Games

by Wanda B. Campbell

  ***

  Shay literally shook as the plane made its final decent into Oakland.

  “Calm down, the plane is not going to crash land.” Jason must have assumed she worried about the landing. That was the furthest thing from her mind. In less than thirty minutes she’d be face-to-face with Brian, her love. Originally Reggie had agreed to pick her up, but called to say he was sending Brian at the last minute. Shay was certain the alteration was planned. She hadn’t seen Brian in eight months and after the incident with Shannon, she’d stopped answering his calls. However mad, the closer she got to Oakland, the stronger her desire to see him grew. Her palms sweat. Her mouth went dry and a lump lodged in her throat. “Will someone please tell this pilot to hurry up?” she mumbled.

  She wondered if he would like the changes she’d made to her appearance. While in Massachusetts, she’d decided to let her hair grow. Her once-shoulder-length hair was now three-inches down her back. At the hair salon three days ago, she’d made the decision to lighten her brown hair. It was now honey blonde. Jason didn’t care for the color change, but she didn’t care what he thought. She loved it. Due to her busy schedule, she didn’t prepare home-cooked meals too often. That meant she ate out a lot and consumed more calories than normal and it showed in her hips. If she didn’t start cutting back soon, her size-ten clothing would be too small by the time summer rolled around.

  Ten minutes later the plan landed. Shay went to the restroom while Jason located the baggage claim area.

  ***

  Brian’s six-foot-four-inch frame made it easy for him to search through the flood of travelers approaching the baggage claim area. He spotted her the moment she stepped out of the restroom. “Shay!” he called out in a loud voice.

  She stopped mid-stride and slowly turned around. The grin on his face nearly showed all thirty-two teeth.

  Her mouth hung open and her legs weakened as she watched him take quick long strides toward her. He looked better than she remembered. His upper body was broader and his new goatee made him that much more handsome to her and that baldhead. Oh, how she loved that baldhead!

  When Brian reached her, he gathered her into his strong arms and held her tightly. Without hesitation, she received his embrace by wrapping her arms around his neck.

  “My Shay, I’ve missed you,” he whispered repeatedly in her ear while holding her against his chest.

  She deeply inhaled his scent. He smelled so good. He felt very good. She couldn’t resist any longer, she stroked his baldhead and moaned. “I’ve missed you so much.”

  They finally separated after what Shay thought was too soon. Brian stepped back and studied her. His voice full of adoration and his eyes full of appreciation. “Shay, I love the new look. I love your hair, that color highlights your skin tone and eyes perfectly.” He gently stroked her cheek. “You’re more beautiful than I remember.”

  “I didn’t think you could get any finer, but you’ve proven me wrong,” Shay said outlining his goatee with her fingertips.

  She blushed as he stroked her hair and then took her right hand in his. Shay nearly lost her balance when he brought her hand to his lips and kissed her wrist where the silver heart he’d sent her lay. He then stroked his cheek with her wrist. His strong arms caught her just as her knees buckled.

  “Let’s get your luggage,” Brian said, reveling in the affect he had on her.

  Shay’s world quickly came tumbling down as she remembered she was not alone. At that very moment she hated herself for dragging Jason along with her. The anger that motivated her to invite Jason had dissipated and all she wanted to do was have Brian hold her like he’d just done. She lowered her head. “Brian, there’s something I need to tell you.” Her smile was gone, replaced with what Brian interpreted as sheer fear.

  “What’s the matter, baby?”

  Hearing him address her by the endearing term, made her want to run back to Massachusetts, but she couldn’t. She had to face the music. “Brian…um...I didn’t come alone.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  Shay couldn’t look him in the face any longer. Focusing on the floor, she uttered, “I…um…I”

  “Hey, babe, I have our bags,” Jason announced when he joined them and placed his arm around Shay.

  Shay would never forget the look on Brian’s face. The handsome face that was moments before joyful and full of contentment was now etched with pain and confusion as he gazed from her to Jason. She couldn’t look at Brian for longer than a second. She lowered her head again and this time folded her arms. She suddenly found the multi-colored carpet fascinating.

  In a subdued voice, Brian spoke first. “Shay, aren’t you going to introduce me to your guest?” He was not going to make it easy for her. He wanted to hear it from her. He wanted her to tell him she was seeing someone, that she’d moved on with her life.

  Shay cleared her throat, but didn’t make eye contact. “Brian, this is Jason Alexander. Jason, this is Brian Pennington.”

  “Welcome to California,” Brian said, casually, but not friendly and shook Jason’s hand.

  “Are you one of LaShay’s cousins?” Jason asked.

  “No. My father is married to Shay’s mother. And your relationship to Shay would be?”

  “I’m LaShay’s boyfriend,” Jason answered proudly.

  “Oh really?” Brian said and gave Shay a smile completely void of sincerity.

  Shay closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. A major migraine was headed her way.

  “We had better get going if we don’t want to get stuck in traffic,” Brian announced still holding the stale smile. Before Jason or Shay could respond, Brian turned and headed toward the exit.

  Except for the Fred Hammond CD, the ride to Blackhawk was quiet. Scared that Brian would strangle her, Shay chose to sit in the backseat with Jason. From time to time she’d look up and see Brian staring at her in the rearview mirror. Shay leaned her head against the window and cried quietly, devoid of tears. What am I doing?

  Chapter 28

  When Brian stormed through the door, Reggie and Julia were preparing lunch. Before he headed upstairs, he dumped the roses he’d bought for Shay into the trash.

  “Where’s Shay?” Julia called after him.

  Brian stopped on the third step and took a deep breath. “She’s outside—with her boyfriend,” he said and continued climbing the stairs.

  Julia looked at Reggie with confusion written on her face. “Did he just say Shay’s outside with her boyfriend?”

  Before Reggie could answer, Shay and Jason entered the kitchen.

  “My baby!” Julia hugged and kissed her daughter then held her back and studied her. “I love your new hair color.”

  “It looks good on you,” Reggie concurred.

  “Hi, Reggie.” Shay stepped into Reggie’s embrace.

  Three-year-old Josiah ran in from the den. “Shay! Shay!”

  She squatted and welcomed her little brother into her arms.

  Reggie motioned toward Jason. “Aren’t you going to introduce us to your guest?” he asked Shay.

  Shay released Josiah and stood up. “Mom, Reggie this is Jason Alexander, we’re in the same teaching program. These are my parents, Reginald and Julia Pennington.”

  “Welcome to California, Jason,” Reggie said politely although Jason’s presence confused him.

  Shay’s uneasiness was not lost on Julia either. Her attempt to make eye contact with her daughter proved futile. She turned to the visitor. “Jason, so you and Shay are classmates?”

  “Yes, and we’ve been dating for six months,” he answered proudly.

  “It’s good to meet you, Jason.” Julia directed her attention to Shay, who couldn’t stop rubbing the back of her neck. “Come help me with lunch.” Julia smiled, but Shay knew her mother was about to lay into her.

  “I need to show Jason where the guest room is,” Shay stated.

  “Don’t worry about that, I’ll take care of Jason,” Reggie offered.
>
  As soon as Jason was out of earshot, Julia scolded Shay. “Have you lost your mind? What do you think you’re doing?”

  Shay knew playing innocent wasn’t the answer, but that was the only response she had. “What do you mean?”

  “You know good and well what I mean! Why have you been dating someone you don’t even like for six months and why did you bring him here, when you knew Brian would be here?”

  “Mama, how do you know I don’t like Jason? He’s a very nice person.”

  “I don’t doubt that he’s a nice person, Shay, but he’s also more than a little naïve if he thinks he has a real chance with you.”

  Shay hated when her mother was right. “What makes you say that?”

  “Maybe it’s the way you hid him from us for six months. Or maybe it’s the fact that he’s the total opposite of the kind of man you’re attracted to. Or, Shay, maybe it’s because he’s not Brian!”

  “Mama, I know you think Brian and I should be together, but that will never happen.”

  “Shay, cut the crap! I’ve never pushed you toward Brian; you did that all on your own. You falling in love with Brian had nothing to do with me. Now, I sent you to Harvard to gain knowledge, not lose all of your common sense. Shay, it’s just plain foolish to be involved with Jason when you know your heart is with Brian. And to parade Jason around, girl, are you crazy? Brian has been counting down the days until your return. He was hoping to spend some quality time with you.” Julia rubbed her temples and shook her head. “Did you ever tell Brian how you really feel?”

  Shay’s silence conveyed the answer Julia needed. Julia took a deep breath and tried to speak calmly. “Shay, you need to tell Brian how you really feel about him. If you’re not careful, the heart you break may be your own.”

  Shay rubbed her forehead. She felt a major migraine coming again. “Mama, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause confusion. I—”

  “You have a beautiful home, Mrs. Pennington.” Jason and Reggie were back.

  “Thank you, Jason. Have a seat in the den, lunch will be ready soon.”

  When Jason stepped out of the kitchen, Julia whispered to Shay, “You had better clean up this mess!”

  Chapter 29

  Brian stayed in the room he called his when he stayed at Blackhawk until he was composed enough to join his family downstairs for lunch. Food was the last thing on his mind, but he didn’t want Shay to know that she’d cut him as deeply as she had.

  When he first saw Shay at the airport, the world around him came to a standstill and the only person that mattered to him was LaShay Hampton. The sun rose and shone on her. When he held her, his world was complete and then she dropped the sledgehammer that cut him to the core of his being. Despite the fact that they didn’t have a real commitment to each other, he never thought he would see her with another man, especially someone so opposite of him.

  What happened? he kept asking himself. Was she just toying with me the past four months? Is he the real reason she didn’t want me in Cambridge?

  Before Brian returned downstairs, he prayed for understanding and for better control of his anger. At the airport, he wanted to break Jason’s arm when he put it around Shay. She belonged to him alone. Since then, he realized his fight wasn’t with Jason, it was with Shay and before the night was over, he would have words with her and wouldn’t spare her feelings.

  For the rest of the day and evening, Brian intensively observed the interaction between Shay and Jason. Jason appeared to be infatuated with her, but there wasn’t any chemistry flowing from Shay. It was challenging, but Brian did manage to engage in conversation with his father and Jason. After watching and talking to Jason, he concluded that Jason was intelligent and knowledgeable and a nice guy, but he was not the man for Shay. He was.

  No sooner had Jason turned into the downstairs guest room for the night, Brian knocked on Shay’s bedroom door. He stepped inside and closed the door without waiting for her to invite him in.

  “What are you doing with Jason?” he demanded.

  “The same thing you’re doing with your girlfriend, Shannon,” she shot back, rolling her neck.

  Brian twisted his face. “Shannon is not my girlfriend. And how do you know about her? What does she have to do with anything?”

  “She answered your phone last week. She said that you were too busy with her to come to the phone.” She pushed his chest and he grabbed her arms.

  “What?”

  “That’s right, Brian, she introduced herself as your special friend.” The emphasis Shay put on the word special nearly made Brian sick. Didn’t Shay know she was the only one worthy enough to wear that title?

  He released her arms. “So that’s what this is about? You thought I had a girlfriend, so you brought Jason here to get back at me?”

  Shay didn’t answer, but rolled her eyes instead.

  “Why didn’t you just ask me about Shannon instead of ignoring my calls over the weekend?”

  Shay rolled her neck again. “Because I didn’t want to be your weekend girl anymore.”

  Brian pointed at her. “I can’t believe you. You know the reason I only call you on weekends. I’m busy with law school during the week.”

  “You weren’t too busy for Shannon on Wednesday!” Shay retorted.

  He raised his voice to match hers. “I picked her up for Bible Study. If you would’ve bothered to ask, I would’ve told you so.”

  Shay’s perplexed expression indicated she didn’t know what to say to his explanation. She stood there staring at him.

  Brian’s voice was calm. “I’ll ask you again. What are you doing with Jason?”

  “Wouldn’t you like to know?” She gave him a defiant smile then turned away from him.

  This time Brian raised his voice and pounded his fist into his palm. “Shay, grow up! You’re almost twenty-five years old; stop acting like you’re a sixteen-year-old school girl!”

  She turned back around and matched his voice. “How do you know that Jason and I aren’t serious?”

  Brian brought his voice down and spoke flatly. “Shay, for once be honest with yourself. Jason is just a replacement, a substitute. You’re only spending time with him because I’m not there.”

  It was a true statement, but she wasn’t going to let him know it. “Who do you think you are, Brian?”

  Brian stepped closer to her, in her space. “I’m the one you gave your heart to among other things. Remember?”

  His arrogance and possessiveness appalled her. He acted like she belonged to him. Shay quickly stopped the smile that tried to creep onto her face and placed her hands on her hips “Look, Brian, just because I had sex with you twice, doesn’t mean you own me.”

  “Five times.” Brian raised his opened hand for emphasis. “We had sex five times, Shay. And I know you haven’t forgotten one minute of it. I don’t own you, Shay, but I have a part of you no one else will ever have and I plan to keep it.”

  She had to say something to fracture his ego. “How do you know I haven’t given anything to Jason?” She folded her arms and smirked.

  He stepped as close as he could and lifted her head and stroked her chin with his thumb and forefinger. His voice, just above a whisper. “That’s the easy part. The way you surrendered into my arms this afternoon told me you missed me just as much as I missed you.”

  Her arms fell to her sides as he ran his fingertips down her cheek and outlined her lips. Involuntarily she moistened her lips with her tongue.

  “The way your breathing accelerates every time I’m this close to you, let’s me know that I excite you.”

  She held her head back and a moan escaped from her lips when he traced her neck with his fingertips. He reached for her hand.

  “And as long as you wear my heart on your wrist, you’ll never give yourself to another man.”

  This time instead of kissing her wrist near the silver heart, he joined their torsos and kissed her lips. The soft kiss was so powerful Shay’s knees buckled and th
is time he didn’t catch her. He let her fall backward unto her bed. Brian let her lay there with her mouth hanging open.

  “Serves you right. Don’t ever parade another man in front of me.” With that he left the room.

  Chapter 30

  Shay lay on her bed bewildered. She thought she was going to serve him and instead, she got served.

  Ten minutes later, she was still sitting on her bed trying to figure out when had Brian become so possessive of her. Brian had never verbally committed himself to her, but the look in his eyes and the tone in his voice, told her she belonged to him whether she liked it or not. What bothered her most was that every word Brian had spoken was the truth; he would always own a part of her, if not all.

  Joyous singing flowed from Shay’s lips and filled the kitchen the following morning. Although her mother claimed she couldn’t carry a musical note in a bucket, Shay thought her rendition of Mary Mary’s “God in Me” was comparable to the gospel duo’s version. The early Saturday morning sun sprayed its rays through the tempered glass windows and brightened the gourmet kitchen. The second she felt the dough oozing between her fingers, Shay remembered how much she enjoyed baking. Kneading dough always relaxed her and homemade cinnamon rolls were her specialty. This morning the caramel and pecans she’d added mingled with the cinnamon aroma and promised her palate a heavenly treat.

  “You’re in a good mood this morning. I hope you slept well,” Brian greeted her, but she didn’t respond to him. She placed her hand in the potholder and removed the pan from the oven.

  Brian sat down at the table and watched Shay add icing to the hot rolls. “It smells good in here.”