Somebody Else's Man

by Daaimah S. Poole

  I drove Dre to the airport because he had to go out of town to look at a few more properties. Then I came in and went to work. My trainee program would begin in a few weeks. The transition team was gone. I had recommended Maritza for my position and was steadily trying to keep the standards high. Who knew the next time we would have a surprise inspection? Just as I got settled to get ready for my day, I got a call from Ms. Pam. She wanted to know if I had seen Dre.

  “I just dropped him off at the airport. He went out of town on business, Ms. Pam.”

  “Nicole, if you talk to him, have him call me. Tell him it is important.”

  “Is there anything I can do?”

  “No, Pumpkin is in jail and she needs bail money. I wish she would learn to leave other people’s stuff alone. What’s wrong with this girl?” Damn, he had all these family problems, it was crazy. I knew I couldn’t help her, so I told her I would try to reach him.

  I called Dre and updated him about everything and told him to call his mother. Minutes later he called me back. “Nicole, go to my house and in my closet, behind my shoe boxes, there is a safe. The combination is fourteen, six, thirty-nine. Take ten thousand dollars and go meet my mom and give it to her.”

  “Hold on, so I can write this down. You said fourteen, six, thirty-nine?”

  “Yeah. I have to go—I’m on the plane and they are asking me to turn my phone off. Leave me a message when you are done.”

  I told Maritza to hold the fort down while I drove to go pick up Dre’s money to give to his mom. Once I reached her house she asked me to drive her to the police station in Chester County to get Pumpkin out. Once we got there, we tried to give them cash and they said they would only accept a certified check. We had to ride around and find a bank and then pay five dollars to get the check.

  It was nearly one when it was over. I was exhausted. Ms. Pam told me I could leave while she waited for officers to release Pumpkin. I knew I couldn’t leave her so I waited, and that took another two hours. Pumpkin walked out of the courthouse like it was a regular day and me and her mom hadn’t wasted our entire day trying to secure her freedom.

  “Thanks, Mom. I’m going to pay you back.”

  “Don’t thank me. Thank your brother. He got you out, and Nicole brought me up here and ran around with me all day.”

  Pumpkin turned to me and said, “Oh, thanks. Tell Dre, I got him. I should have never went in the Gap. They are so lame. I saw the security guard looking at me, so I put the jacket back. And they still locked me up. The guard was going to let me go, but the girls behind the counter insisted on calling the police.”

  “Don’t be blaming the cashiers. How about don’t steal at all, Pumpkin. I’m sick and tired of having to constantly bail you out of jail,” Ms. Pam yelled.

  Pumpkin just sighed, acting like her mom was getting on her nerves. It was obvious she had no remorse whatsoever. After all of the running around, I still had to go back to the office and work. I didn’t know how much more I could take of Ms. Pam, Mercedes, Pumpkin, and everybody else. By the time Dre called me I was knocked out. I was emotionally drained from all the running around for some unappreciative person.

  “Yeah, thanks for earlier. My mom said how helpful you were. I really appreciate it. I know my mom can be a little bit overwhelming at times. If they call you too much, just don’t pick up.” He didn’t have to tell me that twice. “When they can’t get to me now, they going to try to get the closest thing to me, which is you.”

  “I’m the closest thing to you?”

  “Yeah, you are.”

  “Whatever.” I played it off like I wasn’t flattered, which I was. “So, did you like any of the houses this time?”

  “Yup, I bought a house.”

  “You did!” That was fast, I thought.

  “I’m going to move down here. I really like it.”

  “That’s good. Well I’m going to rest a little. I’ll call you back.” I had to get off the phone with Dre. He bought a house and I felt a little hurt. I guess we weren’t as strong as I thought we were since he went and bought a house and was planning a major move without bothering to discuss it with me.

  CHAPTER 22

  Dre had Brandon and his team in my house on a daily basis and they were almost finished. They even kept Smokebreak and Pee Wee around to help on my house and some other jobs. Dre said they both were good workers. I was a little surprised. But I guess you have to make money to buy beer some kind of way. I’ve been staying with Dre until they finish it. Then I guess I’m going to move into my house.

  I hadn’t called Reshaun in a long time—she’d been leaving me messages, but I had been overwhelmed with work and Dre. Now I had some free time, so I dialed her up. “Don’t be mad at me.”

  “I’m not. You must be in love. I know you’d better have a good excuse for not calling me back.”

  “No, just been tied up with my house being remodeled, and Dre and his family.”

  “You met his family?”

  “Yeah, I’m all in good with his mom. She’s real nice and two of his sisters are cool. But the baby sister is crazy. I had to bail her out of jail. But I don’t know what’s going to happen with us. Dre just bought a house in Georgia and he said he is moving down there. He didn’t even ask me how I felt about it. How’s everything going with you?” I asked.

  “Good. I was calling to tell you Tia had her baby.”

  “Oh, she did? That’s good. What she have?”

  “A girl.”

  “Oh, that’s so sweet. That’s really nice. What she name the baby and who the baby look like?”

  “She told me what she named the baby, but I forgot. But she had a little girl. She sent me the picture on e-mail. I’m going to forward it to you.”

  “Don’t forward me the picture. Stop telling me about her. I don’t care. Tia is not my friend no more. You know I don’t mess with that girl like that.”

  “I know you say that, but I know, deep down, y’all still want to be friends.”

  “No, I don’t. I’m good. But I’m happy for her. I’m sure she’ll be a good mother. Like I said, I’m really happy for her. But that’s as far as it goes.”

  “Nicole, you should really call her.”

  “No, I shouldn’t!”

  “Yes, you should, because Lamar left her. And she down there all alone. Her mom and none of her family is helping her out the way you would expect them to. They ain’t doing right or supporting her, because they never liked Lamar anyway. The last time I talked to her, she sounded real down and I’m sure if she heard from you, that would make her day.”

  “Reshaun! Tia is never going to hear from me. Stop trying to be the peacemaker. I’m not calling her. That’s on her. This is what happens when you do dirt. You get dirt. You think all of this is an accident? Nope, it’s called payback.”

  “You wrong, Nikki.”

  “Whatever. I’m out; I’ll talk to you later.” I hung up on Reshaun. Truth be told, I really did feel sorry for Tia. I was so happy she had a baby girl. But I was also mad. I was supposed to be there when she had that baby. We were going to name our kids after each other, but she messed all that up over a couple of dollars that she ain’t never seen. I wished she wouldn’t have ever stayed with Lamar. This was the great part of her life that I will never get to experience with her. I should have been there when her baby was born. I didn’t get a chance to give her a baby shower or help her decorate a nursery. She messed all of that up. It was supposed to be me and her against the world. I never thought it would ever be her against me. I sat there thinking about Tia and her dumbness until the phone rang. I picked up, ready to yell at Reshaun again.

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  “Nothing’s wrong, what’s up?”

  “You in the house?” Dre asked.

  “Yes, I’m in the house.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Why are you always asking me am I sure? I hate when you start that checking-up-on-me shit. It’s irritatin
g.”

  “I just have to make sure. What’s with you? Why does it seem like you have an attitude?”

  “I don’t have an attitude—it’s just my old best friend just had her baby. Reshaun said her boyfriend left her.”

  “That’s messed up. Maybe you should call her if it is like that.”

  “I’m thinking about it. When you going to be home? I need you.”

  “I’m on my way home now. Your house is done. We going to check it out tomorrow.”

  “Okay, bye, Dre.” Even hearing that great news, I couldn’t be happy. I was still kind of in a bad mood. I wished I never called Reshaun.

  Dre covered my eyes and walked me into my new house. He opened the front door. I couldn’t wait to see all the changes. Dre took his hands off my eyes and said, “So what do you think?” I opened my eyes and was amazed. My living room already was furnished.

  The entire house was so bright and open. I had all new walls that were painted a crisp off-white. They had knocked down the wall that separated the kitchen and dining room. With the wall gone it was one huge room. I could see the beautiful kitchen from the front door. I excitedly walked into the kitchen. It had black Silestone countertops, ceramic tile backsplash, and the dark brown cabinets were huge. I opened the cabinet doors and saw empty shelf space. I turned to Dre and gave him a hug.

  “Babe, this is so nice.”

  “There’s more to see. Go upstairs.”

  “Okay,” I said as I jogged up the stairs and gazed at my new bathroom. I had a shower in one corner and a large, deep, claw-foot tub in the other. From there I stepped into the middle room, which was plain, but my back room was already set up like a study. Dre had a silver-metal computer desk and bookshelves. I came out of the office and spun around toward my bedroom. It had white track lights on the ceiling and a big cappuccino-black canopy bed in the center of the room. Across from the bed was a thirty-two-inch television on the wall. I stood in shock, a little bit in disbelief. It was so pretty. I needed a moment. I was about to cry. I never thought I would see my house look like this.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, it is just so nice. You did all this for me?”

  “Yeah, I did it for us. I’m going to be staying here too. So I have to make it comfortable,” Dre said, bringing me into his chest and holding me.

  “That’s the only reason why you made it nice,” I said, pulling back from him and lightly punching his arm. I took a long sigh of relief, because I was finally home.

  CHAPTER 23

  All this time I wanted my house fixed and now that it was, I never stayed there. I officially lived with Dre. All my belongings were at his house. His house really looked like our house. I rearranged the living room and we bought a new television. Our bathroom was filled with his-and-her body products, and I had almost taken over his closet. He complained about my shoes and hair products. I transferred all of my mail, and I go past my real house every few days just to check on things. A few months ago I would have given a kidney to have that house completed. Now it didn’t mean that much. Now that I’ve moved, Lolo finds reasons to call me. She’ll ask me if I’ve seen her hair dryer or a sweater she hasn’t worn in years. She found any reason to call me. I saw her number and answered.

  “Hey, Mom.”

  “No, it’s me, Ernest. How’s it going, Nikki?”

  “Good.”

  “Well, that’s good, real good. I wanted to ask you can you come over for dinner? Sometime this week.”

  “I’m going to try. I’m really busy at my job. So I’m going to see.”

  “Your mom really misses you. She won’t tell you but she does. Now I know you have your house and new life, but please come over today or tomorrow. Just come and sit and talk to her.”

  “I can’t, I have something to do today.”

  “Well, how about tomorrow?”

  “Okay, I’ll be there tomorrow.”

  Ain’t life funny, Lolo missing me. I would have to go and hang out with her. But not today. Today, I had a hair appointment with Alex. Mercedes and I were going to get our hair done and go to dinner.

  We arrived at Alex’s hair salon. He put us in front of all his clients and no one said a word. His clients like to hang out at his shop to get a good laugh. Alex was so damn funny, plus he could do some hair. I was in his chair and he was curling my hair and telling me another story about Dre.

  “So, y’all, these boys was bothering me, right? And they said they wanted to fight me. I was so scared. I didn’t want to fight. So I called Dre and he was right there. He was not letting anybody mess with his cousin. But it was like six of them and two of us. But I didn’t care, so I start windmilling on them, right?” he said as he started demonstrating for us, waving his hands and arms in all directions. “So Dre saw me fighting like a cat and called me out in front of everybody. He was like, ‘Alex, stop fighting like a girl and put your fist up.’ I didn’t know what that meant, but I balled up my fist and we beat the whole school yard. Ain’t nobody ever fuck with me again. That’s my cousin. He is all right with me. Ever since then I be like, ‘Cousin, whatever you need I got you.’ I told him I would cut his hair.”

  “He don’t want you in his hair, Alex,” Mercedes chimed in.

  “Why not? I would hook his hair up. Give him waves for days,” Alex said, returning to my head.

  “That’s exactly why you won’t get in his hair,” Mercedes laughed.

  “Whateva. Tell Dre I’m here for him. And look how pretty you look, Nicole. You are a baby doll. I knew you were a diva,” Alex squealed as he turned me to the mirror to see my hair. I thanked him and paid him. I loved the way he had my hair bouncy and flowing.

  Me and Mercedes left the hair salon and went to the Outback for dinner. Mercedes was telling me one of her many dating horror stories. I felt so bad for her. She was going through exactly what I was going through all these years. From the married men to the clowns who didn’t deserve another date. And I just couldn’t understand it. She was petite, cute, had a good job and nice home. I didn’t understand why someone wouldn’t see that and take her off the single circuit.

  “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” Mercedes said.

  “It’s not you, it’s them. I don’t think there are any good men out here.” In the middle of me comforting Mercedes, her brother called.

  “Hey, Dre.”

  “Where are you?”

  “At dinner with your Mercedes.”

  “Where at?”

  “Outback.”

  “Oh, you have to get me the Chocolate Thunder from Down Under.”

  “Okay, Dre, I got you. You don’t want anything else?”

  “No, just that, and I see you when you home.”

  “What my brother want?”

  “Some dessert.” We both laughed and continued to try to come up with a plan to get her a good man.

  I walked in Dre’s house and called his name. He said he was upstairs. I grabbed a spoon out of the kitchen and brought him up his dessert. He was sitting in the bed all relaxed. I sat on the bed and handed Dre his plastic container filled with sweetness.

  “Can I come home to you every day? This all I need, some good food and a beautiful woman.”

  “That’s not food. I wish you’d eat some real food. You are going to develop diabetes. You need some vegetables and protein.”

  “I had a mushroom cheesesteak earlier today.” He laughed.

  I undressed, took a shower, and went to lie next to him. Dre was already finished eating and just about asleep. He sat up and looked at me very seriously and said, “Let me ask you something.”

  “What?”

  “You ready to move with me to Georgia?”

  “I can’t move to Georgia.”

  “Why not?”

  “Dre, it’s thousands of reasons. Mainly because I just can’t pick up and move to Georgia and sell my house.”

  “But if I’m down there and you are up here, I guess we breaking up?” Dre aske
d, confused.

  “No, we don’t have to break up, we can do the long distance thing.”

  “The long distance thing—are you serious, Nicole?”

  “Very.”

  “Why?”

  “Because, Dre, that is your house and not mine, and what happens if I sell my house and give up everything here and then we break up?”

  “We are not going to break up again. It’s your house, too.”

  “No, it’s not our house. I’m not your wife. You can kick me out at any given time.”

  “You think I would kick you out? I love you too much now. You going to be my wife one day. We stuck with one another.”

  “Dre, I’m not your wife yet, so I can’t leave everything. If anything happens I’m going to look crazy.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “It means exactly what you think it means. I’m not making no big moves like that. Not as your girlfriend.”

  “Forget it, we’ll talk about this another time. Because I know you are moving with me. I’ll convince you.”

  Okay, if you say so, I thought as I lay in the bed and dozed off.

  CHAPTER 24

  “There is a guest complaint,” Maritza said, tapping on my office door with a cheesy grin.

  “It never stops, does it? Why don’t they go stay at another hotel,” I murmured under my breath. “What’s wrong this time?”

  “I don’t know. The woman said something about being double-billed on her credit card.”

  “Pull up the file and tell her I will contact her before the end of the day.”

  Maritza nodded and then walked out of my office. A few moments later, she came back and said, “She needs to speak with a manager, right now.”

  I eyed the piles and piles of paper on top of my desk. I had so much work to do. I really didn’t have time for this, but I reluctantly got up from my chair and came up to the front. I walked up to the front desk and didn’t see any irate guest. All I saw was Ms. Pam and Mercedes. “What are y’all doing here?”