by Jada Pearl
Shontell walked into her kitchen. She put water in her plants and the flowers that Nico had given her. The car service was right on time to pick up her car for its three-month maintenance service. She decided to look over the buyout contract her lawyer had drawn up for her. She had not decided exactly when she was going to do it. She knew that it was needed. Shontell sat down while her coffee was brewing. She was getting up to grab cream out the fridge when she heard a key in the front door. She hoped it wasn’t Jesse. Now where in the heck did that come from, she thought. She knew she had changed her locks. She didn’t know why she thought it was him. It must be one of her parents. She finished pouring the cream in her coffee. The door opened, and she watched Ebony walk in. She forgot she was supposed to be dropping off files and two new contracts. She almost got up to help her, but she stopped when she thought about their last face to face. She could handle it. Sitting back down, she put peanut butter on her bagel.
“Hey, Ebony,” she greeted in a flat tone. She bit into her food. Ebony nearly dropped the box she was holding. Now why was she so caught off guard, she wondered?
“Hey, Shon. I didn’t know you were here. I didn’t see your car out front.”
“Oh. Well, I sent it over to get serviced. Thanks for bringing over the files.” She got up and walked over to where she set the boxes down and started reaching over into one of them. They had a client that they were preparing a presentation for right before she left for the cruise.
Ebony
Ebony set the box down, silently cursing to herself. How in the heck was she going to be able to look for the safe like Jesse had asked her to if Shontell was home? She looked at Shontell. She looked different for some reason. Her cell phone started to buzz, interrupting her inspection. She was trying not to show her attitude as she looked at the screen. She saw that it was a text from Jesse, asking if she’d located the safe. She quickly put the phone back in her pocket and walked over to where Shontell had made coffee.
“Mind if I have a cup of coffee?” she asked.
“Sure, help yourself.” Shontell handed her the spare cup she kept on the counter.
“I wanted to apologize about my behavior Sunday. I shouldn’t have reacted that way, especially when I was in the wrong.” Ebony wasn’t making eye contact, but she was sure Shontell was looking at her. Ebony leaned over the counter, taking a sip of the hot liquid. She felt the phone go off again. She didn’t want to be here. She respected Shontell, but she had never liked her. She was doing all of this, including faking her desire on this business, because Jesse wanted her to. She loved Jesse, so she would do what he needed. “Shontell, you look different,” she finally said.
“Do I?” She gave her a blank look.
“Yes. Did you do something exciting over the weekend?” She saw the guilty look on Shontell’s face.
“I guess you could say I did. But we just saw one another a couple of days ago.”
“Right. I know. I guess I didn’t see it then. I see it now. Are you ready to go over this stuff?” she asked her. Ebony tried to concentrate as they spent the next forty-five minutes going over the contacts and notes for the presentation. Shontell had a knack for this business. Her ideas flowed easily. She was impressed. There was no sound in the house; therefore, every time her phone buzzed it could be heard. She never looked at her phone after the first time. What was the point? She didn’t have anything good to tell him. Her phone went off three additional times, and Shontell stopped in mid-sentence and looked at her partner.
“Someone sure is trying to get hold of you. Why aren’t you answering?”
“Yeah. It’s my brother. I am sure he wants to borrow money. I will call him when we are done.” She quickly lied, hoping her voice wasn’t noticeably shaking. She instantly felt nervous, and her hands started to sweat. She wiped her hands on her jeans. If Shontell knew half the things she had lied to her about, their working relationship would be done, and she would deserve it. They were finishing up, and Shontell’s phone rang. She excused herself to go get it out of her office. Unlike her, she made sure that they didn’t have any distractions.
She heard her answer the phone, and Shontell’s tone changed immediately.
“Jesse, what do you want?” Ebony’s eyes got big when she heard Shontell say Jesse’s name.
What the hell? she thought. She strained her ear to listen in on the conversation. Shontell walked out of the room. Ebony was trying to put her cup down and missed the table. The cup shattered once it hit the floor, splattering coffee everywhere. Ebony tried to hold back her emotions as she quickly got up to get paper towels to clean up her mess. She didn’t want Shontell to see how her call had affected her. When she looked up, Shontell was looking at her strangely. She hadn’t even heard her come back into the room.
“Are you okay?” Shontell asked her, as she bent down to pick up the broken pieces.
“I…I need to go. I need to get a little air. I am so sorry about the cup.” Ebony grabbed her purse and quickly headed out of the door.
***
She sat in her car as she gripped the wheel. She went to grab her phone to find out why Jesse was calling Shontell. When did this start, she wondered. The jarring ring of her phone startled her. She answered the call.
“Hey, why aren’t you replying to my texts?” Jesse shouted into the phone. Ebony took the phone from her ear because the volume was painful. She got on the defensive and put the phone back to her ear.
“Here’s a better question for you…what the hell are you doing calling Shontell?” she retorted. Jesse didn’t say anything, but she definitely heard him curse as she suspected he was probably trying to come up with a good ass lie for himself. She spoke before he even tried. She couldn’t believe this. She was here risking everything…and for what?
“Yeah, just like I thought. You told me that you were over her. Guess I am the fool.”
“Ebony, don’t say that…I…” before he could finish, she hit the end button over and over again. She wished it was the 90’s and she could slam the receiver down hard on his ass. Ebony wiped away the tears she didn’t even know she had cried. She looked up and noticed Shontell was watching her from the window. She smiled weakly and hoped she hadn’t been watching her that long. She waved and backed out of the driveway. She almost hit another car because she wasn’t paying attention. The driver blew his horn and yelled expletives at her. She put her hand up to apologize.
“Sorry, sorry…my bad,” she said. It wasn’t even loud enough for him to hear. She started backing out again, cautiously looking both ways before continuing. She continued driving down the street, thinking about why men always hurt her. Was she that unworthy of love? Her mother had told her she wasn’t worthy. Coming from her own mother, she believed it. Her mother never showed her and her brother love. It was all business for her. She never said she loved them or hugged them. She didn’t have a good kind of relationship with her mom, like Shontell had with hers. She wished she did. She needed someone to guide her about men and all their ways. Wiping away the tears, she sat at the red light and looked at her reflection in the rearview mirror. When did she stop seeing herself? Because the woman she was looking at didn’t look anything like her. She hated her mother for her lack of affection. It had to be the reason why she felt she needed it so bad.
She Ain't The One
Jesse
Jesse threw his phone on the bed and began pacing. He couldn’t believe Ebony had hung up on him like that. He cursed aloud. He couldn’t risk her being mad at him. He needed her. He was slipping again. It was like when he got caught cheating. That night changed him. He couldn’t believe he had been so careless, not to mention that he had underestimated Shontell’s love for him. He never thought she would come all the way to California to fix things. He didn’t remember that she had a set of house keys. He hit his forehead with his hand. Jesse didn’t want those nightmares to start again.
Jesse knew his heart still belonged to Shontell. It didn’t matter that he h
ad not been faithful to her most of their relationship; she didn’t know that. She could only prove that one time. He used the fact that she didn’t like public appearances to his advantage. His conscience ate at him sometimes. He knew what he was doing was low down. When he hooked up with Ebony, it was by pure accident. They met at one of the clubs in Detroit where he was doing an event. That’s why his plan had worked so perfectly. If it ever came out, he would lose her for good, and he couldn’t take that chance. He knew he could convince her to give them another chance. He wished he could get her on his album. That would really jump-start his career. That’s why he sent Ebony over there—the songs. He needed those songs. His mind wandered back to when he and Shontell were engaged. They were hosting a karaoke fundraiser, and they did a song together. He had heard she could sing, but he didn’t know she could SANG. They sang If This World Were Mine, and they wowed the crowd.
He convinced her to write songs for him. A few months later, he took her to the studio one night. He didn’t tell her that he wanted her to record the songs. When she finally learned of his true intent, she was furious with him. Shontell didn’t want the spotlight. No matter how many times she told him this, he thought he could convince her. He was wrong. She took the songs and left the studio. That was the last time he saw the music and songs, and he knew that his career needed a major resurrection. He had told his manager he had new material. They were expecting something different from him, and those songs were it.
Ebony was a means to an end. He strung her along this long because he knew she would become useful one day.
He picked up his phone and started to call her back, but he was interrupted by the knock on the door. He opened it to a tearful and angry Ebony.
Ebony
Ebony parked in a slot at the hotel and walked in without paying the valet any attention. She headed to Jesse’s room. She needed to look into his eyes and ask him if he still loved Shontell. Ebony thought they were progressing, although she never really saw him unless he came to Detroit. He didn’t make any extra effort to ask her on the road like he had with Shontell. She was sure that he would. Of course he would, she told herself. They were sleeping together and had been for the past four years.
Ebony knocked and waited for Jesse to open the door. She didn’t even try and change the way her tear-stained face looked. She wanted him to know that he had hurt her.
“Do you still love her?” She threw the accusation at him. “That has to be why you called her. You want to be back with her!” She continued to rant while Jesse watched her. She began pacing the floor and biting her nails. That’s what she did when she was upset or nervous. She stopped because she realized that he still hadn’t said anything. She squinted her eyes in anger. Who the hell did he think he was? She ran up to him and started pounding on his chest. She wanted him to feel the deep ache—the gut-wrenching pain—she was feeling right now. She kept hitting him until he grabbed her wrists and she fell to the floor at his feet, crying. She lay there. What did she have to do for him to see that she loved him? She needed him to know that she would do it. She didn’t care as long as he told her he wouldn’t leave her. She felt him pick her up. She kept her eyes closed as he rocked her.
Jesse
Jesse felt like a heel. How did they get to this point? He must have really given her the impression that he wanted something outside of the sex they shared. He didn’t take her out anywhere but here in Detroit. He didn’t do half of the things for her that he did for Shontell. Why did women always have to read other things into sex, and then act like this when they finally realized the truth?
Jesse continued to rock her until he thought she had calmed down. He always wished that women would learn that most men, himself included, were simple creatures. It shouldn’t take a book—or even a talk show—to tell women what they should expect from men. All they had to really do was pay attention. If men were interested in a woman they showed it. They had no gimmicks and no lies. The last thing they would want to do was hurt them intentionally if they truly loved them. They would make time for them without a second thought. When you really want to be with someone, you always have time for them without excuses. He always gave Ebony excuses. He used to move heaven and Earth to have Shontell next to him, although she was mostly reluctant to be seen in public. He sighed and got his mind right so he could continue this farce. He lifted her chin and made her look at him.
“Are you finished now?” he asked her, after he took the towel that was sitting next to him and wiped at her tear-stained face. She nodded, and he made her sit up. She scooted off his lap and sat next to him on the bed. He turned toward her and had her look at him. The look he saw on her face was almost the same as what he had seen on Shontell’s the night he saw her. It made him close his mouth. He stood up and walked over to his desk to get the vision out of his head before continuing. When he got his words together, Ebony was leaning back on the bed. She was sitting there watching him. Jesse felt uneasy for a few moments, but when he got his focus back he started speaking.
“Ebony, if I wanted her, why would I still be messing around with you? That boat has sailed. Shontell has made it clear that she doesn’t want to be bothered with me. I still like to make sure that she is doing fine.” He had to clean up the situation and make sure that she understood. She needed to continue to trust him so that she could get what he needed. He smiled at her. When she finally smiled back, he saw that as his opportunity to seal the deal. He knew what always made her do the things he needed.
He pulled her into his arms and began kissing her. She moaned. He took this as his green light to continue. He laid her on the bed and kissed her even harder. He undressed her, giving her what he knew she wanted. All women seemed to want it, with the exception of Shontell. An hour later, they were finished and he was sure she was pacified. He sent her home with a new plan in motion. She also begged to go on the cruise. He reluctantly told her that he would take her. He hoped that he could find a way to get what he needed, and get rid of Ebony as well.
Shontell
Shontell closed the curtains because she didn’t understand what the hell had happened with Ebony. She was acting weird again. It was the same strange behavior she had exhibited when they were having their phone meeting. She felt like she was hiding something. Shontell went over to the sink and washed the sticky coffee off of her hands.
She glanced at the clock on the stove. She was running behind. She needed to get dressed and finish her errands, and then come back and prepare for dinner. She hoped her car would be there by the time she finished getting ready.
She was glad she was making good time as she quickly checked on her cake and fruit pie that she had made for dessert. It was a new recipe, and she wanted to get her mom’s opinion. She missed her mother being at the shop with her. They had started the event company together. But when her health started failing, she had to cut back her hours. Now she helped out on an as-needed basis. She always loved cooking in the kitchen with her mom. Shontell’s mother was taught by her mother, whom Shontell never had the opportunity to meet. She had died two months before Shontell was born.
Shontell and her mother used to spend hours in the kitchen. Her dad always had to make them stop. He pretended to complain, telling them the house was too hot with all that cooking and baking. Yet, he never complained about how much food and dessert he ate from the taste testing.
When she pulled up to her parents’ house, her mother was talking to their next door neighbor, Ms. Margaret. She had lived there almost as long as they had. Over the last ten years, the Detroit neighborhoods had gone down. But now—with the new revitalization Detroit was implementing,—the neighborhoods were slowly coming back. People were now given chances to buy up the old abandoned houses and make things beautiful again. She had always wanted her parents to move, but they wouldn’t have it. She stopped trying, but she made sure they were safe and protected. She waved and spoke, but kept going inside so that she wouldn’t drop the dessert boxes. Her f
ather met her at the door, taking one of the boxes from her.
“Thanks, Daddy. How are you doing today?” she asked after kissing him. She followed him into the kitchen. She really liked the new design. It was her anniversary gift to them. She had it done when they went out of town. Her mother cried for joy for two days after she returned and found her surprise.
“Baby girl, I am doing with these knees of mine…” He limped over to the cabinet and began pulling out the plates.
“Are you still having the pain and swelling?” she asked him, concerned.
“No more than usual. Ain’t nothing they can do anyways. It’s nothing but old age.” Shontell stopped and watched her father’s movements.
“Dad, stop saying that. You need to get a consultation. Will you at least make an appointment for when I come back? I will go with you.” She bent down to pick up a towel he’d dropped.
“Go where with him?” her mother asked before he could give her an answer. She walked into the kitchen and started turning off the pots. She pulled out the cups and silverware.
“Mom, let me help.” Shontell grabbed the items from her mother, heading to the table.
“Young lady, I got this. Now one of you needs to be answering my question.”
Her father looked at her and then at his wife. He knew what was about to come when she told her. He would be going because he was outnumbered. So he was quiet while Shon told her what they had been speaking about.
