by La Jill Hunt
“Avis,” he replied, thinking Craig really did have his hands full with both his deranged wife and Kayla as his daughter’s mother.
“Yeah, Avis. Sorry, that’s not how I roll. I may be a bitch sometimes, Terrell, but I do have class. Jermaine’s not my man. I told you before, I am a free agent.”
Before Terrell had a chance to respond, Jermaine strutted up to the bar and put his arms around her. “What’s up, sweetheart? You want another drink?”
“No, I’m good. I thought you were gone.”
“Do you think I would have left without spending some time with you?” Jermaine asked. “Terry, have Monica send another round to the table, man. Okay?”
“No problem,” Terrell told him.
Something about the way Jermaine ordered the drinks let Terrell know that his friend was a bit pissed, and he wondered if Jermaine also thought he had set this entire thing up. He wasn’t about to hang around to find out.
55
Toby had been tossing and turning in his bed for thirty minutes, trying to fall asleep. He had turned the ringers off all the phones in his house and ignored the beep of the answering machine, letting him know that he had messages waiting. His cell phone remained in the glove compartment of his truck, where he had placed it before he even went into Jasper’s.
He knew he had to have been dreaming when he felt someone climb into his bed. The warm body snuggled closer to him; he felt its nakedness and the familiar scent of Victoria’s Secret Pink filled the air, letting him know that indeed Roni was there beside him.
“Baby?” she whispered in his ear.
“What do you want?” Toby groaned, refusing to roll over. He’d avoided her calls all evening and thought she would get the hint that he needed some time to deal with this situation. Considering the mood he was in right now, it definitely was not the time.
“I am so sorry, Toby. You have got to know that,” she told him, her voice trembling.
“I don’t wanna deal with this right now, Ron. I think you should just leave. Seriously, I need some time.”
“I love you, Toby. We need to talk about this. Please, baby.” He felt her drape her arms across him and his back remained to her as she rubbed across his chest. “Toby, please talk to me.”
“Who the fuck is he, Roni?” he heard his mouth say. He had told himself to remain quiet, not to say anything, but that was one question he wanted to know the answer to.
“He’s not you, Toby. That’s all that needs to be said. Who he is isn’t important. You are the most important person in my life, and I don’t wanna lose you. I need for you to understand how sorry I am. It was a mistake and it will never happen again. I love you, that’s all. Tell me you forgive me, Toby. Please.” She caressed him as she talked, wrapping her legs around his.
Her soft feet ran up and down his calves. He could feel her breasts pressing on his back as she continued to whisper, pleading for his forgiveness. His mind told his body not to respond, but he felt himself getting hard, his physical wants ignoring his mental commands. She had aroused him and he was ready. He turned over to face her, and wasn’t surprised to see the tears running down her cheeks. Her eyes were swollen and he could tell she had been crying for a while. She blinked as if she was surprised that he had turned over so soon. He didn’t say a word as he pulled her mouth to his, kissing her fiercely, positioning his body on top of hers. He reached between her legs, touching the wetness that welcomed his fingers. Her response was to meet his touch while stroking his stiffness, making sure he was as eager as she was.
He entered her with such intensity that he felt her body tense in surprise. His eyes remained open because he wanted to watch her facial expressions as he made love to her. Her eyes were shut tight and he wondered if it was from the roughness of their lovemaking or because she was thinking of her other lover, the one she was with just hours before, the one that she had her legs wrapped around just yesterday in the swimming pool. Did she make the same face as she is now when she was fucking him? Did she call his name out and beg him not to stop as she’s calling out to me? He could feel her muscles contracting as he drove in and out, and hear the sounds of his body meeting hers as she screamed in ecstasy. Flashes of red and blue collided with the darkness as he shut his eyes tightly. His passion was mounting and he could no longer hold back. Faster and faster, harder and harder, until he couldn’t take it anymore. Once again, her muscles tightened against his and he felt her nails scrape across his back as he came deep inside of her. It was a much needed release. The tension he had been holding in for the last two days seemed to subside.
“Baby, are you all right?” she finally asked him.
Toby remained silent as he eased off her and sat on the side of his bed, reaching on the nightstand to turn on the lamp. He walked into the bathroom and washed himself. He realized that this was the first time they had ever made love without a condom, and couldn’t help but wonder if she had done so in an effort to prove her sudden loyalty to him. He stared at his reflection in the mirror and became angry at the tears that he saw in his eyes. Get yourself together, T, he told himself, taking a deep breath.
“Toby, please talk to me,” she said once again as he came out of the bathroom. He didn’t even look over at her. Instead, he walked over to the dresser where he noticed her purse. He opened it, taking out her keys. He went through the ring, searching until he found the one he wanted. She sat up in the middle of the bed, not bothering to cover her nakedness. “What are you doing?”
Silently, he removed the key and climbed back into bed. He turned the lamp off again then lay back down with his back to her.
“Toby, please say something. Don’t you dare lay there and ignore me like I’m nothing!”
“Lock the door when you leave,” he told her.
“When I what? Oh, so you want me to leave? You just gonna sleep with me and then kick me out? Is that how you wanna end this, Toby? You know what? Fine then, I’ll leave. But if I walk out that door . . .”
“Lock it behind you,” he repeated. He had told himself that he wasn’t going to argue, fuss or fight with Roni. The less he said, the easier it would be. He remained quiet as she continued to rant and rave about him being unreasonable about the situation. Finally, he listened as she gathered her things, took the keys off the dresser and descended the steps.
The door slammed behind her and he waited. With Roni, there was no telling if something was gonna come through the window or his car alarm would start blaring, letting him know that she had taken her frustration out on something he possessed rather than on him. She had done it before, and he prayed that she wouldn’t do it again. But there was no sound of breaking glass or piercing alarms. Just the sound of her car as she drove away. Then, and only then, did Toby drift into a deep slumber.
“You sure you’re up to this, man?”
“I told you I was. Now, will you quit asking me dumb questions? I told you, I’m cool,” Toby replied. Jermaine had been asking him if he was okay for the past fifteen minutes. He had to admit, he had even surprised himself when he got out of bed and called his best friend to ask if he still needed help this morning. He didn’t know whether it was because he didn’t feel like moping around the house all day and was looking for something to take his mind off Roni or that he wanted to return to the place where he actually caught his fiancée cheating on him. There was no doubt in is mind that once they got to Stanley’s house he would have to relive the images he witnessed the last time they were there. And somehow, he wondered if in the back of his mind he really hoped to run into Stanley’s brother and talk to him. Either way, he had called, Jermaine picked him up, and they were well on their way.
“I know you’re cool. I know you got a lot on your mind, that’s all. Did you talk to her about what happened?”
“Yeah, she tried to deny it until I told her I saw her,” he told him.
“No, I know she ain’t try the ‘It wasn’t me’ line. Please don’t tell me that. I don’t think I can
take it.”
“No, but only because she realized she was busted. I couldn’t believe it myself, especially when I gave her the opportunity to be honest with me. I think that’s what hurt me the most, the fact that she just straight-up lied to me about him. Come on, J. Roni was just as big a player as I was before we hooked up. I know that. It was one of the things that attracted me to her . . . Well, that plus she’s fine as hell.” He tried to laugh, but it came out like a pitiful sigh. “But when I told her it was all about her, I left everyone else alone. I just assumed she did the same thing. All she had to do was be honest wit’ me when I asked her about him. I would’ve been pissed, but I would’ve respected the fact that she was honest.”
“I feel you on that one. Let me ask you something. You said you left everyone else alone, but I hear you was up in Jasper’s last night with Isis. How do you explain that one?”
Toby explained how he wound up working the bar and Isis happened to come to the club. He assured his friend that he left long before she did and he went home and went to bed. Jermaine was stunned when he told him of how he and Roni made love and then he took his key from her. “I told her to lock the door behind her when she left.”
“And then what did she do?” Jermaine asked, focusing on both Toby and the morning traffic.
“She was pissed, but she left.”
“And then what did she do?” Jermaine repeated the question as if Toby didn’t hear him correctly the first time.
“I told you. She left. She locked the door and left.”
“She keyed your truck?”
“Nope.”
“She ain’t slash your tires?”
“No, none of that. Nothing thrown, no broken glass, no property damage. I’m telling you, she locked the door and left.”
“She’s planning something big, then. Either she’s gonna burn all your shit while you ain’t home or she’s plotting to kill your ass,” Jermaine told him assuredly. Toby looked over at him like he was as crazy as what he just said. “I’m telling you, she’s planning the big payback. You screwed her, didn’t say anything to her, took your key off her key ring and then told her to lock the door when she left? She’s gonna hire someone to kill you, for real.” They turned into Wheatland Heights and onto Stanley’s street.
“Are you listening to yourself? You sound so retarded.”
“Are you listening to yourself? This is Veronica Black we’re talking about. Has Roni ever taken anything that calm before? Don’t worry. I got this new system we can install in your place later.”
“Shut up, Jermaine. I already got a security system that works fine. You’re blowing this way out of proportion. Roni couldn’t overreact because she was wrong. Not only was she wrong, but she was caught. You can’t act crazy if you’re the one who’s busted. Her tearing stuff up like she normally does, that would’ve just added fuel to an already lit fire,” Toby replied, opening his door and getting out.
“And I’m telling you, you better pray your joint ain’t a bed of ashes by the time we make it back this afternoon.” Jermaine laughed, passing Toby a large tool bag out of the back of the truck.
56
“Is this one of your accounts?” Terrell walked up to Kayla’s desk and asked. He knew it was; he was just using it as an excuse to talk to her. He had put off calling her, trying to give her some time to cool off. This was the first time they had ever had a falling out of sorts and he felt bad, mostly because it was his fault.
“Does it have my name on it?” She didn’t even look up from her computer.
“Yes, but I don’t understand the notes on it. Can you explain them to me?”
Kayla rolled her eyes as she took the file from his hand. She frowned, trying to figure out what he was talking about. After turning a few pages, she told him, “You were the last person to notate this account. I notated it three months ago. I don’t understand the notes either.”
“Can I see you in my office?”
“I’m busy,” Kayla snapped, turning back around to her computer.
“Kayla, come on. Stop tripping. Come to my office so we can talk.”
“I told you I’m busy. Call Anjelica. I’m sure she would have no problem talking to you. You need her number? Oh, my bad. You already know it.”
“Fine then, Kayla. Be stubborn. You aren’t even giving me a chance to explain myself,” he hissed, making sure he spoke low enough that no one could hear them over the small cubicles.
“There’s nothing to explain. You’re a grown-ass man, Terrell. I ain’t your woman or one of your hoes. You don’t owe me an explanation for nothing you do,” she told him.
He turned around to see CJ standing nearby. She waved at him and asked, “Is everything all right, Mr. Sims?”
“Yeah, CJ. I’m just going over something with Ms. Hopkins here.”
“Well, don’t forget we have that meeting coming up soon. I’ll be stopping by your office later.” She gave him a knowing look.
“I’ll bet she will,” Kayla said sarcastically.
“What’s that supposed to mean, Kay?”
“That she’ll be coming to your office later, Terrell—I mean Mr. Sims.” She continued, “You know I can’t stand her. I advise you to deter her from coming over here because if she does, there’s nothing you can do to stop me from cussing her out. Today is not the day, and I am not in the mood.”
“She ain’t coming over here. Just come into my office so we can talk. I need for you to understand what went down,” he told her.
“Is there a problem? Can I help with something?”
Terrell felt the hand on his shoulder and turned around. CJ was looking over him at Kayla’s computer.
Her hand made its way to the center of his back as she moved closer. He tried to move a little in case someone happened to notice her obvious gesture of affection.
“No, we’re fine, CJ. I was just going over some notes with Kayla in regards to an account. Everything’s under control,” he assured her. Kayla continued typing, not even acknowledging CJ’s presence, which was probably a good thing.
“Really? Ms. Hopkins, do we need to retrain you in notating accounts?” CJ asked.
Kayla’s fingers stopped immediately. She stood up and turned toward them. Terrell began praying that she wouldn’t start talking without thinking, which she had been known to do on more than one occasion. The look she gave CJ said everything without anything coming out of her mouth as her eyes traveled from the top of CJ’s head to her feet then back up again. Other employees nearby sat frozen, waiting for whatever was going to happen next.
“I believe it was a mistake that Mr. Sims made on the account that needs to be corrected. I’m sure you’ll have no problem retraining him, since he’s the one having difficulties. Excuse me. It’s my break,” she said with a smile.
Snickering could be heard from the onlookers and CJ turned around, giving them a threatening look. They quickly went back to work and Terrell excused himself as well. When he returned to his office, Kayla was there waiting.
“Look, Kay—” he started, but she cut him off.
“I didn’t come in here to talk. I came for you to listen. Nicole is a nice woman with a lot going for herself, despite the fact that she is with you. We all make mistakes. That being said, you need to get your shit together. I know Nicole well enough to know that she’s not stupid enough to be waiting in the wings for you. But even still, she loves your unfaithful, noncommittal ass for some strange reason, and I don’t want her to be hurt or look stupid.” The words came out of her mouth so fast that he doubted she had even taken time to breathe.
“What are you talking about, Kayla? I’m telling you that your sister and I were together one time and that’s it. We’re just cool. It’s not even like that.”
“I’m talking about you being with everybody, Terrell. Anjelica, Darla, CJ . . .”
“CJ! You really are out of your mind, Kayla. I’m telling you I’m not like that anymore. I’ve changed. I know I gotta
get my shit together if I want things to work with Nicole, and I am. Part of the reason I know that is because your sister Anjelica pointed out a lot of stuff to me and I know I was wrong.”
“Oh, so now you’re taking advice from a whore? Well, I am so glad that she is being so helpful to you and has given you such great advice when it comes to your love life,” she said, standing up. “I can see that I’ve done nothing here but waste your time.”
She opened the door to his office. Terrell quickly ran over and pushed the door closed. “Kayla, wait a minute. Anjelica didn’t say anything to me that you haven’t said in the past. The reason I pointed that out was to show you that she’s not this monstrosity that you make her out to be. I know you believe she’s this evil sex fiend of a woman who tries to sleep with any man she comes in contact with, but you’re wrong.”
“I don’t have to listen to this. I’ve known my sister all of my life and you’ve known her what, two hours? Please, spare me.”
“Spare you what, the truth? Why should I? You come in here all condescending like you’re holier than thou, without even giving me the chance to talk. I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve done some trifling stuff over the past few months, but I’ve changed. I love Nicole and I’m not gonna do anything to jeopardize what we have. She’s invested a lot into me and our relationship, and I respect that.
“Believe me, Kayla, even that night with Anjelica was a one time thing. It was the last time I even did anything that stupid. But your sister is a good person, just like you are. Maybe that’s why she and I became cool, because you are somewhat alike. You never talked to her to give you the chance to see that side of her,” Terrell told her.
He released his arm from the door and walked behind his desk, sitting in the soft leather chair. The initial tension that had embraced him when he first entered his office was subsiding. Kayla stared at him then opened the door. She turned and left without saying a word. He didn’t expect her to, because he knew she needed time to absorb everything they had just shared with each other. That was how their relationship was. He was her backbone and she was his conscience. They were each other’s strengths when the other was weak. She was his best friend and he loved her. But Anjelica had become his friend, too, and it hurt him to see the two beautiful, intelligent sisters hating one another.