Chapter Six
Several hours later, Kendal came home from school. Clinton was still there; he was almost finished with my closet. He said it would probably take him a day and a half to finish mine, but since he had been working his butt off, it would get done today. Simply put, I loved it, even though this wasn’t supposed to be part of the plan. Kendal and I stood at the doorway, looking inside.
“Wow,” she said. “It’s amazing what he’s done to your closet.”
Clinton smiled and paused for a moment to greet Kendal. “Thank you, young lady. I’ll be doing the same thing to your closet too, as soon as you and your mother get it all cleared out for me.”
“Really?” Kendal said with excitement in her voice. “You’re going to do mine like that too?”
Clinton nodded. I could tell that Kendal’s compliment made him feel good.
“Yes, he’s going to do yours too. I already cleared everything out. Your room is a mess. You may have to sleep on the couch tonight, because your clothes are all over your bed.”
“That’s fine with me. I’ve been trying to organize my closet for a looooong time. Thanks for having it done for me.”
“Don’t thank me, thank Clinton. He’s the one putting in all the hard work.”
Kendal laughed, so did Clinton. “Thank you, sir. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem. Now, if you ladies don’t mind, I need to get finished.”
Kendal and I went to the kitchen. She sat at the table to do her homework, while I started on a quick meal for us to eat.
“How was school today?”
“Good.”
“Good as in great or just okay?”
She sighed. “It was good, Mama. What else do you want me to say?”
“No issues? Is anyone else bothering you?”
“Nope. Everything is fine.”
Kendal said the same thing every time I asked her about school. There had to be more to it than just “good,” but I didn’t know how to get much more than that out of her.
The Hamburger Helper was done in twenty minutes. I fixed her a plate, and then I told her that I would be leaving shortly to take Clinton home.
“Okay. Who is he anyway?” she asked. “Someone you’re dating or someone you hired to do the job.”
“He’s someone I hired to do a few things around the house for me. Is there anything else you want done?”
“Why don’t you have him finish the basement? I would love to move my room downstairs. I need more privacy.”
“Girl, please. You have all of the privacy you need. And if you really need more privacy than what you already have, I guess you’ll be moving in with your whack father then.”
“Mama, don’t even go there with him. You always gotta throw him up in our conversations, and just so you know, I haven’t spoken to him in a while.”
“I don’t want to know because it’s not any of my business. But just in case you happen to speak to him, tell him to send you some money for your birthday. You’ll be sixteen next week. I guarantee you that he won’t send you a dime.”
Kendal shrugged. “Oh well, I guess it matters to you more than it does to me.”
I could tell that she was getting irritated, so I dropped the conversation. I returned to my room, where Clinton was drilling away and almost done.
“You did not have to do all of this in one day. I know you’re tired and hungry as well.”
“I’m not tired, but I am a little hungry now.”
“I made some Hamburger Helper, but I’m taking you to get some of the best wings in town. They also make good drinks too. Do you drink alcohol?”
“Not really, but on special occasions I do. The wings sound good, though.”
“Okay, then wings it is. By the way, the closet looks amazing. I never thought it would look like this, and I’m just as excited as my daughter is.”
“I’m happy to hear that. I’ll be done in about ten or fifteen more minutes. I still need to measure your daughter’s closet too.”
“Why don’t you wait until tomorrow? You’ve done enough already, and it’s getting late.”
“Yeah, you’re right. And I haven’t even called Velma yet. I’m sure she’s worried about me.”
“You can use my phone to call her. Just let me know, okay?”
He nodded, then got back to work. And as he predicted, he was finished in fifteen minutes. I stood in the doorway with towels, a brush, shampoo, and soap.
“Thank you so much, Clinton. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to wash up before we go have dinner, but I figured you would, since you’ve been sweating all day.”
“I surely would like to wash up, but my clothes are kind of—”
“Give them to me. I’ll wash them for you real quick.”
“No, I wouldn’t want you to do that.”
“I insist. It makes no sense for you to take a shower, and then put your dirty clothes back on. I can do a quick wash and dry. It shouldn’t take more than thirty or forty-five minutes. While you wait, you can call Velma to let her know what’s up.”
Clinton agreed with my plan. He removed the items from my hand and went into the bathroom. After he removed his clothes, he stuck his hand out the door and gave them to me. Thankfully, his boxers weren’t included. I put his clothes in the washing machine, and then returned to my room. I could hear Clinton singing while taking a shower. His voice was pretty good. It sounded like Maxwell’s voice, but not quite.
As Clinton continued to shower, I looked for something to wear tonight. I found a casual dress that was made of jean material on the bottom and a tank at the top. It flared a bit and cut right above my knees. I grabbed my sandals that had a small heel. And just so I could be ready by the time Clinton was done, I went into the other bathroom to change. Once I was done, I removed his clothes from the washer and put them in the dryer. Kendal was awfully quiet, so I checked on her. She was still sitting at the kitchen table. Instead of doing her homework, she was texting someone.
“Are you finished with your homework?”
“Yes, Mama, I am.”
“Okay. Just checking.”
I headed back to my bedroom, and to my surprise, Clinton was sitting on my bed with a towel wrapped around his waist. His chest was carved nicely, and a huge cross with praying hands was tattooed on it. His hair was thick with waves. He seriously looked like a new man. His eyes searched me up and down before he stood.
“I didn’t mean to sit on your bed, but—”
“No problem, Clinton. I just put your clothes in the dryer. They should be dry soon.”
I went into the bathroom to get some lotion. After I gave it to him, he thanked me.
“I feel like I’m at a spa. That shower was everything. I almost fell asleep on that seat.”
“I hope the water pressure wasn’t too much. I like it high like that, but my daughter can’t stand it.”
“No, I loved it. Real nice. Thanks again.”
He squeezed lotion in his hand and started to rub his chest and arms. I didn’t want to stand there and watch, so I left the room to check on his clothes. They needed about five or so more minutes. I waited until they were done, and then I went back into my bedroom where Clinton was now standing and putting lotion on his feet.
“Here are your clothes.” I laid them on the bed. “By the way, you have a nice voice. I thought Maxwell was in there instead of you.”
He laughed. “Yeah, right. That compliment will not make me give you a discount on that closet.”
“Maybe not, but you definitely earned a big tip.”
I opened my purse, pulling out $300. When I reached out to give the money to him, he looked at it.
“Nah, that’s too much. I said a hundred and fifty for both closets.”
“I know what you said, but I feel as if you deserve more.”
He didn’t argue with me. Just thanked me and took the money before going back into the bathroom to put on his clothes. Ten minutes later, he came out lookin
g brand new. I was now ready to go where I knew Brent would be chilling at tonight. If his wife happened to be with him, too bad.
On the drive to the pool hall, Clinton asked if he could use my cell phone. He called Velma. When he told her he had just got finished and was on his way to get something to eat, I could hear her yelling at him through the phone. All he did was suck his teeth. He didn’t even respond, and after she was finished, I guess she hung up on him. He gave the phone back to me. I wondered why he was even putting up with her crap. He was too nice looking to be with her anyway, and pregnant or not, she was out of control. If her man was outside of the home making money, why was she tripping? I wanted to ask him so many questions about his relationship with her, but it really was none of my business.
“Sounded like she was upset with you,” I said. “Would you like for me to take you home?”
“No, I’m fine. I haven’t eaten much all day, so I’m definitely going to get me something to eat. I’ll get her something and take it home to her.”
I started to say something negative, but I decided against it. My mind switched to Brent, so I pressed on the accelerator to get to the pool hall faster.
Once we arrived at the pool hall, I saw Brent’s car parked in its usual spot. I entered the place with a wide smile on my face. Clinton walked closely behind me. A band was playing some reggae music and thick smoke filled the air. Some people were sitting by the bar getting high. Others played pool or were there watching a basketball game. There was a small dance floor, so some people were on their feet dancing. Clinton and I sat at a bar that sat in the middle of the floor. Several people surrounded it, and the two bartenders behind it were very busy.
“How often do you come here?” Clinton said loudly as he leaned in closer to me.
“Not every week. Maybe once or twice a month. They have good drink specials, and like I said, the wings are delicious. All of their food is good. If you like fried shrimp, they have that too.”
“I may take some of those home to Velma. She likes shrimp more than I do. I’ll try the chicken.”
“Okay. As soon as the bartender comes over this way, I’ll order for us.”
Clinton nodded while looking around the room. There were numerous decent-looking women in the place, but he didn’t seem to give any of them a second look. I even noticed two of the women smiling at him. Either he didn’t see them, or he pretended not to. I barely kept his attention on me, but maybe I hadn’t noticed because I was too busy taking peeks at Brent who was sitting on a stool by one of the two pool tables next to a wall. I didn’t see his wife with him, but I did see three of his friends who he often came here to meet. He definitely hadn’t seen me yet, but it wouldn’t be long before he did.
The woman bartender came over to us, asking what we were drinking.
“I’ll take an Amaretto Sour, and you can get a Bud Light for my friend here,” I said. “We would also like to order two large orders of wings with seasoned fries.”
“Ranch or blue cheese?”
“I’ll take Ranch. Is that okay, Clinton?”
“That’s fine,” he said, looking over the menu. “And if you wouldn’t mind adding a shrimp box to go, I’d appreciate it.”
“Do you want to order it now or wait until after you eat?”
“You can place the order later. Thanks.”
He sure did take care of Velma—I remained puzzled. The bartender walked away, returning shortly after with our drinks.
“Go ahead and mix me up another Amaretto Sour. I’m sure I’ll be done with this one in no time.”
The bartender nodded, then walked away.
“Are you sure you want to do all that drinking?” Clinton asked. “You don’t want to get a DUI, do you?”
“Two drinks won’t kill me.” I tossed the drink back, guzzling half of it down. “Besides, it takes more than just this to get me drunk.”
Clinton put the bottle of beer up to his lips to take a sip. He continued to look around, as if he was intentionally trying to ignore me. I needed his attention focused on me, so I started talking about what a great job he’d done with the closet.
“I can’t wait to get home and put everything in place. I don’t know if I will do it tonight, but maybe tomorrow while you’re working on Kendal’s room.”
“Yeah, why don’t you wait until tomorrow? It’s been a long day. I’m sure you’ll be tired when you get home. Plus, you have to come pick me up early in the morning again.”
I looked over his shoulder. That’s when I saw Brent looking in my direction. Just to be sure that he saw me, I stood and leaned in close to Clinton’s ear.
“The music is too loud. I didn’t hear everything you just said. What time did you want me to pick you up?”
“Seven or eight is fine. And don’t be surprised if Velma be standing outside with me tomorrow, wanting to go.”
I giggled as if he’d said something ridiculously funny. My hand even touched his shoulder, and my breast was close to his arm.
“She wouldn’t go there, would she?” I said.
My laughter caused Clinton to laugh too. “Uh, yeah, she would. Then again, she’s pretty upset with me for not calling her today. When she’s mad at me, she distances herself.”
“Really?” I held my chest, pretending to be shocked. It looked as if Clinton and I were in a funny, yet interesting conversation. From the corner of my eye, I could see Brent coming our way. Without saying one word, he walked right behind me. I was sure that he had taken a look at Clinton, who was now focused on me.
“I would probably do the same thing,” I said. “She’s just trying to protect what’s hers. You know how us women are.”
“Yes, I do.” Clinton chuckled, then took a sip of his beer. The bartender came back with my other drink. She let us know that our order had been placed. I thanked her, and she walked away.
I remained close to Clinton. He didn’t seem to mind, and my flirty behavior got his attention.
“You are going to love these wings, trust me. And I bet any amount of money that you’re going to beg me to bring you back here.”
“What makes the wings so good? I mean, I’ve had all kinds of wings before.”
I put the tip of my finger between my lips and sucked it. “It’s the sauce. The sauce is perfect.”
Clinton smiled, and just as I got ready to take a seat, Brent walked up. He looked at Clinton, then turned his attention to me.
“Since you hung up on me earlier, I didn’t get a chance to finish what I had to say. Let it go, Abby. Please, let it go.”
My face twisted. My brows were arched inward. “No, Brent, you need to let it go. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m enjoying my evening with a friend. If you have anything else to say to me, please find another day or time to say it. Now isn’t the appropriate time.”
He cocked his head back, appearing taken aback by my tone. It was that or either he was jealous that I was there with someone else.
“You’re right. It’s not the appropriate time, but since you’re here, I couldn’t resist. If one more thing happens, shit is going to hit the fan. I hope you understand that I’m not playing with you.”
Clinton’s face was already tight from Brent’s tone and his abrupt interruption. He looked past Brent to speak to me. “Is everything okay? He’s being kind of rude, ain’t he?”
“Everything is fine. This is just one of my bitter ex-boyfriends who seem to have a difficult time letting go.”
“What?” Brent shouted. “Give me a goddamn break. You’re the one who can’t let go, and if you come by my house again, I’m calling the police.”
I remained calm. He was the one standing there, looking like a fool. The people around us were looking at us, probably wondering what in the hell was going on.
I lifted my hand, putting it in front of his face. “Brent, please get away from me. I don’t know what’s up with your threats, but you really need to stop.”
Clinton stood and intervened. “I don’t kn
ow what’s going on either, but this is not how you need to conduct yourself when you’re speaking to a lady. We were in the middle of a conversation, before you interrupted. Maybe you should give her a call tomorrow to discuss what is troubling you. Or you can possibly take her advice and just leave her alone.”
I had barely seen Brent upset or use foul language when we were together. This was a whole new Brent I was seeing, and it wasn’t a good look for him.
“Fuck your advice and hers. She knows what she’s been up to. All I can say is, she’s been warned.”
He walked away mad as hell. I loved every bit of it, but Clinton wasn’t too pleased. “Maybe we should just get our food and go. I don’t want any trouble, and you shouldn’t be in the presence of an ex-boyfriend who can’t control himself.”
“I agree, but I don’t want to run from him. He refuses to let go of our relationship. It’s been over with for almost three months now.”
“Well, you know how some fools are. They don’t want to let go. He seems like the type, and you should be real careful.”
I told Clinton that I would be. I also told him that I wanted to leave as soon as our food came.
“I appreciate you taking up for me but I don’t want you to get involved, in case he comes back over here. We can eat in the car. As for Velma’s food, maybe you can share some of what you have. Or I can stop by a fast-food joint so you can get her something.”
“That would be nice. She likes Panda Express.”
I really didn’t want to stop and get her anything, but Clinton had done a good deed for me today. I didn’t have to pay him one dime to stand up for me, and at this point, I wasn’t going to ask him to pretend to be my man. I would just make sure Brent continued to see us together. That seemed to upset him more than he would ever admit.
Several minutes later, our food came. I asked the bartender to bag up everything, and after she did, I paid for the drinks and food. Clinton reached in his pocket and gave her a tip. He also paid for Velma’s food at Panda Express. And after I pulled away from the drive-thru window, he tore into the wings I’d purchased at the pool hall.
“These are good, but I have to say that I’ve had better.”
The truth was, I’d had better too. The purpose for going to the pool hall was not for wings. “I can’t believe you said that. Those wings are the bomb. And please tell me where there’s another place in St. Louis with wings like that.”
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