I wasn’t rushing to be in a monogamous relationship. In fact, single with a double side of mingle, might be my status for some time to come. Doing as I pleased, with whom I pleased to do it with. I was young, attractive, no kids, a great career, and could retire today if I wanted to. The options for how I would proceed, were limitless. Nonetheless, treading careful was a major requirement.
I couldn’t risk letting another lost-ass dog enter my space. One like Drew Levine…
The level of hate that I had for that man was unreal—even for me. I had hated people before, but him… I hated to the core. To the point that I wouldn’t even offer even the smallest drip of water if I saw his ass on fire. If he was gunned down on the street, I might even offer the perp dinner and some pussy…
“Where’s your head, Nova?” My breath hitched when Mr. Canton snatched me from my thought pool.
“Huh? I’m sorry. What’d you say?”
“You’ve been quiet for pretty much the whole drive back.”
I forced a chuckle, and paired it with a fib. “Just thinking about how good that food was and how my energy is zapped.”
Mr. Canton laughed. “It was good eating, wasn’t it?”
“For sure. I think I’m done eating for the day. That meal will carry me ‘til tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” He looked away from the road for a split second. “No. If I told the missus that, she’d be calling and forcing you over for dinner. It’s just now a little past noon. You’ll need some kind of nourishment before you go to bed.”
“Yeah. I’ve got snacks for days, at home. I’m sure I’ll be raiding the pantry, or the fridge. Or may even stop at Panera on the way home.”
“Long as you eat something.”
“Okay, enough about food, Mr. Canton. Can I just say that this car is my obsession?” I admitted, when he parked his Aston Martin in the private garage at the back of the lot. “It’s so beautiful.”
“And can I just say that it’ll be a great day when you will finally arrive at a place where you’ll call me Randy, young lady?”
I squinted in my search for an answer. “I think there’s just too much respect there. I think it’d feel… weird.”
He turned to look at me after shutting down the near-silent engine. “Nova, I know that you respect me. And I respect that you hold me in such high regard, but I really do consider you family. Clearly, my queen does too.” He shrugged. “But I’ll let you pace yourself. Even if it’s another nine years ahead.” He started to laugh and then pat me on the hand. “I have something I need to say before we get back inside. I really need you to hear me. Okay?”
“Uh-oh. This sounds serious.”
“Not really. Just something I think you need to hear.”
“Okay.” I turned sideways in my seat and faced him. “I’m ready.”
“Don’t give up on love,” he advised, with all seriousness.
I nodded slowly, having felt all five of the words Mr. Canton had just spoken. Little did he know, I was already near that place. For now, I was resolved to having sex on an as-needed basis. The Love Store had locations all over Las Vegas, and Adam & Eve’s online catalog was like diving for treasure. Adult toys would help pass the time… if I needed that.
“Umm…” I stammered. “I’ll try.”
“Put that scum in your rearview, and let him choke on exhaust fumes.”
“Choke on exhaust fumes!” My laughter came loud. “I’d love to do just that.”
“Then do it. He was on the sampler platter and didn’t make the cut. Fuck him. He got his one-way ticket to where he belongs. The ultimate payback will be you moving on to something he could never be. Got it?”
It was the father chat I had never been gifted.
“I fully receive that, Mr. Can…” I paused. “I fully receive that, Randy.”
“There it is!” he exclaimed excitedly. “Bring it in,” he said, leaning over for me to peck him on the cheek.
When Randy and I walked back into the building, I felt lighter, happier. Everything was going to be fine. I already knew that, but time with people who cared, solidified it.
~*~*~
Once I got my second wind, the rest of my workday flowed at a nice pace.
I plowed through emails, checked on some orders that were sent to the shipping department, took a few calls, and ran some numbers for the sugar baby of some studio head from Los Angeles. It was a lot packed into a few hours, but I got it done.
By the time it was all said and done, I had worked up an urge to appease my sweet tooth with a Starbucks run. I padded over to my closet to grab my wallet, so that I could take the short walk to Starbucks. However, before I could reach my glass doors, the intercom on my desk buzzed.
Whaaat?! I need my sugar!
“Yes!” I called out from the closet entrance.
“Hey, Nova.” It was Kali’s smooth voice. “You have a visitor.”
A low growl escaped me. “A visitor? I don’t have anybody on schedule. Is it about a purchase?”
“Umm… I’m not sure.” Then came the whisper into the line. “I know you don’t like the pop-ups. She might be some kind of mistress or actress or something. She’s dressed the part. But she did drive up in something really nice. Says her name is Jennifer Kastellanos.”
Oh, this should be good. Probably even better than Starbucks.
“Go ahead and escort her back, Kali.”
Let the fun begin.
17 | Nova
When Jennifer Kastellanos slithered into my office, I instantly wanted to smack her. Just hard enough to knock her on her snobby ass. With that damn red hair and the tacky titty shirt, she was giving me Peg Bundy vibes. At least Peg was smart enough to sit her ass at home on the dingy family couch all day where nobody could see her ass. Not this one, though. She wanted to be seen. I just hoped for her sake, that she was ready to get triple whatever she attempted to dish out.
At lunch, I deliberately dismissed her. She was Casper, and I was that person who didn’t believe in ghosts. The only time I allowed her to exist, was during off times, when I caught her studying my interactions with her fine-ass brother. During those times, I made sure to smile extra big, laugh extra-hard—all while looking right at her. It was a deliberate jab that I knew she understood. Clearly, she did. That’s why she was here at my office uninvited.
I had to give it to her… she was bold. One thing about hate, it tends to make the weakest people exhibit forms of courage.
The look on Jennifer’s petite face was anything but pleasant. Pinched nose, tight lips and a slight scowl. The façade she wore at the restaurant had been ditched. But it was cool; I was more than ready to meet her where she was. The rest of the afternoon was hers if she wanted it.
I decided that Starbucks could wait.
I thanked Kali, before she traipsed off to leave me and Ms. Jenny K. Never knew what the “K” stood for the few times—pre-matrimony—that we encountered each other at different gatherings. Small world we live in.
“Would you like to have a seat?” I asked her, in the nicest tone I could muster.
“I didn’t come to sit, Nova. And I didn’t come for friendly chat, either.”
“Really?” I asked, drooling sarcasm. “And here I thought you showed up to pick up where we left off so many years ago.”
“Listen, I’m here for one reason and one reason only.”
“And what would that be?”
“You need to stay away from my brother.”
“Wait. Say what, now?” I moved around to the front of my desk, and leaned against the edge. I needed closer contact with this woman just in case I had to snatch her ass real quick. “I don’t even know your fine-ass brother. Not yet, anyway.” I chuckled, knowing that it would irritate every fiber of her jealous soul. “I might’ve put more energy into being your friend, had I known that you were hiding a sibling that looked like that.”
“Nova, this isn’t a game to me. I don’t want him anywhere near you.”
“I don’t know why anybody wants to be near you,” she shot, while scanning the luxurious surroundings of my beautiful office. “I’m sure that’s why your husband checked himself into the penitentiary—to get away.”
“Sticks and stones, baby girl. Try again.”
I offered her a smile, then brushed past her, to sit in one of my purple leather office chairs.
“Look, this isn’t a joke to me.”
“Well, it’s one to me. Because somehow, you’re still in that bigot stage that so many of your people are stuck in. But not your brother,” I sang. “It has to be really uncomfortable for you that he couldn’t stop directing his attention to me. All that dark, curly hair, those blue eyes, broad shoulders. He’s hot, Jennifer.” I hunched my shoulders and pushed out a loud puff of air. “I’m pretty sure I’m answering the phone when he calls.”
The crimson eclipse that was spreading across Jenn’s pretty little face, said loud and clear that I’d struck a nerve. I was enjoying it. And then came the words, “Fuck you, Nova.”
“Tsk, tsk… such language, Jenn. Why are you so bothered on this beautiful day? Is it that your brother likes chocolate? Or is it more personal than that, and it’s because he likes me?”
“Likes you? He doesn’t even know you!”
“Exactly. So why is it an issue for you so early on?” I stood from the chair and moved closer to her, stopping just a few inches from the border of her personal space. “At least let me fuck him first.”
She scoffed and rolled her eyes hard. “You’re so vulgar. Still the same tramp you always were.”
“Tramp? Girl, you’re the one standing up here with botched silicon all on display.” I looked down at her tasteless show of cleavage, then back up at her. With my nose turned up, I asked, “Ain’t you tired? Where’s ya ring? Your babies? Nobody wants to walk your tramp-ass down the aisle, huh? Poor ting.”
“And your life turned out so much better, huh?”
I smacked my lips, and smiled. “Kind of. Got my wonderful job, a big house to call my own, money in the bank—that belongs to me—that I made. I mean, I’d say I did pretty well. That man never defined me. He was good while he lasted. But I’m not out here with just a vehicle to show for anything. You, on the other hand…”
“You had a husband for about fifteen minutes, and want to make it sound like you’re such a prize. I may not have a husband, but you couldn’t hold onto yours. And then he chose your best friend over you.”
My arms outstretched, I slowly rolled my neck. “Yet, here I stand in the full grace of class and style, baby. And you hate that. You couldn’t wait for that brunch to end and drag your ass in here to have a word. Sling weak insults that could never make an impact on how I feel about myself. I’d say you failed. And I’d also say that we’re done.”
“Not until you understand what I’ve said, Nova. Stay away from my brother.”
“Or what?” I asked firmly. “Tell me, Jenn. Or… what?”
“You don’t wanna know.”
“Hold on. Is that a threat? Please tell me that’s not a threat. Because I don’t take kindly to those. Remember that time I had to slap some of the color off your pale-ass face for something similar? Or do you need a reminder?”
She pursed her lips and swallowed. “Classy,” she snarled.
“I take that as a no.”
“I’m just asking—”
“Do you even realize that you sound stupid? You’re here trying to tell a grown woman to stay away from a grown man. That grown man has my number to call when he’s ready. And—”
“Aren’t you still married, though?”
I shook my head. “Nuh-uh. Not as far as I’m concerned.”
“But what about as far as the courts are concerned?”
A sigh escaped me. “Okay, Jenn. I hear you, Jenn.” I threw my hands up in mock surrender. “Sorry about all of that. I’ll… uhh… I’ll comply. You’re only looking out for your brother, right?”
She tossed the red mane over her shoulder and smiled. “Yes.”
I nodded and smiled back at her, then reached out to touch her shoulder in mutual understanding.
“It’s done,” I told her.
The tight face loosened. The color in her face began to swim its way back. “I really appreciate it. And, uhh… sorry about the tone I took. I’m just—”
“Protective…” I said, finishing her sentence.
“Exactly. Nothing more and nothing less.” She inhaled a deep breath before releasing it, and prepared her exit. At the door, she turned around to face me once more. “I’m glad we could come to an understanding. Believe it or not, I hope everything works out for you,” she said from the doorway.
“I hope the same for you, Jenn. Do me a favor, though.”
She lowered her sunglasses. “What’s that?” she asked slowly.
“Share with me just how many black babies you’re incubating in your esophagus.”
It was a gasp that could be heard and felt around the world. I honestly thought the bitch would lose her balance and timber onto the flooring in my office. Our eyes entered a war; but it was hers that eventually left the battlefield. I took that opportunity to move in and screw the dagger even further.
It took a few seconds, but she attempted to regroup, raising her sunglasses over her eyes again. “Huh?” she said, grappling for understanding.
“You heard me. You white bitches sicken me. You can lay down with a black man and take the pipe any and every way he’s willing to lay it to your ass. But let one of your men want us, it’s a situation. The same way you turn that bigoted eye in the other direction when you’re sliding up and down that big, black dick, you better turn it in the other direction when I’m sliding up and down your brother’s. Now, what I need you to do, is turn the fuck around, face the glass, and get the fuck out of my office. Don’t ever come back here unless you’re invited.”
18 | Leo
I slid the glass wall open, and walked onto the balcony outside my office. I needed a breeze and some rays of sunshine to wake my ass up. It was only ten minutes past noon and I was moving around slow as hell. The food did me in. Eating in the morning wasn’t something that I normally did. Fruit, vegetable, and protein in a juice mixture, yeah. But textured food… I didn’t do that too much. Not until late afternoon—if not evening once I made it home. But today I deviated from my norm.
What started out as a short catch-up session with my sister, ended up being a small gathering with drinks, good food, and even better conversation. My time away from my phone, emails, and the office, saw no fires that needed extinguishing. It made me realize that I could afford to take small moments away from everything. Operative word being, small. I made a silent promise to myself that I would consider doing it more often—especially, if it included a beautiful woman with something enticing to discuss.
The biggest perk, was getting to know more about Nova Levine. She wasn’t just pretty; she had an amazing head on her shoulders. She talked about going to UNLV, and studying business. Then how she discovered a knack for sales, while working at a pharmaceutical company part time. It had clearly worked for her, because sitting at that table, I found out that she was one of the highest-ranking women in car sales, who often found her name next to Mary Barra’s in published articles. I was impressed. Primarily, because her field, like mine, was heavily dominated by males. Even with that, Nova had managed to penetrate the industry, and aggressively break through a glass ceiling.
She had a fan in me, for sure.
I admired how, even with all Nova had going on, she was doing a spectacular job at keeping it together. I had borne witness to some fucked-up shit in my time, but her situation left me shaking my head every time I thought about it. She’d been hit with a double�
�a husband and a best friend. If she ever trusted again, it would be a miracle.
“Fucked-up world we live in sometimes…” I said out loud.
I turned away from the view that had me hypnotized, and prepared to walk back into my office, where I came face-to-face with Coleman Hughes.
“Hey man, you good?” he asked.
I guess he heard me. I dry-washed my face, then sighed. “Yeah, I’m good. Come on in and have a seat.”
He proceeded inside. “You sure? I mean, I can come back another time if you need.”
“You want to talk business or not?”
“Yeah, absolutely.”
I pointed to the adjoining conference room in my office. “Then grab a seat and let’s get into it.”
After Coleman was seated, I took a trip to my office bar in the corner. “You want anything from over here?” I called out to him.
“Sure. I’ll let you pick the poison. I’m good with whatever.”
I poured us both a shot of Scotch and then joined him. “Here you go.”
“Thanks a lot. Nice set up you got here,” he complimented.
“Thank you,” I said, slightly reclining in my chair. “I’ll let you start by telling me why you’re leaving Rainbow. Then you can tell me what it is you feel you can bring to my company.”
Coleman quickly downed the contents of his glass. He seemed nervous. We’d only ever really interacted in the field, and had butted heads on a few occasions. He felt that because his hands were in the dirt, that he knew more about the work than I did. I started in the trenches. But I only offered that piece of information to those I felt deserved it. The other ones found out the hard way when I had to check them on something, they had done wrong. I’d come up against the type a lot in my career because they mistook what a lot of people liked to call, “boyish charm.”
Construction was filled with cocky guys, machismo. And the cockiness picked up several notches when they got in the yellow hats and Red Wings. Then, if they had an ounce of looks to them—like Coleman—then it kicked up even higher. Coleman had always come across as overly confident. And it wasn’t with his work. For him, it was more about the blond, girly man-bun, the green eyes, and the pierced ears. He thought he was some kind of model. I got the sense that he’d gotten through life on his appearance, and so felt he had to overcompensate when it came to machismo, which he tried to offload too often.
Lethal Love: Deceit can be Deadly Page 9