Crissy leaned over close to me and whispered in my ear. “She rubbed me the wrong way, so let’s get that bitch. To hell with Dana right now. I want some dirt on Lesa, and I wholeheartedly believe a private investigator can get it for us.”
I was against it earlier, but now that Lesa decided to confront me as she had, I was all for it. I lifted my glass of water and Crissy lifted hers.
“Let’s drink to bringing a bitch down,” I said.
We clinked our glasses together then laughed. I looked forward to finding out what kind of woman Lesa really was.
CHAPTER 14
JONATHAN
When things felt as if they were falling apart, I turned to the one person who made me feel whole. The one person who meant everything in the world to me, and who made my days and nights seem brighter. Her voice had a way of calming me, and with so much on my mind, I needed to hear from my daughter, Britney. I had been calling her like crazy, and she finally called back. She left a long message, telling me she was okay and that school was going well. I hated that I missed her call, but I was in court. When I reached back out to her, I got voice mail.
“Glad you’re doing well,” I said. “I hope you’re coming home soon, and be sure to call me back to let me know when you intend to. Love you, princess. And please, please, please be good.”
I hung up then tossed my briefcase in the car. I hadn’t spoken to Lesa in two days, but when I got home, I saw her car in the driveway. The trunk was up. It looked as if she had been gathering more of her belongings. I parked my car, and as soon as I got out, she rushed out of the front door with several pieces of clothing draped over her arm. We stared at each other, but it wasn’t long before she rolled her eyes and looked away. I walked up to her, blocking her from putting clothes into the trunk.
“That’s how I get treated?” I said. “No hello or anything, huh?”
“Jonathan, move out of my way, please. I have nothing else to say to you.”
“Why not? We can’t even speak to each other anymore?”
“No. Besides, you do too much talking already. I can’t believe you told Sylvia that I couldn’t get you hard. Why would you put our business out there like that? I can only imagine what else you said to her.”
My face twisted. Guess I have another thing to thank Sylvia for. Thoughts of the two of them conversing angered me, and I knew more had been said. I guessed Lesa decided to go confront Sylvia like she said she would. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stop her.
“It wasn’t like that,” was all I could say. “I . . . I didn’t tell her you were my problem.”
“Right. You probably told her you had a problem and she was willing to fix it.”
I released a deep sigh then pleaded with her. “Why don’t you put the clothes down, chill, and let’s go inside to discuss this. I really want us to work through this. I love you and I miss you like hell. Sylvia is not the woman I want a future with. My future is with you.”
I waited for Lesa to respond, but all she did was slam her clothes in the trunk. She then rushed back inside to get more items from her closet. I walked inside, begging and pleading some more for her to give me another chance.
“Just one more chance. I made a mistake and I regret having sex with her. You have to be honest with yourself and realize that, aside from this incident, I’ve been a decent man to you. Not perfect, but definitely good enough. You can’t deny that, can you?”
Lesa kept snatching her clothes from the hangers, trying to ignore me. When I moved forward to grab her waist, she jumped back. She pointed her finger at me, as anger swept across her face.
“All it takes is one time to fuck up, Jonathan. How can I be with a man I don’t trust? How do I really know that it is over between you and Sylvia? If she’s not around to help you get it up anymore, then what are you going to do?”
“I don’t need her to help me get it up. I had some difficulties when I was with her too, so please know that this is not about you being unable to please me. The problem is with me.”
I hated to lie, but I was willing to say anything to get her back. I didn’t want her to feel as if I needed Sylvia. The reality was I didn’t.
“I’m so ashamed of myself,” I said. “I can’t believe I hurt you like that. More than anything, I hurt myself. If I lose you, this would be one of the biggest mistakes of my life. Jus . . . just one more chance, Lesa. Allow me an opportunity to make you one of the happiest women in the world.”
There was a long silence before Lesa pulled away from me. She walked into the bedroom then sat on the bed. “This can’t be repaired overnight. I need time to think about this. Even though I know people aren’t perfect, I still had a lot of faith in you, Jonathan. I had high hopes for us, and no words can express how disappointed I am.” She paused then stood up. “I’m leaving. You’ll hear from me in a few days. Please don’t rush me to make a decision about our future. I can’t say if I still want to be your wife, and, unfortunately, coming back to you means starting all over again. I don’t know if I’m prepared to do that.”
“Whatever it takes and whatever you want is fine with me. I will give you all the space you need, but please make a decision soon. I love you and I don’t want to live much longer without you. This is our home. It hasn’t felt like home since you’ve been away.”
Lesa wiped her fallen tears. Without going back into the closet, she walked to the front door and opened it.
“I’ll be in touch,” she said then left.
I felt slightly better inside. I hated to see her cry, but I considered today progress. Now that the cat was out of the bag, there would be no more lies, no more betrayal, and possibly no more notes. I wondered if Lesa had been the one behind the note and Sylvia’s apartment being trashed. I gave it more thought then scratched her name from the list. She just didn’t have it in her.
To say that Crissy had been working my motherfucking nerves was an understatement. I didn’t know what was up with her nasty attitude toward me and Brennan. Her numerous, ridiculous concerns were starting to work me. I had somewhat agreed to her request about giving the women around here raises, but I told her that it would be discussed further on my time, and when Brennan agreed to it as well. Unfortunately, he had a problem with the raises. We all stood in my office having a discussion that led to nowhere.
“The two of you are so full of it and bigheaded,” she hissed. “I guess you guys think all women are good for is lying on their backs. When they do that, you all are so willing to dish out all kinds of money. I need those raises to happen pronto.”
“It’s so ridiculous and pathetic for you to go there,” Brennan said. He was so upset that his face had turned red. His blond hair was messy from him raking his fingers through it, and he’d just about had it with Crissy too. Like me, he wanted her out of here. “Unless Jonathan agrees to it, no raises will happen on my watch. We have bigger fish to fry. The last time I checked our quarterly reports, we lost money. Now isn’t the time to hand out raises.”
“I have to agree with Brennan,” I said. “Now isn’t the time, but it is something I am willing to revisit in the near future.”
Crissy’s face tightened. She was so upset that she jumped up and stormed toward the door. “This is such bullshit. I just spoke to you, Jonathan, and you seemed on board with it. Now, at the snap of your finger, you’ve changed your mind. I can’t win with the two of you. I may as well fucking quit, like all of the other women around here should do.”
I tried reasoning with her, but I assumed that this wasn’t the real reason why she was so upset. Crissy was dealing with something else; she was possibly mad about me being in complete charge around here. That’s simply the way it was after Mr. Duncan died, and there wasn’t much that she could do about it. Other than that, I had no idea what could be troubling her. And, quite frankly, I didn’t give a damn. I didn’t have time to cater to a spoiled brat.
“I wish you would calm down.” I tried reasoning with her. “I never said it wasn’t
going to happen. All I’m saying is it’s not going to happen today. The other day, you forced me to give you an answer when I wasn’t prepared to, but after looking over our yearly reports, as Brennan did, there is no question that we’ve lost money. Our accidental injury cases are down, so the priority should be trying to figure out ways to get more people to utilize our services again. If and when we see progress, hopefully soon, then we’ll discuss raises.”
To no surprise, Crissy didn’t like what I had to say and walked out. Brennan shrugged, as if he didn’t care either. Just as we started to talk, my secretary buzzed in to tell me there was a call waiting for me. I answered and it was Jaylin. I needed to speak to him, so I told Brennan that I would come to his office later so we could finish our conversation. After he left, I closed my door then put the phone on speaker.
“I’m already on it,” I said in reference to the client he referred me to.
“Good. How are things going and what have you found out?”
“That two witnesses possibly recorded the incident with their phones. I’m doing my best to find out who they are. I should know something by the end of the week.”
“Perfect. It would close this case shut and make those fools look like the racist muthafuckas they really are.”
“Exactly. I hope those witnesses haven’t deleted the videos. I question if they would be willing to share them. Sometimes, it’s hard for people to speak up. In this case, I pray that they do the right thing. Taye is a decent young man. I would hate to see him put behind bars over something he didn’t do.”
“Me too. And shame on this fucked-up system and some police officers for not giving a damn.”
I nodded, thinking about all that had been happening in St. Louis, as well as around the country. While I couldn’t defend all black men who found themselves in this situation, this was one who I wasn’t about to let go down for no reason at all.
“When is your next move to St. Louis?” I asked Jaylin.
“I’ll be back at the end of the month. Need to come in and finalize everything with the house. It’s coming together very well.”
“I agree. And just so you know, things are coming together well over this way, too. Sylvia and I are done. Lesa and I, on the other hand, are working through some setbacks, but I think we’ll be good too. With that being said, you need to prepare yourself to shave your head bald. You will also have to admit that you were wrong.”
“Things may be good today, but it doesn’t mean it will be that way tomorrow. I’m not hating or anything like that; you know it ain’t my style. But Sylvia ain’t your problem. Lesa will be. If you can’t recognize the signs of a master manipulator, then I don’t know what to tell you. In your line of work, you should be able to see through people like her.”
“Master manipulator? I doubt that. But I’ll keep you posted, because I’ve been thinking about how ridiculous you’re going to look without your hair. It’s laughable.”
“Indeed, it is. But I would never make a serious bet like that unless I was sure about something. You, John-John, are in for a rude awakening. Peace, power, and prosperity. Holla soon.”
We ended the call. I stared out the window, wondering if I was being naïve. There was a time when I felt the same way about Dana. I defended her until the end. Nobody could tell me anything about her. Then I learned that she had been cheating with a man who was much younger than I was. I was devastated. So hurt that it led me to the bedroom of her best friend. I surely hoped that history wouldn’t repeat itself, excluding the best friend part because Sylvia and Lesa had no connection whatsoever.
CHAPTER 15
SYLVIA
For some women, it was easy to walk away from a man who made it clear that there was no room in his life for them. Then there were those who hoped and prayed that the relationship magically worked out, no matter how the man claimed he felt. I was one of those women. I couldn’t accept the fact that Jonathan had moved on without me. Call me dumb, stupid, naïve . . . whatever. There was still a sliver of hope in me that we would be together.
My mind, however, was in another place today. I was worried about the outcome of my assault case. I had already been to see the attorney Crissy had recommended, Ben Clayton. I explained to him what had happened during both incidents with Dana. Basically, he told me that we could possibly settle this outside of court. I was waiting to hear back from him, but, thus far, nothing. So instead of staying cooped up in my apartment, I decided to go check out a movie. I thought about calling Crissy to see if she wanted to join me, but I changed my mind. I didn’t want to hear any negativity today. All she would do was talk about work, and about how much she hated to work with Jonathan and Brennan. She complained a lot, and there were days when we couldn’t get a single thing done at work because she kept going on and on. I was going through it too, so I didn’t need the extra drama.
I slipped into a pair of jeans and a blue sweater. My heels provided a little more height, and the jewelry I wore enhanced my simple outfit. My freshly permed hair was parted through the middle and fell along the sides of my face. I moistened my lips with nude gloss then grabbed my keys and purse from the nightstand before leaving.
An hour later, I stood in line at the AMC theatre in St. Charles. The line was long, and I hoped that the movie I wanted to see wouldn’t sell out. By the time I was able to purchase my ticket, it had. I was highly disappointed, only because I didn’t want to go back home and torture myself while waiting to hear from Mr. Clayton.
I searched for other movie options, but nothing else interested me. Just as I got ready to walk away, a man beside me spoke up.
“The movie you want to see is sold out, right?” he said.
“Yes. I guess I was too late.”
“I have another ticket. My daughter was supposed to join me tonight, but she just called and said that she couldn’t make it. If you want the extra ticket, you’re certainly welcome to it.”
I was skeptical about taking the ticket. So many people were out here doing dirty things. I didn’t know if he was up to no good and would snatch my purse as soon as I opened it to give him money for the ticket.
I took my chances, because I really wanted to see the movie. “If I take the ticket, I’ll be more than happy to pay you for it.”
“No. No problem. You’ll actually be doing me a favor, because I don’t want to be stuck with it.”
I hesitated, but then I reached for the ticket. “Thank you. This is real nice of you.”
“You’re welcome. I’m going inside to get some popcorn. Would you like some too?”
“I would, but allow me to buy yours for you.”
“No, that’s okay. I have a coupon for a free bag of popcorn and soda. I want to use it before it expires.”
I nodded then followed the man inside. While walking closely behind him, I checked him out from head to toe. He wasn’t bad looking, but he surely was no Jonathan, who would never be caught using a coupon. The man wasn’t as clean-cut as I liked my men to be, but his jeans and leather jacket looked nice on him. Body-wise, he had a little gut. It wasn’t enough to turn me off, and I’d never dated a man who was bald. He looked to be in his late thirties, possibly early forties. He was chocolate, just as I preferred, and his facial hair was trimmed neatly. There was a diamond earring in his ear, and when I looked at his finger, he wasn’t wearing a ring.
We stood in line to get our popcorn. That’s when he kicked up a conversation.
“I hope you don’t mind me sitting next to you. And before I forget, my name is Brian.”
“I’m Sylvia. Of course I don’t mind you sitting next to me. I appreciate you for giving me the ticket.”
He used his coupon to pay for his things, but right after I ordered my stuff, he opened his wallet to satisfy the bill.
“No, really, I can’t let you do that,” I said.
“I just did and I insist.”
I wasn’t going to argue with the man. To be truthful, it had been a long time sinc
e I allowed someone to simply take care of me.
We walked next to each other, as if we were a couple. The theater was packed inside, and I was a little skeptical about sitting next to and conversing with a man I really didn’t know. I didn’t know if he would keep talking, annoying me, or if he would just sit and enjoy the movie like I wanted to. Minutes in, I had my answer. He was totally tuned in. The only thing I heard from him was laughter. The movie was great, and after it was over, I thanked him again for giving me a ticket.
“The pleasure was all mine. Sitting next to a beautiful woman wasn’t so bad. I would love to see you again.”
I don’t know why, but I was reluctant to give him my number. He was somewhat attractive but wasn’t really my type. I liked older, mature men with sexy bodies and impressive careers. I hadn’t a clue what his occupation was, but getting to know someone else wasn’t in my plans right now. I figured that since he had given me the ticket, plus paid for my snacks, it wouldn’t hurt. I handed him my business card that included my cell phone number.
“I look forward to getting to know more about you,” he said.
I forced a smile then replied, “Same here. Be careful out there. It’s raining hard.”
He looked at the rain coming down hard outside. “Shoot. My windshield wipers aren’t working. I may have to stop and get some. But you be careful too. Talk to you soon.”
Hmmm. Either too broke to buy windshield wipers or too lazy to put some new ones on. I wasn’t sure which was the case. I hated to judge, but I paid attention to those things just so I wouldn’t keep making the same mistakes with men.
My car was on the other side of the parking garage. I walked to it, thinking the comedy movie with Kevin Hart was hilarious. He surely had talent, and I looked forward to watching more movies with him in it. As I neared my car, I squinted. There was a long, deep scratch on the side of it. The scratch traveled from the front of my car to the rear of it. It didn’t appear to be an accident, and I was furious that whoever hated me thought this was a bright idea.
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