by Tina Martin
“Yep. I’m on it,” Melanie said. She washed her hands, then grabbed a spoon. While stirring the food, she glanced back at Dimitrius. He was wearing a button-up, red shirt and a pair of black khakis. He looked breathtaking, handsome and well put together, but something about his attire made him stuffy and boring.
His brothers were wearing jeans and Polo tees, but not Dimitrius. He always had the preppy look. Melanie took her attention back to the greens, then glanced over at Dimitrius again. This time, she met his heated gaze and quickly turned away.
* * *
“So, Dimitrius, do you think you can work with Melanie without daydreaming about taking her inside of your office and locking the door behind you?” Desmond asked discreetly so that the women couldn’t hear him.
“You would ask something like that,” Dimitrius responded. “I’m a professional, Des…at all times.”
“Yeah. We know,” Desmond quipped.
Just then, Sherita walked in and said, “Hi everybody.”
“Hey,” they all said back in a blend of voices.
“I brought my homemade banana pudding.”
I would love some of your banana pudding, Desmond thought wickedly to himself, then had the nerve to grin. “Dang, who invited my kryptonite?” he asked, biting his bottom lip while staring Sherita down as she breezed by.
Dante chuckled. “Your kryptonite?”
“Yes, man. She makes a brother weak,” Desmond said.
The men chuckled.
“You know Sherita?” Dante asked.
“No. I usually see her at the coffee shop next to Emily’s store.”
“You know she’s good friends with Emily. As a matter of fact, she runs the boutique sometimes.”
“Ah…that’s why I see her so frequently at the coffee shop. Mmm, mmm, mmm…”
* * *
“Hey Sherita,” Melanie said, giving her a hug once she’d joined the womenfolk in the kitchen. “Look at you all dolled up.”
“Oh, this is nothing,” Sherita said, “But that lipstick you’re wearing is everything.”
“Thanks,” Melanie said.
“Yeah, it is everything,” Emily said, “Especially considering Dimitrius can’t seem to keep his eyes off of it.”
“See, Emily, you already trying to start something,” Melanie said.
“Wait…” Sherita said, looking at Melanie. “You and Dimitrius?”
“No,” Melanie answered quickly.
“Yes,” Emily said. “Don’t know why she’s trying to fight it, Sherita.”
Melanie grinned. “Whatever, Emily.”
“Hey, Sherita,” Emily said. “Can you do me a favor and set the table?”
“Sure.” Sherita grabbed a stack of plates then walked over to the table. “Excuse me, fellas. I’ve been instructed to set the table.”
“Do your thing, Rita,” Dante said. “Never mind us.”
She set the plates down, one-by-one and when she set a plate in front of Desmond, he pushed it to the center of the table, then gave her a look.
She looked back at him, then it dawned on her where she knew him from. “Well, if it ain’t Mr. Double-shot-of-expresso.”
“In the flesh,” Desmond responded.
“I knew you looked familiar…now that I see y’all together, I see the resemblance.”
“Yep…these are my brothers,” Desmond said.
“Right. I know Dante already.”
“And that’s Dimitrius.”
“Hi. Nice to meet you, Dimitrius,” Sherita said, even though she’d seen him in passing. Still, they hadn’t officially met.
“And I’m Desmond. Desmond Champion.”
“Also known as Superman,” Dante joked. Then he looked at Sherita and said, “And you would be his krp—”
“Pay my brother no mind,” Desmond said, cutting Dante off. “He has issues.”
Dimitrius grinned, just barely. He wasn’t in much of a dinner-party mood tonight. His mind had been on Melanie and why she had been avoiding him for two days. Even now, she didn’t say much to him. She stayed in the kitchen, glancing at him every now and then, but wouldn’t hold eye contact longer than a few seconds.
Emily brought over a basket of rolls to the table which prompted the men to grab one and begin eating.
Melanie brought over a pan of barbecue chicken and set it on the table where she didn’t have to be close to Dimitrius.
He noticed.
Sherita returned to the kitchen to get macaroni and mashed potatoes, then Emily came back with a pan of collard greens. Melanie brought cups and sodas.
Now that they were all seated, the men on one side of the table and the women on the other, everyone began helping themselves to whatever it was they wanted to eat.
A few bites in, Dante said, “Well, I want to officially congratulate Melanie for her new gig in becoming the marketing manager at The Champion Corporation.”
After everyone offered their congratulations, Melanie said, “Thank you, everybody, and while we’re on the subject, I have to give a notice at my existing job, so I won’t be able to start for two weeks. Will that be a problem?”
Dimitrius frowned. Why hadn’t she told him that? They’d had lunch together on Tuesday and she hadn’t mentioned anything about it. That irked him, so much so that he didn’t want to continue his meal.
“I don’t foresee a problem with that,” Desmond said. “Do you, Dante?”
“Not at all,” Dante responded. “That’ll give you more time to get your ducks in a row.”
“Perfect,” Melanie said. “When I told my boss I was leaving, he looked like he was going to have a nervous breakdown.”
“That’s how you know you’re a good employee,” Dante said.
Melanie smiled and glanced up at Dimitrius who was glaring back at her. She could only imagine what he must have been thinking. After all, she had been ignoring him, not trying to engage in any sort of conversation with him all night. She just glanced at him every now and then and that was it.
Later, when she could pull him aside, she’d let him know that she couldn’t be his girlfriend, or whatever it was he wanted her to be. The bottom line was, they weren’t compatible, and he was still player. He would have to find another woman to run that game on.
* * *
Later, when plates were cleared off of the table and everyone was preparing for dessert, Melanie took a quick bathroom break where she checked her hair again, added gloss back to her lips and when she stepped out, there was Dimitrius leaned up against the wall standing there all casually – his hands hidden in his pockets. He looked agitated or at the very least disheartened, and she knew why.
“What are you doing?” she asked, not knowing what else to say at the moment.
“I could ask you the same thing,” he said staring into her eyes with darkened hazel ones. “Why didn’t you tell me about the two-week notice?”
She shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I meant to tell you on Tuesday…it slipped my mind. Like I said…no big deal.”
He clenched his jaw, took his hands from his pockets and inched closer to her. “I want you to tell me why you neglected to tell me, Melanie. There has to be a reason why, which probably intertwines with the reasons why you’ve been avoiding me. So why don’t you go ahead and get it off of your chest?”
She sighed heavily. She didn’t want to do this with him at Emily’s house. Not here. Not now. But she knew she had to. Dimitrius wasn’t going away. “Okay, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to tell you, Dimitrius. I’m not sure about this thing you’re trying to do with me and the way you’ve been coming on to me is not flattering. It may work for other women, but it doesn’t work for me. I don’t want this. I don’t want to work for a corporation whose executive is basically demanding that I go out with him. You claim to be a gentleman, yet, you’re trying to make me like you…trying to convince me that we belong together, and I’m not feeling it. I like my freedom. I don’t want a man chasing down behind me, k
eeping track of my every move. And we’re not compatible. You don’t even wear jeans for goodness sakes.”
He frowned. “What does the way I dress have to do with anything?”
“It has a lot to do with everything. Like I said…we’re not compatible. I don’t dress like you, eat at fancy restaurants or drive exotic cars, and I can only imagine what your house looks like. I know you’re used to having and getting your way with women, having them fall at your feet like robots because you’re a handsome millionaire. That’s the gold-digging way of the world, but I don’t care for those things and I won’t let them sway me. So I think it’s best if we ended whatever you call this weird…craziness that you started.”
“I don’t think so,” Dimitrius said.
Before Melanie could make her escape, he grabbed her arm and pulled her right up to him – to his chest.
She couldn’t take her next breath, let alone offer any resistance, before he drowned his hands in her curls and latched on to her mouth and snuck a kiss. He’d wanted to do so for little over a year now and he saw this as the perfect opportunity to fulfill that long-time desire of his. He could care less about what she said – about them not being compatible. He’d show her just how compatible they could be.
Were her feet still on the floor? She could imagine that they weren’t, that he was holding her up between his strong arms instead, sending her pulse into overdrive. That’s when she knew she’d had enough.
She slowly pulled away from him, staring at him like she was in a state of shock. And when her breathing was back under control to the point that she could talk again, she asked, “What was that?”
“It was a kiss,” he responded. “You’ve never been kissed before?”
Not like that. “Yes, but,” she said, still panting a little. “You said you would never touch me unless I wanted you to.”
His lips curved to a smile. “Yes, I did say that, didn’t I?”
“So you’re not a man of your word.”
“Oh, but I am, sweetheart,” he said only inches away from her lips. “I kissed you, not because you wanted me to, but because you needed me to. And you didn’t stop me, which tells me you needed me as well.”
“Dimitrius—”
“Listen Melanie…I honestly don’t know what’s going through your head because you’ve never really had a heart-to-heart with me, and I get it. You don’t know me that well, and therefore, you don’t trust me yet, but I will tell you this…I always get what I want. I’m not chasing gold-diggers or whatever type of woman you’re trying to link me with. I want you, and I think you want me too. You’re just holding back, making excuses for reasons that are beyond me but reasons I will one day understand. You have to admit to yourself that I am an excellent catch. I don’t like bragging about myself or tooting my own horn, but I would make a good husband for you. So maybe you should stop finding all the reasons why you shouldn’t do this and start thinking of all the reasons why you should.”
With that, Dimitrius turned around and walked away. Melanie could hear him telling everyone he had to go. He said he had other plans, when really she knew he hadn’t had anything to do. He just needed to go, to give her time to think about what she wanted to do, because he would do what he had to do to get her. It was up to her if she wanted to jog along with him or be chased. He was down for whatever…
Chapter 13
Dante and Desmond were busy in the man cave, playing a round of pool. The women were in the family room, eating banana pudding and having general conversation, also known as, talking about men.
“So I saw you checking out Desmond, Sherita,” Emily said.
“Girl please. He’s fine and all, but I don’t have time for Desmond. I see him in the coffee shop in the mornings trying to holla at every female he can like he is such a player. Actually, I heard the Champion brothers were, but apparently you have the reformed one, Emily.”
Emily chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so. But I think Dimitrius is going to be reformed real soon.”
Melanie shook her head.
“What was up with him tonight?” Emily asked Melanie.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean he seemed a little frustrated, and then he left early. Dimitrius never leaves early. He usually stays way past midnight sometimes playing pool with Dante and Des. But tonight I noticed he left early, and I also noticed that you weren’t really talking to each other. Is everything cool?”
“Wait…you and Dimitrius are dating?” Sherita asked.
“I wouldn’t call it dating,” Melanie said. “He wants to date me, but he’s…so…different.”
“Different how?” she inquired.
“He boldly told me that he wanted to marry me. Said he thought we would be good together, and that I would make a good wife for him. So he wants us to spend the rest of the month together…every single day of it, doing some sort of activity. It doesn’t matter what it is. He just wants to make sure he’s with me. So Monday night we had dinner. Tuesday he showed up at my job to take me out to lunch. Wednesday I avoided him. Thursday I avoided him. Tonight, I avoided him, that is until he pinned me up against the wall in the hallway and nearly stole my breath…first time he’s ever kissed me.”
“Dang,” Sherita said.
“Rita, I told Melanie to give him a chance,” Emily said.
Melanie shook her head. “I wanted to give him a chance because the quick marriage route worked out well for you and Dante. But it doesn’t work for everyone, especially when your heart has been broken so many times, you’ve pretty much given up on love.”
“But you can’t live in the past, Melanie,” Emily said. “That’s where I was going wrong. I never thought I could love another man after I lost Melvin, and I had no desire to. And yes, Dante came on to me very strong, but eventually I saw that he really did care about me and love me. I know Scott hurt you, and you thought you would be with him forever…that you would have a family and live happily ever after, but sometimes you have to go through a lot of bad ones to get to that one good one…the one who could completely change your life forever. That’s what Dante has done for me, and I know he loves me. I know he wouldn’t hurt me and I’m looking forward to spending the rest of my life with him. You could have that with Dimitrius. He’s bit of a straight shooter, but he’s never been indecisive about anything. I think it’s worth a shot to explore him a lil’ bit, girl.”
“It’s not that easy, Emily.” Melanie sighed. “I…I haven’t told anyone what I’m about to tell you ladies, so please do not repeat it.” She sighed again. “I never wanted anyone to know this but, here goes. I lied. I didn’t break up with Scott because he cheated on me.”
“You didn’t?” Emily asked confused.
“Hear me out,” Melanie said. “Scott never cheated on me. The reason we broke up is because I found out I couldn’t have children and when I told Scott, he changed…he slowly began withdrawing from me since he knew I couldn’t give him a family.” Melanie’s eyes brimmed with tears. “So he broke up with me, and I promised myself that I would never become seriously involved with anyone after him because I never wanted to have a conversation about my infertility ever again. I have no strength left inside of me to explain to another man why I can’t have his children and how he could never have a family with me. It’s not fair for me to put someone in that predicament, so I chose to be single. After all, some people are meant to be happy in this world, and some people are not. Unfortunately, I fall on the side of those who are not, and I’m trying to cope with that as best as I can.”
“Oh my gosh, Melanie,” Emily said, scooting next to Melanie on the couch, throwing her arm around her. “I’m so sorry.”
“Me, too, Melanie,” Sherita said. “I know that’s difficult.”
“Why didn’t you tell me, Melanie?” Emily asked.
“I was too ashamed. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
“It’s nothing to be ashamed about. It’s beyond your control, and if Scott didn’t
understand that, then he wasn’t the man for you anyway.”
“But look at Dimitrius for example,” Melanie said. “Let’s say that I agree to take him up on his offer to get to know him and somehow, by means of a miracle from above, we end up falling in love. How am I going to tell him?”
“You could tell him right now so he’ll know what he’s getting into,” Emily suggested.
“Yeah, so I can have another man walk away from me…”
“That’s not necessarily true, Melanie,” Emily said. “You won’t really know unless you have a conversation with him.”
“Then I guess I won’t know because I promised myself I would never do that again.” She wiped her eyes. “It’s hard enough for me to accept the fact that I can’t have children. I don’t want to see the look of disappointment on another man’s face simply because I can’t have children.” Melanie stood up and dabbed her eyes again. “Anyway, I need to go…not feeling so good right now. Sherita, I’ll take some banana pudding to go.”
“Okay, girl.”
Melanie walked to the kitchen. Emily followed, taking a small, plastic Tupperware container from the cupboard for her, then after Melanie took a few scoops of banana pudding, she closed the container tight.
Emily walked with her to her car and wrapped her arms around her. “You know I love you like sister, don’t you?”
“Love you too, Em.”
“Alright. Drive safe. I’ll see you tomorrow, ‘kay?”
“Okay.”
Chapter 14
Melanie sat up in bed the next morning after enduring a frustrating night of bad memories. She hated it when Scott was on her mind because he had been the man she thought she would marry. He was a respected business man. He was smart. He dressed nice. He was good to her. A great catch, her mother would say. He quickly became a part of the family, and everyone knew she and Scott would be married. It was the next logical step in their relationship, especially since they were so much in love. Melanie had even begun looking at wedding gowns and thinking about the season in which they would tie the knot. She had discussions with her mother about love and marriage – the ups and downs of it. She remembered her mother saying that marriage was a lot of work, and everything wouldn’t run smoothly all the time. There would be some good years and some bad years, but it was the making-it-work part that would give her the most satisfaction.