by Cynthia Blue
“I don’t know. This is my second week working for Clover. It just doesn’t feel right,” Opal said.
“I understand. Once you get the hang of things at the new job you should have access to Clover’s current insurance information and you can just switch it, babe. This is a blessing in disguise. You got to trust me on this.” Wallace tried to convince her.
“I will think about it. I promise.” Opal told him.
“Okay, babe. I love you.” Wallace kissed Opal on the cheek fast before she left to get ready for work. “I know you will make the right choice.” You better! You dumb fat bitch! He thought.
*****
Opal was hard at work in the office while Clover was making a presentation to a customer. Opal was really starting to like her new job. Actually working was the only thing that gave Opal peace, because it took her mind off her drama-filled life. Opal was organizing some files when her phone started to ring. She took the phone out of her purse and saw that the caller was Dennis.
“Hi Dennis,” Opal answered with a smile.
“Hey Opal. Just checking on you to see how the new job is going,” Dennis said.
“It’s going very smoothly so far,” Opal said.
“I wish I could say the same,” Dennis sighed. “It’s a mess down here dealing with this closure.”
“I feel you.” Opal said with sympathy. “But it’ll be all over soon. You just have to hang in there.”
“Right, I can’t wait for this fresh start in Atlanta.” Dennis said with hope in his voice. By hoping he meant to be closer to Opal.
“I’m sure you’ll love it up here,” Opal said. She looked up and saw Clover walking into the office. “Oh, Clover just walked into the office. We’ll talk later. Bye, Dennis.”
“Bye, Opal and say hi to Clover for me,” Dennis said before hanging up the phone.
“Your buddy Dennis from Miami?” Clover guessed with a smile.
“Yes it was,” Opal answered. “He said ‘hi’ by the way.”
“That was sweet of him,” Clover said. She never met Dennis but likes him based on Opal’s description. He seems like a good friend. He even sent flowers when Opal and Clover’s father died and convinced Opal to believe Clover about Kayson and patch things up with her. Clover felt like she was forever in debt to Dennis for helping her get her sister back.
“He’s having a difficult time with the closure and can’t wait to move here,” Opal volunteered.
“He’s moving here?” Clover asked in disbelief.
“Yes, his frat brother’s son made him a business proposition and he accepted,” Opal said.
“Good for him,” Clover said with a nod. “It’ll be nice to finally meet Dennis. You talk about him so much. Besides, I don't know what he looks like.”
“Really? Oh?” Opal pulled her phone back out and went to the pictures and picked one that she was in to show Clover. “This is from his mother’s birthday party last year and she invited me. This is Dennis, his mom, and her husband. Also, his younger brother and sister from another mother Donavan and Tasha, they’re twins.” Opal explained as she pointed at each individual in the picture.
He is fine! Clover thought. Look like a short slightly lighter version of Morris Chestnut with dark hazel eyes. Clover also noticed as she was looking through the pictures that Dennis glows every time he’s around Opal. That’s the same glow Sharp has when Clover is nearby. This guy is in love with my sister! Clover concluded to herself and gave the phone back to Opal. “How’s it going in here?” She asked.
“Great,” Opal said with a smile.
“Amazing! You’ve been here for two weeks and you have this place running like clockwork.” Clover said and gave Opal a big hug and kiss on the cheek. “I really appreciate you.”
“No, thank you for giving me this job,” Opal said with great appreciation.
“Opal!” Wallace’s voice was heard all the way from the main area.
That voice sounds familiar. It couldn’t be. Clover followed Opal to the main area and discovered that her suspicions were correct. “Wallace! What..the..what?” Clover stuttered in disbelief. That was all she could do.
“Yeah Wallace is back,” Opal said nervously. She had no idea Wallace was going to pop up at the bakery. She wasn’t quite ready to make their reconciliation news yet. “I’ll admit I was shocked too.”
“Hi Clover!” Wallace greeted with his sexy seductive smile and pulled Clover into a big hug, but she didn’t return the hug. “You look more beautiful than ever. It’s been so long!”
Why is this nigga hugging me like we cool? Clover asked herself before politely pushing him away. “Yeah three years to be exact,” She managed to hide the sarcasm. “So where you been? The last time we saw you was when you left Opal stranded at me and Sharp’s anniversary party so you could take some random hoe home after Calista had to lay hands on her for shamelessly throwing herself at Bray.” Clover recapped.
Opal went on to explain. “He was being a good samaritan by giving Xizzy a ride home and he explained that nothing happened between them. Afterwards, he went on a business trip trying to start his own company in Pennsylvania and Rhode Island and they wanted him to attend classes to help him out.”
She actually bought that bullshit! Clover decided to hide her highly justified suspicions and asked the big question to trump Wallace’s boldface lie. “Why weren’t you able to pick up the phone or…”
“My phone died,” Wallace interrupted. “I tried to get another charger for it but my phone ended up getting damaged. I thought about writing Opal but I didn’t remember her address like that.”
Oh he’s good! “What brings you here?” Clover asked.
“I wanted to surprise my baby and take her to lunch,” Wallace turned to Opal and added while looking at her body up and down. “We all know you love to eat.”
That last remark made Opal feel very uncomfortable and Clover noticed. Opal tried to brush it off and said, “Clover, I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Alright.” Clover said as Opal and Wallace took their leave. “Who the fuck is that motherfucker fooling?” Clover wondered out loud. She saw one of the bakers pass by her and called out, “Marsha!”
Marsha turned around and walked towards Clover, “yes, Mrs. Bryson?”
“Tell my sister, Opal that I’ll be gone for the rest of the day when she gets back from lunch and help her close up,” Clover requested.
“Yes Mrs. Bryson,” Marsha said and went back to her duties.
Clover went into her office and took a seat at her desk. She took her phone out and scrolled through the contacts to find Laliyka Collins-Moore and dialed her work number and waited for an answer. “Raylene’s Salon, this is Eve how may I help you?”
“Eve, this is Clover. Where’s your boss lady?”
“She’s putting her last client under the dryer.”
“Great! Put me through.”
“All right, I’ll connect you to her office.”
“Thanks.”
“Hey chick,” Laliyka greeted as she made herself comfortable at her desk.
“Hey girl! Do you have any more appointments scheduled for today?” Clover asked.
“Nope,” Laliyka answered.
“Great! Can you squeeze me in?” Clover requested.
“Your hair day is the day after tomorrow,” Laliyka said with confusion.
“I know but can I just get a basic wash and set and then you can do my perm and sew-in next week?” Clover asked.
“Sure.”
“Thanks.”
“Now, I have a question for you. What the hell is going on?” Laliyka asked accusingly.
Clover started to try to act innocent. “Why Laliyka? Good buddy? Whatever do you mea.....”
“Bitch, don’t even think about trying that shit with me!” Laliyka interrupted. “Even Ray knows she can’t pull that shit with me. Matter of fact, I can’t even pull that shit with her.” That daughter of mine is too much like me. “We go back longer, so your ass should
definitely know better.”
“You’re right,” Clover said with a laugh and Laliyka joined in.
“I know you like to be prompt and stick with schedules. The only time you change plans out of the blue is when something is wrong. Now what is it?” Laliyka asked.
Damn, this hoe knows me too well! “I’ll explain in person but the short version is that Wallace is back and he and Opal made up.” Clover said.
Laliyka was completely stunned by what she just heard. “Please don’t tell me that’s the same nigga...”
“Yes, the same nigga.” Clover confirmed. “And get this? He gave her a bullshit ass excuse for his three year disappearing act and she bought it!”
Laliyka shook her head. “All right, well bring your happy ass down here so we can talk about this.”
“All right,” Clover said.
“By the way, I know you called me a hoe in your mind,” Laliyka said with a playful attitude.
“Yeah and I’ll do it again out loud: HOE! HOE! HOE!”
The girls shared a giggle and hung up. Clover found her handbag, put her sunglasses on and headed out for her hair appointment/venting session.
Chapter Nine
Being happy was an understatement when it came to Calista. She loved her career as a pediatrician, had a loving family and friends, and most importantly, the perfect husband. However, there was something bothering her. For the past couple of weeks Calista had the strangest feeling she was being watched and followed. She brushed it off for a while but not today. Today the feeling grew stronger as she went through her day. Going to work, having lunch with Colton and stopping by Raylene’s to stock up on some hair care products and schedule her hair appointment with Laliyka.
As the day died down Calista focused on her work to shake the creepy feeling and it worked. The good news was that she’ll be able to leave early because she had only three more appointments. The first two were patients she knew very well. Mai brought Phoenix Jr. and Brinaya in for their flu shots and so did Skyla for Kalvin and Kerri. Skyla also needed to update their medical records for the adoption agency.
With Phoenix Jr. and Brinaya the most adorable thing happened. Brinaya was scared to get her flu shot so Phoenix Jr. held her hand tightly and kissed her on the cheek. All of the sudden Brinaya wasn’t scared anymore. Calista thought it was sweet and cute that Phoenix Jr. was learning how to protect his sister at such an early age.
After she got her family patients squared away it was on to her last appointment for the day. This appointment brought Calista to tears on the inside. It was a sweet beautiful fourteen year old girl named Darla Malls. She was getting the results from her follow up exam after being raped. What sick fuck would do something like this? Calista asked herself. Fortunately, Darla was clear of all STDs and was not pregnant. Calista could only pray that Darla can come out of this stronger just like her beloved Aunt Clover.
After a full productive day, Calista couldn’t wait to get home. She knew Bray would be home from practice at this hour and decided to call him when she hopped in her car. “Hi baby,” She said when Bray picked up the phone.
“Hi Doc, what’s up?” Bray asked.
“I had an okay day at work and now I’m on my way home,” Calista said with a smile. “Maybe we can pick up where we left off this morning, if you know what I mean.”
Now Bray was smiling. “I would like that very much. Hurry up and get that fine sexy ass home. Plus, I’m cooking my version of grandma’s famous meal. It should turn out okay. I followed the recipe exactly.”
“Well either way, I’ll love it,” Calista said. “I’ll be home shortly, love you Bray.” They hung up. As Calista continued to drive home she was in powerful great bliss. A great bliss so powerful she failed to notice a car following right behind her.
Chapter Ten
Opal and Wallace’s reconciliation has been very confusing, for the most part. Opal wasn’t sure if Wallace was actually true to her. When he would go to sleep, she would sneak around and go through his cellphone, just because. She wasn’t doing it to be sneaky, but she figured since they are a couple it will be alright. Wallace got her information from her phone so it would be fitting to do the same.
While Wallace was in a deep sleep Opal noticed someone sending him a Facebook message. She didn’t want to be sneaky or read his messages but her curiosity have gotten the best of her. She opened the message and it read: I missed you. Hope to see you again. Things won’t be the same anymore. Opal didn’t know what the person meant by that. She stared at the message trying to find the missing piece to the puzzle. She exited out and put the phone back on the night stand. She headed to the bathroom to relieve herself and went back to bed. Maybe they got the wrong person; that happens at times. Opal tried to convince herself. Tears started coming down her eyes until sleep took over her.
*****
“Hey, what’s up?” Wallace said onto the phone early in the morning, causing Opal to stir out of her sleep.
“Nothing man, trying to maintain. Business will be booming soon,” he said to his buddy Kenneth. Kenneth knew all about the business that Wallace was putting together. Wallace and Kenneth were thick and thieves. They did some heavy dirt together without a care in the world. Like that old saying goes, ‘birds of a feather flocks together’.
“You know what it is,” He said out loud not caring if Opal was sleeping or not.
“Well, I’ll hit you up later,” They hung up. Wallace went on his Facebook to see what was popping for the day. Mainly to see who messaged him or to see who will the lucky lady to vibe with. He knows some of these females will be at a club tonight, so he wanted to see what he was getting himself into beforehand. He had a smile on his face the whole time while messaging other women telling them he couldn’t wait to see them tonight, and for them to look their best. He felt invincible, having tons of women worshiping him, not even caring if Opal was laying in the same bed, in fact, she saw it all with her own eyes.
She turned her head trying to hold back the tears. When she couldn’t hold the tears back she hopped out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. Wallace continued on with his business completely oblivious to Opal’s expression of pain.
“Aye, you alright in there,” He said through the closed door.
Now you want to care about me. “I am fine, just getting ready,” She said while wiping away the tears.
“Well, hurry up. I am hungry and I won’t be here tonight. I'm going out with the fellas. So don’t wait up.” Wallace told her and headed back to the bed. “I need to go in the bathroom, so make it fast,” He said to her, while Opal brushed her teeth and took her shower.
Fifteen minutes later, she headed out of the bathroom to find some clothes to put on. “It took you long enough,” he said to her as he got up and headed to the bathroom. She looked at him and continued to find some clothes to put on.
Beep!
Beep!
Opal’s phone started to vibrate and she wondered who was texting her. She opened up the text message and it was from Dennis. The message said, hey, I was just thinking about you, so I had to text you. How is everything? Dennis. A smile almost appeared on her face, but went away fast. She didn’t want Wallace to see her smiling and that could cause chaos. She didn’t want that at all.
“Why are you on your phone when you supposed to be in that kitchen cooking?” Wallace said coming from the bathroom. Opal jumped.
“I was texting my sister,” Opal said fast.
“Well, do that later,” he said with an attitude
She headed to the kitchen, still thinking about Dennis’ text message.
“That better be your sister that you were going to text and not another nigga,” Wallace yelled out to her.
He got some nerve, she thought with an eye roll.
All day she had been cleaning Wallace’s house and watching TV. It’s great to have some time to herself. The bakery closed due to Clover’s vacation week, but all Opal could think about was getting
back to work and not being bored anymore. She decided to call Clover to have a chit-chat with her. She figured she might as well go with the lie she told earlier.
“Hey girl,” Clover said as soon as she picked up the phone. Clover was getting ready to go grocery shopping. Food goes away quickly in that house.
“Hey what’s up?” Opal asked.
“Nothing much going grocery shopping. What’s up with you? How do you like working at the bakery so far?” Clover smiled widely over the phone.
“It’s great. I’m ready to go back to work. All I do is clean, watch TV, and be bored,” They laughed
“Aw, I’m sorry to hear that. I know I am enjoying my vacation. I needed it,” Clover said over the phone. “So how is everything with you?” Clover was really thinking about Wallace. Clover noticed some negative changes in Opal, like something was bothering her and she was very overwhelmed. Clover could bet money it had something to do with Wallace. She wasn’t sure what it was but something was up with Wallace besides making Opal’s life a living hell. Not only that but before her vacation started, Clover found an anonymous note in her mail at the bakery that read: Save your sister from Wallace. Clover wasn’t sure what to make of it but the note got her attention and decided to be on the alert.
“Everything is good. I can’t complain,” Opal said as her mind drifted to Wallace. She wants to make him happy anyway possible and turn all her focus on Wallace and their relationship. She couldn’t see life without him at all. If she had to do whatever she could to make him happy, then that’s what she would have to do. Even if it means going along with this plan he has for Clover’s business. Who knows? It might benefit her in the long run.
Ain’t nobody gonna love you like I do girl. Remember that. Wallace’s words echoed in her head.
He is the only one for me. He knows that and so do I, She thought. She didn’t know why she was having these types of feelings for him, like she didn’t want to be with him when, in fact, she does. She always learned to follow your instincts and listen to your heart. However, she would never listen and would always do the opposite.
