“Girl, he's broke compared to the rich men I dated once upon a time. He doesn't have two pennies to rub together to make a dime. He cuts glass for a living, you know, for mirrors and tables and shelves. We've invested a lot of money into our education. We both decided to go for broke and get our degrees.”
Lanita walked past Natasha and sat back in her chair.“We're gonna be just fine. After today I'll have my degree and he'll have his. We'll both be able to begin new careers.”
The phone rang and Natasha rushed to pick it up, resuming her seat behind the front counter. After listening for a few moments, she said, “Okay, I'll let her know,” and then hung up.
She turned to Lanita, saying, “You were supposed to be getting your facial first, but Miss Lina is running a little late, so you'll see Jimmy Choo first. He's going to style your hair. He should be here in a couple of minutes, just as soon as he's finished up in back.”
“Jimmy Choo?” Lanita said.“You mean the guy who makes those thousand-dollar shoes does hair too?”
“Well, no,” Natasha said.“They do share the same name, but they are two different people.”
“Is Jimmy Asian?”
“Yes, he is,” Natasha said.“Is that okay?”
Lanita almost jumped out of the chair.“I don't mean to overreact, but is he educated about caring for African-American hair? Everything has to be right today. I've had some real horror stories in the hair department. Once a French lady gave me a relaxer and my mane shed for weeks. I nearly went bald until my mother gave me a protein treatment.” Lanita frowned.“I'm sorry, I'm just a little scared. I mean, I can't go across the stage looking all crazy. When I take off my cap, my hair needs to be bouncing and behaving, not embarrassing and shaming.”
“Trust me,” Natasha said.“Jimmy knows what he's doing. As a matter of fact, he does my hair.” She reached up to fluff her smooth, shiny layered bob.
“Well, your hair looks good,” Lanita said.“Now that I think about it, the guy who does Halle Berry's hair is Asian too, isn't he?” At Natasha's nod, Lanita said, “Now, that's a good sign. Maybe he'll be able to make me look as good as her.”
“So, how late is he going to be? I have to meet my sweetie on campus at one o'clock sharp. Graduation begins at one-thirty.”
“He should only be about ten more minutes.” Natasha's warm smile put Lanita at ease.
“Oh, that's not bad at all,” Lanita said, relaxing back.
Natasha took another call. When she was finished, she looked up and asked, “Do you have any plans after graduation, or are you going straight into job hunting?”
“We're considering a short vacation,” Lanita said.“We hope to begin working at the end of the summer.”
“Where do you want to go?”
“The French Polynesian islands,” Lanita said, sighing.
“But how could you two afford that? I thought your money was tight. I don't mean to be forward …”
“That's okay. Yeah, the islands are pricey, but a girl can wish, can't she?” Lanita smiled, crossing her legs.“You'll be surprised at the amazing things that have happened in my life that weren't supposed to.”
“But, Tahiti and places like that.” Natasha shook her head.“That's a lot to wish for just out of school.”
“You're right, but stranger things have happened in my life. My mother always said that just enough of King Midas's blood runs in my veins to turn hard luck into gold, but not enough to keep it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. I was born lucky.”
“Lucky?” Natasha said, skepticism creeping into her voice.
“Yes. I consider myself an intelligent and levelheaded woman, but honestly, I've had a streak of luck that has followed me since birth. I was born during the Watts riots of 1965, and my birth prevented a man's store from being burned to a crisp.”
“You were born in Watts, California, during the actual riots?” The skepticism in Natasha's voice was beginning to turn to awe.“That must have been crazy for your mother.”
“Yeah, and because that man's store didn't get burned down, he gave me and my mother a place to live rent-free for years. Isn't that lucky?”
“Yeah, I suppose so,” Natasha said.“I remember reading about the Watts riots back when I was in high school. It seems like your real luck was making it out of there alive.”
Lanita tilted her glass and took another sip. She made herself comfortable and began easing down memory lane.“Since we have a few minutes before Jimmy Choo will be ready for me, I'll tell you about my birth. It's one of my favorite stories. My mother loved to tell it whenever she and her friends sat around and got drunk on cheap liquor. She told it so many times that I sometimes feel like I saw it with my own eyes.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
TAJUANA “TJ” BUTLER is the founder of Lavelle Publishing and is also a writer, poet, and public speaker who discusses women's issues. She is the author of the novels Sorority Sisters, The Night Before Thirty, Just My Luck, and the number one Essence magazine bestseller Hand-me-down Heartache, in addition to the poetry collection The Desires of a Woman. She attended the University of Louisville, and she lives in Kentucky. You can visit her website at www.tjbutler.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places,
and incidents are the products of the author's
imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance
to actual events, locales, or persons,
living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2003 by Tajuana Butler
Reader's guide copyright © 2005 by Tajuana Butler and Random House, Inc.
Excerpt from Just My Luck copyright © 2005 by Tajuana Butler
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Strivers Row/
One World Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
Ballantine, One World, Strivers Row, and Strivers Row colophon are registered trademarks
of Random House, Inc.
This book contains an excerpt from Tajuana “TJ” Butler's forthcoming book, Just My Luck.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Butler, Tajuana.
The night before thirty: a novel / Tajuana “TJ” Butler.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-0-307-53892-5
1. African American women—Fiction. 2. Americans—Bahamas—Fiction. 3. Female
friendship—Fiction. 4. Cruise ships—Fiction. 5. Young women—Fiction. 6. Birthdays—
Fiction. 7. Bahamas—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3552.U829N54 2003
813'.54—dc21 2002044942
One World Books website address: www.oneworldbooks.net
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