“Wow,” I sighed.
“The guy was a low down two-timing creep,” she said venomously. “I’m tell’n you, I lost all respect I ever had for him when I found out that he was two-timing around on his wife. The man is as low down and dirty as a sewer rat, wouldn’t you agree?”
I nodded my head. Yeah, sounds very much like me, I quipped silently.
“Just to think, I had planned on spending tonight with you Marcus, someone more worthy of my time and energy,” she said, as she calmed down. “Look, I didn’t mean to go off like that. But I cannot stand two-timing bastards. I wished there were more men like you in the world, Marcus.”
Yeah, more men like me, I thought solemnly.
After work I dropped Tina off at her job, which I did on occasion. I told her that I’d return fifteen minutes before she was scheduled to clock out from work. When I left her I walked a long stretch of beach searching my soul and heart hoping for answers. Some men would love to be in my position, I truly believed. Two beautiful women of beauty contest caliber; both very intelligent and highly motivated business-wise; and both very caring lovers; who wouldn’t want what I had? Players who lived in this world and played the game, that’s who. But I wasn’t a player and this was no game to me. Like my uncle warned, these women had feelings, just like me. And I needed to tread carefully.
Passing by a group of children who were playing barefooted with a Frisbee, I paused briefly to pick it up after it settled gently at my feet. With a swift swinging motion I tossed it back in their direction. The group thanked me and I continued on with my solemn promenade.
Watching the bright sunset in the distant sky I became a little unsettled. I knew that it was as prominent an omen the heavens would ever send my way. For I had committed the most dastardly of romantic acts and that was to betray the trust of the one I loved. In my particular case the women I loved.
As surely as the saying goes “you reap what you sew”, I knew there was going to be hell to pay for my treachery regardless of whether I walked directly into the mess I now found myself in or stumbled into it. Only time would tell what my punishment would be for my sins.
Chapter Sixteen
My weekend began as most of them had in the past. I’d rise up early in the morning and workout and then I’d practice my martial arts. After a refreshing shower or bath I’d have breakfast. After breakfast I’d usually catch up on national and international news. On the local scene there had been a rash of muggings and beatings along A1A, the very heart of the tourist area. Police presence had been increased, especially foot patrols. There had been several shootings and two stabbings in the past month in that area, the report had said. Apparently groups of five to six young thugs were stalking tourists and robbing them. Others were content to participate in what had become known as flash mobbing, which was when a large group of delinquent types would charge into a store en masse and grab as many items as they could then run out. This news report concerned me to a large degree since Tina was closing the restaurant at night a lot more as a result of the firing of her co-manager.
I knew that her car was in the shop overnight and that she would be getting a ride into work today. I’d call her later to let her know that I would pick her up and take her home.
The thoughtful and considerate person that I had become, I called my other love, Leïla, later that morning. She was preparing to appear in a fashion show in Jacksonville, Florida that evening, she told me. I wished her well and assured her that I would fly over in another week to visit with her. Though she did not know it, I was going to tell her then what I had failed to tell her before. It was the honorable thing to do. I had decided to let the chips fall where they were going to fall and not worry about the outcome. I told myself that things would work themselves out.
On the other hand, I pondered whether I should tell Tina or not. I figured that when I got around to telling Leïla, though painful it would be for both of us, she would bow out of the picture, leaving me with Tina. Though it sounded simple in theory, in practice I struggled with the notion of how to go about telling someone you love dearly that you still loved them but could not be with them because while they happened to be away, you fell in love with another. I loved Leïla and did not want to let her go but I didn’t want to go on living a lie. In time she would find out. Both of them would.
Still, my question remained, was there something to gain from telling Tina? I needed more time to explore this. Of course, I would consult with my wise uncle.
The remainder of the day I spent researching a piece of property down in the Keys. Business was business and I was in the business of acquiring property and that meant I had to compete with others in my field who were just as dedicated and as highly motivated as I was. This meant staying on top of my game. Afterwards, I watched the evening news and took a well-deserved nap.
Just before midnight, I parked my car two blocks away from the Shack and made my way to the restaurant. A short distance into my walk two young thug types stepped out in front of me from the shadows, as if to challenge me or something.
“May I help you?” I asked the Hispanic youth who wore a red bandanna.
“You got any money on you, mister?” he asked.
“Why do you want to know?” I said chewing on a piece of gum I had just placed in my mouth before encountering these two malcontents.
“I just want to know, that’s why,” he snapped back, smirking. “Now once again, do you got any money on you, nigga?”
“Yeah, you heard him the first time, asshole,” the other youth tossed in as he looked around the area with a nervous gaze.
“Listen, you look like you’re around nineteen years old and your comrade here perhaps seventeen,” I began, peering intensely at the Hispanic youth. “Now before you find yourself waking up with compound fractures to the ribs and a couple of broken noses, I feel obligated to warn you that I am a fifth degree Black Belt in the art of Gung-fu. Now, if you don’t want to take my word for it, I’ll be happy to give you a demonstration. Otherwise, I suggest you two be on your way.”
After I stared them down for several seconds, and believe me, I wasn’t wearing my happy face, the two misguided youths backed off. I continued on my way. Wise decision, I thought as I rounded another corner.
I found Tina waiting for me at a table, her arms resting on top of her purse. I immediately apologized for running behind schedule. That’s when I told her about my encounter. Right away she said that she understood.
“Yes, it’s getting pretty dangerous around here lately,” she said rising up from the table. “One of the girls was mugged the other night. They grabbed her purse and took off with her credit cards and about fifty bucks.”
“That’s exactly why I am here,” I said as we left the restaurant.
“And I am glad that you are,” she cooed with a broad smile. “I feel so safe around you. I am not sure why but I just feel that way.”
“The world remains a dangerous place, no matter who you are with,” I reminded her. “Personally, I’d rather walk away from trouble than to confront it head on with violence. But by the same token, I am prepared to use everything in my power and arsenal to protect and defend you Tina.”
“I am so fortunate,” she cooed, as she took my hand and held onto it.
We turned left two blocks later. That’s when I saw five or six youths walking towards us. I didn’t give much thought to them, even when they passed us but then one of them turned and called out to us from behind.
“Hey, you!” the menacing voice said, suddenly with knife in hand.
I turned and immediately recognized the thug as one of the two youths I had encountered earlier.
“Yes,” I said surveying them individually.
“That’s the nigga who said he knew that kung-fu shit,” the other youth said.
“Yeah, let’s see how tough he is now,” the leader railed as the group surrounded us.
“It looks like you have decided not to take my warning
s seriously,” I said, gesturing Tina to move aside.
“Hey, you boys should be home this time of night,” she scolded them. “We’re minding our business. You should be minding your own. You’re all cowards, if you ask me. But if you want to be hardheaded, go on…but don’t say you were not warned.” Obviously, she remembered the story about my incident in St Thomas when confronted by misguided youths there.
“Shut up bitch!” the leader said, the one wearing the red bandanna.
Before he could utter another syllable, I stepped towards him, and with the speed of a tornado, spun around with my left leg extended and decked him. Almost simultaneously, I floored one of his sidekicks who had dared to charge me with a lightning fast roundhouse kick. That left three of them standing. Two rushed me but imploring close quarter combat techniques, I sent them sailing through the air, their bodies crashing down onto the hard asphalt road. The last kid uttered an inaudible expletive, turned, and hauled ass. Tina stood there with an astonished look on her face.
Walking over to her, I took her gently by the arm and hastened our departure. Unlocking the car door with my remote, I assisted her inside. Once we were buckled in safely, we drove off.
“I figured you were good but damn Marcus, based on what you had told me before, but I had no way of knowing you were that good,” she smiled looking up me and in a new light. “I’m impressed.”
“Actually, I wished you didn’t have to see that side of me,” I said, looking at the road ahead. “Like I mentioned earlier, I’d rather walk away from confrontations, if I can.”
“Look, you had little choice but to defend yourself, and me as well,” she reminded me.
“I know. I just don’t know what’s gotten into our youth these days,” I said shaking my head. “They should be home, just like you said, helping around the house or something.”
“That’s right,” she chuckled. “Hey, let’s stop at Denny’s for some dessert.”
“Sure thing,” I said patting her lightly on her warm thigh.
Several days later I made reservations to fly up to Gainesville to do what I had never thought I’d do, break the heart of a woman that I deeply loved, a woman I had promised to love for infinity and then some. I spent the day catching up on paperwork connected to the property down in the Keys. Usually how it worked was that I’d find a location of interest, collect information on it via my kick-butt staff, then meet with my uncle and aunt and their staff to review it, and once they gave me the go ahead, I’d visit the site and the realtors connected to it. If we could reach an agreement on price and other important matters, we’d close out on the deal. After the city signed off on it, we’d contact the construction company that built our stores and within fourteen months construction on the site would begin. Though the work could be arduous at times, it was a business I loved, and almost as much as I loved Leïla and Tina. I wasn’t married but I did have a mistress and that mistress was my work. Yes, my work. As for Leïla and Tina, they existed on the same plain in my eyes and in my heart. The love I had for Tina matched the love I had for Leïla. I couldn’t put one above the other. And I certainly could not choose between the two and that one issue remained at the heart of my inner conflict and my dilemma.
They often say that when you wake up in the morning, if you are fortunate enough to wake up, you never know what awaits you. Things happen, some things more pronounced and enduring than others. Some not so pronounced or enduring. Other things are more permanent. Some things only temporary. Sometimes it only takes a second for someone’s world to be turned upside down. Sometimes you don’t even get a second before it’s all over…one’s career, one’s love life, one’s life.
I was at my office late that afternoon and working at my desk when I received a call from Leïla. I glanced up at my wall mounted clock. It read 4:40PM. She sounded exuberant, almost euphoric. I thought she had hit the Lotto or something. When I got her to calm down she finally told me that a classmate had told her that she was heading down to Hollywood, Florida and asked if she wanted catch a ride down since their class had been canceled for the following day. She said that her teacher had come down with the flu. She said that they had just arrived in sunny Ft Lauderdale and after they found a place to eat dinner her classmate would drop her off at a hotel. She said she wanted her arrival to be a surprise.
And boy was it a surprise. I felt as though someone had let out the wind inside of me as I dropped back against my chair and listened to her tell me how happy and eager she was to see me. I told her to let me know where she was going to be staying and I’d come over later. If I could just make it through the evening I might make it out of this untimely situation and unscathed.
Before their drive down Leïla said she made reservations for a departing flight in the morning over the internet. That she would go through all of this trouble just to spend one night with me nearly brought me to tears. I did not deserve either one of them, Leïla or Tina. For the next hour my mind remained in a fog. Fortunately, Tina was working this evening. Glancing over at the clock, I told myself that she should have already arrived at work by now. I had talked to her just before she left home.
Leïla called later and provided me with the name of the hotel she was staying at. I met her there after I got off work. We hugged and kissed and went to her suite to relax. Though she did not know it, I was anything but relaxed. She fixed me a hot cup of gourmet Café Latte and that settled me down some. She said that all she wanted to do was be in my company. She didn’t want to go out or hang out anywhere else but here in my arms. It was the only place she said she wanted to be, right now.
Once again, I had been caught off guard. I had prepared myself emotionally and mentally to tell her the truth when I got up to Gainesville in a few days. I wasn’t prepared at this moment to have her world come crashing down on her. But here she was, lying across my lap on the sofa and looking up into my troubled eyes, eyes that struggled to look happy and excited to see her. My smile didn’t fare any better. Somehow, I managed to pull it off. That evening we made love under the subdued ambience of several candle lights. That way the agony and pain and guilt I felt would be interpret by her as an expression of the intense pleasure I was deriving from her passionate and all-encompassing lovemaking.
When morning arrived, we ate breakfast then I drove her to the airport. I walked with her to the departure area and to the point I could go no further without a boarding ticket. Pausing, we faced each other.
“Marcus, I am so happy to have had this opportunity to spend this time with you, short as it might have been,” she said looking up at me with misty eyes.
“I’m just glad that your teacher decided to catch the flu,” I said. “Otherwise, you would not have been able to make this brief trip.”
“That’s true,” she said in obvious agreement. “And speaking of the flu, I think you’re coming down with something, as well. You’ve been looking a little under the weather ever since my arrival. You make sure you get some rest and don’t work yourself so hard.”
“I have to stay on top of my game, you know,” I replied looking at her with a fixed stare. God, she was so beautiful. “Look, I’ll be heading up your way in another two days. Let’s look forward to having a better time there than you did here.”
“Look, even if you were feeling under the weather, I enjoyed being with you,” she assured me. “I love you Marcus. I always will.”
With that we embraced.
“And I will always love you Leïla,” I murmured nearly whispering.
We kissed long and hard, our lips pressed against each other’s, our passion having never diminished. At some point our lips parted, though the break was a reluctant one.
Standing in place I watched solemnly as she walked away. Once she vanished from view in the crowd I turned and walked away deep in thought, my face a mask of sadness, hurt, and pain. I then turned my thoughts to Tina. I had not called her all night, or this morning, and I knew she would be curious as to why.
Once in my car I dialed Tina’s number but I only got her voice mail. I left a message asking her to call me back. At that point I headed off to work feeling that I had dodged another bullet, and in this case, another potential calamity.
Chapter Seventeen
When I looked up at the wall clock in my office it read 11:30AM. I had received a call from Leïla after she had arrived in Gainesville but I had yet to hear from Tina. I called her again and once again I got her voice mail. By now I was growing very concerned. This was unlike her. Picking up the phone, I called her job this time but was told that she had called in sick.
Grabbing my laptop and attaché case I headed out of the office and down to my car. My next stop, Tina’s house. I was about to start my car up when my phone rang. Tina’s number popped up on the screen. Good I thought. I answered it.
“Hello Marcus, how are you?” she said dryly. She sounded under the weather, I noted.
“Tired,” I said.
“I wanted to know if we could meet at the beach in an hour.”
“Sure, where?”
“How ‘bout Aruba Beach Café?”
“Sure, I know where it is,” I replied. “I hear they have great seafood and steaks.”
“They do,” she said curtly.
“Okay, then its Aruba Beach Café.”
“See you there Marcus.”
The call was disconnected before I could utter another word. I guess she owed me one. Still, something inside of me told me that there was something wrong with this picture. What, I did not know. But I was sure I’d find out within the hour. Leaning forward, I started up my car and drove off.
Island Love Page 17