Chapter 16
Each Saturday evening, Jayne and Toshi had been meeting to hash out design concepts and details. The initial sketches of the vigilantes were drawn in charcoal, which highlighted some of the major strengths of each character. Jayne was not quite pleased with Toshi’s drawing of her character, so the following weekend, she brought over her own rendition. He wasn’t pleased with hers either at this point. The only thing they were agreeing upon was the font for the cover of the comic. Hence, they had reached a stalemate which led to Jayne suggesting they step away from the process for a minute to get some perspective.
On the second Saturday in February, instead of meeting with her new pal, Jayne decided to join her friends for lunch. Brionna was the first to notice Jayne’s distraction, but it was RaShunda who made the comments. “Girl, I don’t know why you’re wasting your time on that man. It’s not going to go anywhere.”
This was followed by Tamika’s sarcasm. “I know you aren’t trying to sleep with him. You are only going to be hungry an hour later anyway.” This comment garnered snickers from the other two, but Jayne remained quiet. Her mind was on a marketing concept. She had been given a big assignment at work which was taking most of her energy and the Saturday nights with Toshi were tapping into her reserves of calm and tolerance. By the time Sunday rolled around for church and dinner with her grandparents, she was completely worn out.
Brionna touched her hand. “Jayne, we want you to be happy, but we are just advising that before you pack your bags and climb aboard the Orient Express, you may want to get back out there first.”
By the end of lunch, Jayne was ready to wash her hands of Toshi, the comic book, and her meddlesome, bitchy ass friends. Tonight was a free night and she was going home to soak, put on some jazz, light some candles around the tub, and down a bottle of Chenin Blanc. Jayne was well aware that she would never hear the end of it, but she had made the mental commitment to forego church in the morning as well. Brionna was half right. She had to gain some perspective.
Jayne grabbed her purse, took out thirty dollars and laid it on the table. She gave her friends a mock salute and headed for the door with them calling after her. Make the bad women shut up. “I’ll call you guys later,” she chirped over her shoulder. When she turned around, Jayne had come into contact with something very large, very solid and smelled like a night of being face down biting on a pillow.
“Well, if it isn’t Jayne Wright,” a deep tenor voice said to the top of her head. Jayne looked up to see LaDell Richardson with his large hands on her arms.
“LaDell, I was thinking about you last week.” Which was the truth, but she did not admit that she had almost called him.
“Can you think about me next Friday when I take you out to dinner?”
Over her shoulder, she could hear her girlfriends answering for her. In her mind, it was too much of a coincidence to let it pass.
“Sure. Why not?” He suggested they meet after work at the front door of the building they both worked in.
“How does Italian sound?”
“One of my favorites,” she mumbled as she tried to get away from him. “Does six o’ clock sound okay to you?”
Just like that, she had a date for next Friday. It wasn’t until she returned home and jotted it on her calendar, that she realized it was Valentine’s Day.
It was a simple black dress, with a mint green cashmere cardigan, her pearls and a pair of black and green sling backs with a kitten heel. Everyone in the office acted as if she had come to work dressed for the prom. At six on the dot, she grabbed her coat and headed down to the main lobby. When she exited the elevator on the left, LaDell was coming down the stairs on the right.
He was a gentleman and helped her with her coat, telling her she looked wonderful and smelled fantastic. “I will drive. I’ll just bring you back here to get your car.” He chuckled at a joke that she didn’t find humorous. “I mean, if anything weird happens, you know where I work.”
She wished she had brought her gun. By the end of the evening, something was destined to die. Jayne reprimanded herself for being negative before the date even started. Her fists were clenched, but she quickly released them, convincing herself it was going to be a great evening.
It wasn’t.
Before they left the building, at least eight women had called his name. Three gave those high school, I have a crush on you finger waves. Two others blew him a kiss. One rubbed her breasts while mouthing call me and the final three gave him the stink eye. Grandma Pearl always said, if you want to know the habits of an animal, observe it in its natural environment. LaDell was a lion who used the office building as a hunting ground.
Yet, Jayne did not want to pass judgment on him based on a few friendly women. He was, by any woman’s standards, a very attractive man. LaDell easily stood a bit over six feet, was solidly built, without an ounce of fat on him. He had a low haircut, a perfectly groomed goatee, and a nice smile with really big teeth. His skin tone was a smooth, rich, creamy peanut butter beige, with jet black hair and deep brown eyes. The brother also has some really big feet and hands. All of this matched perfectly to his very big, black, and shiny BMW 740i. The front license plate read, “Engineers Do It with Precision.”
It put Jayne off a bit, especially when his windshield held four business cards and a scented note. Women could be overly aggressive sometimes, which Jayne understood. It made her feel a bit more at ease when he removed the items and tossed them in the trash. They both laughed as he removed the pair of underwear that someone had tied to his side mirror. From the looks of the red lacy fabric, they were damp.
“Where are we headed for dinner LaDell?” Jayne asked with a smile on her face. He grinned back at her. “I thought Augustino’s would be nice,” he said as he pressed the fob to unlock the vehicle.
“Great,” she told him, still smiling. “I will meet you there!” She turned around and headed to her car. He called after her, but she was not getting into the sex machine with him and she sure as hell was not going to be seen leaving the parking lot in it. Guilt by association held a lot of people in prison, which would also describe how she felt during dinner.
He ordered a $70 dollar bottle of wine to start the meal. A hearty Bordeaux. She explained that the heavy tannins in the wine gave her a hangover, yet he insisted that she at least give it a taste. It was good wine, but an absolute waste, since she barely sipped at the glass she had. The wait staff knew LaDell by name and quickly asked if he desired the Ossobuco as his meal selection. He opted instead for a very large steak with potatoes, while Jayne chose a seafood dish on a bed of pasta with greens.
None of it was enjoyed. Over appetizers, he took out his phone to show her all the projects he had designed accompanied by images of his two awards, along with an accidental peek at a photo in his phone of a woman loving him with her mouth. As she picked at her shrimp, the conversation continued about the wide world of LaDell focusing on the other things he had achieved. Jayne knew she was supposed to be impressed, but only a faint smile could be mustered when the dozen of roses came to the table. A beautiful dessert for two arrived over his conversation about what LaDell had in mind for his new year.
“I’m ready to settle down Jayne. I am looking for that right woman.” He eyed her with earnest. Jayne had been making circles in the chocolate and whipped cream on the plate, not even realizing he had been talking to her.
“Did you hear me Jayne?”
This must have been the point in the evening where his dates would swoon and the panties would dampen. It wasn’t happening for her though. She was totally bored by the whole scenario, but she felt cheeky and thought she would play along.
“I was thinking the same thing, LaDell. I am ready too!”
His eyes were wide, thinking he was closing the deal, but Jayne had a plan to shut him down. “I checked my ovulation calendar and tonight is the night, LaDell. I am so ready.” Her hand reached across the table to caress his. “I can’t wait for y
ou to take me in your arms and make me yours while giving me your seed.”
LaDell had started to draw back his hand, looking as if he had been told that she had a yeast infection. Jayne was not going to let him off the hook that easy. She rose from her chair and walked around the table. His eyes were wide again as he watched her approached him, pushing the table to give her enough room to plop down in his lap.
“The answer is yes LaDell. Yes! Yes, I will make you the happiest man in the world and marry you!”
The restaurant erupted in applause. LaDell started to sputter, choking as he tried to hammer out words to tell her she had misunderstood him. Jayne rubbed his face as she gave him a I am going to tear that up tonight look, whispering in his ear, “pay that damned check so we can get out of here and get our family started.” Still having trouble finding his words, Jayne commenced to patting his pockets to find his wallet. She knew it was in his sport coat’s front jacket pocket. She still used the opportunity to run her hands over him, wagging her finger at him as she came close to touching little LaDell.
Wallet found, she went through it looking for the right credit card, waving it in the air at the waiter. “Hurry up and settle our check! We have some celebrating to do!” Jayne added some flair from her Misty Knight impersonation, chipping in a sister girl neck roll complete with pursed lips.
By the time the waiter had returned, the bottle of wine had been recorked and stuffed in her purse, while egging him to get his coat on. The roses were hoisted into her left arm, while chatting away at him. “I knew you were the right one LaDell. I just knew today was going to be my lucky day.”
He signed the $200 dinner tab, as she pulled him by the hand. “Wish us luck everyone!” She yelled to the crowded restaurant as a dazed and utterly confused LaDell followed along behind her with the people clapping and shouting well wishes. His eyes were darting back and forth when they reached the parking lot.
“Jayne, I….” He started to stutter.
A calm hand was placed in the center of his chest. “LaDell. We are not all the same. Your fancy car, expensive wine, and accomplishments mean nothing to a woman who has achieved a great deal as well.”
He lowered his head as if he were ashamed. “Thank you for dinner. Have a good evening.”
“Jayne,” he called after her. “I am so sorry.”
She walked back over to him lowering her voice. “So am I.” She was not one prone to lying, but in this case he deserved it. She channeled Misty Knight again. “I was soooo going to sleep with you tonight! I haven’t had any in almost a year too! Oohh and I was going to ride your big ass until my back gave out!”
She sighed. “Oh well!”
Through her rearview mirror she saw him lean against his car, wondering what had just happened.
In the corner of the restaurant, a friend pulled out his phone to make a call. It was answered on the third ring. “Dude, I am in Augustino’s and I just saw your girl. I think she just agreed to marry some big black dude.”
“Wait, start from the top,” Toshi said as he sat and listened to Felix recap everything that had transpired. When he hung up the phone, he eyed the little grey felt box from Kay Jewelers which held the Valentine’s present he had bought for Jayne. He was not a drinking man. The strongest thing he had in his apartment was a bottle of Sake. A half drank bottle. Toshi had some things he needed to get off his chest. It had started to rain which further darkened his mood. An hour later, the bottle was nearly empty but Toshi Yamaguchi was up to his neck in emotions.
“Who does she think she is anyway?” he asked himself.
Twenty minutes later, in the down pour of rain, he put the box in his pocket and began to stumble his way to her building. He took a short cut through the tennis courts, around the guest house, and over the hill, finding himself at her doorstep.
He banged on the door, calling her name. “Jayne LaQueeda Wright! You open this damned door right now!”
Chapter 17
The man was soaked from head to toe, rain droplets hanging from the strands of his hair, and he looked absolutely adorable to Jayne. At least he did until his opened his mouth, exhaling 32 proof breath fueled with liquid courage and a jealous temper tantrum.
“Is he in there Jayne?”
“Is who in where?”
Toshi was teetering from side to side. “You know who Jayne. Your new fiancé!” She had no idea what he was talking about, but in those wet clothes he was going to catch a serious cold.
“Toshi, let’s talk inside,” she told him. She reached for him to pull him across the threshold. Toshi snatched his arm away like a kid on the playground in a game of keep away.
“If he is in there Jayne, I going to kick him in his dick!” Jayne tried to grab him again, but he skirted away from her, bending down with his hands on his knees, getting louder with every word. “He can’t make love to you Jayne with a broke dick! I am going to break his dick Jayne!” Toshi began making karate chops in the air while simulating groin kicks, supplemented with Bruce Lee sounds.
Ms. Betty, her neighbor opened her door. “Jayne, is everything okay out there?”
She ran out of her apartment while grabbing Toshi by the arm. “Yes ma’am. Everything is fine.”
“You sure? I got the po-po on speed dial!” She had her fingers on her medical alert necklace. Jayne held up her hand to hold her off. “I got him Ms. Betty. You can go back inside.”
It was a struggle to get a drunken 160 pound man into her apartment, especially with him being uncooperative, yelling, and threatening to open a can of Japanese dick kicking. He clearly outweighed her by 45 pounds, but she needed to get him out of those wet clothes. He kicked off his own shoes when he stepped inside the door and removed his wet jacket letting it flop to the floor.
“I’ve been working on my filters Jayne, working hard too. Look what it got me!” He stood still as she pulled the wet shirt up and over his head, rubbing his skin briskly with one of the towels she had taken from the guest bathroom to warm up his cold skin. “I have been working on being a better man for you too Jayne.” As he rambled on about filters and his quest to be better, Jayne’s focus was on how she was going to get off those wet pants.
The towel was draped about his shoulders. “How much have you had to drink Toshi?”
“I don’t drink,” he said through hiccups.
“What did you sip on tonight then,” she asked while going into the bathroom to retrieve a larger bath towel. Maybe if she held up the towel, he could remove pants allowing her to wrap the material about his waist.
“I had a little bit of Sake. That’s all.” This was said as he tried to stand still, while weaving from side to side.
Jayne opened the towel wide, covering him from the waist down, while asking him to remove his pants. “How much is a little?”
He laughed as the pants dropped down around his ankles. “The whole damn bottle, Jayne. The whole bottle!” He plopped down on the futon in her office with his bottom lip poked out. “I was trying to wash down the feelings.”
Before Jayne went any further, she heeded her Grammy’s words, a man full of the Devil’s brew, will tell the truth on him and you. Something was definitely wrong, because Toshi normally treated his body like a temple and was not one for drinking anything stronger than wine or tea. The man didn’t even drink soda. If he downed a whole bottle of Sake, then something heavy was weighing him down. If she was going to get some answers, now would be the best time. ‘Toshi, what feelings were you trying to drown?”
He raised his hand as if he were the first one to solve the tough math problem the teacher had placed on the board. “That’s the word, drown. I was trying to drown these feelings Jayne.”
She had kneeled on the floor beside him noticing how developed his calf muscles were. “Tell me what the feelings were that you tried to drown.” She spoke slowly feeling like an ass for taking advantage of the circumstance.
“I was feeling jealous! I am jealous, okay Jayne!” She watc
hed a highly educated, distinguished man, fold his arms across his chest and poke out his bottom lip.
“Are you pouting, Toshi?”
He raised his chin in indignation. “No.”
Then thought about it a bit. “Yes.” Dropping his chin to his chest as if in defeat. Jayne pulled her office chair over in front of the futon and sat facing him with his, sad, bloodshot eyes looking at her. “It’s not fair.” He leaned back on the futon exposing well-toned and much developed muscled thighs. The towel had fallen down from around his shoulders, exposing a solid chest with perfect pecks and abs which were rock solid. The towel around his waist has also shifted revealing a thin strand of smooth black hair that started under his navel creeping a path underneath the second towel. Her eyes trailed downward, wanting to know more. Jayne grabbed his wet clothing to put in the dryer, removing herself from the temptation to look. Damn that man was sexy.
“Okay, I have your clothes in the dryer. I brought you a pillow and a blanket. Sit in the chair here while I put a sheet on the futon.” He did as he was told, watching her while she worked.
“Jayne, it isn’t fair.”
She continued to work. “What’s not fair Toshi?”
His hand touched the back of her thigh causing Jayne to nearly jump out of her skin. “I touch you like a man. I kiss you like a man and when you are ready…” he hiccupped loudly. “…I will make love to you like a man. My skin tone shouldn’t matter. In the dark, it won’t anyway.”
He laughed again. “When you are screaming my name in the middle of your ecstasy, you ain’t gonna give a flying dragon about the color of my damned skin!” A loud hiccup escaped him. “Oops, filter down! Filter down!” He said it as if giving the warning call of a man overboard.
Jayne saw the obvious pain in his face. With her hands on the towel about his waist, she helped him back onto the futon. The rubber band was removed from his hair, allowing the tresses to fall about his shoulders as she toweled the locks dry. There was no sense in having this conversation with a man who was not in full control of his faculties. Toshi reacted as if he had a eureka moment. “I know what it is Jayne. I know what it is.”
The Cost To Play (Slivers of Love) Page 9
