“You did?” he asked, sounding a little too surprised. “That’s great. Do you think she will give us permission to tape your first meeting?”
I played right along. “I don’t see why not. I mean, it’s her job to promote my career. I’m going to meet her for lunch, so we ought to plan what I should say.”
“It looks like things are coming together. With Regan Reynolds representing you, it will mean that you’ll be getting more auditions, and that will make the producers and investors happy.”
I raised my latte in a toast to myself. “Yeah, things are looking up. It looks like Yancey Harrington Braxton is on her way back to the top.”
“The haters better get ready,” Cale laughed.
“Yeah, they better because I’m ready for them.”
TALKING ABOUT REGAN REYNOLDS with Cale over coffee must have gotten her ears burning. No sooner had I walked through the door of my home than my cell phone rang.
“May I speak to Yancey Braxton?”
“Who’s calling?” I asked.
“This is Gilliam James calling for the Regan Reynolds Agency. Is this Yancey?”
“Yes, Gilliam, this is Yancey.”
“Hold for Mrs. Reynolds.”
After a few moments of silence Regan came on the phone.
“Yancey,” she said brightly, “how are you doing?”
“I’m doing well. How are you?” What I really meant was “find me some damn work.”
“Everything is great. Look, I’ll get right to the point. I have a couple of opportunities for you.”
Those were the magic words. I quickly replied, “I’m listening.”
“Well, Seal needs a couple of background singers for a recording session and for a party he is doing for Sean Combs. I understand Mary J. Blige is one of the hosts and will be singing.” When I didn’t respond right away, she added, “A lot of industry people will be there.”
So this was her news? “I don’t do backup,” I said flatly.
I heard a sucked-in breath of surprise. When she spoke again, her voice was ten times harder. “Now, Yancey, what did we agree on?”
“What are you talking about, Regan?”
“The diva attitude and how you were not going to do that. This is a good-paying gig and a chance for some much-needed exposure.” The phone went silent, and when she came on, she was reading some listing. “The only other possibility we have is a recurring role on Ugly Betty. You know they moved filming to New York.”
“Yeah, I knew that, but I can’t play Vanessa Williams’s mother. I already turned that role down.”
“That’s not the role,” she clarified. “It’s playing opposite Vanessa, but it’s not her mother. I would never send you up for a role like that.”
“I’m glad to hear that, Regan,” I said, thinking that maybe Regan Reynolds understood me better than my former agents.
“So are you on board? This would only be for two nights. Let’s see what we can parlay those jobs into.”
I liked Regan’s direction. She spoke my language, and for the first time in a long time, I felt that someone other than S. Marcus had my back. “Yeah, I will do them,” I said without the normal hesitation I would have put up.
“Great. Do you have a reel and a demo tape?”
“Sure.”
“I will have Gilliam send over a messenger with the script and pick up those items while she’s there. She’ll let you know where you need to be for the rehearsals.” She added a little pep talk. “I know you’ll knock them dead.”
“I will do my best. I’m really excited at the possibility of doing something involving the election,” I said.
“These are some exciting times,” Regan said, being genuine for a change. “Who would have ever thought we would live to see the day where we might have a chance at electing an African-American man as leader of the free world?”
“Who would have thought that would ever happen?” I chimed in. “Maybe if we’re lucky we will live to see the same thing happen to an African-American woman.”
“One thing at a time,” Regan said.
Before I hung up the phone, I did something else I normally didn’t do.
“Regan?”
“Yes, Yancey.”
“Thanks for this. Thanks for giving me a chance and believing in me.”
“Not a problem, Yancey,” she said smoothly. “Just don’t let me down.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
HIS STEEL GRAY EYES were hard to ignore in the nearly dark BB King’s Blues Club on 42nd Street. John Basil Henderson, a man I’d come oh so close to marrying, sat across from me.
“You still look good, girl,” Basil said, all smiles, the charm dripping from each word.
I couldn’t help but return the smile. “So do you, Basil, but you already know that.”
“Thanks, babe, but I know you didn’t want to meet with me just to tell me how good I look. What’s up? You said something about a forgiveness tour. What’s that all about?”
Basil and I knew how each other played our game. So there was no fooling him. Even so, I tried to stall.
“How is your daughter?”
“Tally is fine.”
“I bet she is beautiful.”
“She’ll be the Halle Berry of her generation,” he said expansively. “So come on now, Yancey. What are you up to, and how does it involve me?”
I bowed my head, took a breath, then faced him. “Okay. I know you’re busy. But I got this chance to do something big for my career. I’m shooting a pilot for a reality show, and the producers thought it would be great if I include some of my friends and boyfriends who knew me when my career was really smoking. So naturally I thought of you. But we’ve been out of touch a long time, and I don’t know what you’ve been up to. Are you involved right now?”
“Come on, Yancey. You know me.”
“Man or woman?” I just couldn’t resist asking.
“Yancey,” he said, looking off to the side.
“Just asking. Anyway, it would be what they call in the business polluting reality with us. We would pick some restaurant or public place where it would look like we ran into each other accidentally, and when I get back to my town house I would talk into the camera about our relationship.”
“Kinda like what you did with your hit record.”
I knew he would get around to that sooner or later. There was no way I could make that up to him. I’d hoped after all this time he might have found room in his heart to forgive me. It wasn’t as if we both hadn’t done hurtful things to each other.
Basil took a swig of his beer. “Thanks, but no thanks, Yancey. I don’t need the publicity.”
“I know you don’t, Basil, and I promise you I won’t do anything to embarrass you or make either of us look bad. You know how I feel about you,” I said as sweetly as I could. That was the closest I’d ever come to an apology for how I’d exploited him. Basil could be tough, but I knew he had a sensitive side. I always viewed him as a male version of me when it came to getting what I wanted. Which is why we worked so well as a couple; also why we were so fucked up. It showed in the way he dressed and how people (both men and women) stared at him whenever he entered a room. I had become used to this when I was younger. I missed it and was determined to have it again.
“I don’t know, Yancey. I know you and there’s always an agenda up that beautiful sleeve of yours. Just like your mama. Is she still in the joint?”
“No, she’s out for now. Didn’t Raymond tell you? I’m sure the prison authorities notified him before they released her,” I said. Raymond Tyler was the man my mother had shot. I was convinced he was also the love of Basil’s life, even though he would never admit it.
His face had completely shut down. “I don’t talk about Raymond with you, Yancey. You know better.”
“You started it asking about Ava,” I pointed out.
He took my point. Plus, he wanted to get off that subject immediately. “So that’s it? No strin
gs?”
“Yes, that’s it. Simple as that. I’ll make sure the producers make you seem like the big balla you are, Basil.”
He chuckled, spreading his arms out wide. “Can’t keep that from happening, Yancey B. It is what it is. Anybody can see that.” He regarded me curiously. “I don’t know why, but I thought maybe you’d given up the acting thing and just married well and had some kids.”
I leaned in toward him. “You know better than that. I still got to win an Emmy, a Tony, an Oscar, and a Grammy, Basil. Then and only then will I consider my second act.”
“You mean your final act, don’t you, girl? Neither one of us are spring chickens,” Basil said with a sexy grin.
I flashed him a smirk right back. “Now, Basil, that’s cold. Don’t you know forty is the new thirty?”
“Yeah, that’s true, baby girl, but you sure you want to spend the best days of your life messing around those phony people in the entertainment world?”
“Aren’t you still an agent?” I asked, already knowing the answer to that question. I had contacted Basil through his agency, XJI, so I knew he was still in sports management.
“Yeah, I am,” Basil said. “Keeps me living the life I’ve become accustomed to.”
“There you have it. Same thing for me, Basil. Same thing for me.”
My words must have given him food for thought, because for a long minute he just sat there. Finally he said, “So this reality show is really important to you, huh?”
“Yeah, it is, Basil,” I said with full sincerity. “It’s something I need to reclaim my place in the world.”
“Who said you ever lost your place, Yancey? You struck me as a girl who would always land on her feet.”
“And I will. That is, with your help, of course.”
“Let me take a day or two to think about it. I will get back to you,” Basil said. He leaned over to give me a sweet kiss on the cheek and then slid his amazing body from the booth and headed to the door.
CHAPTER
30
The security detail at the newly renovated Plaza Hotel was larger than Ava expected. Still, she looked like she belonged with the well-dressed crowd in an eye-popping white evening gown with sequined straps and a low bustline. Was she going to get inside? Ava wondered as she watched people line up to get their names checked off and gain entry into the party of the season in New York. In other words, a ballroom full of wealthy men looking on the sly for a woman like Ava.
She had opened her small jeweled purse, pretending to be looking for her invitation, when she suddenly felt eyes on her. She looked over her shoulder and found a tall, handsome man staring at her. He was broad-shouldered, with flawless dark skin and wavy black hair. The only problem was that he looked too young. Ava thought, That boy could be my son and is probably another broke brother with a good dick.
When Ava looked at him, he raised his glass of champagne and smiled at her. He had a perfect smile and his tuxedo fit him like a glove.
A waiter carrying a tray of champagne glasses passed Ava. She took one and winked at the stunned waiter. She turned to the handsome stranger, who was now having a good laugh at Ava’s boldness. Making her way to the corner he was standing in, Ava stopped and said, “What’s so funny, youngster?”
The man smiled, took a swallow of his drink. “I wouldn’t call you funny. Maybe bold, but most definitely beautiful.”
Ava tried to restrain herself, but a huge smile spread across her face. She suddenly didn’t feel the need to get into the ballroom. Things were suddenly getting interesting in the lobby.
“I’m Houston Sturdivant,” he said, sticking out his large, masculine hand.
“Ava Parker Middlebrooks,” Ava replied as she daintily shook.
“Are you going inside the party?”
“I was thinking about it. I’m related to the family.”
He drew back in surprise. “You related to Duke?”
“Yes, I am. How do you know Duke?”
“We went to prep school and Yale together.”
“You can’t be as old as Duke,” Ava teased.
“Yes, I am. But you know what they say: black don’t crack.”
Ava liked that he was older. He was becoming more suitable all the time. “I know that’s right. So are you here alone?”
“Looks like not anymore.” Houston smiled.
“Now, Mr. Sturdivant, are you flirting with me?”
His eyes glittered like a tiger’s. “What would make you think that, Miss Middlebrooks?”
“Let’s just say I know men like the back of my hand. Especially those in heat,” Ava said. She had turned to take in the rest of the party when she suddenly felt soft lips touch the side of her neck.
Houston whispered, “Let’s blow this joint and go back to my suite at the Trump and have a real nightcap.”
Ava couldn’t decide if she needed to meet her future husband or have some head-banging sex with a smart young stud. Why couldn’t she have both? she asked herself as she pictured Houston lying butt naked, his deep dark skin contrasted with the brilliant white of sheets. Just thinking about that brought tiny beads of perspiration popping across her forehead.
Ava leaned into Houston and said, “Why don’t you escort me inside, have a drink, and talk a little more about your proposal, Mr. Sturdivant?”
Houston bowed and held out his arm in invitation. “Lead the way, Ava, and I shall follow.”
CHAPTER
31
I don’t know why you’re so keen on me meeting her, Dad,” Madison said. Derrick had just returned to the hotel suite from lunch.
“Because she really wants to meet you, Madison, and it’s long past time that she did.”
The pendulum had swung for Madison all over again. Meeting her real mother was exciting, but it was scary too. What if Yancey decided she didn’t like the daughter she’d never met? Madison plopped down on the sofa and grabbed the remote. She clicked on the flat screen and thumbed the volume up on the music video to level ten.
“Madison,” Derrick called out, raising his voice in order to be heard over the television.
She pretended not to hear him.
He walked in front of the television, his fist on his hips. “Turn that down, young lady. I’m talking to you.”
Madison huffed and clicked the flat screen off.
“What is your problem, little girl? You had always said you wanted to know who your mother was, that you wanted to meet her, and now—”
Madison turned to him, half in anger. “I simply changed my mind.” She got up from the sofa, looking as though she was going to walk away into the bedroom. “I don’t need her now. I have you and Ms. Nicole in my life.”
“Sit back down,” Derrick commanded. He walked around the coffee table and took a seat beside his daughter. “Nicole cares a great deal about you but she has her own family. Now tell me the real reason why all of a sudden you don’t want to meet Yancey.”
“Where has she been, Dad?”
“What do you mean?”
“All these years. When I was born, two, or five or even last year. Where was my so-called mother then? What if you had allowed her to have her way and give me up for adoption? Now I’ve got a little fame, making some money, she all of a sudden just pops up like ‘Oh, I want to meet my darling daughter.’ ” She frowned deeply. “I don’t think so, Dad. Something is not right about this.”
Derrick rubbed his chin, giving it some thought. “But what if you’re wrong? What if this is just your mother wanting to meet you? What if all those years she just didn’t understand what a huge mistake she was making by missing out on your life? Then one day she did. Grown-ups sometimes take years to grow up, Madison. Yancey doesn’t want your money.”
Madison looked up at him in hope. She had always relied on her father’s judgment. He was the one person she could count on in a business where no one could be counted on. Her meeting with Yancey clearly meant so much to him for some reason. What was the worst
that could happen?
“I tell you what, Daddy, maybe you’re right. I trust you. But I will meet her only on one condition.”
“Name it.”
“That we film the meeting for my reality show and that I get to invite Ms. Nicole. Talk about drama when Yancey sees her.”
This was the last thing he expected from his daughter. “Why would you want to film something so personal, Madison?” He seemed appalled by the idea. “And surprising her with Nicole. I don’t know if Yancey will agree to that.”
“Then we won’t meet,” she said, firmly crossing her arms.
Derrick sighed heavily. “Yancey is not a bad woman. She’s a little different, to say the least, but she’s not a bad person. You might even learn to love her if you get to know her.”
Madison was unmoved. “I will meet her if we film it. And maybe you’re right about not inviting Ms. Nicole.” That was best, she thought, nodding. That way she could protect herself. If the meeting turned out badly, well, it would at least help her ratings.
“Let me give her a call and find out what she says.”
“I hope she says yes.”
Derrick sighed. “Women. Can’t live with them and can’t live without them.”
CHAPTER
32
Now remember to wait ten minutes before you come in. I want to make sure I tell Madison that I want to film some of this for the show,” I said to Cale and the cameraman.
“Do you want to have some kind of signal or maybe text me?” Cale asked.
“Just time ten minutes from the time I walk in the door.”
“Okay Yancey, good luck,” Cale said.
“Thanks,” I said as I made sure my blouse was properly tucked in my skirt and the thin red belt was in place as well. My cell phone rang and I saw it was Dalton. I still hadn’t told him about Madison or meeting her. I planned to as soon as the timing is right.
“Hey honey, I don’t have much time. What’s going on?”
Mama Dearest Page 22
