Tomorrow morning bright and early I’ll go into the shop. I’ve been slacking, not good at all. Sure, the shop in Nashville is doing great it practically runs itself but this one in Manhattan is only been up and running for a few months, way behind schedule. Thanks to the first asshat contractor I had and the two after him. I struck gold when Ted was recommended to me by an ex-boyfriend, it turns out a good contractor is harder to find than the Hope Diamond.
I feel almost human again walking into the boutique in my four inch heels, mid-thigh black skirt, and fitted black jacket. I don’t know about anyone else but I’m gonna make today a good day. With a little more gusto and energy than I feel, I smile brightly at my employees. “Good morning Emma, Maya.”
“Just Maya. Good morning and who put the chipper in your morning?”
“No one,” I say, walking into the back to put my jacket and purse away. “If they did, I would be late and way more chipper with a kool-aid smile. Where’s Emma?”
“She’s still figuring out the subway system.”
“It’s been almost a month,” I say when she walks into the back room as I move over to the coffee maker. “If she hasn’t gotten it by now, when is she going to?”
“Unfortunately for her, the L train is under repairs. She has to take the shuttle bus. You should expect her to be a little later than usual.”
“Good thing I was already expecting her to be late.”
“Yeah,” she says, walking out with me and my coffee in hand.
Emma’s a sweet girl, she’s a shy petite redhead from the Midwest who grew up on a farm. She recently moved to New York to go to college and she’s a bit overwhelmed by the big city. She makes you feel like you could hold her close and take care of her like a baby bird. She’s late almost every day but I can’t be too upset. We have that in common except when it comes to work. I try my best to be on time.
Resting my coffee cup on one of the glass tables in the corner of the store, I sit down in one of the two gold wingback chairs. I cross my legs while Maya straightens a shelf of pastel sweaters. “I know I checked in early yesterday and you said things were running smoothly. Did anything I should know about happen toward the end of the day?”
She turns folding a sweater. “Did you hear something I should know about? If you did I’m clueless, you should tell me.”
“I’m making sure all went well without your fearless leader at the helm.”
“Was there any doubt all was well with me here?”
“I guess not. I know you can handle yourself. Emma can be a tad shy around some of the customers. Especially the occasional men who stop in to buy lingerie, then proceed to ask her opinion.”
“Emma will be fine soon enough after I take her out and shake her up. Give her the real New York experience, Brooklyn style.”
“Don’t break her. Don’t take her to meet your cousins.” I smile behind my coffee cup taking a sip.
“I’m going to take her out for a night on the town and we’re going to hang with my cousins in Flatbush; and I will have you know my cousins know how to show a girl a good time.”
“The ones who came to get you the other day with Uncle Cyrus. Who asked me out on a date, wanted me to drive, and then asked me if I could pay until he got his check the following week?”
“Uncle Cy is only one of my relatives on my father’s side, he’s harmless and he’s a sweetheart. Besides, haven’t you heard Bushwick is up and coming, every time I turn around I see another white person and I have to do a double take like are they lost. But you wouldn’t know about that.”
“I bet you never stepped foot out of Manhattan.”
You’re stereotyping me because of all my fabulousness.”
“Really,” she says with a touch of skepticism.
“Yes! One of my ex’s lived in Bushwick.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. Yes, he was black.” I let her know a bit annoyed. “Anyways, we were great together. It was a summer thing. He was going away to college and so was I.”
“Was he cute?”
“Mmm...yes. His lips were like, Mmm, mmm, good. The last time I saw him was junior year before he received his degree in Environmental Science. God, he made science sound hot.”
“He was good looking and smart and you made a little thing like college break you up. I would have been all over that. Like, honey I’m with you, what dorm are we going to move into.”
I laugh and get up. Emma walks through the door apologizing profusely for being late. “Ava, please forgive me, it won’t happen again. I promise to try and be on time. I have it all figured out now.”
“Honey, it’s okay. Relax before you start hyperventilating. Go to the back, calm down, have a drink.”
“Thanks, Ava.” She lowers her head. “Sorry again.”
I look over at Maya. “We have got to get that girl to loosen up.”
“I’m working on it.”
“Good. I have a bigger challenge for you today. I need a drop dead make their tongues fall to the floor outfit. I’m going out tonight and I need to look better than my best.”
“Got it. Mission make him take you home, give you the best mind fuck, blow your back out, sex of your life with the first look. On it.”
“I knew I made the right decision when I hired you.”
“So when’s that raise, boss?”
“As soon as I get my back blown out.”
“Tomorrow morning it is, Ms. Kool-Aid boss.”
We both laugh. Emma comes back in the room and I give them a big smile clapping my hands together. “Ladies, fan out, I’m on the hunt. I need a killer ensemble to wear tonight, I need to kill em dead.
Chris
“My sister called today. She invited us over for a small get together Friday night. I told her I’d ask you to make sure you’re up for it.”
“Don’t worry about me so much. It’s been two months since she passed and you’ve been with me through it all.” She stops and her eyes fill with tears.
“Sage,-” She places her hand on my chest and I pull her closer to me.
“I’m fine, Chris. I think I will always shed a tear when I think about my mother. She was the only family I had left. She was everything to me. I’m alone, it’s still hard to think about.”
“I know how hard it’s been for you. I’ve been here since the start and I’ll continue to be here for you.”
“You have. We just started dating and you didn’t have to stay. You heard the words massive stroke and you didn’t flinch. You said I’ll be here for you in whatever way you need. True to your word you have been. And you made me fall in love with you instantly. I don’t know where I would be without you here by my side. I don’t know what I’ll do if you’re not.”
“Your stronger than you know. Even if I weren’t here, there is no doubt you would be able to handle it all.”
“I’m not so sure I would. Thank god for you and your family helping to keep those dark thoughts away.”
She wraps her arms around me squeezing tight. I do the same, reassuring her I won’t leave her. I’ll be here for her for as long as she needs me. “Maybe we should skip the get together at Cats. Have a quiet night at home?”
“Absolutely not. I like your sister. I haven’t seen much of her since the funeral. It’ll be nice to see them in happier times. It’ll be good for us. Things happened so fast with my mother we haven’t had a chance to just be carefree. As a couple, it’s been the best and worst eight months of my life. It’s time for good things to happen for us. Going to your sister’s will be good.”
“Alright.” I smile kissing her and send her to take a shower.
I’m cooking tonight which means we’re having takeout because it’s my turn to do the dishes. I place the order and slump back in the couch. Sage is right, our relationship hasn’t been an easy one. Right out the gate, her mother had the stroke. Her health started rapidly declining and Sage had no one else to help her. No siblings, no father, no close relative
except for an distant aunt and uncle she had never met. So, at thirty-two she’s an orphan. Doesn’t matter what age you are, without family that’s what you become.
I made her mother a promise in one of the rare moments before her death when she was able to communicate. She asked me to take care of her daughter, and even if I wasn’t the man for Sage, I would always be there for her because she couldn’t. She said she couldn’t leave this earth and rest without knowing there was one person in this world who cared about her daughter and would do what was best for her, even if it was only as a friend. I made her that promise and that’s what I intend to do.
What I’ve done from the day she buried her mother. First week was hard but I reaffirmed the promise to Sage I made to her mother. I promised she would not be alone As long as I was in her life. I do love her but is she my forever? I think she could be. Whether I am or not remains to be seen but I’m a man of my word. I’ll always be here for her. That promise was sealed the day I made it and her mother died.
“Chris.”
“Mmm...”
“Chris, can you please look at me?”
“Coming, coming...finished. Just looked over the last document. This deal is locked up tight.”
“The deal was air tight hours ago when your father, you, and I signed the final documents and toasted with the best champagne in the office. Baby, we are going places, there is nowhere but up for us. As long as we’re together nothing can go wrong. We are perfect together.”
“Yeah..perfect.”
“This real estate deal between your father’s company and mine is going to make your family an obscene amount of money. It’s going to make you the future face and name of the company someday. That is, when your father is ready to retire and hand the reins over to you. I’m glad I could be a part of it all. One day soon, I’ll be able to say I was the woman by your side from the beginning.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Sage. I’m not trying to run anything. I don’t know if I do want the reins of responsibility handed over to me. It’s a family business and Jay and Kate work there, too. They are as much of an asset to my father and the company as I am.”
“Your brother and sister are good at what they do but come on, you’re the stand out. You’re a natural at making and closing the deal. Donald Trump doesn’t know the art of the deal.”
And this is where Sage and I can’t agree. When it comes to our business she’s single minded. It’s all about doing what it takes to make the deal to get ahead. She’s going to go far in the real estate business. But the way we see business is different. My success in business is connected to and determined by my family, including friends I consider family. My father built his business from the ground up to continue his legacy for generations to come. Where, even if we didn’t want to follow in his footsteps, we would have options and choices.
Going up against my sisters and brother to get ahead is something I’m not interested in. Yes, I love what I do and I will admit I do it well but not at the expense of ruining my family to get to the top. For me it’s equally or nothing. If that means the reins of power skips past me and are handed down to Jay or Kate, so be it. In my book family comes first, the rest comes second. I’ll do what it takes to keep mine together. The woman in my life needs to understand this.
I watch her buzz around my bedroom still on a high from closing our biggest deal yet. We do make good partners in business and we are comparable in many ways. She stands in front on me holding up two dress.
“Which one?”
“Either one. They both look good. You can’t go wrong with either one.”
“Thank you.”
She leans down kissing me in only her underwear and matching bra. Black as usual. She says black goes with everything. Safe and practical.
“I forgot to ask yesterday, do you know who else is going to be there?”
“Didn’t ask. Guess it’s the same people as usually since she said it was a small gathering.” I get out of the chair pulling my shirt on.
“Do you think Ava will be there?”
I pause but recover quickly jerking my arm into my shirt. Ava. Haven’t heard her name in a while. Doesn’t mean I haven’t thought about it. The first thing that pops in to my mind is one of the many fights we had right around the time Sage’s mother was at her worst.
“Why must you always be the good guy? Take a chance for once. Take what you want!”
“Like you? If we could all be like you, Ava. Some of us have a little emotion called remorse after we’ve done something wrong or are about to. Our conscience kicks in redirecting us. When will yours kick in and you learn to use it.”
“I’m heartless because I know what I want and I’m going after it? I’m sorry her mother is ill and she’s going through this, but you came here to me.”
“I didn’t like the way things ended between us at the wedding. I wanted to make sure there was no hard feeling between us.”
“That’s a lie. The wedding was weeks ago. You came here because you want me just as much as I want you. We kissed. If your so called phony ass conscience didn’t flicker inside of you when I said Sage’s name, we would be happily doing that instead of arguing once again. Go ahead and deny it. Lie to yourself once again, tell me you don’t want me.”
I’ve never met a woman who makes me so angry and hard at the same time? That’s Ava. You want to fuck her senseless to shut her the fuck up, but then you look at her and you want to make love to her, only to hear the words that come out of her mouth.
“I’m not doing this with you. I don’t know why I bother.”
“No I don’t know why I even bother with you. You’re a waste of my fucking time. I’m tired of waiting around for you to see what’s in front of you. If you want to mourn and take on everyone else’s woes and worrying about everyone else’s feelings instead of choosing to be happy, then get the hell out.”
“You’re a stuck up rich girl who thinks she can always get what she wants and doesn’t know how to take no for an answer. Grow the fuck up Ava, it’s about time. We’re not kids anymore. You can’t control people and make them do what you think is best for them.”
“If that’s all, I’m sorry to hear about Sage’s mother’s condition.”
“I know you are. We can’t be together. I shouldn’t have come. It’s been a difficult time and I’m doing what’s right.”
“I know. Always the standup do right guy. Putting everyone’s needs and wants ahead of yours. You go be with her, be her savior.”
That’s the last time I saw her. I clear my throat looking at Sage behind me and answer her.
“I wouldn’t know I don’t keep tabs on Ava.”
“It’s likely she’ll be there tonight. She is your sister’s best friend and all.”
She looks at me as if I’m supposed to know what Ava’s plans for the night are. More than likely she will. “Haven’t seen or spoken to her in months. Only one woman has consumed me I’m happy to say, you.”
This is true. When her mother died I was constantly worried about her state of mind. She was beyond consoling the first night. I was afraid of what she might do. She’s come a long way from then.
She walks over kissing me on the lips. “I love you, Chris.”
I stare for the briefest of minutes dipping my head brushing a kiss on her lips. “Love you.” I step back buttoning my shirt watching as she walks away slipping into her dress.
Silence falls between us as we get ready. It’s not a calm silence, it’s one filled with a feeling I can’t put into words. But I know the cause, Ava. It’s hard to believe three little letters could have such a silent impact. When that name is in the mix it’s hard to explain much of anything. Except you better hold on for dear life, anything could happen.
Ava
Being forty-five minutes fashionably late, all decked out and ready to take on docile and proper Sage, I give two sharp knocks on the door. The door opens to Cat’s wide-eyed stare greeting me. Bingo, I m
ade the right choice. Just the reaction I was hoping for. Let’s hope it has the same effect on Chris. I open my arms tipping one shoulder back in a move that would do Vanna White proud with a slight pout of my lips.
“You like?”
“Where are you going dressed like that? I said this was a small gathering not fashion week and skin magazine shoot.”
“There is no such thing. I wanted to look my best. You should strive to look your best, no matter how small or grand the affair. You never know who you’ll run into,” I say, trying to move around her blocking my path, to what I’m sure is not going to be a dull night. If this outfit does what it’s intended to do. “Aren’t you going to let me in? This is not the way you treat a guest.”
“It is if said guest does not behave herself like she promised.” She puts one hand on the door pulling it in behind her.
“Cat, seriously?” Crossing my arms, I wait for her to move but she doesn’t budge. I give in changing tactics. “Fine, I’ll be on my best behavior. Now will you let me in?”
“You will keep your hands to yourself, no name calling, no insinuating that you and Chris have had any involvement in an earshot of where Sage will accidentally hear you.”
I smile, dropping my arms lacing my fingers together in front of me. She knows me well. “I solemnly promise I will do none of those things. I will be on my best behavior.” For me that is. As my best friend, she should know I always find a way around these things.
Assessing me with a stern look from head to toe, she finally returns my smile with a welcoming one of her own. “Now that that’s over with, I can say come in. You look gorgeous. This tangerine color is everything on you.”
“Why, thank you kindly.”
Imperfections Take Me As I Am (The Imperfections Series Book 3) Page 2
