“I have a better idea,” she said also standing up. “How about you not go to work tomorrow so we can spend the entire day together messing around.”
“I wish I could, baby, but I have so much that I have to do. Maybe next week, okay?”
Dana shrugged then lay across the bed. “Yeah, maybe so.”
I gathered my things for my shower and stood in the doorway looking at Dana who seemed to be disappointed. Feeling bad, I walked over to her and lay in bed with her.
“Would you like to join me in the shower?”
“No, maybe next time.”
I left her alone and didn’t push. After my shower, I saw that she had fallen asleep. I kissed her forehead and got some rest before my busy day tomorrow.
When I came through the door, as usual, Sylvia, Jackie, and Audrey were standing by Sylvia’s cubicle running their mouths. I gave them a hard stare, didn’t speak, then went into my office and closed the door. Knowing that Sylvia would be knocking soon to apologize, I sat at my desk counting the seconds down before she knocked. Sure enough, there was a knock and her head came peeking through the door.
“Are you up for coffee or orange juice this morning?” she said, smiling.
“Neither.”
“A doughnut or bagel?”
“Nope.”
“Tylenol or Excedrin?”
“Tylenol because you are a pain in the ass, aren’t you?”
“And so are you.” She came into my office and closed the door behind her. “So,” she said, sitting down and crossing her legs. “After I left last night, did you enjoy yourself?”
“As a matter of fact, I did.”
“Good. But you and Dana should be careful messing around like that in here. Somebody is bound to catch y’all in action.”
I looked at her breasts that stared me in the face, and then looked at the birthmark on her upper thigh I’d noticed many times before, since she always wore short miniskirts to work. “Sylvia, why are you constantly outside of my office running your mouth when I’ve asked you to chill?”
“That’s not what you were thinking about asking me,” she said.
“How do you know what I was thinking about asking you?”
“Because I know you, Mr. Jonathan Taylor. So, out with it; wha . . . what’s on your mind?”
“Okay, Miss Mind Reader, I have several other questions for you.”
She bounced her crossed leg on top of the other and bit into her nail. “I’m waiting.”
“What did you do Saturday night? Who were you with, and why do you come to work dressed like that?”
Sylvia looked at herself, pulled her skirt down and glared at me. “I already told you what I was into Saturday night. And if you must know, I dress like this because I like the clothes I wear, and because my boss can’t seem to keep his eyes off me when I wear them.”
I laughed and pointed to my chest. “So, you dress like that for me?”
“Yep,” she said, laughing her damn self. “It’s the least I can do. You need some type of enjoyment being cooped up in this place all the time, don’t you?”
“That’s why I have a wife, Sylvia.”
“But, she’s not here all the time. So, in the meantime, feel free to undress me with your eyes anytime. Trust me, I enjoy every bit of it.”
“Okay, if you insist. You are crazy; do you know that?”
“I know, but I love to see my boss laughing, especially if I can make him forget about being mad at me for running my mouth to my coworkers all the time.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I almost forgot about that. One of these days, I’m going to fire you for that mess. In the meantime, though, I need my coffee, a bagel with strawberry cream cheese, two Tylenol, the paperwork on the Johnson case, and before you leave today, I need those fifteen letters I put on your desk last night typed. If you get finished early,” I said, reaching for a pile of papers on my desk that needed to be filed, “you can file these away for me.”
Sylvia stood up and put her hands on her hips. “The coffee, I got your back. The bagel and Tylenol, you can get that yourself, and as for the letters, I’ll have them to you within the hour. After that, I’m going to Audrey’s office for the rest of the day to loiter there since you won’t let me do it here.”
“Well, loiter on, sista, but make sure I get my things.”
“Will do,” she said already pouring my coffee. She came over to my desk and put my mug on top of it.
Before taking a sip, I looked up at her. “Sylvia, you didn’t see Dana this past weekend, did you?”
She sucked her teeth and released a deep breath. “Jonathan, look. We hung out for a while, but I also had other things to tend to. Please don’t start questioning me about our whereabouts, okay?”
“You’re right and I’m sorry. Just ignore me, okay?”
“It’s hard to ignore you but I will try,” she said on her way to the door. “In the meantime, if you need me, I’ll be at my desk.”
Sylvia closed the door, and five minutes later, she came back with my bagel and Tylenol. I thanked her for being so good to me and tried to focus on getting something accomplished for the day.
Unable to focus, and thinking about my amazing night with Dana, I called home to check on her. When she didn’t answer, I called her cell phone only to get voicemail. I left a message and told her to get back with me soon.
By four o’clock, I still hadn’t heard from Dana. I couldn’t concentrate on anything, and by the time I came out of my meeting, which wasn’t until 5:30 p.m., she still hadn’t called. I put the phone down and walked outside of my office to ask Sylvia if she somehow missed Dana’s call.
“No, Jonathan,” she said with a serious attitude, and shoving her paper around on her desk. “I’ve been trying to reach her myself.”
“Are you sure she hasn’t called? I mean, you did say that you were going away from your desk for a while.”
“Look,” she said in a higher pitch. “Ju . . . just in case you haven’t noticed, I haven’t been anywhere but right here. I didn’t even have time for lunch today so stop asking me if I’ve heard from your wife. I’m not her keeper.”
I was in shock by Sylvia’s tone, and I stood for a moment gazing at her for yelling. I decided to suck it up for now, but as I turned away to go back into my office, she placed her hands over her face and began to cry.
“Sylvia?” I said, walking over to her. “Hey, I was only kidding when I mentioned you being away from your desk all day.”
She pulled some tissue from the box and wiped her tears. “It’s not that, Jonathan,” she sniffled. “It’s that . . . Never mind.”
“What? You know that you can talk to me about anything.” I leaned against her desk, trying to let her know that I was there for her too. She took a deep breath and wouldn’t say a word. “Okay, do we need to go into my office and talk about what’s bothering you?”
She nodded and followed me into my office. I closed the door and pulled the chair back for her to sit. Before I could even take a seat, she tore into me.
She pointed her finger at me. “As much as I do for you, Jonathan Tyrese Taylor, if you ever forget about me like you did today, I will never in my entire lifetime go over and above for you again.”
Wrinkles lined my forehead. I had no idea what she was talking about. “Wha . . . what do you mean by forgetting about you, Sylvia?”
“I mean, every secretary in this office got flowers today. Candy, a card, or something from their bosses, and for you not to even think about me was really hurtful.”
I shamefully dropped my head and rubbed my face. “I am so, so sorry. I made myself a note yesterday about ordering your flowers, but it totally slipped my mind. Please forgive me,” I said, getting up and walking over to her. I kneeled down beside her and placed my hand on top of hers. “Please know that I appreciate everything you do for me. You are everything I can ask for. Without you filling in when you did, I would be truly lost. If you let me, I’ll make it up to you.”
Sylvia glared at me with a blank stare and didn’t crack a smile. “Don’t you ever hurt me like this again. If you do not appreciate me, I will leave, Jonathan, I mean it.”
“Again, I’m sorry. I’m entitled to some mistakes, aren’t I?”
When my door came open, we turned our heads. Dana came in and looked at me kneeled down beside Sylvia, and I still held her hand.
“Did I interrupt something?” she asked, closing the door behind her. I stood up and walked up to give her a kiss. She turned her head to avoid it. “Like I said, Jonathan and Sylvia, did I interrupt something?”
“No, you didn’t.” Sylvia shot up from the chair. “Thanks for the pep talk, Jonathan, but I’m going home.” She walked past Dana without saying a word. Dana called her name, but Sylvia ignored her, gathered her belongings and left.
“What’s with her?” Dana asked and followed behind me as I sat in my chair. She eased on top of my lap.
I puckered for a kiss, and then put my arms around her. After she kissed me, I told her what Sylvia’s and my dispute was about.
Dana cocked her head back, appearing to be in disbelief. “She’s mad at you over some gotdamn flowers? The nerve of her after all we’ve done for her.”
“Dana, I’m not going to defend myself this time. I was wrong, baby. Sylvia is the best secretary I’ve had, and for me to forget about her wasn’t even cool.”
“Please. Sylvia is looking for some attention and if she thinks that she’s going to get it from my husband, she is out of her mind. It’s bad enough she be wearing all that revealing and provocative stuff around you, but trying to get you to feel sorry for her is taking things too far.”
“Baby, calm down. Let me deal with this, okay?”
“Just like you deal with Britney and Beverly, right? I bet you haven’t even called to straighten things out like you said you would, have you?”
I rubbed my forehead because I was starting to get a headache. “Damn, I forgot about calling Beverly. I had a busy day, and I’ve been trying to reach you all day. Where were you?”
“I was out,” she said, standing up.
“Out where?”
“You know, the usual: browsing the malls, going grocery shopping, getting my nails done, whatever.”
I looked at Dana’s nails and could immediately tell they hadn’t been recently done. “The usual, huh?” I got up and stood in front of her. “Usually, you have your phone on so I can reach you. Lately, though, I know you’ve been lying to me, Dana.” I grabbed her hand and put it in her face. “Whoever recently did your nails, they did a shitty-ass job. And as for Saturday night, like today, again, you were missing in action.” I let her hand go and removed my jacket from the chair. “Whoever he is, Mrs. Wifey, you’d better damn be sure he’s worth losing me.”
I walked out and left Dana behind.
On the way home, I called Beverly and told her I’d stop by on Friday night so we could talk about what to do with Britney. And when Crissy, Mr. Duncan’s daughter, rang in, I told Beverly I’d call her back. Crissy asked if she could stop by the office tomorrow and talk to me about her father. Mr. Duncan, my partner, had been out of the office for months, trying to fight his battle with prostate cancer. I told her to come by as early as possible so we could talk.
When I got home, as usual, and as I had expected, no dinner had been cooked. Little food was in the refrigerator, and if I looked hard enough, I could see dust particles floating around the rooms.
Trying to relax myself, I took a lengthy hot bath and changed into my burgundy silk pajama pants. By then, Dana had already made it home and was in the hearth room with her legs crossed, while paging through the newspaper. I pretended as if she wasn’t even there, grabbed a beer from the refrigerator, and went into the bedroom.
Before falling asleep, I called May’s Florist and paid for them to deliver Sylvia ten dozen yellow roses by tomorrow morning. The florist put me on hold to make sure they had enough in stock, and after she told me they did, I ordered ten more dozen for every day up until Tuesday of next week. I asked for different colors, and when she provided me with a total, I was shocked. Knowing that Sylvia was worth it, I didn’t trip, but the florist offered me a discount for ordering so many. I thanked her. Afterward, I closed my eyes, thinking about what Sylvia would do, and wondered what tomorrow would bring.
3
SYLVIA
As I was coming through the door with my groceries, the phone was ringing off the hook. I put my groceries on the kitchen counter and hurried to answer it. It was Dana. By the sound of her voice, she wasn’t too thrilled to talk to me.
“Sylvia Marie McMillan, I don’t care how hard you may try, but you will not get my husband to lay you!”
“And Dana Yvette Taylor, I don’t know how naïve you are, but one of these days, he will!” I hung up.
I ignored Dana’s phone calls until I finished putting up my groceries. After that, I called her back to see if she was ready to talk to me like she had some sense.
“So, Miss Thang,” I said. “Are you ready to talk about what you walked in on today?”
“Jonathan already told me. And I think you really need to grow up and stop trying to get him to notice you.”
“Dana, don’t make me go off on you, all right? I’m in no mood to argue with you tonight, especially after what kind of day I’ve had.”
“So, you didn’t get any flowers. Get over it! Jonathan has missed our wedding anniversary before, he’s missed my birthday before, and, sometimes, I do get passed over on Valentine’s Day. For you to be crying over something like Secretary’s Day is ridiculous.”
“Well, I’m sorry that you allow your man to miss important days like those, but I will not allow him to forget about me when I bust my butt for him every day of the week. Maybe even more than you do and you’re his wife.”
“Whatever, Sylvia. No matter what, you really need to back off. I don’t ever want to walk in on him holding your hand and comforting you again. My feelings were truly hurt, and just so you know, I don’t like it one bit.”
“I don’t expect for you to like it, but you know better than anybody that Jonathan is a caring man. He realized his mistake and made me feel better once he apologized. I know how much I joke around with you about being with him, and even if you’re worried about me snatching him up, don’t be. He’s the type of man who will never let that happen.”
“And you’re the kind of woman who’s hoping something will evolve from your friendship with him.”
“Dana, you know that since Derrick’s been gone I haven’t found happiness with anyone. Fortunately, Jonathan has been there for me. He makes me laugh, he talks to me when I’m feeling down, and anything I need he’ll do for me. Sometimes I can’t help myself from being attracted to him, but our friendship means a lot to me. I’ve been frustrated with you for a very long time for cheating on him. He deserves so much better, and more than anything, I hate to be caught in the middle.”
“Then step out of the middle. Quit your job and find somewhere else to work. Bottom line is I’m not going to stop seeing Lewis because there are things Lewis gives me that Jonathan does not.”
“Like what, Dana, a disease? What in the hell does Lewis give you that Jonathan can’t? Tell me because I’m lost.”
“It’s none of your business.”
“It is my business when you lie on me and tell your husband that you’re with me and you’re not. I wish you would stop including me in your mess and find somebody else to use.”
“I don’t be using you. I hate the way our friendship is diminishing, but you need to mind your own business. This bitterness between us didn’t start until you started dipping into my Kool-Aid.”
“I’m going to continue to dip because not only do I care, but because I don’t want to see Jonathan get his feelings hurt. As for you, your mind is so twisted that you can’t even think straight. Dick got you all fucked up, and if you want it to mess up your life, you go right ahead.”
“I’ll see you at noon, and if you’re late, I’m leaving.”
After we ended our call, I stayed up until two o’clock in the morning watching TV and playing Uno with myself. It wasn’t that I couldn’t ask someone to come over and entertain me, but the men I had in my life were pathetic. Marlin was on hold because of the restraining order, Cory was a one, two, three o’clock in the morning brotha, and I was getting sick of that shit, and Bryan was in a half-ass commitment with another woman and lying about it. I was so much better off without any of them, but when my needs had to be met, I for surely knew who to call. That was Jonathan. All he’d have to do was remind me how gorgeous I was, encourage me to stop settling for less, and remind me to never play second best to another woman. After talking to him, I’d usually call Lorenzo with the big dick over, let him shake a sista down, and send him out the door with a smile on his face.
Since I stayed up so early in the morning, I was running extremely late for work. I didn’t roll over until 7:30 a.m. By the time I showered, got dressed, and drove to work in Clayton, it was almost nine o’clock.
Jonathan leaned against his doorway with his arms folded and looked spectacular with his suspenders on, a white crisp, clean shirt, and some gray pinstriped slacks that hung over his square-toed leather shoes. I rushed toward him because I could tell he was waiting for me.
“I’m coming,” I said, taking my purse off my shoulder and walking abruptly to my desk. As I neared my desk, I noticed him smiling. I looked inside my cubicle, and it was filled with yellow long-stem roses in beautiful crystal vases. I screamed, and then covered my mouth because it was so loud. Jonathan said good morning to me, then went into his office and closed the door.
Truly overjoyed, I sniffed several of the roses and sat down in my chair. Audrey and Jackie came over and gazed at the roses.
“Who in the hell did you screw last night, Bill Gates?” Audrey laughed.
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