More Than Words, Volume 7

by Carly Phillips

  He crossed the room to shake her hand.

  “Ronald, this is Nichole Graham. We worked at the Agency for Children’s Services together and she helped me open this place.”

  Nichole grinned. She tucked a stray strand of blond hair behind her ear. “Trust me, Verna gets all the credit for this place. I was on the sidelines, wondering how she was going to pull it off.”

  Verna chuckled. “Don’t mind her. She totally underestimates herself, which of course she accuses me of doing. Nichole is more than the assistant director, and the bottom line is I couldn’t function without her.”

  They shared a glance of mutual admiration and respect.

  “I bet you say that to all the staff,” Nichole joked.

  “Yeah, I do, don’t I?” She turned to Ronald. “But seriously, we’re all one family here. You’ll see that as time goes on.”

  “Absolutely,” agreed Nichole. “That’s why it works. Every adult is a surrogate parent to these kids. And we all work really hard at making them feel cared about, and safe, and so they know that no matter what happens, they can come here and we’re going to find a way to work out the problem.”

  “I’m going to finish introductions,” Verna said, uneasy at the gleeful speculation in her colleague’s eyes. “I’ll catch up with you later.” Ronald followed her out.

  Verna introduced him to Phyllis, the housemother, before she darted out for the day, and Gail, who did all the cooking, then formally introduced him to Paul.

  “I’m going to turn you back over to Brad,” she said once they’d completed the rounds. “He’ll have some forms for you to fill out and then take you to meet the kids. Today is actually a great day for you to start. We do group on Saturday.”

  Ronald nodded and followed her down the hall.

  “What’s on your agenda for the day?” he asked.

  “Nichole is having an all-girls brunch at her house and she convinced me to come.”

  “Sounds like fun—for girls that is.” He chuckled. “What do you normally do on a Saturday night?”

  “Catch up on notes, read, watch old movies.”

  They stopped in front of Brad’s door.

  “What are you doing later this evening, after brunch?”

  If she’d been walking, she would have tripped on air. She blinked several times. “Um, this evening?”

  “Yes, about eight?”

  “Nothing special. Why?”

  “I thought you might like to grab a little dinner, hear about my first day and listen to some music.”

  “Wow…well, sure. Sounds wonderful. Yes.”

  “Good. I think I remember the street, but I don’t have your address.” He pulled out his BlackBerry and added her information.

  When he looked back at her with those bedroom eyes, Verna had an overwhelming desire to kiss him. It took her by such surprise that she stepped backward, breaking the spell between them.

  It was as if they’d both been awakened from a trance, and had to adjust to reality once again.

  “I’ll see you at eight,” Ronald said, regaining his balance.

  Verna nodded. “Eight. Right. Have a great day, and thank you again.” She turned away and hurried down the hall to her office before she did or said something utterly silly. When she stepped inside, Nichole greeted her with a great big grin.

  “Okay, I totally see why your head is all scrambled. He is a cutie-pie, and nice and sexy. Wow. Jackpot!”

  “He asked me out to dinner tonight,” she said, sounding a bit breathless.

  Nichole leaped up from her seat and rushed over to grab Verna’s shoulders. “You did say yes, didn’t you?”

  Verna grinned. “Yes.”

  Nichole let out an exaggerated “Amen” and hooked her arm through Verna’s. “I think we’ll have champagne spritzers to celebrate at brunch.”

  Ronald sat in on the group session as an observer, watching the kids, seeing how they interacted with each other and how Brad responded. It was a good group. The kids were funny, sad, needy and brutally honest. They were all in, or had been in, foster care. Two of the girls were graduating and going to community college; three of the boys were in group homes and had been coming to Home since it opened. Home had an agreement with several local group homes and foster-care agencies that allowed the kids to spend time here and participate in activities. It had taken a lot of negotiation and legal hurdles, but Verna had made it happen.

  Brad knew how to handle each of them, knew how much rope to give them and when to reel them back in. Ronald could tell that the teenagers not only liked Brad, but respected him.

  “Before we break,” Brad said, “I want to give Mr. Morris a chance to give you guys his impressions of the group.”

  All eyes turned in his direction, expecting something, and in his entire professional life he’d never felt so unprepared to be professional.

  He drew in a breath and leaned forward.

  “First, I want to say that I am totally impressed with each of you.” His steady gaze moved from one to the next. “We all, including me, have baggage, a past, things that mess with us. I want to learn from you and I hope to be an ear and a guide when you need one.” He cleared his throat. “I play a mean game of basketball, Jay-Z is one of my favorite rappers.” That comment got him a few smiles and nods. “And I can take on the best of you at Nintendo.” They chuckled.

  “I grew up not too far from here, so I know that your environment doesn’t define you,” he continued, getting serious again. “So wherever you decide to go with your life is up to you. I graduated from Howard University and I firmly believe that education is the ticket to tomorrow. And I’m here to help anyone who wants to go to college.” He slapped his knees together. “I guess that’s it for now.”

  “Thanks,” Brad said. He checked his watch. “That’s all for today, crew. See you next Saturday.”

  They began filing out. Two of the boys stopped in front of him. “So what position do you play?” the taller of the two asked.

  Ronald got up. “Power forward. You?”

  “Guard.”

  He stuck out his hand. “What’s your name?”

  “Mark.”

  “Nice to meet you.” He turned to the other young man. “And your name?”

  “Felix.”

  Ronald nodded. “Maybe we can get together on the court one weekend.”

  “Yeah, maybe,” Mark said. “Come on, man,” he said to Felix, and they sauntered out.

  “Hey, Mr. Morris.”

  “April. Good to see you again.” That feeling of familiarity flowed through him again.

  She beamed him a smile. “I’m thinking about college.”

  “Good. What grade are you in?”

  “Sophomore.”

  “Now is the time to start figuring out where you want to go.”

  “Yeah.” She lowered her head. “Just thinking about it. I know I’m not gonna be able to do it.”

  “Why not?”

  “I gotta go.” She brushed by him and walked out.

  He was going to stop her just as Brad approached. “So what do you think?”

  Ronald turned to Brad. “Great group of kids,” he said, wanting to go after April and find out what she meant. He picked up his jacket from the back of the chair.

  “Yeah, they just have to believe in themselves. But it’s hard since no one else has for most of their lives. They think their future lies in the few square blocks where they live. It takes a lot of time to unravel what has been done to them.” He drew in a breath. “But we make progress every day.” He clapped Ronald on the back. “Didn’t scare you off, did we?” he joked.

  “Naw. I’m up for the challenge.” They walked out of the session room. “Listen, do you do field trips with them?” he asked Brad as an idea came to him.

  “Depends on how far. But we take them out. Sure. What are you thinking about?”

  “I just remembered there’s a college fair next Saturday at the Institute of Technology downtown.
You think they might be interested?”

  “Sure,” Brad said. “I’ll run it by Verna and get the names together during the week.”

  “Great,” Ronald said. “I’ll pull all the details together and give you a call on Monday when I get into the office.”

  They walked to the front door. “Glad to have you, man,” Brad told him. “Seriously.”

  “Thanks. I’m looking forward to getting to know the kids.”

  Brad opened the front door. “Talk to you on Monday.”

  They shook hands. “Will do.”

  On his drive home Ronald ran through the events of the day and felt really good about how things had turned out. The kids were an interesting mix and he was eager to get to know them better. They would certainly prove a bigger challenge than his kids at Lexington, but he was looking forward to it.

  He smiled to himself. Verna Scott ran an amazing program, and he was just as eager to get to know her better.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Verna was a nervous wreck as eight o’clock approached. She’d changed her outfit three different times, and not knowing where they were going didn’t help. Finally she’d settled on a sleeveless, multicolored top with splashes of purple, gold and soft green that flowed from her shoulders into an A and swung around her hips. The slender slacks matched the gold in her top, and low-heeled nut-brown sling backs finished off her ensemble. She added chunky wooden bracelets and wore small gold hoops in her ears. As she stared at herself in the mirror she was pleased with the final result. It had been a while since she’d gotten dressed up and it felt good.

  Not one to use much makeup, she went with the basics, a little mascara to lengthen her lashes and a light lip gloss with a tint of cinnamon. She’d brushed her short hair until it gleamed, and with nothing left to do, she paced and checked the time and paced some more. As much as she thought she was prepared for Ronald’s arrival, she nearly leaped out of her brand-new shoes when the doorbell rang.

  She checked herself one last time in the mirror and revisited Nichole’s advice at brunch. “Just relax and let it flow.” With a steadying breath, she went to open the door.

  For an instant Ronald seemed at a loss for words.

  “You look…fantastic,” he stammered, as if he’d met his favorite celebrity.

  Verna’s heart was pounding so hard and fast that she felt light-headed. She ran shaky fingers through her hair. “Thank you…so do you.”

  He wore a full-length black cashmere coat over black slacks and a gray shirt that was open at the collar, casual but classy. His smooth brown complexion seemed lit from underneath and his dark eyes sparkled in the light.

  Verna shook her head to get the neurons moving. “Please come in a minute.” She stepped aside and let him pass. The heady, manly scent of him went straight to her head. Get it together, girl, she warned herself. She shut the door and followed him down the short foyer that opened onto the living room.

  “I just need to get my coat and purse. Would you like something to drink?”

  “No. I’m fine, thanks.” He looked around. “Wow, nice place. You have great taste,” he said, taking in the vaulted ceiling and bay windows draped in sheer bronze. The taupe-colored walls were dotted with art, and one contained built-in shelving filled from top to bottom with books and videos. The hardwood floors gleamed, the two glass tables held a vase of fresh flowers on one and magazines on the other, and an overstuffed chocolate-brown sectional looked plush and comfortable enough to spend a night on. The opposite wall contained a mounted plasma television. He turned to her. “It’s totally you,” he said with a smile.

  “Totally me?”

  “Yes, well put together, classy, elegant and inviting.”

  Her stomach did a three-sixty. “Thank you.”

  “You obviously put your heart into this place. I was looking at your library. Impressive. A lot of first editions.”

  Verna’s expression radiated pride. “It’s one of my passions,” she admitted. “I haunt bookstores and flea markets.”

  “I thought I had an extensive collection, but yours puts mine to shame.”

  “There’s more in the attic and the basement.”

  Ronald laughed. “Yes, you definitely have me beat.”

  The way he looked at her, Verna once again had the overwhelming desire to reach up and kiss him.

  “I’ll, uh, get my coat.” She went to the hall closet, Ronald at her side.

  “Here, let me.” He took the coat and helped her, taking longer than he needed to.

  Verna grew so hot she was sure she would combust, and it had nothing to do with the wool coat. She needed some air.

  Finally they went out to the car, but sitting so close to him in the confined space only made her hotter.

  “Mind if I open the window a little bit?” she asked.

  “Sure. It is warm. Can’t tell what to wear with this weather. One day it’s spring, the next it’s winter,” he said, almost babbling.

  “So tell me, how was your first day?” she asked, getting them both on solid territory.

  He recounted his day, his meeting with the kids, and then told her about his idea for the college fair.

  “That’s a great idea.” She angled herself in her seat and took in his solid profile. “I’ll make sure they get permission slips.”

  He told her about his brief conversation with April, which sparked the idea. “I got the impression that she doesn’t see college in her future.”

  “Unfortunately, most of the kids don’t. April has had it rough. Living at Home is the first taste of stability in her life. I think going to the fair is just what she needs. They all need to see that there is possibility out there and that they are worthy. That’s our biggest hurdle, getting them to believe that they have value.”

  Ronald snatched a glance at her, stirred by the rising passion in her voice. Her features were tight and pinched as if she was in pain. She was staring straight ahead, but he was pretty sure she wasn’t looking at the Saturday-night traffic.

  “Ever been to Frank’s Lounge?” he asked, drawing her back from wherever she had been.

  “No. But I’m sure I’ve passed it a million times. Is that where we’re headed?”

  “Yep, and I think you’ll be in for a treat. It’s truly one of the gems of Fort Greene.”

  “I’m going to hold you to that.”

  “You’re on,” he said and stole a look at her.

  Ronald slowed the car and began searching for a parking space. Couples were filing in and the sounds of live jazz floated out of the door every time it opened. He found a spot around the corner and they walked back to the club. Ronald pulled open the door and Verna stepped inside.

  Frank’s Lounge oozed class with a relaxed feel. The customers were a mix of couples and singles, both young and old. Beneath the low lighting were round tables covered in red linen, booths for larger groups and a horseshoe-shaped bar already packed with patrons. Tap-your-foot music was coming from the small stage closer to the back.

  A young hostess greeted them. “Seating, or would you prefer the bar?”

  “Table. Anything close to the stage?” Ronald asked.

  “On the side. Is that okay?”

  “Fine.”

  She took two menus and led them around the tables to the back of the lounge. Before long they were totally wrapped up in the music, the atmosphere and each other.

  Over white wine, grilled shrimp, saffron rice, tossed salad and soothing music, they did something that they both said they hadn’t done with anyone in a very long time—talk about themselves and their private lives.

  “Your first love,” Verna said with a teasing smile.

  Ronald blushed. He lifted his drink. “Patrice Holloway.” He shook his head and smiled wistfully. “Patrice and I were together our last two years of high school. Inseparable. I was going to marry her. She refused. She told me she didn’t want me to hate her later for ruining my life and tying me down.” He lifted his wineglass and took a
sip. “I always thought that was a crazy statement, but she wouldn’t change her mind. So I went to Howard University on a full scholarship. She stayed in New York with her grandmother. Her mother checked out on her when she was a kid. I promised to come back as often as I could, but I didn’t. I got involved in school and…” His voice drifted off. “We wrote each other the first couple of months and then her letters stopped. She didn’t return any of my calls and then the number was disconnected. I came home for holiday break and went to see her, but they were gone.” The memory brought back a familiar feeling of loss. “Someone else was living in their apartment. I talked to everyone and no one could tell me anything. Just gone.”

  “Did any of your friends know where she was?”

  “Let’s say we didn’t travel in the same circles. We attended different schools, had different friends, lived in different neighborhoods. I met her in the supermarket.” He chuckled. “I always wondered what happened to her.”

  Verna seemed uncertain of what to say. “Ronald… I…”

  He held up his hand. “It’s okay. It’s been a lot of years.” He picked up his drink then put it back down. “I guess that’s why I got so involved with kids. Patrice had a tough life. No mother. Her grandmother wasn’t in the best of health, from what I can remember. They were pretty poor. I guess in some way I want to do for other kids what I couldn’t do for Patrice. Give them a chance.” He looked away. “There’s a part of me that hopes I’m going to find her somewhere. There are days that I see her in the face of every young woman I meet. I just hope that she’s happy wherever she is.”

  They were silent for a while.

  “I can’t believe I’ve never been here before,” Verna said, shifting the topic.

  “I stumbled onto it a couple of years ago with a friend of mine.”

  The waitress returned and asked them if everything was all right. Ronald asked for a refill and Verna ordered another drink as well.

  “So tell me Verna Scott’s story.”

  She turned her water glass in a slow circle on the table. Deciding what she was willing to share? Ronald wondered. At last she raised her eyes to meet his.

  “I’m a certified product of the system,” she admitted.