The garage door opened and she saw his black sports car parked next to the open space. She waited for Garth to punch in his security code and then followed him into his house. A nice floral fragrance filled her nostrils as he guided her through the house. “I know this isn’t grand like your place, but it’s home,” Garth said, as he hauled her luggage inside.
“Are you kidding me?” Eva asked. “I love your home. It’s not what I expected from L.A.’s top bachelor.”
“Life with me is full of surprises Ms. Ward.” By now, he was opening up a door to a mid-size bedroom. “Here’s where you’ll be sleeping.” He placed the bags next to the bed. “I’m not sure where you want your things. There’s a walk-in closet right there. A bathroom connected to the room so you don’t have to go down the hall.”
“Who decorated for you? One of your women?” Eva asked.
“For the record, very few women have seen my place.”
She grunted. “That’s hard to believe.”
“I’m too old to play games. If I say it, I mean it,” Garth assured her.
“I would like to wash up some, so I’ll meet you in about thirty minutes,” she said.
“Don’t you mean an hour?”
“Thirty minutes,” Eva responded.
Garth said, “I’ve never known you to be ready in less than hour for anything.”
She reached her hand out. “I bet you I’ll be ready in thirty.”
“Loser buys the pizza,” Garth said, as he shook her hand.
“Okay, you’re ticking into my time. Scoot,” she said, pushing him out of his own guest room.
Garth didn’t realize that as an ex-supermodel she was used to dressing in a hurry; she just chose not to. She liked taking her time, but a bet was a bet and thirty minutes later, Eva was calling out for Garth. They both had a huge smile on their faces. She said, “Make sure you have enough for the tip.”
“Do you want everything on your pizza?” he asked.
“Everything but onions,” she responded.
An hour later, they were sitting in the living room on the floor around his coffee table eating and watching a movie. Although they were not out at a five star hotel or at some big Hollywood premiere, Eva was having the time of her life doing absolutely nothing with Garth.
She leaned her head on his shoulder. “I wish I would have talked to you first.”
“Me too,” Garth confessed.
“Let’s make a pact. Neither one of us will bring up you know who.”
“Well, I wish it was that easy. Tre and I are friends and you forgot we’re business partners as well.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot. You’ve made some bad decisions in your life.”
“Wow. Well thanks.”
“Not concerning me though.”
“So what do we have Eva? Are you saying, you’re willing to give me a chance? A chance to be your man?”
Eva didn’t respond right away. “Garth, I need to be sure. I’ve wasted too much time pining after the wrong man. I don’t want to leave one dysfunctional relationship for another.”
“A relationship with me will be nothing like Tre’s. Trust me.”
“Easier said than done,” Eva admitted. Eva placed her hand on one of Garth’s cheeks. “Can you give me some time?”
Garth responded, “By the end of this weekend I want an answer.”
“Why do we have to rush?”
“We’ve both wasted too much time with other people. I don’t want to waste any more.”
That’s exactly what Eva wanted to hear. She kissed him intensely. Before long, Garth was laying on top of Eva’s clothed body. “Baby, you’re making it hard on me to resist you,” he said, in between kisses.
“Okay, we’ll stop for now.” Eva said, as they both brushed the wrinkles out of their clothes.
Eva didn’t know if she should feel relieved or disappointed that they each went to separate rooms that night. She thought about Trevor before going to sleep. At one point, she did love him. If she was honest with herself, it had been years since she had actually been in love with Trevor. She was just a woman who hated to lose. Eva felt like she had invested so much time and energy into their untraditional relationship that the thought of him marrying some other woman made her temporarily lose her mind.
Now that she had her full senses, Eva would no longer settle for being anyone’s booty call. If she couldn’t have the real deal—the type of relationship she felt she deserved, she would remain by herself. Eva preached women’s empowerment to her audience and fans. It was way past time for her to live the life she had been lecturing about. Eva decided to take charge of her life.
~ 27 ~
The next morning, while Eva slept, Garth checked with Omar to get an update on what was going on at Eva’s place. Garth felt relieved. No strange events were reported. Eva remained sleeping, so he decided to surprise her by cooking a hearty breakfast. This time when he went to her room, she was awake. His labor was worth it when Eva gave him her trademark smile. He wanted to melt as he placed the tray over her legs in the bed.
“A woman could get used to this treatment,” Eva said, as she took a bite out of her food.
“This is only the beginning.”
“You’re not going to eat?” she asked, in between bites.
“I’ve eaten. You were sleeping so hard earlier that I didn’t want to wake you up.”
While Eva was eating breakfast and getting dressed, Garth retrieved his messages. All was well with his clients as some of his employees that worked the night shift checked in. The doorbell rang as he was disconnecting the call.
Without asking who was on the other end or looking out the peephole, he opened the door. Trevor was standing on the other side. “Man, I thought you were going to be at the gym this morning so since you didn’t show up I decided to stop by.”
“You should have called first.” Garth wasn’t ready for a confrontation. He hoped Eva stayed in the other room.
“I tried, but I kept getting your voice mail.”
They stood in the foyer. “Then that probably means I was busy.”
“Hey, I was just coming over to apologize for how I acted yesterday.”
“No problem. But hey I got company so we can catch up later.”
“Oh my bad. I should have known. I just wanted to get that off my chest.”
Before Trevor could turn around and leave, Eva’s voice rang out, “Garth, what’s on our agenda for today?”
“I know that’s not who I think it is,” Trevor said, as he turned and looked in the direction where he thought he heard Eva’s voice.
“Tre. Calm down,” Garth said, while rubbing his sweaty palms.
“Is that Trevor?” Eva asked, as she entered the room dressed in a pair of jeans and t-shirt. “Hey what’s up?”
“What’s up? You’re what’s up. My best friend and my girl.”
Eva crossed her arms. “I haven’t been your girl since forever.”
Garth, trying to keep the peace, said, “We’re all adults here so let’s sit down and talk about this.”
“Man, you’re a joke.” Trevor’s veins in his neck seemed to poke out.
Garth said, “Look. What happens between Eva and me is between us. You and Eva are not together. You have a fiancé so you need to worry about her and who she’s with.”
Trevor asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Garth almost let it slip but caught himself. “Nothing. All I’m saying is that you’re getting married soon. Your concern should be about Cheryl. Let me worry about Eva.”
Trevor threw a punch at Garth but he ducked before it could land. Garth got him in a headlock. “We either talk about this like two mature adults or you get the hell out of my house.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. This was the ultimate betrayal,” Trevor said, as he squirmed to get loose.
Garth released him. Trevor stood up but looked dazed a little. He looked back and forth at Eva and Garth and said, “You’ll
both pay for this.” He didn’t wait for them to respond. Trevor walked out the front door and slammed it.
“Wow. I’ve never seen him that upset,” Eva said.
“He’ll be alright.”
“There’s something more going on here. You two used to be tight,” Eva said.
“Our friendship hasn’t been right for a very long time now. Our interests don’t lie in the same place.”
“Have you tried talking to him about it?” Eva asked.
“Men don’t talk about those things,” Garth responded, as he led her to the living room and sat next to each other on the sofa.
“But you were boys long before I knew either one of you. I don’t want to be the cause of your friendship ending.”
Garth took his hand and wiped the strand of hair off Eva’s forehead. “That’s why I care about you. You put up this front, but you are a very caring person. I wish others could see this side of you.”
Eva tilted her head down, avoiding eye contact with Garth. “It’ll be our little secret,” she said, in a hushed voice.
Garth spent the next few minutes talking to Eva about his confused feelings for his best friend. “I don’t blame him for being upset. I would have tried to punch me out too.”
“I have a feeling something more is going on here,” Eva commented.
Garth let out a deep breath. If he wanted their relationship to progress, he knew what he had to do. He hoped Eva would understand what he was about to reveal. “If we’re going to be together I don’t want any secrets between us.”
Eva crossed her legs up under her. “I’m listening.”
“Trevor’s fiancé Cheryl and I have been sleeping with one another.” Garth felt uncomfortable telling her about Cheryl but he didn’t want her to find out another way. He watched the shocked look on her face.
“How did this come about?”
“We met before she ever met Trevor. I had no idea the woman he claimed to love was the same woman I had been knocking boots with until much later.”
Eva said, “Talk about a real life soap opera.”
Garth caressed Eva’s hand. “That’s why I say he and Cheryl deserve each other. Neither one of them knows anything about being committed to one person.”
Eva said, “I can’t say I’m surprised about her. She looks like a gold digging tramp. But you. Y’all been boys for too long.”
“Like I said, I had no idea he was her man until much later. She was just a booty call to me.”
“But you could have stopped once you found out. In fact, you should have told Tre.”
“Believe me, Tre doesn’t tell me everything. Although you’re the first one I’ve ever loved, I was in a serious relationship before and Tre slept with her. He doesn’t know I know that.”
“Go back to the part where you said I was the first one you’ve ever loved,” Eva interrupted.
Garth didn’t mean for his feelings to slip out. Now he had no choice but to be honest with her. “Eva, I can’t say exactly when it happened, but I am in love with you. I want you to be my woman.”
For a moment, they forgot about Trevor and his problems.
“Can you honestly say you’re ready to leave the other women alone? I mean your roster is bigger than any rapper’s I know.”
“Eva you’re more than enough woman for me. Keeping up with you will be a full-time job.”
“Um huh. Well back to this Cheryl and Tre mess. I think you need to tell him.”
“You saw how he acted when he saw you here. Just imagine how he’s going to feel about Cheryl.”
“Frankly, I don’t care. Tre is not my favorite person in the world right now, but he deserves to know before he walks down the aisle with the tramp.”
“I’ll think about telling him, but for now, can we talk about something else?” Garth pulled her into his arms and hugged her and planted kisses all over her face.
“You never did answer me. What’s on our agenda for today?” she asked.
“How about sail boating? I have a friend who said I could use his anytime I wanted to. Today seems like the perfect day.”
Two hours later, they were sailing on the high sea. “Don’t go too far out,” Eva said, as she re-tied the wrap around her waist. The wind blew giving Garth glimpses of the bottom part of her bikini and thighs.
Garth wrapped his arms around her. “I can handle this.”
“I’m not saying that you can’t, but the winds seem a little high don’t you think.”
Garth planted a kiss on the back of her neck. “I wouldn’t let anything happen to you baby. I promise to keep us close to shore just to ease your mind.”
“Great,” Eva said, as she turned around to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his lips down on top of hers. They kissed as the wind blew through her hair.
It was after six before they returned home. Garth felt relaxed as he quietly reminisced about the day he had with Eva out on the open sea. He had promised her a home cooked meal tonight. He threw on a few steaks on the grill and baked some potatoes. Eva had made herself at home. He could get used to having her around.
Wiping her lips with a napkin, Eva said, “This was delicious. You can grill for me anytime.”
Garth tipped his imaginary hat. “Glad you liked it.”
Eva took a sip of her drink. “You might be a keeper after all.”
“Does that mean you’re ready to give me an answer?” Garth asked, as he held his breath.
“Not yet, but soon,” Eva responded.
Garth sighed. “In the meantime, let’s watch a movie. I’ll even let you pick the movie.”
A few minutes later, they were curled up on the couch watching to Garth’s surprise an action flick. Eva said, “I wanted a role in that movie.”
“I can see you kicking butt now.”
Eva snuggled up closer to Garth. Garth’s body tensed up as his libido went into overdrive. He shifted to get comfortable. They watched the movie in silence. Before long, Eva had dosed off. He gathered her up in his arms and instead of taking her to the guest room; he made a beeline directly to the master bedroom. He watched her as she slept; hoping she wouldn’t be too upset waking up next to him.
~ 28 ~
It took a moment for Eva to realize where she was. The last thing she remembered was watching a movie with Garth in the living room. Now she was in a bed, but not the one she had slept in the night before. This was much bigger. Garth’s arm was across her waist. He was cute when he snored. She watched him for a few minutes before getting up to go to the rest room.
The water cascading down her body soothed her. She wasn’t aware she had an audience until she heard Garth’s voice. “You’re absolutely beautiful.”
“Coming from you that means a lot,” Eva said, as she reached her arms out towards him. “Join me.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Positive.”
Within seconds Garth had removed his boxers and was lathering Eva’s body with soap. She “oohed and awed” as she felt the gentleness of his hands over her body. “Tell me, you’ll give me a chance,” Garth said, as he planted kisses on her soapy neck.
“Ask me in a minute.”
His lips traced their way down to her breasts. “Minutes up.”
“Yesss,” Eva said, as his tongue flickered around her navel.
“You won’t regret it,” Garth said, right before dipping his tongue into Eva’s secret garden.
Eva’s moans got louder and louder. Her legs trembled as Garth cupped her buttocks with both hands to keep her from falling in the tub.
Garth, after making sure Eva had been satisfied, stood and their bodies united. With each thrust, Garth felt himself becoming more and more in love with Eva. It didn’t take them long to reach an earth shattering climax.
Garth held Eva as they slid down in the tub together. “I guess I’ll be wearing my hair in a ponytail today,” Eva joked, as the water from the shower head fell upon them.
�
��I love you Eva.”
“But…” Eva began to say.
Garth placed his finger over her lips. “Shhh. Don’t worry about saying it back. When I hear those words from you, I want you to be absolutely sure. As sure as I am about my feelings for you.” He replaced his fingers with his lips and they kissed and made love for a second time.
Eva and Garth spent the rest of the day in the bed exploring each other’s body; each time their bodies united was better than the time before. Eva was sleeping sound until she felt Garth nudge her. “The alarm just went off.”
“It’s morning already,” Eva asked, still in a daze.
Garth whispered, “No, the house alarm.” He handed her his cordless phone. “Call 9-1-1. Hurry and get to the bathroom. Don’t come out until I tell you.”
Eva didn’t know if she was having a bad dream or not. She did as she was told.
Eva hid in the bathroom as Garth went downstairs to investigate. She did as he told her and called the police. “Someone’s broken in.” Eva realized she didn’t know Garth’s physical address.
The 9-1-1 operator reassured her they had it on file, “We will have someone there as soon as possible.”
“Hurry, please,” Eva pled.
“You can stay on the line until help arrives ma’am.”
Eva kept the phone off the hook, as she waited. She didn’t like feeling helpless. Her heart felt like it was about to beat out of her chest. Waiting to see what was going on felt like an eternity. Eva jumped when she saw the doorknob turn.
“Baby, it’s me,” Garth said.
Relieved, she rushed to the door and unlocked it. She ran into his arms. “Is everything okay?” she asked.
“Yes and no,” Garth responded, as he led her back into the bedroom.
“Someone threw something through the patio door that’s why the alarm went off. Whoever it was had gone by the time I got down to investigate.”
“The police are on their way,” Eva said.
By now, they could hear the sirens. “This should keep the neighbors talking. Put some clothes on and meet me downstairs,” he said, as he went to meet the police.
Betrayed by Love Page 12
