Players

by Rachel Cross

The moment Tyrone pulled up to Symphony Hall and Keila saw Tania waiting for her, she felt better. “Sorry you bore the brunt of the bad mood our boss put me in,” she said.

  Tyrone grinned. “You can make it up to me by introducing me to your sister.”

  Keila observed him closely. “Are you the one who sent her chocolate-covered boxers with a cherry on top last week?” she asked.

  Tyrone laughed. “Definitely not. I just think she’s hot and smart. I guess it runs in the family,” he winked her way, and Keila giggled. At that moment, Tania looked their way, zeroed in on Tyrone, and got the squinty-eyed, glowering look she acquired whenever she saw something she didn’t like.

  “You know what? Forget I said anything,” Tyrone suddenly decided.

  “What are you doing, riding in a car with a dangerous man?” Tania asked as soon as Keila greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.

  “He’s not dangerous, he’s Tyrone. And he likes you.”

  “Yeah, I got that by the way he looked at me. Listen, if you learn anything from your older sis, let it be this: stay away from magnetic, hungry-eyed men. Trust me, they’re dangerous,” Tania warned.

  “How do you know he’s magnetic? You weren’t anywhere near him.”

  “I can sense a magnetic man’s force field as soon as it invades my comfort zone.”

  “And how can you tell when a man has hungry eyes?” Keila asked.

  “You look into his eyes and if instead of your own reflection you see prey, he’s hungry and about to pounce. Run.”

  Keila laughed.

  “Learn from me, Keila. Freeze them out, just like this,” Tania’s fingers circled around the fierce scowl on her face.

  What Tania didn’t know was that Keila had learned plenty from both her sister and her mom, a long time ago. It wasn’t men in general who were dangerous. No. It was the woman’s reaction to that certain man who just happened to know exactly how to push the woman’s right buttons. It led to ignition and fire; followed by either total combustion or a fizzling out of the flame. Both ends were painful.

  Keila’s mom and dad had been passionate about each other. They were the type to share a deep kiss and meaningful embrace every time they said hello and every time they said goodbye. They held hands and looked into each other’s eyes during even the most mundane conversations, and everyone around them felt either lucky or disgusted, depending on their mood, to be in the presence of such love.

  But after her father died, Graciela became a living ghost. She’d been a caring, devoted mother, but for years, as hard as she’d tried, she just never seemed as whole again, like she was never completely there. After losing their father in such a violent way, Tania and Keila, shocked, broken, and forever changed, soon learned they’d lost a part of their mother as well.

  Keila wanted to be whole for her children, if she ever had any. She didn’t want anyone taking a piece of her with them.

  Tania was a different story altogether, but both women were cautionary tales.

  Keila yearned for deep friendship and strong compatibility; that had staying power, and it was a lot less likely to lead to havoc or misery. Deep love and passionate love just didn’t mix well in her book.

  • • •

  Even after a relaxing, non-stop gabbing lunch date, Keila still felt wound up too tight. She was grateful for the practice session with the string quartet and looked forward to spending the next four hours in the company of beautiful music and friendly people.

  As soon as she arrived, she was greeted with ear-to-ear grins. Simone was the first to speak, pointing to her laptop on the table. “I was just showing Ralph and Michelle your video on YouTube, and Michelle and Ralph had some interesting insights on your performance,” she said; her eyes full of mischief.

  Keila turned to Ralph and Michelle. “Performance? I wasn’t performing; I was setting the record straight, the way I did with you guys last week.”

  Michelle clucked her tongue. “I don’t know, Keila. I mean, I believe you when you say nothing’s going on between you two, but I couldn’t help notice he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off you for a while there the night of his fundraiser.”

  “Because he didn’t know I’d be there, and trust me, I was probably the last person he wanted to see. The last time we’d seen each other, we’d gotten into a heated argument,” Keila explained. Had she actually thought this crowd was friendly a few minutes before?

  “Heat,” Ralph grinned. “Interesting choice of words. I was just telling Michelle and Simone about your little encounter with Jake in the hall after the fundraiser. It was pretty heated and intense. Seriously, I felt stifled; I couldn’t wait to get out of there.”

  “It was tense, not intense: just tense.” Stress crept into Keila’s voice.

  “Okay, okay. We’ll leave you alone. For now. We know you don’t know us well enough to trust us with your hot, torrid secrets,” Simone teased as she sat down on one of the four chairs she’d set up by a window with great city views.

  “Sorry, Keila.” Michelle sat down, too, before looking up at her, wearing a sincere expression. “It’s just—your manner is usually so open and inviting, but you react differently when Jake comes up. You close up. But we’ll let it go.”

  Keila put her bag and violin case down, and slumped in a chair. Thoughts and talk of Jake agitated her, and she felt like she was bottling too much of it up because she really didn’t know who to talk to about it. Cate adored Jake, Tania hated men, Robbie and her mother wouldn’t let it go if she mentioned her feelings; they’d be ecstatic. “Que romántico!” they’d squeal. She cringed at the thought of it before blowing out a breath. “This is the first and only time I will ever mention this, okay? So I will say it out loud once because I think it will do me good to get it off my chest, and we will never speak of it again, understood?”

  Three heads simultaneously nodded. She sucked in her lips. “Okay. Here goes. My body is hot for Jake. My brain, however, is totally not. I can’t help it. My brain has had long conversations with my body, but my body won’t listen. That’s it. There’s really nothing going on between the two of us, I promise.”

  “So you’re hot for Jake and that’s it.” Ralph repeated.

  “That’s what’s got you so worked up?” Simone asked. “Honey, I’m sure you’re not the only woman in Chicago who’s hot for Jake Kelly. I mean, my grandma is hot for him. She smacks her lips together a few times and then slowly licks them whenever she sees him on TV.”

  Ralph shuddered at the image and a bout of giggles overtook Michelle and Simone; moments later, Keila joined in.

  After the laughter died down, Michelle became thoughtful and asked, “Is it awkward for you to play with Julia? I mean you were up for the same position, and now you’ve both been linked to Jake.”

  Keila picked up her violin, eager to play. Confession and laughter had made her feel better and now it was time to stop talking and start practicing. “No. Believe it or not, I like Julia. She got the position and I made peace with that shortly after, and she can definitely have Jake Kelly. In fact, after that endowment for the arts dinner, I honestly hope I never see him again.”

  Chapter Seven

  The following two weeks brought beautiful, comfortably brisk weather and a flurry of activity. Rehearsal and practice with the Symphony took up six hours a day, four days a week. Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday afternoons were reserved for private students; and performances. Practice sessions with the string quartet, now called String Theory, took place Mondays, a few evenings a week, and weekends.

  And there was Mark. He’d called and asked to get together on a Thursday night. Keila wasn’t sure what to think or how to feel. But he invited her down to the jazz club where he played and she’d decided to go. The first thing he asked after he greeted her with a hug and a peck on the cheek was, “Is it true you’re dating that Kelly guy, the one running for mayor?”

  Keila looked down and sighed before answering a simple and honest, “No.”

>   “What about those pictures?” he insisted.

  “Robbie asked me to teach him to dance at SummerDance, and I guess someone recognized him and took pictures. What about you, are you seeing anyone?”

  “No, I haven’t even been able to look at another girl,” he answered, but his facial expression gave her pause. He looked a little too innocent; his eyes too wide, mouth too pouty.

  After watching him perform they spoke for hours; about the music he’d chosen for his nightly gig at the posh night club, feedback he’d gotten, and his crazy hours. He was easy to be with, and she realized she’d missed that about him. Uncomplicated, predictable people were comfortable. And hearing him go on and on made her feel at ease; it took the focus off of her and her recent doubts about her own dreams coming true.

  Mark asked her out again the following night, but she had a previous commitment; The Endowment for the Arts Ebony and Ivory Dinner and Awards Ceremony.

  The event was strictly black-tie, and it was being held at a swank, newly renovated hotel in downtown Chicago simply called The H. All attendees were instructed to dress formally in either black or white.

  Luckily, Tania, who was often invited to big-ticket events because of her local semi-celebrity hot weather girl status, had a steep discount at a chic boutique whose owner only asked that she let everyone know where she bought her dresses. Tania had them extend the same offer to Keila and she’d fallen in love with a gorgeous, floor-length, strapless ivory raw silk gown with gold threads woven throughout it. She paired it with the beautiful topaz earrings and necklace set her father had bought her for her quinceañero, just before he’d died.

  A makeup artist friend of Robbie had taught him some tricks, and Robbie used them to help Keila with her hair and makeup. Her hair was tamed into soft, perfect, shiny waves and her eyes seemed enormous and mysterious; the whole look was very old Hollywood.

  She arrived at the hotel with Simone, Ralph, and Michelle; the four had become even closer during their long practice sessions, and though they knew Jake Kelly would be there, they’d promised not to mention the subject of her body’s desires to her that night.

  Every member of Second City Symphony was there, including, of course, Julia Hamilton. Not only was she a regular member of the symphony, but this was one of her mother’s hotels and her father would be receiving a life-time achievement award. She truly was Chicago royalty.

  The scene inside the banquet hall was exquisite, with scarlet and gold decorative accents setting off everyone’s black and white attire beautifully. Magnificent chandeliers cast a soft glow about the room as the soft, soulful sounds of a jazz band coupled with a sultry, throaty singer belting out classics from the forties complemented the swanky ambiance.

  Mike Summers was already there and she was eager to see how political opponents behaved with each other at private events such as these.

  Keila mingled with friends and acquaintances during the first hour. A few of her classmates from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music were there, and she was happy for the opportunity to catch up.

  Though thoughts of Jake Kelly being there flitted in and out of her mind, she never once allowed herself to look for him. That would be a weakness. Besides, she still hadn’t decided if she was going to chew him out over the rear-end-honking incident, or if she would just spare herself further aggravation. Just the thought of another one of his sinful smiles was enough to make her heart beat at a precarious rhythm.

  About an hour and a half into the evening, Keila found she was only half-listening to a few ideas Simone had for new music because the back of her spine was prickling with the odd feeling that she was being watched and she was trying to resist the temptation to turn and check. Finally unable to withstand it, she turned and saw none other than Jake in her line of vision. Exhaling slowly, she tried not to gulp; tuxedo-clad Jake had some serious James Bond appeal.

  He wasn’t looking at her though; he was engaged in conversation with an elderly gentleman standing in front of him. But no sooner did she begin to turn away than she noticed his eyes flicker toward her, the laser blue gaze finishing the James Bond effect off nicely. A pleasurable but bothersome sensation rippled through her.

  Keila soon noted Jake simply had a way with people in general and women in particular. Magnetism. Some people just drew others to them, whether they wanted to or not. Jake had a rare air of both importance and approachability to him; as serious as he usually was, he also seemed as if he would listen.

  Moments after Keila’s reverie, Tyrone was by her side telling her that Jake wanted to introduce her to a group of people. Simone met her eyes with a smile, but didn’t say a thing.

  As she walked toward him, Jake’s eyes ran the length of her, and the look in his eyes had her fighting off an entire series of feminine thrills. It was simply his magnetic nature, she repeated to herself, mentally pinching her nerves for being so easily affected. Upon reaching him, Jake gave her a slow, slight nod before turning to introduce her to a small group of people.

  “This is Keila Diaz, the young woman I was telling you about.” All were pleased to meet her, and all seemed to be bubbling with excitement over the possibility of an expanded music program.

  “Jake was just telling us what an amazingly talented young woman you are,” a plump, dark haired woman spoke.

  Keila couldn’t help herself, she shot Jake a disbelieving side glance, but he was now in intimate conference with Julia Hamilton, who had just appeared at his side. Julia was leaning in and looking up at him as she spoke, and he was listening intently. An acute and unmistakable stab of jealousy pierced the middle of her chest. So much for saying she had no awkward feelings toward Julia.

  A man beside Keila lifted his wine goblet her way and said, “He was describing how passionately and captivatingly you play, and how you poured the same emotions into the music program he wants to establish.”

  Keila cleared her throat. She wasn’t sure if “It’s very generous of him to say so,” was an appropriate response, but it was all she could think of at the moment. Inwardly, she wondered if the compliments were part of a calculated political persona, or if these were Jake’s real thoughts. The group continued to ask her questions and after turning away from Jake and Julia, she slipped into her comfort zone and was able to thoughtfully satisfy every inquiry.

  When the small crowd broke up, Tyrone led her away, a satisfied smile on his lips. “You were great, Keila. Those people now know Jake Kelly surrounds himself with people who know what they’re talking about, and they’ll spread the word.”

  Tyrone led her to the bar as the band played Ella Fitzgerald’s “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered.” He ordered cocktails for them both, and held out a bar stool for Keila. Soon, they were playfully discussing the song’s lyrics, Tyrone trying to convince her he could bewitch, bother, and bewilder Tania if she gave him half a chance.

  “I would’ve introduced you to her the day you gave me a ride, but you ran away the moment she scowled at you,” Keila teased.

  “She made me feel like I’d done something horribly wrong. She was so damn convincing, it took me a while to realize I hadn’t done anything to her.”

  She laughed. “It’s a special gift she has.”

  They continued on that way, Tyrone pumping her for information, Keila feeding him some, thinking that someone like Tyrone would be good for Tania, if she could just give him a quarter of a chance, until Jake interrupted them because there were a few more people he wanted her to meet.

  His fingertips grazed her elbow as he led her toward a group of women who turned out to be influential members of the Illinois Arts and Music Educators Association. They had many questions and Jake quietly stood by Keila’s side as she took time to carefully listen to and answer their inquiries. Their last question, though, was one she had to turn over to Jake.

  “How will individual progress be evaluated?” a Mrs. Montgomery wanted to know. Keila watched Jake closely.

  “We decid
ed to go on attendance and teachers’ reports for lower elementary school students and formal evaluations for the older children,” Jake answered, looking at Keila.

  The older woman nodded. “I believe we will be able to endorse your program, Mr. Kelly. It is well thought out, and I commend you both,” she said, about to leave.

  He’d found middle ground again. It was the only way to get things done. In the end, what mattered was that children would benefit from a great program. Without thinking, she stopped Mrs. Montgomery and said, “Mrs. Montgomery? I really want to stress that though Jake and I didn’t agree on everything, he showed me he knows how to compromise. I think that’s an important trait in a leader, don’t you?”

  Mrs. Montgomery and friends agreed and lingered a bit longer before taking leave.

  “I promise I’m telling everyone Jake Kelly is a man of compromise!” Keila declared soon after.

  Jake smiled and looked into her eyes, obviously amused and entertained by her excitement. But a moment later, his eyes lost their smile and took on a different sort of spark. He leaned in and said, “It just goes to show how a pair of hot pink panties can mess with a man’s head,” before turning and leaving her standing there, mouth agape.

  Keila didn’t know whether she wanted to stab his retreating back with her three inch heels or laugh.

  Neither, she decided, because she understood him. He was just keeping things light. She had nothing to be grateful to him for: she had just done her job and he had done his.

  She watched as Mike Summers and Jake Kelly finally exchanged a cordial handshake, before going on to work opposite sides of the room.

  Later, Keila was introduced to Jake’s opponent. Mr. Summers’ smile was wider and his handshake more enthusiastic than Jake’s, but she felt Jake’s fewer, more spontaneous smiles were more compelling, and his handshake more sincere.

  Keila sipped chardonnay, settled into a mellow mood, and people-watched. Ralph couldn’t take his eyes off of the voluptuous, raven-haired singer. Julia, who had spent most of the evening at her father’s side, was talking to someone from the band. Tyrone was always at Jake’s side.