Karen gave a nervous chuckle. “Okay, calm down, Rocky. We’re all peace here. Saul and I aren’t like that, so there’s no need to get all territorial.” She gave both he and Saul a pointed look.
“You don’t have to worry about me. I’m here for the youth. I’d never do anything to jeopardize the work.” Saul jokingly put his hands up as if to say he was innocent.
Darius knew the man was anything but innocent. And he also knew that if he gave Saul any opening whatsoever he’d be back in there trying to get with Karen. That wasn’t going to happen.
“You don’t have to worry about me, Karen.” As long as Saul respects my place and stays in his damn lane, everything will be fine with me!
“Good. Remember, we are setting examples for the youth. Speaking of which, we need to get the center opened for the start of the new day.” Karen took her keys out and went toward the gate before stopping and looking next door.
“That’s odd. Dicey’s sign is gone, and her place looks empty.” She walked over and looked through the metal bars of the gate into the storefront. “It is empty in there! And with all those huge dust bunnies, it looks like it’s been empty for a while. But I was just in there yesterday. That’s odd.” Karen turned to Darius. “You remember seeing the sign that said ‘Divine Intuition,’ right? Did the tall, beautiful chocolate sister with long goddess braids ever ask you if she could give you a reading?”
Darius’s mind was still on Saul, and he really couldn’t remember what had been beside the center or even if there had been a store next door at all. Since he’d set eyes on Karen, he really couldn’t think about much else but her. He peeped through the window. “I really can’t recall what was next door. But if anyone was, they sure got out of there quick, fast and in a hurry.”
Karen frowned. “She’d been there for about a year. Saul, do you remember meeting her? Do you remember the palm-reading shop that was next door?”
Saul shook his head. “Sorry, Queen, all I remember is you…and the youth, of course. But I’ll try and recall this Dicey person as soon as we get inside and open up. It’s good to be back!” He looked like he was going to try and pick Karen up and spin her around again. But he glanced at Darius and stepped back instead.
Darius narrowed his eyes and reached for Karen’s keys. “I’ll get this gate up.”
He opened up the center and they went inside, but he couldn’t help but wonder how much trouble this Saul person was going to be.
Karen walked into the youth center more than a little perplexed. She couldn’t figure out why just yesterday she had gone into Dicey’s place for a reading and today it looked like no one had been there in years. Given everything that had been happening in her life the past few weeks since she found that journal, she shouldn’t have been too surprised. But this was too woo-woo even for the turn her life had taken. If she didn’t know better, she would start to question her sanity. Maybe that’s what this was all about. Maybe her life was turning into one cosmic psychic woo-woo practical joke.
Once they opened up, Darius offered to do a morning discussion session about achieving goals with youth who were interested. And of course almost all of them were interested. She loved the center in the summer when the kids were out of school and things were really bustling.
She was so busy thinking about the disappearance of the Divine Ms. Dicey that she almost forgot about the testosterone battle that had been waged in front of the center that morning.
What in the world had gotten into those two? She had half a mind to tell them both to take a long hike off a short cliff.
Darius didn’t have anything to worry about as far as she and Saul were concerned. Sure, they went back a long way, all the way back to their college days at Brooklyn College. And, yes, they had been comrades, marched against just about every social injustice known to man and sat in too many sit-ins and building takeovers to count, but they hadn’t been together in years. They had been FWB in the past whenever they weren’t dating other people. But they’d both agreed that they were way too similar to ever make a play for a relationship.
After she finished making sure that everything was running smoothly and folks were where they were supposed to be, she went back into her office with Saul.
“So, Queen, what’s up with you and the rapper? He seems a little territorial, don’t you think?” Saul leaned back in his chair looking rather suave and a little too pleased with himself. The white cotton dashiki and kufi hat made his deep-chocolate skin look all the more striking.
Handsome devil!
“You got jokes? I thought I was going to have to pull the two of you apart. What was that about? You know it’s not even like that between us.”
“Oh, Queen, you slay my heart! How can you say that? How can you deny that what we have is special? We always come back together.”
“Um, we were never really together, Saul. So don’t even try it. We both knew we would never work as a couple. We’ve always said that. Don’t go trying to flip the script now.”
“What? A man can’t change his mind? Maybe I realized some things when I was in the motherland. Maybe I realized my true African Queen was in Brooklyn after all?” Saul smiled, showing all of his perfectly straight pearly whites.
She remembered that before he left they had joked that he was going off to finally find his African Queen and would probably come back married or engaged if he came back at all. Saul had always been one of those brothers who loved everything African. While they had both minored in black studies at Brooklyn College, Saul was the one doing all the suggested outside readings, taking more than the required classes and going to every lecture that had something to do with the continent.
She even teased him all the time about the slight accent he had picked up through hanging around with brothers and sisters from the Caribbean and from various countries in Africa. People who just met him always tried to place his accent. And Karen always chuckled to herself, because she knew the man was from Bedford-Stuyvesant, also known as Bed-Stuy. And as far as she knew, his family migrated north from Alabama, not the motherland or one of the islands.
“Anyway…as you can see, your Queen is more than a little busy right now. I don’t want to jinx it. But I think I’ve found the one, the honest-to-goodness pick-up-the-phone-call-mama-and-tell-her-all-about-him one! So, don’t you start no mess.” She pointed her finger at him in mock warning.
He clutched his heart and frowned. “You can’t be serious. He’s the exact opposite of everything you believe in. I’d be surprised if he had a political bone in his body. You must be kidding me. Tell me it’s a lie.”
“I can’t tell you that, because it’s true. Now shut up and be happy for me. And wish me luck. I really like Darius a lot.” She knew she was way beyond like when it came to Darius. But she didn’t think Saul had to know that now.
“Fine. Fine. You’ve become a little testy in the past six months, haven’t you? Anyway, fill me in on what’s been going on here. We can talk about my trip to Africa over dinner. How about some Ethiopian food? My treat? We’ll eat…catch up…”
“I would love to have dinner on your dime, but I’ll have to check with Darius. He might have plans.”
“Oh, now see. That’s just wrong. An old friend has to stand in line for dinner these days? What is the world coming to?”
“Dinner?” Darius would pick that moment to walk into her office. His eyebrow was slightly arched, and he folded his arms across his chest.
Saul stood up, and she feared the testosterone battle was about to start a round two. She got up from her desk and walked over to Darius.
“Yes, Saul invited me out to have Ethiopian food while he tells me all about his trip. But I told him that I had to check to see if you had any plans for us this evening.” She placed her arm around him.
She could tell that his teeth had been clenched for a minute, and slowly his face loosened and gave way to a practiced smile.
“In fact, I do have plans for us this even
ing. You and I have a date. And it’s a surprise, so don’t even ask.” Darius leaned over and pecked her on the lips quickly. “I just wanted to let you know after this second group of students that I’m going to head over to the studio and lay down a track or two. But I’ll be back for you by six so that we can start our date.”
Darius gave Saul a pointed look. “It was nice meeting you, brother. I guess I’ll see you around. And who knows, maybe Karen and I both will be able to go out for Ethiopian food with you and hear all about your trip.” The expression on his face clearly said, Not!
“Yeah, nice meeting you, too, brother. It’s not every day I get to meet a big superstar. Wish I could say I liked your work, but I’m into music with a message and I’ve never bought into that Hollywood crap. But hey, everybody has a different calling.” Saul shrugged.
Karen cringed because Saul’s self-righteous rant reminded her of how she must have sounded a couple of days ago when she went on and on about only listening to political hip-hop and Darius’s goody-two-shoes image. She couldn’t believe she’d been such a jerk and how dramatically her feelings about him had shifted.
My, how quickly things change….
Darius looked at her as if he knew exactly what she was thinking and winked. “Yeah, you probably like a lot of the same music as my baby here. Good thing she didn’t let her taste in music stop her from giving me a chance.” He winked again and gave her another, longer kiss.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. She probed his mouth as if she were looking for all the lost treasures in the world. And judging by the tingles that traveled up and down her arms, she was finding them. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her even closer. His hands clasped her bottom, and more tingles shot through her. Before she knew it, she let out a deep moan and everything intensified.
“All right, all right! Point taken, brother. Point taken. I get it.” Saul’s voice interrupted their embrace. “And you two need to go get a room. You never used to like public displays of affection.”
Karen could feel the heat rising, and she knew her cheeks were probably redder than red. How did she forget that Saul was in the room? What was Darius doing to her? She turned and saw that Saul was giving them a glaring look.
Darius pulled away but not before giving her a pat on the behind. “I’ll try and stop back in before I leave for the studio. But if you’re still catching up with Saul, just know that I’ll be back for you at six.” Darius left the room, and all the air seemed to come back.
“Man, you have it bad. I’ve never seen you this gaga over a guy. You certainly were never this gaga over me. I guess he just might be the one.”
Karen touched her kiss-swollen lips and walked back over to her desk. “Anyway, that’s pretty much the most exciting thing that’s happened in my life since you’ve been gone. Amina finally moved to South Carolina like she’s been threatening to do for years. I’ve been scrambling like crazy to get some more grants so that we can make some improvements and possibly hire some more folks so that we can help more kids around here. You know how hectic things get in the summer. We have more need than we could possibly fill on our current budget. And I think I just met my soul mate.”
“Soul mate? Isn’t that pushing it a little? I mean, come on…the two of you have nothing in common. I have more in common with you than he does.” Saul let out an irritated hiss. “Look, whatever, if he’s your soul mate then I’m happy for you. If he isn’t, I’ll be here when he’s gone, just like I always am. I just hope he doesn’t play you or anything. What do you really know about this guy?” Saul gave her a pointed look.
“But whatever…listen, I have your back on those grants. You know I’m your go-to guy for getting funding. I haven’t met a grant yet that I can’t get. Point me in the direction of those applications, Queen.”
She smiled. Saul was always able to bring more money into the center. She was so glad that he was back. Things were working out perfectly.
“I’m going to go check up on things in the center. The most recent grant applications are in the top file cabinet. Have a look. And take your pick of the vacant offices. It’s good to have you back. We have funding to pay you for a part-time position, and hopefully, we’ll get one of those grants and be able to pay you full-time.” She gave him a hug. “It’s great to have you back, Saul. I missed you.”
“Me, too, Queen. Me, too.”
Chapter 14
After speaking to the second group of kids at the center, Darius went over to the studio and started laying down the track for the song he wrote for Karen. His label mate, the heartthrob R & B singer Deuce Songz, just happened to be in the studio next to the one Darius was in. And luckily, he was able to sing the hook.
Darius knew he could carry a tune, and he probably could have sung the hook himself, but he wanted the song to be perfect. He still couldn’t believe that he was in the studio recording a song for a woman, but he’d never met a woman like Karen before.
As they played the song back, he knew it was going to be a smash. Rappers had been rapping love ballads ever since LL Cool J dropped “I Need Love,” but this song was about his love for her, her love for the people and how she made him want to be a better man. It was the ultimate love song. He could just hear the radio announcers introducing the hot new hit from D-Roc and Deuce Songz.
Every head was nodding in the studio, and Darius loved that. The only person who wasn’t feeling the vibe was Cullen.
“That was a waste of studio time. What the hell was that? Your fans want another party anthem from you, not this crap!” Cullen busted into a rampage as soon as the music ended.
Darius spun around and glared at Cullen. Darius waved his hands, dismissing everyone from the studio. The room cleared immediately.
Cullen didn’t seem fazed by the suddenly empty room, but then no one ever accused the man of being a genius.
“What the hell is your problem, Cullen? You wanted me in the studio. I’m in the studio. I just cut a track that is going to have all my female fans wishing I was talking about them, and it might even get me some new fans from the backpack group. Everyone in here was feeling the song. But even more than that, I feel the song.”
“That song is wack. And your female fans won’t support it, because what they want to hold on to is the fantasy that they can have you. You rapping this lovey-dovey crap won’t make them happy. And I noticed you didn’t mention your men fans. Because you know the few you do have, the few who don’t already think you’re not hard-core will think you’ve completely gone soft after they hear this crap.”
Cullen ran his hand across his head. “I blame that youth center bitch for this crap. She’s to blame. It’s like she’s Erykah Badu, and you’re Common. The next thing you know she’ll have you rocking freakin’ crochet pants with a matching hat.” He sucked his teeth in disgust.
Darius grabbed Cullen by the throat and jacked him up against the wall. “I won’t tell you again about calling her out of her name. Her name is Karen. If you can’t remember that, then call her Ms. Williams. But you damn well better start showing some respect or I will gladly show you why people should never underestimate a guy just because they don’t think he’s hard-core. I won’t tolerate you or anyone else disrespecting her.” He let Cullen slide down from the wall. “Now get the hell out of here. If my label isn’t feeling the song, then I’ll take it into consideration. But I’ve got work to do, and you’re ruining my vibe.”
Cullen brushed off his suit jacket and glared at Darius. “You’re lucky I realize you’re just whipped right now and not thinking straight. That’s the power of the pussy. Boy oh boy, it really makes men crazy. Be careful, boy, men have been killed for less disrespect than you’ve just shown. I’ll leave and let you record. Hopefully, you have something better to offer than that crap you just put down.”
Cullen strutted out of the studio, and Darius was almost tempted to go after the man and really jack him up. But he had more music to make
and a beautiful woman to go see in a few hours. He didn’t want anything standing in the way of him going to see Karen.
Cullen angrily pulled out his cell phone as he walked to his car. He dialed the number of the person who was going to help him take care of this Karen Williams problem once and for all.
“Are you back where I need you?” Cullen asked.
“I’m here, and I don’t appreciate being summoned like this. I was chilling in Miami, having a good time with a lot of good-looking blondes when you so rudely interrupted me.”
“Yeah, whatever, I need you to hurry up and handle this Karen problem. I need some hard proof in place quick to get her out of the picture before she derails my gravy train. And if you don’t want it leaked who pulled the trigger on Shemar Sunyetta then you need to get your girl in check.” Cullen put the threat out there even though the last thing he wanted was anyone looking into Shemar’s murder. Because if they found the triggerman, it might not be too long before they found out who paid the triggerman.
“Yeah, we both know that you want that to stay buried as much as I do. Plus no one saw me shoot Shemar. There were no witnesses and no evidence.” He let out an exasperated sigh.
Cullen didn’t have the heart to tell the idiot that he had all the proof he needed about who shot Shemar. He’d paid someone to videotape the murder, and it was one of his favorite snuff films. He watched it often.
“Look, it really shouldn’t take that long for me to break them up—although they are a lot closer than I would have imagined. She never seemed like the type to get that open over a brother.”
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