by J. Jakee
"Excuse me!" I yelled to the guy who still downstairs. "Can you get your dog???"
The dog barked again, and this time he growled and inched closer. I was so scared that I stood frozen, knowing that I could easily run back into the bathroom and slam the door shut. Carmen's son finally came hustling up the stairwell.
"Killa! What up with you, man?" He grabbed the dog by its collar.
I put my hand on my chest and exhaled. "You told me he was cool. He nearly ate me alive! You can't invite people over when you got a wild beast as a pet!"
The guy looked at me like he wanted to snap back, but he instead shook his head and lifted his free hand. "Look, I apologize. You said you had to use the bathroom. You free to go right now."
I slid past the dog and hurried down the stairs.
As I crossed the street, Carmen’s son shouted, "Yo! Im’ma call you, Yo!"
CHAPTER 21
Soror Marley begged me to come to her job for lunch. Said she needed to talk to me about something important.
The only thing I wanted to hear was that she kicked her knock-off toting line sister’s outta her wedding. That was the only news I was hoping to hear as I slid on my new paisley printed tunic dress designed by Lily Pulitzer. I told Marley I'd head over after I finished "work" with the internship. The only "work" I had for the day was dropping Dominic off to his job, and then picking up his medication, all before having to reassure him multiple times, that the manny would be back in two weeks, and that I was gonna do things just as good, if not better. It almost pissed me off that my Dominic lacked trust in me, but I remembered that I needed to charge it to his head not his heart.
The receptionist at Marley's work place pointed to a glass door when I told her I was looking for a Marley Robinson. I was surprised to see that behind the door, was Marley… And only Marley. Sitting at the only desk. I was expecting to meet with her at a cubicle. Never did I imagined she worked from a gorgeous office with a gorgeous view of the city. Nor was I expecting it to be so neat, with four gorgeous tropical plants adorning each corner, or the gorgeous wall art that reminded me of Silas’s work.
"When did you become office status? Or, are you office sitting?" I walked over to a mirror hanging on the wall and made sure my obnoxiously large bun was still neat and smooth.
"Office sitting?" Marley laughed. "They don't do that. And, last year I told you that I was promoted to VP."
"Oh" I fanned my hand and sat in the chair across from her. "I was distracted with nonsense last year. I can barely remember what I did for my birthday… So what's up?"
“Did you and my dad go to some restaurant, the night of the retreat?”
“Yeah...,” I said nonchalantly. “Is there a problem?”
Marley’s eyes grew wide. “No! No!” She waved her hands. Her new engagement ring flickered against the late April sun and greeted me. It was a big gorgeous one, just as Greg promised. “It's just… You know… Weird.”
I had to peel my eyes off the, what looked like a 2 Ct., solitaire diamond ring. “No. What's so weird about it?”
Marley belted out a nervous chuckle, “Well…”
I grew annoyed. I knew she wanted to tell me to stay away from her father. That was obvious. But, if she wanted to come at me, she needed to come correct and not stall. Since she struggled, I took the opportunity to grab hold of the steering wheel and drove the conversation home.
“What's weird is your immaturity – and to be a young woman who is so academically advanced! Wake up and realize that we are adults. Ok?
“No, it’s just—“
“--I'm twenty-nine. You're twenty. I don’t know how you missed this, but there actually comes a point in our lives when we should be capable of conversing with anyone regardless of age.”
“I understand that. I—“
“I’m offended! If it's embarrassing to see me engage in casual conversation with your father, that's your problem not mine. Grow up a little, Marley. Ok?”
Discussion parked. Keys snatched out of the ignition. Bye, little girl.
Marley sighed and threw her elbows on her desk. Her diamond-studded bangles clapped along her wrist as she ran her fingers through her hair, flipping it from one side to the other. "I'm sorry, Nola. This wedding stuff… It has my brain all…. When Sister Bernadine said she saw y’all out... forgive me if I'm wrong, I just had to ask because I needed the understanding. The idea does make me feel uncomfortable, and plus I assumed you were stepping on toes. He's with Carmen, yet I’m hearing he's out at dinner with you, and then the next day you joined the church. …It doesn't help that I’m so protective of him."
I nodded. "So is that the reason you didn't invite me to church yesterday? Because, you want me to stay away from your father? Wow. How petty..."
"No! No... No... No. The only reason I didn't invite you was because I knew Carmen was coming. I was trying to prevent anything awkward."
I rolled my eyes but decided to drop everything. I couldn't keep fighting with Marley if I was going to need her blessing to marry her father eventually. “Girl, the wedding has you overthinking and stressed. Get some sleep,” I said rising from the chair. “No hard feelings.”
On my way to pick up Dominic, Marley called me. I sent her straight to voicemail and listened to her message after I parked in front of Dominic's bookstore. She was speaking through tears, begging me to forgive her. She also mentioned something about feeling convicted for questioning my involvement with her father and that she would try not to assume such on me again.
I laughed as I pressed DELETE.
CHAPTER 22
I was sitting on the couch checking my Facebook when I first spotted Carmen's Camry circling our block. The second time she rolled around, I jumped up and took plenty pics from the living room window with my phone. At one point, she stopped in front of the house, and then finally, after a few minutes, she sped off. Moments after I sat back down the doorbell was ringing. I hesitated to answer it. I didn’t think Carmen would knock on the door.... I had to prepare myself. What if she came back to fight? Did I need to grab a weapon first? The doorbell ringing was relentless, so I swung the door open with the first thing I saw in hand – my Jimmy Choo with the gold stiletto heel.
To my surprise, it was just Alicia wearing a black tee and gray sweatpants. She pushed past me and plopped on the couch.
"Girl, you were two seconds from having this heel pierced into your forehead. Why are ringing the door like that? You know no one is home. It’s not like my car is parked out front."
"I knew you were here, Nola." Her tone was melancholic and she waved her hand lazily. "Derrick told me about your situation months ago. I noticed that a grand was missing from our account. He told me about you needing it."
Derrick hasn't given me any money since the first time I caught him, but from the look on Alicia's face, I knew that now wasn't the time to burst that bubble. "I have other things going on in my life too, you know... Anyway, what's up? What's wrong?"
Alicia threw her face into her hands, "I slept with Villain, your masseuse."
"What?!"
"I cheated on my husband. Twice… over the weekend."
"What?!"
"And, we didn't use protection."
"Alicia, what?!"
"Derrick left on Saturday for a so-called emergency two-week business trip… a two-week business trip? Yeah right! I called his job, and you know what they told me? Yes, he is away from the office for two weeks, but it isn't business."
By this point, Alicia's face was soaked with tears and a snot bubble hung from her nostril. I handed her a Kleenex, and she blew loud enough to wake the dead.
"I was so mad, Nola! So, I left Hannah with the nanny, and I went to a bar and never came home. I haven't been home since. While I was at the bar, I called Villain...and ... well... now I'm here."
"So you're in Saturday's clothes?"
Alicia blew her nose and nodded.
"It's Tuesday..."
"I know," Alici
a sobbed. "I know..."
While Alicia wallowed in guilt, my cell buzzed in my hand. It was a text from Silas: “One minute you're hot. The next minute you're cold.” I had no idea what that was supposed to mean so I deleted it. Then another one popped up: “Even the Bible says be either or..." I deleted that one too and directed my attention back to Alicia.
"Ok. First, we need to get you showered and outta these clothes. Second, you need to go to your baby immediately! I know she's missing you."
While I was in my closet picking out a dress for Alicia, I could hear her sobbing from the shower. I pained for a little bit as I wondered if the mistake she made was my fault. Immediately, I balled that thought up and trashed it. Heck no... It was definitely all Derrick’s fault. It was his web of lies and I was tangled in it. I laid the dress on the bed and went outside to call him, only for him to forward me to his voicemail.
"You jackass. Both of you are jackasses. I didn't make him take a two-week suspension so you can go cheat on your wife! Now she's here, a mental wreck all because you're a dirty, lying, pretending, TRADE!"
As soon as I ended the call, my phone chimed. It was Silas. I had venom left so I bit him, too. "If you want to see me, say you want to see me! Stop sending me these stupid ass cryptic text messages!"
His voice was low, calm, and purely seductive. "I want to see you. All I want is forty-five minutes... uninterrupted."
I couldn’t refuse.
CHAPTER 23
Friday morning, I had my arms wrapped tightly around Ronnie. I rested my head on his chest. "Thank you for taking out time for me." I inhaled his aroma.
"It’s fine. I'm glad you didn't mind meeting here." His hand fell on my back as he rubbed in circular motion. "You sounded frantic on the phone. What happened?"
I released him and tucked my hair behind my ear. "It's about Carmen."
He stepped back. "What about her now?"
"You'll want to sit down."
Ronnie folded his arms. "Just tell me."
"It's not good news."
"I’m a big boy."
"Sit down... please?"
Ronnie walked over to his desk and slouched in his chair. He threw his arms up. "So what's up?"
He was aggravated, and it turned me on. I wanted to smile, but this wasn't supposed to be a smiling matter, so I held it together and slid my phone from the back of my jean pocket. I pulled up the pictures of Carmen’s car and handed my phone to Ronnie.
I sat across from him as he scrolled through the pics. "She's been stalking my home. The other day, I came home to my front door cracked and my diamond tennis bracelet missing."
Ronnie zoomed in and out of the pictures, making sure that it was definitely Carmen. He slid the phone back to me.
"Wow... I don't know... I don’t even know what to say. And, you said your tennis bracelet is missing?"
I nodded. "And that's not all, Ronnie."
I dug into my purse, pulled out four envelopes, and dropped them on his desk. This time his eyebrows nearly touched as he scrunched his face.
"I don't take harassment lightly, Ronnie. I've been getting these all week. I figured I'd show you before I take them to the police."
I spoke while he shuffled through the opened envelopes addressed to me from “C.”
"They’re vulgar, and full of expletives. I mean, what she wrote in there scared me so bad that I felt I needed Jesus's protection. Read them. It's terrible!"
He pulled out one of the typed letters and stroked his goatee while he read. "Are you sure these are from her?" He looked disgusted as he read the others.
"I know everything is typed, down to the labels on the envelope, but I can assure you that they are from her. I’ve never had any problems like this prior to that tea brewery incident. The fact that I caught her in my neighborhood...how couldn’t it be from her?"
Ronnie sighed and rubbed his face. "Wow... I'm at lost for words. I'm sorry you had to go through this." He folded the last letter and stuffed it back inside. “I know you’re fed-up and scared, but I promise you that you won’t have to go to the police. I will handle it. Ok? I promise."
I folded my arms. "I don't know, Ronnie. That woman... something is off about her…"
"Listen, she’s not as crazy as she’s trying to make it seem. She doesn't want to go down that road. Trust me." He reached for my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
***
I knew it wouldn't be long before the news of Carmen's harassment got to Marley. She sent me a text begging me to call her, and when I called her, she begged me to come down to her gown alterations to talk. I brought Dominic along since it was just about time for him to clock out. Plus, I knew he would love seeing Marley in her gown.
She came from behind the curtain in a big fluffy Pnina Tornai with a sweetheart neckline and beaded embroidery along the bust. She was beaming so hard that her smile almost reached her ear lobes. Dominic bounced in his seat. "I like it! I like it, Marley!"
Marley spun slowly, "Do you, Dominic?" She admired herself in the mirror. "Do you like, Nola?"
"Who helped you pick it out?"
The style of the dress and designer was too fashionable for Marley’s taste. Her taste was more of a David’s Bridal brand – never a designer like Tornai.
"I found it online. Do you like it?"
"Is it real?"
Marley slapped her leg. "Nola! Yes it's real, silly. It came from Kleinfelds."
"Kleinfelds?!"
"And, my father spent a grip."
Never have I guessed there would be a day that I'd feel jealous of Marley Robinson. Marley - my little hot mess mentee who never had a clue and stuck to me like glue. Now she was standing before me in a gown that I should have worn down the aisle some weeks ago, rocking a diamond ring that I should have had on my left finger, and just leaving an office that I should be working in. My stomach turned, and I suddenly felt dizzy and nauseous.
Dominic pressed his forehead against mine, and said, "Smile, Nola. Isn't Marley pretty?"
I moved Dominic out of the way and ran to the restroom before my lunch splattered on Marley's gown.
By the time I came from the bathroom, Marley had changed back into her regular clothes, and she was sitting next to Dominic who was schooling her about Diesels from his iPad.
"You alright, Nola?" Marley stood when she saw me. "I have saltine crackers in my purse, and I have of a bottle of ginger ale in my car."
"I'm good."
"Was it Carmen?"
"What?"
"My father told me all about it. Is her harassment stressing you? Is it causing you to get sick?"
"Oh!.. Yeah... I think so."
Marley wrapped her arms around me and squeezed.
"Awh Nola! I should have believed you when you first told me about her. I'm sorry you had to go through that. I've been a terrible friend."
"You'll do better."
"Well, we won't have to worry about Carmen anymore." Marley stepped back and clapped her hands as if she was dusting them off. "My dad is through with her. He was livid!"
Suddenly I felt better.
"You wanna know something crazy?" Marley continued, "When he had her come down to the office, she was wearing a tennis bracelet like the one you described to my dad. She had the balls to tell him she thought it was a surprise from him!"
Marley shook her head. “My dad said he’s willing to serve as a witness if you’re gonna press charges.”
I was flattered but I had to quickly decline. "If she needed a bracelet that bad, she can have it.”
“After my dad told her that it wasn’t from him, she switched it up and said it must have been her son who gave it to her.”
“She was bad for him. I told you that. Listen to your soror. I know best.” Now all I need to do is get rid of your ugly bridesmaids.
***
After we left the boutique, Marley wanted to drag us to dinner, and she let Dominic choose. We ended up at a quaint Italian restaurant in Rittenhouse. I
brought him here a while back. He loved it because it was a small, chill, dimly lit, and relaxed environment. Wasn’t too overstimulating. I liked it because they made authentic Italian food, and they had Italian servers with thick accents, so they were definitely the real deal.
When we walked into the restaurant, the hostess grabbed menus and looked directly at Dominic. "Hello, sir. Just 3 today?"
Dominic just smiled and nodded, and she led us to a table near the back.
We were chowing down on fried calamari when Marley mentioned Silas. She wanted to know how things were going with him.
Dominic spoke with calamari in his mouth, "What's Silas?"
Marley babbled, "He's Nola's soon-to-be boyfriend, and maybe soon-to-be husband!”
I put my hand up. "Don't tell him that. He'll take you literally... Dominic, Silas is my friend from church."
Dominic looked confuse. "Hmmmm"
"Yeah, I know I haven't told you about him. He's not that important."
Marley chimed in, "Well, he thinks very highly of you! We were talking about you after bible study Wednesday... Oh! ... You should come to bible study with us next week. After that, the four of us can double date for dinner."
I shook my head and declined.
"Why not?”
"Because, I'm not interested."
"In what? Dating?"
I frowned. "Marley, chill out. I don't need you arranging my love life. I got it under control." The only double date I was interested in was Ronnie and me with the blanket and his bed. That's it.
Dominic poked my arm. "Don't be angry with Marley, Nola."
"I'm not baby. She's just a pest! Tell your girlfriend to relax."
He lowered his head and blushed, and Marley playfully blew him a kiss.
