"You might be right about that. She wouldn’t let us walk into the building until she got her story out about sleeping with her ex. Then, I get in there and find out its Jacob.”
“Maybe he slept with her in retaliation for you and Destiny sleeping together. We men don’t get over cheating easily. A man that’s used to having his way like Jacob is probably worse,” Mario threw in.
“He’d better not be fucking around with my family because of his ego. The only reason I gave my blessings for her to move my kids to Miami because she convinced me of how good he was to her. I didn’t want to get in the way of her happiness, since she was hell bent that it couldn’t happen with me.”
"Well, that's really all you can do at this point."
"What’s that?"
"Stay out the way."
"That’s what I should do, but after Destiny kissed me tonight, and I found out about—”
“Wait a minute. She kissed you?”
“Yeah, but it was more of a ‘thanks for letting me go,’ goodbye kiss.”
“Uh huh.”
“It shook me up and finding out this mess makes me want to tell her to save her from marrying the jerk. I just don’t want to look like a troublemaker and it backfire on me.”
“And a troublemaker is exactly what you will look like." We both pause on the line, thinking. "Man look, it’s not your place to reveal her fiancé’s unfaithfulness. Y’all already been through this anyway. It’s a replay in reverse. You slept with Destiny, Jacob forgave her. He slept with Justine. What you think she’s gonna do for him?” he asked but didn’t give me a chance to formulate an answer. “She’ll forgive him like he did for her, and you will be stuck looking like the bad guy for trying to break them up.”
“But don’t you think she deserves to know? Jacob knows about what we did, but he gets to walk around like his hands are clean,” I argue.
“What’s done in the dark will come to light. You don’t even have to worry about it.”
“You’re right about that,” I said sounding half persuaded.
“In the end, you’re gonna do what you wanna do about it, but my two cents is that you leave it alone. Just let everybody ride their own waves and come to their own destination. They are not married yet, so just let them be and move on. You know what I always say; every dog has his day."
“True, and that’s the same advice I would give you. But the way I feel about her is nagging at my heart. This bit of info could be a game changer if that dog's day was today.”
“It could change everything in a negative way too. On the upside, she might leave him. Downside, they grow even closer and she pulls away from you for causing her pain. The messenger almost always gets shot. With your kids in her custody, you don’t need that. Think about all of it and I’m with you, whichever way you roll,” Mario said before adding in a Chris Tucker voice, “Damn, this situation is messed up.”
“Now you got Friday jokes? That's how you do me?”
“Nah, we good. Stay up Mont.”
“Thanks bro. Talk to you later.”
I hung up the phone with my thoughts no clearer than they were when I called my boy. I still had my finger hovering over Destiny's name on my phone ready to expose Jacob’s secret. She was always mine. Why should I give up at a time when I had such explosive ammo at my disposal?
CHAPTER SEVEN
Montie
Justine, Justine
The next morning, I was still lit about finding out Tracye was a fake name that Justine had given me to get close to me. The past few days had been an emotional rollercoaster at best, tragic at worst. Justine, the woman that tried taking Destiny away from me, away from my children, had the last laugh. The last thing I wanted to do was have sex with that evil bitch. Rearrange her face maybe, but not betray Destiny, no matter how our relationship had turned out.
“Mr. Brown, you have a call on line two,” Shalonda buzzed into my office. Thankful for the interruption from my thoughts, I answered immediately.
“Montie Brown speaking.”
“Montie! I’m glad you answered,” Justine’s voice sang out.
“Make this the last time that you call me.”
“Oh, so now you want to act like we didn’t share something beautiful this weekend?”
“Justine, why are you calling my place of business? I didn’t share anything beautiful with you. I had a roll in the sack with a woman who called herself Tracye,” I snapped out in a loud grate.
“I want to talk to you.”
“We did all the talking we’re going to do when I was in Miami. I’m done with you, so don’t call me anymore and you had better not do anything to hurt Destiny.” I felt the need to tell her that hurting Destiny was off limits. “If you think you’ve ever felt wrath, times that by ten and imagine it happening to you repeatedly, if anything happens to the mother of my children,” I warned with the unmitigated truth.
“Temper, temper.” She laughed as if I’d told a hilarious joke. “I wish I was nearby. Angry sex is to die for.”
“You can think I’m joking, but you haven’t seen anything, Justine. Try me.”
“Everyone thinks Destiny is worth protecting, as if she is so precious. What about me? What about you and Jacob having me in your beds and taking all you wanted from me? I bet you didn’t tell your precious Destiny that Jacob slept with me in their new house. Hell, I bet you didn’t even tell her about us.”
“That’s no one’s business but the people involved. Besides, who’s to say you’re not just lying about Jacob?”
“I don’t tell lies.”
“Well, who is Tracye?” I pulled the phone away from my ear, about to hang up on this mockery of a conversation.
“That part was a lie,” she admitted. “I couldn’t very well walk up to you and introduce myself as the woman who everyone thinks is the spawn of the devil, could I? You never would have given me a chance if you knew I was the same woman that…” she paused and I finished her thought.
“Put my ex-wife in the hospital? You’re damn right, I wouldn’t have. A chance to do what exactly, ruin us even more? No, thank you,” I argued.
“Montie, I’m sorry.”
“Save your apology for someone who wants it. It’s not like you wanted me; you just wanted to get close to Jacob and to humiliate Destiny.”
“So maybe I did,” she said, her voice growing sinister. “Who do you think you’re kidding? I saw the way you looked at her at the rehearsal. You want her back. You want her so bad your soul is tortured by it. I’ve given you all the ammo you need to get what your heart desires. If she finds out that I slept with Jacob, she will come running back to your open arms. My plan will work.”
“If you want your secret out, tell her yourself, Justine. Leave me out of it!”
“She won’t not believe me.”
“Not my problem.”
“But she’ll listen to you, Montie.”
“Again, not my problem. Now, if you would be so kind as to forget you met me, I would appreciate it,” I said through clenched teeth. I could hear her pleading for me not to hang up on her as my phone dropped back down onto the receiver.
The drama had me reeling. I only had solace behind my desk buried in paperwork and working hard to tone out the noise of my personal life. Justine’s call threatened to break into that little bit of peace before I remembered the power of hanging up.
I vowed from that moment forward to put space between anything stressing me out, starting with Justine and me. Separating from Destiny would be more challenging, but I would take Mario's advice and stay out of it. It would be hard considering my children bind me to her. I would have to look in her face knowing everything she was building was on a lie.
The tiny, adorable faces of Montie Jr. and Montana assailed my mind. I let out a loud sigh as separation anxiety rushed all over me. Everything other than the love I had for my children was wrong, just wrong. The only two loves of my life were miles away being fathered by a cheater.
My phone rang again, pulling me out of my morbid thoughts.
“Montie, Holistic Medical is on your second line. It’s the CEO,” Shalonda’s voice rang out over the intercom.
“Thank you,” I said, pressing the button for my line and answering a call I welcomed. “Montie Brown speaking.”
“Hello Montie, Mr. Bromage here. I’m calling to see how things are going with my software. My new computers came in today and have been installed. Once your tech people get your piece hooked up, I can have my office manager set up start dates for our admin people. We’re eager to open for business and want to get some sort of a timeline.”
“I understand your urgency, Mr. Bromage. I have a meeting tomorrow morning with a partner company I've contracted to help meet your deadline. I’ll be able to give you a better estimate of go-live time after that meeting, for sure,” I said.
“We need it within the next week, sooner if you can get it done this week,” he said, as if coding software specific to his company’s culture and guidelines was something he could pull up to the drive-thru window and order. Ah no.
“Hey, I understand your readiness to get your hands on the software, but, like we discussed last week when you signed your contract, it will take at least two weeks to get a test environment ready to review. It will be another week after that is approved for us to work out any kinks. That’s provided those revisions are minimal.”
“I can’t wait three weeks to get started,” he said an octave higher in tone.
I wasn’t surprised by Mr. Bromage rushing me. My customers thought I was a magic maker, and for the most part, I delivered on that reputation. The last business working on his project didn’t complete it in a timely fashion. He’d only called me last week with this difficult, detailed software order that he wanted created from ground zero. I had zero chill for being rushed.
“Mr. Bromage, I work as hard and fast as I can for all of my clients. That’s my company’s promise. My portfolio is filled with lucrative deals that, as you know, were not thrown together. For perfection, you will have to give us time—at least a month total,” I said.
He let out an irritated sigh and murmured something under his breath that I didn’t catch. I had a team of lawyers on standby for situations like this. Our contract stated everything I’d just spoken to him.
“Well, work as fast as you can,” he said in a demanding tone.
“Rest assured that you’re in the best hands you'll be able to find in this area, if not the entire industry.” And that’s a fact.
“I’ll follow up tomorrow,” he said, hanging up the phone before I had the chance to let him know that calling everyday would not speed up the process.
I dialed Shalonda’s extension.
“Yes sir.”
“When Mr. Bromage calls from now on, take a message. I’ll return his calls when I have time, okay?”
“Okay,” she said and her voice was so light that I knew she was grinning. I rarely put a client on my no-talk list, but I couldn’t let Mr. Bromage worry the dickens out of me for two weeks. I was doing everything in my power to get his work done in half the time as it was.
"Is my meeting still set with Lissa McDaniels from Naytek tomorrow?" I asked Shalonda.
"Yes sir, she will be here at 10 a.m."
“Good,” I hung up and sat back in my chair. I pulled up Lissa’s website once again. Naytek had an impressive client list to include Emory University and University of Alabama at Birmingham. Their designs were sleek and touted as user friendly. I picked up my phone and called Lissa personally, just to see if there was anything I could do ahead of our meeting to make it more productive.
“Hello,” a melodic voice answered on the second ring.
“Hi, is this Mrs. McDaniels?”
“This is she.”
“This is Montie Brown of True Colors Technology. We have a meeting tomorrow.”
“Hi Mr. Brown, yes I’m looking forward to our meeting.”
I smiled at the sound of her delicately sweet voice. “I am too because we have a lot to get hashed out. The reason I’m calling is to see if there is anything specific you need from me ahead of tomorrow’s meeting. I just want to be prepared for you.”
“Wow, really? It’s rare that anyone calls to see what I need beforehand. I appreciate you doing that; however, I can’t think of anything right now. Shalonda has been a huge help when I called for more information about the software you need.”
Shalonda was worth her weight in gold. She took great notes at my client meetings, was knowledgeable in codes and could easily stand in for me if I were not available.
“That’s good to hear. Well, I’m excited about our meeting. Mr. Bromage at Holistic Medical is eager to get the final product in his hands. In fact, he called me today about it,” I said.
“I’m confident you both will be satisfied with what we come up with. So, I’ll see you tomorrow at ten?” she confirmed.
“See you then.” I hung up the phone with a subconscious smile all over. Lissa McDaniel’s confidence left me feeling accomplished after chasing her down to and securing a meeting with her. I couldn’t wait to dive back into work with the best creatives in Atlanta.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Lissa
Yes, to Me
I laid down on the bed and picked up my book, Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes. It had been a while since I read a good book, especially one that didn’t have to do with coding or selling software. If I wasn’t reading those types of books, I was studying a new client’s website so I would know the best way to secure a deal as the CEO of the fasting growing software design company in the south, Naytek Corp. A friend referred Shonda’s book to me when I was going through some drama with my last relationship. Boy, was I glad I took her advice and allowed this book to pour into me. Right off the bat, I was enjoying the quirky sense of humor and inspiration through telling of the writer’s life’s story. I reached the part where she said she would ‘say Yes to saying No to people who were toxic in her life.’ I paused and just laid there reflecting on the toxic people I'd said Yes to in my recent past.
“What a way to put things into perspective,” I said to my empty room. “I’ve been saying yes to all the wrong people.”
First, there was Seth Baker, Mr. Smooth as a Chocolate Mimosa sitting on chill on a scorching hot summer day. I met him on a business trip and, by the end of the night, I was singing his name to everyone on our floor at the Hilton. At the end of the business conference, we both went our separate ways but we stayed in touch. We had frequent bump and grind visits and I fell in love. I invited him completely into my world. A gesture he didn’t return. He kept me out in the cold, not letting me know much about him besides his body and where he worked. Seth led me on, pretended to want me more than I craved cheesecake. When I was so gone off him that I couldn’t stand to breathe without him around, I found out about his wife and kids.
Next up was Jameson Brown. Lord, as a side note, I hope he’s no relation to Montie Brown, who I have a meeting with tomorrow. My research hasn’t shown any relation. I don’t even want to be in the presence of his family. I just knew Jameson would be different from Seth. He was a single lawyer, a preacher’s son, and had a milk chocolate physique that just melted in your mouth. We started with a slow, simmering heat, building our friendship before an explosive fire detonated among us. I thought that set him apart from Seth and I let my guard down, until Rhonda, a woman from his past, resurfaced ready to resume their puppy love from grade school. I felt hurt by the way Jameson dumped me for Rhonda, but I also felt sorry for him. Rhonda was obsessed with my best friend’s life so much that she stole Shayla’s husband’s sperm, implanted into herself and had his child. I thought that bit of news would have been enough to shake some sense into Jameson. However, he stood by her side until she was locked away in a mental institution. Knowing him, he’s probably petitioning the courts to get her an early release. Jameson used me as a filler until his bat shit crazy high scho
ol sweetheart returned. Then he ran away just as fast as Seth did.
So yeah, I know a little bit about wasting time. My last two attempts at love taught me a lot. I made myself available to men too quickly. All they had to do was be fine and I was there for their every beckoning call. I had to be more careful in reading a person’s true intentions. Everyone that smiled and appeared to enjoy my company wasn’t into me the same way I was into them. Hard lessons had been learned, but it was fair in the game of love.
How many times had I worked tirelessly to satisfy a man only to find myself at this place of nothingness? Lying there with nothing to show for my affection—not a plaque, a t-shirt, hell not even a thank you for the good time, I knew I needed to turn my way of thinking around. This would be my year of Yes to myself and No to others.
“I needed to read this book. This is good,” I said as I turned the page. I finished off the current chapter and laid my book on the empty space of the bed beside me. Exhaustion lulled me into a light slumber with feeling of liberation from the positive thoughts that had swirled through my mind.
The next morning, I woke up and sat up in bed yawning. I stretched my arms wide and a smile followed suit as my hand came down on the book beside me. I beamed at the gentle reminder that today was the beginning of my own year of saying Yes to myself and No to other’s needs. I got my rejuvenated butt out of bed and headed to the bathroom. After dressing in a cute blue dress with an oversized navy-blue belt and matching blue shoes, I took a spin in the mirror. I was headed to see my new client, Mr. Brown, at True Colors Technology Group and I looked damn good. Confident that I’d be able to sell him one of our consultant packages, I stopped in the kitchen and popped a bagel in the toaster. I grabbed a bottle of orange juice and the bagel and headed out the door.
GPS brought me to a shopping center that held a large department store, grocery store and other businesses like nail shops and restaurants. On the end of the row of businesses’, a huge colorful sign caught my attention. It had all the colors of the rainbow with fluorescent lights displaying the different colors. You are a badass, Lissa. You crush business deals for breakfast and spit them out by lunch, I internally chanted the mantra I had been repeating ever since I threw myself into work after Jameson left me feeling lost. When I woke up from that train wreck of a relationship, I came back stronger with my career as my new love. Knowing that I could bring millions of dollars of revenue to my company annually by the work of my own hands became my midnight embrace.
Breathless 4: Loving Montie Page 5