by La Jill Hunt
“Slow Comfortable Screw, please,” she told the bartender.
“Why, Ms. Adams, I would be honored, but don’t you think we should go on a few dates first?” he asked her, grinning.
“Oh God. What are you doing here?” She rolled her eyes at him and asked, “Am I giving off a vibe attracting wannabe smooth operators or something?”
“Don’t even try it. You know I work here. I’ve invited you several times and you read my paychecks every week when I bring them to the bank. It’s okay to admit that you came to check me out.”
She turned away from him, reaching for the drink the bartender handed to her.
“Believe me, checking you out is the last thing I want to do. The only reason I’m here is because Meeko dragged me. She told me she heard this was the spot. And by the look of the crowd, obviously it’s not. There’s no one even here.”
“Come on. It’s cold and raining outside. Most people are at home hugged up in front of the fireplace with their boo, getting their groove on. Those people that have a boo, that is. The only people that come to the clubs on a night like this are those who are looking for a boo to get their groove on with.”
“Well, that definitely isn’t me,” she told him.
Another woman who had been giving him the eye all night walked up and spoke to him. She introduced herself as Darla and offered to buy him a drink. He kindly declined, telling her he’d take a rain check, but to come by the booth and he would hook her up with a CD.
“See. On the prowl,” he said. “What’d I tell you?”
“She’s desperate.”
“Now that’s cold,” he laughed. He leaned closer and asked her, “Why you always gotta look so mean?”
“How do you know how I always look?” she asked then swiveled back around to the bar. Damn, she looked good.
“I’m saying, though, it makes it difficult for a man to approach you. That evil look could easily intimidate a brother, discourage him from coming over here and talking to you.”
“Good,” she replied with attitude. “I don’t wanna be bothered with a man without balls anyway.”
Before he could respond, she grabbed her drink off the bar and walked away. Toby was right on her heels as she returned to her table.
“This is much nicer. Now we can have some privacy.” He laughed, startling her as he sat down. “So, what’s been going on?”
“Don’t you have some records to spin or some shout-outs to make over the mike or something?”
“You know, this stuck-up attitude is getting real old, Ms. Adams. Here I am trying to be the nice guy that I am, and you still got this hardcore, queen bee, I-am-me-and-I-don’t-need-you attitude, which, by the way, isn’t cute.”
“You can just leave me alone. I didn’t ask for you to come over here, so you can go right back to being DJ Terror, hooking up with these boo prowlers out here buying you drinks and blowing up your two-way. And you’re right; I don’t need you!”
A big grin spread across his face and suddenly Toby was laughing. He couldn’t believe that from the first day he walked into the bank, she had been playing him. It became so funny to him that he was crying. He saw that the corners of her mouth were actually starting to curl up, and although he could tell she was fighting it, soon she was laughing with him.
“Can someone tell me the joke?” a deep voice asked. They both looked up to see a man standing over them. He was average height and build, dressed in grey slacks and a conservative shirt. Toby wondered why he was interrupting them.
“Oh my goodness, Jeff! What are you doing here? When did you get in town? I thought you were gonna be gone another month. How’d you know I was here?” she asked all in one breath.
“I called Meeko’s house after you weren’t home, and her sister told me you all were coming here. I wanted to surprise you, which I see I did,” he said, motioning toward Toby.
“Oh, Mr. Sims, this is Jeff, uh, my—”
“Fiancé.” Jeff finished her sentence for her and reached out for Toby’s hand. “How you doing Mr. . . . Sims, was it?”
“Toby, man, and I’m good.” Toby stood up.
“Mr.—uh, Toby is one of my customers at the bank,” she explained.
“Oh. Well, it’s nice to meet you. Isis usually complains about her customers, so you must be one of the few she likes. I’m gonna grab a drink. You guys want anything?”
Isis. Her name is Isis. It’s perfect for her.
“I’m fine,” she told him quickly.
“Naw, I’m good,” Toby said. “I gotta get back up in the booth anyway.”
“I’ll be right back,” Jeff said and walked off, leaving Isis and Toby alone again.
“Why didn’t you tell me you had a man?”
She shrugged and replied, “I didn’t think it was any of your business.”
“You’re right; it’s not. Well, you have fun and enjoy the rest of your evening,” Toby told her, turning to leave.
“Toby, wait!” she said unexpectedly. He did an about face and she rose to her feet, her eyes meeting his. The chemistry between them was so strong that the hairs stood up on the back of his neck. Without warning, he reached out and touched her cheek. She closed her eyes then they quickly fluttered open and she took a step back, away from his reach. “I’m sorry.”
“No need to apologize.” He smiled at her. “I’ll see you later.”
For the rest of the night, he fought urges to look over in her direction, knowing she would be staring back at him. He let his music speak for both of them as he chose the last song of the evening. He began packing up as couples took advantage of their final opportunity to dance, including Isis and Jeff. It was the first time they had gotten on the dance floor. As the music played, his eyes drifted to them and he locked eyes with her.
Erykah Badu put his feelings into words as she sang about seeing him next lifetime. He wound up taking Darla up on her rain check that night.
Strangely enough, Toby and Isis continued the cat and mouse game when he came to the bank. He continued to go only to her teller window, and she continued to give him the cold shoulder. But now, there was a look in her eyes that told him that there was more to it than she was letting on.
After Meeko and Terrell started dating, he often asked about her. Meeko volunteered information on Jeffery, Isis’s fiancé, telling him that they hadn’t been together that long and he was a merchant seaman, often out of town for months at a time.
“And when he is in town, he’s such a cornball that she wishes he was gone. I don’t know why she’s marrying him,” Meeko told him. “But that’s my girl, and if she’s happy, then I’m happy.”
One evening while leaving the 7-Eleven, he noticed a woman parked to the side, struggling to change a flat tire. He pulled his truck over and hopped out, offering to help, then smiled when he recognized Isis.
“No, I got it,” she said, not even looking up. He waited for a few minutes then watched as she threw the tire iron down in a fit of frustration.
“Let me help you out, Ms. Adams,” he told her. She sucked her teeth when she saw that he had been standing there looking at her struggle.
“I should’ve known it was you. I don’t think I have the right tire iron. I can’t get my rim off.”
He picked the iron off the ground and walked over to her Honda Accord. He placed the end on the edge of what she was calling a rim and popped it off, revealing what really were the lug nuts of the tire, “You don’t have rims, boo. You have hubcaps.”
Isis tossed her head back in a fit of laughter. “No wonder.” “Women. I swear . . .” He sighed and quickly changed the tire for her.
“Thanks, Mr. Sims. How much do I owe you?”
“Let’s start with you calling me Toby. Then let me take you out to dinner tonight.” He already knew from Meeko that Jeff was gone, and he had been waiting for the perfect opportunity to ask her out.
She began biting on her bottom lip, instantly turning him on without even knowing it. “I d
on’t think that’s a good idea. Besides, I already have plans for tonight.”
“Come on, Isis. It’s just dinner, nothing else. I wanna take you out, get to know you, and I know you want the same thing. Tonight is Tuesday, and I don’t have to work.”
“I told you I have plans.”
“What plans? Who has plans on a Tuesday?”
“I do! Meeko and I are going to karaoke,” she answered.
“Karaoke? You’ve gotta be kidding.” From the look on her face, he knew she wasn’t. “Fine, then Terry and I will go with you. Tell me where and what time.”
“You and Terry are going with us to karaoke? I don’t think so. You two don’t know how to act and I am not gonna be embarrassed.”
“I promise we won’t embarrass you,” he assured her.
She stared at him for a few moments then told him to meet her at Floyd’s, a small bar downtown, at 7:30. He agreed. After pleading with his brother, who wasn’t too keen on the idea of going to karaoke, they arrived to find the two women already seated inside.
Toby knew that after a few drinks, most people actually believed they could dance in the club, but this gave him the opportunity to see firsthand that alcohol had the same effect on their belief that they could sing too. Surprisingly, they had a blast, laughing at most people and applauding others.
“What are you gonna sing tonight, Ice?” Meeko asked.
Isis gave her a look of horror. “Nothing! I’m not singing.”
“That’s right. I heard you can blow, Isis. What’s up with that? You not gonna demonstrate your skills for us?” Terry asked.
“I didn’t know you sang,” Toby leaned and whispered into her ear. As he got closer, he could smell the scent of jasmine. He looked at her full lips and wondered what her mouth tasted like.
“I don’t,” she told him.
“She does so. Ask the emcee. She sings every week.” Meeko nodded.
“Come on, sing for me,” he told her. She cut her eyes at Meeko then said she’d be right back.
A few moments later, the emcee appeared on stage.
“Okay, we have a real treat for you, ladies and gentlemen. One of our regulars, Ms. Isis Adams.”
The room fell silent and Isis stepped forward. She gave a perfect rendition of “Inseparable,” and Toby knew at that moment that it would always be their song.
They began spending more time together, just talking and going on ‘unofficial’ dates, as he called them. There was no denying their attraction to each other, but he was enjoying living the single life and his newfound status of being the area’s hottest deejay. There was also the small problem of her engagement, which caused him not to think about becoming involved with her, no matter how much he wanted to.
He often questioned her uncertainty about Jeff, but she said that it was time for her to be married. Toby became content with their friendship. There were times when the urge to pull her close and savor the feel of her soft lips on his was almost too much for him. He knew that she was just as much aware of how much he wanted her, but they never acted upon any of their desires, physical or emotional. Toby wondered if it was just as hard for her as it was for him.
Now here they were, nearly three years and several lifetimes later, talking and working out in the gym like no time had passed between them.
“So, what is it that you do now?” he asked.
“I work at a day spa called Tasteful Tranquilities. I’m a masseuse,” she said proudly.
“Tasteful Tranquilities? Sounds like a cemetery. So, can a brother get more than a massage?”
“Shut up. It’s a day spa, not a brothel. See, that’s how men think.”
“I’m saying. I figured I would ask, just in case.”
“Just in case what?”
“Just in case I could get a hand job—I mean a manicure,” he laughed.
She stopped the machine and got off, wiping her face with a towel. “You are so trifling. Good-bye.”
“Wait a minute, Isis,” he said, getting off the machine and walking beside her. “I was just playing. There you go being all sensitive and stuff. Hey, I’m about to leave. How about we go get a smoothie or something from the juice bar?”
“A smoothie?” she frowned.
“Hell, I don’t know. Isn’t that what people go get after they work out?”
“How about we just go outside and talk, Toby?” she said. “I’ll meet you out front. Just give me enough time to jump in the shower and change.”
He agreed and was waiting for her when she walked out of the locker room twenty minutes later.
“I thought we were gonna meet out front.”
“I was talking to Vinny and decided to catch you in here instead. You ready?”
They each grabbed a bottle of water and walked outside the gym. Sure enough, there were small tables outside the juice bar in the same shopping center, and they took a seat there.
“You sure you don’t want a smoothie?”
“I’m sure.” She laughed. “This water is fine. So, tell me what’s going on? Did you and your wife-to-be talk the other night?”
“Uh, I saw her, but we didn’t talk,” he admitted.
“Say no more. I don’t even wanna know what you all did. Things will work out for you.” Isis took the cap off her water and took a long swallow. Toby could see that her hair was still wet from the shower, her curls glistening from the dampness.
“I don’t think so. She has some major issues that I’m not up to dealing with right about now.”
“Toby, this is what marriage is all about, working through those issues. It’s not a walk in the park.”
“I don’t expect it to be a walk in the park, but there are some things I expect from the woman I marry, and right now, Roni isn’t willing to do those things.” He was trying to go about this conversation without giving Isis details, but she wasn’t making it easy for him. It wasn’t that she was trying to get in his business intentionally; Isis would never do that. After all they had been through, he considered her a friend.
“I know you don’t expect her to quit her job, cook, clean, and stay home to take care of you. Please don’t tell me that’s what this is about.”
“No, not at all. But I do expect her to be faithful!” There, he said it. He had admitted that his fiancée was cheating on him. And now that the words had come from his mouth, the numbness he had been feeling for the past few days instantly turned into pain. He needed to be alone to deal with it. He stood and told her, “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Wait a minute!” Isis jumped up. “I mean damn, I’m sorry, Toby. I just . . . I thought you guys were having problems over dumb stuff like wedding colors. I definitely wouldn’t have pushed the issue if I would’ve known it was like that.”
“It’s all good. You were just trying to help and I appreciate that.” Toby was grateful for her sincerity. He pulled her to him and hugged her tight. “Thanks. I’m out of here.”
He was crossing the street into the parking lot when he heard her calling his name. He turned to see her jogging toward him, carrying his gym bag. “You might wanna take your funky clothes with you, Mr. Sims.”
“Thank you, Ms. Adams. But I know if I left them with you, they would be in good hands.”
“Yeah, right into the trash can over there.” She grinned. “Just kidding. Here you go. And Toby, know that I’m here for you if you need me. Don’t forget; Man’s rejection is God’s protection.”
“Thanks.”
“Everything happens for a reason.”
“I know.”
“If He brings you to it, He’ll bring you through it.”
“Yep.”
“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
“That’s right.”
“If you love someone, set them free.”
“How many more of these do you have, Isis?”
“After all the heartache I’ve been through, I can quote ’em all, Toby.” She sighed. “You sure
you’re gonna be okay? Because I have some more if you need them.”
“No, you’ve given me enough for today.”
“All right, then. Bye, Toby. Take care.” They embraced once again and he opened the door of his truck, tossing the gym bag in the back seat.
“Ice!”
“Yeah?”
“Same time tomorrow?” he said sheepishly. “Wash those funky clothes before you put them on. I’ll meet you on the treadmill.”
58
Nicole looked like she had swallowed a beach ball; other than that, you could hardly tell that she was six months pregnant. Terrell couldn’t believe that it was June already. It had been a struggle, but for the past three months, he had been the loving, faithful boyfriend that he knew Nicole wanted and deserved. He no longer hung out in the clubs or had females blowing up his cell phone. Outside of the occasional conversation he had with Anjelica, there weren’t even any females that he talked with on a social level. And now it seemed that she was so caught up in Jermaine, even that didn’t happen all that often.
And then there was CJ. He had been avoiding her as often as possible since that evening in his office when she asked him to dinner and he declined. That was also the last time he had talked to Kayla. She let him know in no uncertain terms that she didn’t have anything to say to him outside of business, and he respected that. Their sudden distance did draw some attention from people, though, including Nicole.
“Babe, why don’t we invite Kayla and Geno over tomorrow and cook out on the grill?” Nicole asked, climbing beside him on the couch. This was one of the rare weekends she had obliged him to stay at his place rather than him at hers, and he was enjoying it.
“I thought we were gonna go pick the crib and stuff up this weekend. I was gonna finish the nursery,” he told her. She leaned back in his lap and he wrapped his arms around her belly.
“You’ve been saying that every weekend since Easter and it hasn’t happened yet,” she laughed. “Seriously, Kayla hasn’t hung out over here in a while and she really hasn’t called. Is something going on between you?”
Terrell knew this conversation was coming, and he had thought long and hard about what he was going to tell Nicole when she brought up the subject. He was prepared to answer. “She thinks I have something to do with her sister hooking up with Jermaine. She’s mad.”
