by Mia Madison
I was 32, handsome, sculpted, and took care of myself. I was the perfect age to settle down, so despite what Dilayla thought, my eyes were open for the right woman.
I genuinely wanted to make Beverly smile. Her heartbreak was all the more reason for me to enchant her. She was gorgeous, flawless, and completely in need of a man like me to make her see she was beautiful, valuable, and worthy. I think every woman needs that kind of reminder after having her heart broken.
All I needed was a chance. Even if nothing more happened than a sweet date before we both moved on with our lives.
Beverly
You know, it really wasn’t my intention to head out of the house tonight. My only focus was to finish Raquel’s makeup and head home. I needed to take a few sleep pills, drink a glass of wine, and float off in my dreams until it was time to face the next day.
Raquel wasn’t having it.
“You should come to the party tonight. Dilayla and I will be there. There will be a bunch of eligible bachelors. Romeo definitely seems to have a liking for you.”
“He seems to be a player.”
“You can’t judge the man. You just met him.” Raquel spoke in a melodic and soothing tone.
“His name is Romeo.”
“His mother named him Romeo. But he’s Dilayla’s brother. He’s genuinely cool, connected. A good guy to know.” She tucked a lock of her dark hair behind her ear. “There are going to be a lot of influential people there. People with connections to women who need your services.”
“Now when you put it that way…”
I could use some connections, especially if they led to business. Paying business. Exposure could only go so far.
“Yes, Beverly. You know I’m looking out for you. Why sit at home and think about that asshole when you can go out, meet new people, and make money?”
Alex was out of state, with another woman, having the time of his life. Here I was, feeling lost and stupid. I wanted to slap myself for giving too much energy to him. But I invested myself into what we had, even if there were questionable periods in our relationship.
My thoughts went to Romeo. His smile, his voice, and the smooth way he kissed my hand, which was so sweet it set my entire body on fire.
I needed that - the energy of a man who was bold, handsome, and magnetic. Someone who could wipe the sadness out of my heart, if only for a few hours.
Romeo… Oh, Romeo.
“Okay,” I said. “I’m game.”
“Great,” Raquel said. “Neither of us need to be caught up on that asshole.”
“What do you mean, ‘us’? He was dating me. You didn’t break up with him.”
Raquel’s expression became fear-stricken. Her eyes widened, and her cheeks flooded a deep red color.
Hold up.
Wait.
Something wasn’t right, and I needed the truth.
“Raquel,” I started. “What’s up? You look like…”
I didn’t finish aloud, but I wanted to say, “You look like you have something you need to tell me.”
Raquel swallowed. “So… you remember that night we met? At the restaurant, when I was waiting on Kenny?”
“Yeah,” I said, getting a weird feeling about where this was going. My stomach turned slightly and I gripped the edge of the chair, bracing myself.
“I wasn’t waiting on Kenny. I was waiting on Alex.”
Breath escaped me and my eyes bugged as I looked at her. She stood up and backed away, her perfectly applied lashes fluttering as she allowed me to register that confession.
“You mean to tell me you slept with Alex?”
“No! Hell no. Nothing like that.” She shook her head.
“Oh, then I need you to explain, because this isn’t making any sense.”
“Alex had chased me for a date for months. I wasn’t interested in him because he gave me a player vibe. He just didn’t give up, and I finally gave in and agreed to a date. He would SnapChat me, text me, FaceTime me. But right before the date, he started becoming inappropriate. Asking for nudes, pushing me to sext. It was a turnoff. The day of, he confirmed our date, but I guess he decided he didn’t want to go out unless he knew he was getting some.”
My heart burned as I listened to her story. She explained waiting for him, noticing him with me, and just feeling the urge to cause a scene.
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“I didn’t want to make a scene,” she said, resignation in her tone. “You didn’t know who you were dealing with, and you were so sweet. I spoke to Dilayla about it, and she told me not to involve myself. That you’d learn about him on your own.”
There was a sincerity to her tone, but my feelings were still hurt. Raquel was nice, genuinely nice, but friends didn’t keep secrets like that.
“Yeah, but here’s the thing. We’ve been hanging out, getting to know each other as friends. I figured at some point you would have let me know that he wasn’t shit.”
“I wanted to, but then I decided to let it go. You’ve got to understand I was in a tough position. Kenny literally appeared out of nowhere, determined to save me when he noticed how Alex looked. He could see Alex looking sick to his stomach while I was sitting in such close proximity.”
I was going to let Raquel have it, you hear me? But the knock at the door interrupted us. She jumped to answer it, as if she just knew this was the commercial break needed from the bomb she dropped.
“Hey, Romeo!” She turned to look at me, her eyes widened in playful surprise. I narrowed my eyes at her, telepathically communicating that she wasn’t slick. She wasn’t - but Romeo really was at the door. Alone. Without Dilayla.
“I just wanted to… “ He stopped as he walked toward me, the huge bouquet of red roses in his hand. I could smell their rich fragrance from across the room. He placed them in my arms, and I melted.
“They’re beautiful…” I crooned. I closed my eyes and took a deep inhale. The velvety petals released a sensuous aroma I could sleep on.
“I heard you needed a little cheering up,” he said, biting his lip as he looked at Raquel. She blushed sheepishly and tiptoed off.
Standing there, in front of me again, he made my heart melt. It was way too soon for me to feel delicious tingles and butterflies, but he inspired tempting thoughts of throwing away inhibitions to live in the moment.
Why not? Alex clearly wasn’t going to be here for me. And he wouldn’t be thinking about me until he got back.
I mean, he never cared anyway.
“Do you need a ride tonight?” He said. “I didn’t see any car besides Raquel’s outside.”
“I, uh.” Get it together, Beverly.
“You can ride with me?” Raquel offered sweetly. She continued to bat her eyelashes with an expression that begged me not to be mad at her.
“Nah, mama,” Romeo cut in. His eyes never left me as he stepped forward and wrapped one of his bronzed, muscular arms around me. “I think she knows I got her if she needs me. For anything.”
The way he said anything was rich, loaded with unspoken promise. Like he wanted the sensuality of that loyalty to get under my skin and make me squirm.
God, I shouldn’t have been, but he had me soooo wet without trying…
“I could use a ride,” I said, finally, looking up at him with a cultivated sultriness, my expression filled with enough innocence to allure.
“I’d love to give you a ride.” His hand slipped into mine, grasping as if we did this all the time. “Raquel, we’ll see you later.”
“But I didn’t get to pay — “ She fished in her purse, but Romeo held out a hand.
“No worries. Got you.” He dug into his pocket and pulled out some money. He peeled off several large bills - all $100s and $50s - folded them, and slid them in my free palm.
I almost passed out. It was more than the cost of Raquel’s makeup beat. His voice lowered, as he asked, “This enough, mami?”
Romeo
Boldly sweeping her body with my eyes, I paused and wa
ited for an answer. I’d just given Beverly $200 for Raquel’s makeup job, eager to whisk her away so she could be my date for tonight.
Her pretty eyes fluttered as she looked at the money in her hand, yet said nothing. No answer wasn’t a proper answer. To me, it meant she hadn’t been paid enough. I went in my pocket, ready to pull out some more money when she stopped me.
“No, no.” Her manicured hand waved as she spoke. “This is actually more than enough. Thank you.”
“Yes, thank you Romeo.” Raquel spoke with obvious relief. Her shoulders relaxed as she smiled, but her expression was pensive.
The ladies exchanged silent words with each other. Raquel was the more unsettled one, shifting from side to side with what appeared to be guilt on her face. Beverly silently gathered her bags and makeup cases.
“Did I interrupt something?”
“No.” They denied in unison, but the room remained awkward and silent.
I grabbed Raquel’s bags as I took them to the car. She didn’t need to haul all of that work when I was around for her. I wanted her to know I was all in and ready to please from jump.
“We’ll talk later,” Beverly said cordially to Raquel as she grabbed her purse and the flowers. Raquel nodded silently. Her face deepened with embarrassment, and something told me she’d confessed her previous connection to Beverly’s ex.
I decided to cut in with a little charm to lighten the mood. “You look beautiful, Rocky. Enjoy your photo session, and I’ll see you later tonight.” I winked at her and looked in Beverly’s direction, licking my lips in delight. My silliness caused her to laugh, breaking the tension in her countenance.
I opened the door for Beverly, loaded her bags and cases in the backseat, and got into the driver’s side.
“Are you hungry?” I asked. She shook her head, and I pressed. “You just spent an hour doing makeup, and the event isn’t for a few more hours. I’m starving, so I’m going to eat either way. You sure you don’t want anything?”
“… I could eat.”
I gave her a sideways look as I pulled out onto Collins. It was a beautiful Miami afternoon, which meant traffic was busy as usual. My stomach was growling, and I was in the taste for good food with beautiful company.
“Sweetheart, if you’re hungry, you’re hungry. There’s nothing wrong with a woman who eats.” Her expression was conflicted. Something was definitely wrong, yet she was doing her best to pretend she was fine. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she quickly replied.
Sadness flashed over her face before she quickly masked it with an expression of neutrality.
“She must’ve told you.”
“Huh?” Her eyelashes fluttered and her serene beautiful face contorted with bewilderment.
“She told you about that asshole.” I stated it as a matter of fact, not a question. Dilayla hated how direct I was. She called me insensitive. I called it getting to the truth. Life was too damn short. Why beat around the bush when you can aim straight for the point?
Her face burned with anger. She covered her face, her voice rising with her temper. “Am I the only one who didn’t know?”
Her body shook. She was pissed. I reached for her hand and she jerked away and leaned against the window. “Don’t touch me!”
I raised my hand in compliance and focused on the road. She hadn’t told me where she lived; as far as I was concerned, that meant she would be eating with me by default.
I drove down Collins, enjoying the weather while my stomach navigated. We rode in silence, but I observed her in my peripheral vision. She kept her face covered, but was more relaxed, like she was more embarrassed, and perhaps ready to shut down, than she was angry.
She was mad. Big mad with an apparent attitude. What for? Because I got to the point and put her on blast? That’s why people walked around in deception, because they didn’t want to confront things that made them upset.
Her silence felt hostile, especially since she leaned all the way to the other side of the car and didn’t even bother to look in my direction.
It was like I was the guy who broke her heart.
I was irritated. I shouldn’t have been, but I was. I’d just invited her out tonight, paid her handsomely for her services for Raquel, and purchased flowers for her. I wasn’t trying to hurt her. I just called it like I saw it, because it was all over her face.
Women liked to talk about what pissed them off, didn’t they? Didn’t she want a man who was willing to listen? If I gave her the opportunity to talk about what was going on, perhaps she would have felt better if she’d have taken it. My plan simply backfired.
If she were any other woman, I would have let her off at the nearest corner. She would’ve been invited to get the fuck out of my car and find an Uber, because I didn’t deserve to be a target of her emotions.
She was friends with Dilayla. Okay, maybe not friends, but they were acquaintances. And even if she were pissed with Raquel, the logistics of this getting back to Dilayla were strong enough to give me pause. She would tell me it was my fault for bringing it up to begin with.
I spotted a restaurant up the road to my right. A small sedan had just pulled out of its parking space on the street. It was a tight squeeze but I pulled my car in.
I opened the Beverly’s door for her, but she just scowled.
“I said I wasn’t hungry.”
“You said you could eat,” I replied matter-of-factly. “I’m starving. Let’s get some tacos.”
I nodded my head to the restaurant, Orange Blossom, right in front of us.
“I don’t like tacos.”
“We can get you a salad, linguine, whatever you want, mami.” This was one of the nice-but-not-too-nice restaurants in Miami. The menu had variety and options for everyone.
Unimpressed, Beverly’s arms folded.
“Sweetheart, I’m not going to leave you in the car for an hour while I eat.”
“It’s going to take you an hour to eat?”
I shrugged. She rolled her eyes, sucked her teeth with major attitude, and grabbed her purse as she stepped out. The warm fragrance of her skin erupted as she sauntered past me with just enough switch to make my dick stretch itself out down the leg of my pants.
What the fuck? I thought to myself. I’d bought her flowers, was taking her home, and just wanted to treat her nicely, but I was genuinely thrown off by her attitude. I wanted to say, “Fuck it. Go home.” But I was a gentleman. I wouldn’t let her demeanor pull me out of character. That would be giving her too much power.
“Table for two,” I instructed the hostess.
“Table or booth sir?”
I wanted to give Beverly the opportunity to make a selection, but she was on her phone, clearly ignoring the conversation. I shrugged. “Booth is fine, love.”
We were seated fairly quickly. The hostess placed our menus on the table. Tension coiled around us, thick enough to cut with a knife. I had no idea how to change the conversation or switch the mood, and I was beginning to feel hangry myself, so I decided to check my phone instead.
My texts were pretty clean, but I had plenty of Snapchat action going. Women were replying to videos and sending private snaps. Plenty of them were purple, letting me know there were videos. I ignored them for the moment. I knew most of them weren’t explicit; I just didn’t want Beverly to feel disrespected by other women.
Even if she were clearly disinterested in anything going on this side of the table.
“Hello! How are you today? I’m Melissa, your server this afternoon. Can I start you off with something to drink?” The waitress smiled politely, holding her checkbook in hand, pen ready for use.
“I’m actually ready to order. I’ll have the yellow tail tacos, and the fresh market salad with chicken,” I said. “Give me the drink with the pineapples, and lemon.”
“Which one sir? We have the Green Goddess and the Shine?”
“What’s the difference?”
“They’re almost exactly alike, but t
he Green Goddess has kale and the Shine has cucumber.”
“Eh… Green Goddess.”
“Great choice.” She turned to Beverly. “And for you ma’am?”
“Watermelon Kiss and Kale Chicken Sandwich.”
“Excellent choice.”
The waitress confirmed our orders and excused herself. Beverly and I exchanged glances. Her gorgeous face was pinched with irritation. She jammed her fingers away on her cell phone, more than likely shit-talking Raquel.
“You okay over there?”
“Mmm-hm.” She said, returning her attention to her phone. Her bottom lip was pulled in while she tapped away on her phone.
“Well, what should I know about you, beautiful?” I leaned forward, hoping to grab her interest and steer the conversation back to a good place.
“You tell me. Seems like you already know more than enough about me,” she snapped.
My patience was being tested to the max. It seemed the more I tried, the nastier she got. I swallowed, quietly assessing. Dilayla told me to leave her alone. She did. But I was attracted to her beauty, her softness, the way she composed herself. Despite what she had going on in her life, I thought I could just come in and make things better.
Everything was backfiring miserably. If I wasn’t so damn hungry, I would’ve smoothly escorted her out the restaurant, taken her home, and made plans to never speak to her again.
My gaze traveled across the restaurant and locked with a woman in a blue dress. She was a pretty, African American, with cinnamon brown skin and dark natural curls. She smiled, and I smiled back. Nothing intense, I wasn’t interested in her, just being polite because that’s how I was raised.
“Do you smile and flirt with other women every time you’re on a date?” Beverly growled. She looked at the girl, giving her bitch eyes and sucking her teeth loudly
“Do you make every man pay for the mistakes of the last man who hurt you?” My expression darkened as I looked her dead in the eye. I couldn’t believe she was coming at me so crazily, and I didn’t have patience for accusations and attacks.
“There’s no need to be a smart ass. I’m just asking a question, Romeo.” She scoffed. “I should have known a man like you would only live up to your name.”