve been trying to reach out to you. I had hoped that we’d talk so that I could try to make things right.”
He nodded. “As you said earlier, this is not the time for a talk like that. But yes, I’m sure about the interview. Tamara, I want you to write the article.”
She wiped her mouth on the edge of her napkin. “What about the tour? Will I still be allowed to go along?”
Micah nodded a second time.
When she caught him eying her fries, she said, “Just go on and eat some.”
Standing up, Micah chuckled as he crossed the room in long strides. “I was trying hard to resist.”
Tamara held out her hand. “Friends?”
“Let’s see how tonight goes,” Micah responded. He wasn’t ready to let down the walls guarding his heart.
“Fair enough,” she said quietly. Tamara concentrated on her dinner while Micah made several business calls.
When Tamara finished, she pushed away from the table. “I need to freshen up, and then I’ll be ready to leave.”
Micah watched her from across the room. Tamara was so beautiful, even more than he remembered. He just wasn’t sure that he could trust her ever again. He had no idea the type of woman she had become.
Ten years was a long time ago, but the wound of Tamara’s rejection was still fresh, almost as if it had just happened.
Get over it, Micah’s heart urged.
Tamara was the only woman he had ever loved, and now she was back in his life. He had one of two choices. Micah could let her walk out of his life a second time or he could move forward and give Tamara a second chance.
Micah’s words stung but more than that they filled Tamara with shame.
He had every right to be angry with her because her actions that night were cruel.
Tamara had considered him one of her best friends—yet she chose to believe a lie without even consulting him about it. How could she ever hope to make this up to him?
She brushed her teeth and then touched up her makeup and hair.
When Tamara walked out of the bathroom, Micah stood there eying her from head to toe. For a brief moment, his eyes brimmed with tenderness and passion.
“You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
He reached out and pulled her into his arms, surprising her. “We’re friends, Tamara. That won’t ever change.” Micah paused a moment, then said, “I have to be honest with you. I haven’t gotten over what you said to me ten years ago, but I never stopped caring about you. I won’t deny that there were days I wished I didn’t.”
She hugged him back. “Micah, I never meant to hurt you.�
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He kissed her cheek. “We’ll talk later. Now let’s get going.”
They left the suite and took the elevator down to the lobby.
On the way to the club, Micah told her, “Just so you know, I’m not trying to avoid a discussion with you. I know that we need to talk, Tamara.”
She nodded and hid her trembling hands in the folds of her dress. “I just want a chance to explain what was going on back then.”
“We’ll do it before you go back to Atlanta,” he promised. “There are some things I need to say to you, too.”
“I hope you’ll let me go first,” Tamara stated.
He laughed and shook his head. “Some things never change.”
She relaxed as the tension between them evaporated.
Micah and Tamara continued their light banter during the short drive back to the club, making it just minutes before Justice was due to perform.
Micah went backstage while she sat down across from Sunni.
“Oh you’re back, I see,” she commented drily when Tamara joined her at the table. “Where’s Micah?”
“He went to check on Justice.”
“You ran out of here in a hurry,” Sunni stated. “What happened? Did you have a family emergency? A sick child?”
“No, I didn’t,” Tamara responded. “And I don’t have any children.”
Sunni’s eyes strayed down to her left hand. “Oh, I just assumed you were married.”
“Well, I’m afraid that you assumed wrong,” Tamara retorted with a tiny smile.
“How well do you know Micah?” Sunni asked. “He mentioned that you were friends in college, but your friendship could not have been as close as you believed, especially since he never mentioned you to me. You won’t believe all of the people coming out of the woodwork claiming some close relationship to Micah. We all know that it’s because he’s a celebrity.”
Tamara held her temper in check. She was not going to let Sunni bait her into an argument. She had no idea what Micah saw in a woman like her.
Micah sat down in the empty chair between her and Sunni. Tamara was glad to have him at the table. Maybe Sunni would keep her snide comments to herself in his presence.
She turned to face the stage, bobbing her head to the music. Justice was an amazing performer. Tamara made mental notes when he dedicated one of the songs to the memory of his mother and spoke of how much he missed her.
After the performance, Micah led Tamara backstage for a one-on-one interview with Justice.
While she talked with the performer, Micah quietly observed them in the background. Tamara could feel the heat of his gaze on her, causing her heart to hammer foolishly. She managed to finish the interview.
“So what did you think?” Tamara asked him.
“It was an interview,” Micah commented. “I’ll reserve judgment until I see what you put in print.”
They walked outside of the club.
“I need to call a taxi,” she stated.
“No,” Micah replied. “I’ll have my driver take you home. After I drop Sunni off I’ll come to your suite unless you’d rather talk sometime tomorrow. However, you’ll be leaving to join Justice on tour.”
“Tonight’s fine.”
She rode in the limo with Micah and Sunni.
The woman had no shame, Tamara thought silently. Sunni was draped over him in such a possessive manner that she was tempted to laugh.
Tamara uttered a soft prayer of thanks when the limo pulled in front of her hotel. She didn’t care for Sunni at all and couldn’t figure out what Micah saw in the woman.
She took the elevator up to the sixteenth floor and into her suite. She surveyed her reflection in the mirror.
Micah returned to the hotel shortly after midnight.
“I wasn’t sure I’d be seeing you again tonight.” Tamara could not resist adding, “I was sure Sunni would try to keep you with her all night.”
The beginning of a smile tipped the corners of his mouth. “I told you that we’d have our talk, Tamara. I meant it.”
They sat down on the sofa.
Tamara spoke first. “Micah, I owe you a huge apology for the things I said to you graduation night. I feel like I can’t say sorry enough.”
His closeness was so male, so bracing that she had to wrench herself from her preoccupation with his handsome face.
“Tamara, I accept your apology,” he said in response.
“I was so messed up back then,” she explained. “My life was crazy, Micah.”
“It is what it is,” he stated without emotion. “Tamara, there’s really nothing that you can say now that will ever change what happened.”
“You’re still angry with me over it,” she acknowledged. “Micah, I can tell by the way you’re treating me. What I need to know is if we can ever get past what happened? I’m willing to try if you are.”
A muscle quivered at his jaw. “Things changed between us that night, Tamara. I can’t understand why you would believe something a bunch of guys told you. We had been friends since our freshman year at Hollington.”
She shriveled a little at Micah’s expression. “I know that, Micah,” Tamara responded. “I eventually came to that conclusion but then I found out that it was just a nasty joke. I tried to contact you but you refused my calls.”
“You’d have refused my calls if the situation had been reversed, Tamara, but then again, I never would have believed what somebody else told me. After four years, I figured I knew you pretty well.”
Tamara agreed. “You’re right. I should have known better, but Micah, my head wasn’t in the right place. I was so focused on getting out of school and landing a job so that I could take care of myself.”
“So you keep saying.”
“Micah, back then it was hard for me to trust anybody.”
He released a long sigh before saying, “I guess what it comes down to is that none of it really matters anymore.”
Micah rose to his feet. “It’s late, and you need to get some rest. I’ll see you in the morning before you leave.”
“I miss you, Micah,” Tamara blurted. “I really miss our friendship.”
He didn’t respond.
Tamara met his gaze. “Will you please say something?”
“I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“That you miss our friendship as much as I do or that you want us to be friends again.” She shrugged. “Something like that, maybe.”
Micah drew his lips in thoughtfully. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
He was still guarded so Tamara didn’t press him.
Instead, she walked Micah to the door and said, “I really appreciate this opportunity in spite of what happened between us. I just hope you will consider letting me back into your life.”
Micah hugged her and then left the suite, leaving Tamara alone with her thoughts.
“I’m going to find a way to win back your trust,” she whispered. “And your heart.”
Chapter 5
Tamara was up early the next morning packing for the tour. She was so excited about the tour that she couldn’t sleep. She ordered room service and had just enough time to eat a bagel with cream cheese and a couple of strawberries.
Tamara jumped at the sound of a loud knock on her bedroom door.
She walked briskly across the floor expectantly.
“I thought it might be you,” she stated when Micah entered the suite. “I remember how punctual you used to be. I guess some things never change.”
“And I recall that you were never ready whenever I arrived,” he countered, looking around the suite. “Do you have everything packed and ready to go?”
Tamara broke into a smile. “Micah, you’ll be proud of me. I’m almost ready. Just need to pack up my computer.”
“Some things never change,” he said with a chuckle. “Did you sleep okay?”
“Not really,” she responded. “But it’s because I’m really looking forward to this tour. I’m sure I
’ll catch a nap at some point while we’re on the bus.”
Tamara packed her laptop and closed her tote. “Okay. I have everything.”
Looking up as she approached, Micah openly studied her. Things were still a little tense between them but they were both attempting to be cordial.
“Did you eat any of your breakfast?” he inquired. “It looks untouched.”
“I ate a bagel and some fruit. I don’t know if you remember, but I’m not really a breakfast person.”
“I remember,” he stated. “I used to have to force you down to the dining hall every morning.”
Tamara was touched that he remembered. He had warmed to her some since their talk, but Micah was still guarded at times.
They left the suite and took the elevator down to the lobby.
Tamara chewed on her bottom lip.
“Nervous?” Micah asked.
“I am,” she confirmed. “I’m the outsider. I don’t know how the band members are going to respond to me.”
“You don’t have to be nervous. Everyone is really down-to-earth. You’ll see.”
He drove her over to his office building where they were loading up the buses.
Following behind Micah, Tamara entered the first crew bus. She swiveled slowly, her delight growing.
“You’ll be traveling on this one,” he told her. “You will be sleeping in the executive suite located in the back of the bus—there’s a double bed and a full bathroom. You’ll also have your own TV and DVD player in the suite. The other TV is in the bunk area.”
“Wow,” Tamara murmured. “This is really nice, but where is Justice and everybody else sleeping? He should have the suite.”
“There are eight bunks for the others. Justice will sleep in the suite on the other bus.”
She surveyed her surroundings. The lounge area featured a leather sofa and two overstuffed chairs, a flat-screen LCD TV, DVD player, CD player and a surround sound system. Doors separated the bunk areas from the lounge.
The fully equipped kitchen came with a large fridge, coffeemaker, microwave and toaster.
Teach Me Tonight Page 5