Love Me Carefully

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Love Me Carefully Page 3

by A. C. Arthur


  “Actually, a lot has been going on. I wanted to talk to you about something.” Rosie didn’t know how to begin. She hadn’t told Terrell about dating Donald, mostly because her son never asked about her love life, and probably believed she didn’t have one.

  “What’s the matter? You need some money? I can come by the shop on my way to work.” Whatever his mother needed, he’d give her. She’d given him so much.

  “No, no, it’s nothing like that. I, um, I just wanted to tell you what’s been going on with me.”

  “Are you sick?” Terrell panicked.

  “No, baby, I’m not sick. I’m getting married.” Rosie waited for his response, but didn’t get one. “Terrell? You still there?”

  “I’m here, Mama.” He was quiet again, trying to digest her words.

  “Well, you see, I met this nice man. Actually, I’ve known him for about five years now. He owns the beauty shop, and his wife died about three years ago. We’ve been good friends for a while now. He’s a really good man.”

  “And he just up and asked you to marry him?” Terrell tried to be calm, but his hands felt numb, and he could feel himself beginning to sweat. His mother, getting married. He couldn’t see it. He didn’t want to see it, especially now.

  “Our friendship sort of turned into something more about five months ago and Friday he proposed.” Her son’s silence confirmed that he wasn’t as excited about the impending nuptials as she was. Terrell had always tried to hide his feelings, but she could tell he wasn’t thrilled to hear her news. “I love him, Terrell.”

  “I’m sure you do. But does he love you?” As far as Terrell was concerned, there was no man who could possibly love his mother the way his father had. No other man could marry her. She was his mother and his father’s wife. It didn’t matter that his father had been dead and gone for twenty-five years now.

  “Yes, he does, Terrell. I think it’s time you two meet.” And she wanted the chance to talk to him face to face, to explain to him that this was what she really needed.

  With a long, disgusted sigh Terrell asked, “When’s the wedding?”

  “May 15th.”

  “May? You’re not wasting any time, are you? Is he dying or something?”

  “Terrell! I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear you say that. I’d like my only child to give me away. So if you can find time in your busy schedule, I’d appreciate you coming to see your mother.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” was all he could manage to say. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Good. Donald thinks an engagement party would be a good idea. When can you get away? I’d like to plan it for a weekend that’s good for you, since I expect you to be there.”

  “Oh, his name’s Donald?”

  “Terrell, I asked you a question.” Rosie’s patience was wearing thin. She’d known that Terrell wasn’t going to be pleased with her announcement but, by God, he would respect her and her wishes. She would accept nothing less.

  “I don’t know. I guess this weekend is as good as any,” he sighed. He didn’t have any other plans this weekend, since he was now unattached. “Or is that too soon for you and Donald?”

  “That’s cutting it close, but I’m sure we could throw together a nice little gathering.”

  “Fine. I’ll come by the house Saturday evening.”

  “Thank you, baby.” Rosie’s heart ached for her child. He sounded so distant, so lonely. She wanted so much for him. Not just happiness, ’cause, Lord knows, happiness depended on things happening and could last just for the moment. She was happy the moment she married Paul. She was happy the moment she found out she was pregnant with Terrell. But the day that police officer knocked on her door and told her that her husband had been killed, her happiness disappeared.

  For days she’d wondered how she’d make it without Paul. But she had Terrell, and she knew she had to get it together for her child. And as the years had gone on, she’d found happiness at other times. When Terrell graduated from high school with honors. When Terrell was accepted at Howard. These things had made her happy. But then Terrell had left for college and she’d been alone. And happiness was gone again.

  She didn’t want that for Terrell, happiness that would come and go as it pleased. She wanted her son to be complete. She wanted him to love and to be loved. He was a successful computer programmer; he made good money, and he had a lot of nice things. But he didn’t have anyone to love, anyone to take care of him when he got sick. That’s what she wanted for him. But she didn’t know how to show him that’s what he needed.

  “Mama loves you, Terrell,” she said to him finally. Because in the end, that was all she could say.

  “I love you too, Mama.”

  * * *

  Donald slammed his thick hand against the steering wheel. “Your boys are bringing too much heat around my shop, Cable.” His voice echoed through the interior of his truck.

  The man sitting in the seat beside him shook his head. “Man, I don’t know what’s going on with them. It’s some territory war going on down there. I can’t seem to get a handle on it.”

  “Well, you’d better get a handle on it, and quick. This thing’s winding down and I don’t need any screw-ups. And we definitely don’t need those dumb ass city cops on our tail.” At the mention of the police, Donald searched his surroundings. They were parked in a crowded underground lot at one of the downtown office buildings. That was the last place he expected any officers to be, but with his luck he couldn’t be sure.

  “If this deal goes bad, it’s going to ruin a lot of lives, Cable. We can’t mess this up,” Donald said seriously.

  “Nothing’s going to go bad. I’ve got everything under control.”

  Donald looked at his companion again and decided he had no choice but to believe him. But he had a lot riding on this deal—his future literally depended on it.

  * * *

  Leah was having a difficult morning. The Ortega wedding was scheduled for the next Saturday. The caterer had changed the menu and the bride’s veil had been ripped. She spent her first two hours in the office attempting to calm down a hysterical Hispanic woman and her mother who were ready to go down to the cleaners and beat the Korean owner senseless for tearing the two hundred dollar veil.

  Then she spent forty-five minutes on the phone with the caterer, informing him of his contractual obligations and that any changes were in direct violation of the agreement. This was the first quiet moment she’d had all morning, and she wanted to savor it. Leaning back in her chair, she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands.

  Melinda, her assistant, peeped her head into the office. “Your hair appointment is at eleven, Leah.”

  “Oh Lord, please give me strength,” Leah sighed. She needed her hair done badly. Her new growth was showing and her split ends were driving her mad. And just yesterday she had broken a nail while making the favors for next week’s wedding. “I need to go somewhere and get a massage.” Rising from the chair Leah began putting papers she’d scattered across her desk back into the Ortega file.

  “I know what you mean. But look at the bright side. We don’t have another wedding for almost two months.” Melinda crossed over to Leah’s desk and picked up her calendar.

  “Are you sure?” Leah shuffled papers around, looking for her keys. She always misplaced her keys. It was a terrible habit of hers. Though she could remain organized and on point with all her clients, when it came to her own keys, she could never seem to remember where she put them.

  “Yup, April first, Blake wedding. Invitations went out on Friday, hall is paid in full, photographer is booked and florist has been commissioned. April 29th, Avarez wedding. Guest list is finalized, invitations are addressed and in the file cabinet waiting to be mailed. Hall’s not paid for, but her uncle owns it, so that shouldn’t be an issue.”

  “Yeah, right. Family’s what you have to worry the most about. Call Maria on Monday and ask her what’s going on. I want that paid in full before the first of March
. She’s got the money, and I don’t want any last minute changes in location because she spent the weekend in Atlantic City instead of paying off the hall.” Pulling open her desk drawers, she continued the search.

  “Alrighty.” Melinda closed the book and wrote herself a note on a sticky pad.

  Leah glanced about the room in search of some clue as to where her keys had gone.

  “Ah, Leah?” Melinda called her.

  Leah turned to look at her receptionist and followed her gaze. There were her keys, crunched in the folds of the chair Leah had been sitting in.

  “Girl, I’m gonna lose my mind trying to find these keys one day.” Scooping them up, she came around the desk and crossed to the coat stand.

  “You need a clapper.”

  “A what?” Sliding her arm into her black wool coat, she spared Melinda another glance.

  “You know, a clapper.” Melinda clapped her hands. “That way when you can’t find your keys you just clap your hands and they’ll beep. Then you’ll know where they are.”

  “Yeah, well, buy me one for my birthday.” Leah went to the door. “I’ll be back about one. Hold down the fort.”

  “I always do,” Melinda yelled at her boss’s retreating back.

  “That’s what I pay you the big bucks for,” Leah added before closing the front door behind her.

  * * *

  She shouldn’t have taken the scenic route; she should have gotten on the highway as she had originally planned. The streetlights weren’t in sync, so every time she stopped for one light, the light a block ahead was turning green. Leah’s nerves were wearing thin by the time she turned into the parking lot in front of Innovations.

  Her best friend Nikki had worked there since they opened. And Ms. Rosie, her stylist, had gotten a job there as well. She heard the shop was doing well, so she was happy for both of them. Half the parking lot was full of run-down cars that people were trying to sell. It looked like a junkyard or a used car lot, depending on the weather.

  There were three ladies in the waiting area when she walked in. She took her coat off and hung it up. Going over to the counter, she waited for Ms. Rosie to finish her telephone conversation before speaking.

  “Morning, Ms. Rosie.”

  “Hey Leah, I been waitin’ for you.”

  Leah looked at the older woman. She looked different today. It wasn’t her hair; that was in the same wrapped style she always wore it in. It wasn’t her nails; they were clipped and neatly painted as usual. But something was definitely different about her.

  “Really? Am I late?” Leah looked down at her watch.

  “No. You’re right on time. I need to ask you something before you get shampooed.”

  “Oh, okay.” Leah relaxed. She hated being late, and that traffic had been a mess. “What’s up?”

  “I’m getting married.” Rosie extended her hand, showing off the two-karat diamond Donald had given her.

  “Oh, damn, that’s a big rock, Ms. Rosie.” Leah took the woman’s hand, examining the ring. “It’s a good cut, too. He spent a pretty penny on that.”

  “I know he did.” Rosie blushed.

  “So when’s the big day? I know I’m on the guest list.” Leah released Rosie’s hand and watched as the woman continued to beam. That was what was different, Leah thought, Rosie was tickled pink about her engagement.

  “May 15th, and not only are you on the guest list, but I want you to plan the wedding.”

  “What?” Leah was shocked. She’d been planning weddings for years now but had never planned one for anybody close to her. That was probably because Nikki was no closer to getting married than she was.

  “I know that’s your business and Cheryl Pinder’s wedding was fabulous. Her mother goes to my church. You know, First Baptist, where they got married. So anyway, I was there and I loved it. I asked her mother afterwards if she had done all that herself, and she told me that Cheryl had hired you. So now I want to hire you because I want my wedding to be just as fabulous as hers.” Rosie smiled. “No, I want mine to be better.” She laughed.

  Both happy about the word of mouth referral and Rosie’s good news, Leah found it hard not to smile with her. “Well, I’m, ah…I’m flattered. I’d love to plan your wedding for you. Let me look at my calendar and make sure I don’t have any conflicts.” Pulling her black organizer out of her bag, she flipped to the month of May. “I have only one booking for the end of May, and they haven’t paid their deposit yet, so it looks like I’m free.”

  “Good. Now, Donald said that whatever I wanted was fine with him, so you just let me know what your fee is and I’ll take care of it.”

  “Why don’t we schedule a time to sit down and talk about what it is you want. Then we can discuss figures.”

  “Okay. I’m planning a little engagement party at the house Saturday. Why don’t you come by and meet Donald.”

  “Yeah, that sounds good. About what time?” Rosie told her the time and Leah scribbled it into her organizer.

  “Hey girl, I see you finally made it. Rosie’s been pacing around here waiting for you.” Nikki came up to the desk just as Leah was putting her book back into her bag.

  “Yup, just taking care of business with my new client here.” Leah smiled at Rosie.

  “Oh, you asked her?” Nikki said.

  “And she agreed. I want you to bring her past the house on Saturday for the party.”

  “Who said I was coming?” Nikki joked with Rosie.

  “Oh, you’re coming, if I have to come out to Yale Heights and bring you there myself.”

  “That’s right, I am. Because I know you’re cooking those slammin’ hot wings and potato salad. I’ll be the first one there.” Nikki laughed, her raisin-colored lips shining.

  “She’s always eatin’.” Rosie rolled her eyes.

  “I don’t know where she puts it,” Leah commented as they all walked to the back of the shop where the stations were. Nikki was only five foot three inches, a perfect size ten. She had a big booty and even bigger breasts. Today she wore tattered jeans that hung low on her hips and a pre-shrunk shirt that exposed her gold-toned midsection. A beaded jean jacket, equally as tattered as her pants, completed the ensemble.

  “It don’t matter, baby. It all gets to the right places,” Nikki grinned. “Now get in Rosie’s chair and get something done to that mop on your head.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  An envelope on his credenza held the house key he’d given Tanya. Terrell sighed; she was really out of his life. He still wasn’t sure how that made him feel. Would he miss her? Would she try to get back with him? A part of him felt that he was losing a good thing, but the greater part figured he was cutting his losses. If Tanya could cheat on him so easily when they weren’t even married, just imagine what she’d do when they fully committed to each other.

  It was probably all for the best. He’d simply have to start his search again. His dream hadn’t changed just because he’d misjudged one woman. He knew there was a woman for him out there somewhere, a woman who would complete him, who could complement him and his future. He simply had to find her, the missing piece to the puzzle, and things would be on the right track again.

  He thought of Tanya again, of what had initially attracted him to her. She was definitely fine. Five feet, seven inches, light skinned, with long tinted hair and slanted eyes like an Asian and a body that wouldn’t quit. Those physical features alone should have warned him. Beautiful women tended to come with a lot of drama, and she’d proven that fact. After almost a year of dating, it was over.

  His eyes scanned the empty spots in the closet where her clothes used to hang, the long stretch of the mahogany dresser left vacant by the removal of her perfumes and other toiletries and he felt a wave of distress. Cursing, he left the bedroom. He was tired of wasting time. He was thirty-three years old; it was time to settle down.

  Walking through the apartment his mind moved to how he’d come to be at this point in his life. He’d graduated tops i
n his class back in Baltimore and gone on to graduate cum laude in his class at Howard. Now he was writing his own contracts and picking and choosing which companies he’d work with.

  His savings account had plenty of zeroes in it, and had afforded him the luxury of living in an upscale condo on Baltimore’s waterfront and membership to its full-service gym. There he’d met a few guys and they’d started hanging out. Then the women had noticed him. He was no stranger to women, but wasn’t really accustomed to the overt passes he now experienced, since during his teenage years he had been known as a nerd. At six one, about one eighty, with honey brown skin and more than average intelligence, he considered himself a good catch.

  Compared to the guys he hung out with—buff, two-twenty, flashy dressers with smooth lines—Terrell was the strong, silent type. He wore wire-rimmed glasses and often had a tendency to talk only about work.

  Then he had met Tanya.

  She’d bowled him over with her stunning good looks and her air of class. And the sex wasn’t too bad either. He’d thought he had the perfect package. One of his friends had mentioned that she looked high maintenance before Terrell had gathered the nerve to approach her, so on their first date, he’d picked her up in a limo and taken her to a ritzy restaurant. From that moment on he’d wined and dined her, buying her expensive gifts and flowers, lavishing her with everything a woman could ever want. But apparently that hadn’t been enough.

  So now he sat on his couch, alone in his apartment, wondering when he’d gotten off track. When had he lost sight of the type of woman he really needed in his life? He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. Behind his library card was a tattered piece of paper. On that paper were the criteria to becoming Terrell Pierce’s wife. He’d made the list when he was fifteen. He smiled at the memory and read the words he’d believed were a sure thing.

  Number one—cute. She didn’t have to be a raving beauty. During his childhood he was convinced that his thick glasses and braced teeth would only grow worse, so having a beautiful wife was unlikely. He’d figured as long as she was pleasing to look at, that would be good enough.

 

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