I walked over and pulled open the restaurant door for her like a gentleman. She smiled and proceeded to enter. It wasn’t a long wait, within about five to ten minutes, we had a table and the food was ordered. I moved my hand on top of hers, and she didn’t flinch back. She let me touch and caress her. Silence filled the air as we waited to eat, and we had nothing to do now, but talk. I started to speak, but then so did she. Our words jumbled together and we both laughed.
“You go first,” I said.
“Tell me about Nikki, and Zach and anything else I need to know. Tell me everything.”
This is not how I wanted to spend my first date with Emily, by a long shot. Who wants to talk about their ex’s and their past on a date? I certainly didn’t. I figured right about now my facial expression was screaming at her I’m not talking about this, and her facial expression was screaming back Oh yes we are, we are definitely talking about this. I took a deep breath in and prepared myself.
“I will try to compact this hot ass mess of a story as best I can. Um. Nikki and I dated for about three years prior to me being locked up. Her family and my family go way back. Ties to the country club and all that jazz. I was never really into her, but my mother constantly tried to hook us up. I think I eventually just gave in. She was a sweet girl when we first dated, but things started to change once she got into the in crowd. She was hanging around people my mother introduced her to. She started to act different, almost like a mini version of my mom. It grew a wedge between us, but I never left her. I never deserted her.” I paused. “Then there’s Zach, my best friend. Well, ex-best friend. We met in grade school. He comes from old money, but you would never know it by how he acts. As a kid, he was always the trouble maker and oddly that spoke to me. He was different from the snobby kids in my private school. At least he used to be.” I paused again. “It’s crazy what happened. One day Zach tells me he’s been tutoring this kid in the hood. He said he had to go drop off a backpack that the kid left at his house. He asked me to go with him and I said yes. Anyways we get there and walk up to the door, Zach is holding the back pack this whole time. Suddenly I hear sirens and then Zach tosses the backpack into my hands and takes off running. He hopped over a fence and he was gone. Cops slide in, sirens and lights are going off and guns are being pointed at my face. It scared the shit out of me. It turned out Zach left me holding a bag filled with cocaine. I had no idea what was inside. They arrested me on the spot. I spent sixteen months locked up for it.”
“Oh my God, James. That is horrible.” Emily took a sip of her coffee and placed it back down.
“That’s just the tip. What I didn’t know until recently is that when I was locked up, Nikki was pregnant with my child. She ran off and had an abortion, which I think was somehow my mother’s idea.”
“Pregnant! Holy shit!” she shouted. I put my finger to my lip. She looked around at a few of the customers who were now staring at us. She squeezed my hand and turned back to me
“I called Nikki as soon as I got home from prison. Right after you tried to stab me with a knife.” Emily rolled her eyes. “I asked her why she stopped visiting me in jail, and why she rejected all of my calls. I come to find out she was sleeping with Zach while I was away. It’s like one thing after another.” I paused. “I don’t even care anymore. They can have each other. They are more twisted and crazy then I thought they were, so now they can be crazy together. Oh yeah, and to really top things off, Zach showed up at my work not too long ago, trying to buy me off. He had all this cash and a sorry ass apology to go with it. The conversation between us turned into an argument that led to me hitting him a few times. Mike rushed in and threw Zach out, it was wild.”
“You got into a fight? Are you crazy? Do you want to go back to jail?”
“No. I tried to remain calm, but I couldn’t do it. I served time for his drug deal. It’s just not right.”
“Why didn’t you just tell the police the truth?”
“They questioned. They asked. They wanted the supplier. I had nothing for them. They wanted the name of the other guy who took off, and guess what? I never ratted. I never said his name. Not once.”
I felt Emily rub the top of my hand. She was looking at me like she wanted to hear more.
“Anyways the other day was beyond my control. I had no idea my mother was coming over, let alone bringing Nikki. I asked her prior to stay away from me. I think she concocted some dumb plan to get you fired up and it worked. You said you went over her house looking for me that night, right?”
Emily nodded.
“She assumed you’d find my place then. It’s clear she feels threatened by you.”
“Threatened? I have nothing for her to even be threatened about.”
“It’s all about face for her. Her rep is on the line. You have me, and to her that’s enough.”
“Do I?”
“If you want me, that is.” I bit my lip.
She remained silent, but her eyes held doubt. Is this where she makes a run for it? I can’t do this again if she does. I leaned back and stretched out my spine.
“I like you, James, but I don’t want to rush this thing we have. It’s different.”
The bubble gum chewing waitress came over and set our food down. She smiled and looked at us.
“How long have you two been a couple? You guys are cute together.”
I glanced down at my cell phone. “Um, roughly about twenty minutes, now.”
The waitress looked confused, so she just smiled and walked away. Emily tapped my hand.
“Real funny, James.”
“What? What would you call us? Couple sounds good to me. Do you have a better term?”
“I don’t know. Friends getting to know each other better.”
“I’ve been inside you. I think we are past that stage.”
“James! Shhh. People can hear you, besides we barely know one another.”
“What’s your favorite color?” I blurted out. I could do this interview in my sleep. She stated she wanted to get to know each other, right? She made a valid point that we didn’t know basic things about the other person, that we should, and to her that was important.
“Purple.”
“Favorite food?” I gestured my hand in the air.
“Taquitos.”
“Taquitos? Out of everything, it’s taquitos.” I pushed back in my seat.
“Yeah. So what? They’re delicious.”
“Favorite—”
“Stop. You don’t need to do the twenty questions.” She threw the palms of her hands up at me.
“Apparently, I do in your eyes,” I responded.
“I’m just being careful. There is nothing wrong with caution.” She waved her finger at me.
“I’m so confused. I’m trying to find out stuff about you and you don’t want to answer.”
“We don’t need to find out everything in one day, James.”
“Great. You like purple and taquitos. I feel safer around you now.” I shook my head.
She giggled. “You like your eggs scrambled, wheat toast and jelly, no butter.” She paused. “See what I did. I observed what you liked. I didn’t just ask you. That is what I mean.”
I internally rolled my eyes, because I could not take any more of this nonsense. I liked her. She liked me. I kept chasing. She kept running. I caught up and then she threw a force field up to block me. Fuck my life. If I didn’t like this chick so much I’d throw in the towel, the couch and the kitchen sink.
“Observation is easy. It’s getting people to open up that is difficult.” I took a sip of my coffee.
“And you think talking about taquitos is the key?” She smiled.
“Nope, but it’s a start. Today we are talking about taquitos and tomorrow maybe discussing your childhood dog that ran away.”
“Never had a dog. My mom wouldn’t allow it.”
“See. It’s working already. You are opening up. Congratulations on your first step.”
“I’m j
ust entertaining you today, aren’t I?” She chuckled.
I laughed and almost spit my coffee out. “No seriously. What are you doing for the rest of the day?” I inquired, hoping she was available.
“Looking for a new job.” She frowned and for a minute I did too.
My mother is an ass.
“I could maybe get you job at the bar if you wanted. Great tips.”
“I’m not working with you. It’s the worst thing people in a relationship can do.”
I raised my eyebrow at the word relationship. She smiled and waved her hands in front of her.
“That didn’t come out right. I mean since we are friends it may destroy our friendship.”
“Friend zoned. My favorite place to be,” I mumbled. I stabbed my fork into my eggs, and jammed them into my mouth. She took her spoon and swirled it around inside her mug, as she looked around the restaurant. I watched her pick up her fork and finally dig in. She took a few bites off of her plate.
“Fuck work.”
“Excuse me?” she replied.
“You’re not looking for work today. I’m taking you out on a date.”
“I do need money. I have bills to pay, you know.”
“All I need is one day, and tomorrow you can do your thing.”
She looked at me with hesitation.
I slowly nodded to get her to move, blink or at least speak. “Emily? This is where you talk. You may say something like, I would love to go on a date with you.”
“I thought we were on a date.” She pointed down to the table.
I laughed. “This is breakfast. My grandmother used to take me out for breakfast. Nothing about eggs and toast screams romance.”
“Fine, one date…as friends. No romance included.”
I threw my hands up in the air. “That’s all I need.”
I inhaled my breakfast faster than she did, so I had to sit there and watch her eat. She ate like a damn bird with small bites that were slow and easy. She finally put her fork down and looked up at me.
“Are you done yet? Your date has been anxiously waiting for you to finish.” I winked.
“Let me just finish this coffee. It’s so good.” She stared down at her mug.
I watched her tip the mug up to her mouth. Her lips gently clamped down on the rim. She pulled the cup away and licked her lips. I just stared like an ass.
“What?”
“You’re sexy.”
She laughed at my statement.
“Seriously. You don’t even try. I don’t think you know what you do to me.”
“What do I do, Mr. King?” She smiled and gently put her cup down on the table.
“See, right there. You’re doing it again. Look at the way your eyes light up when you say my name and how your tone comes out all raspy. “What do I do, Mr. King?” I mocked her seductive voice and pushed up my pretend tits.
“I don’t sound like that.” She chuckled. “And I didn’t do that thing with my breasts either.”
“Yeah, okay.” I raised my hand in the air toward the waitress as she walked by. “Check, please.”
Chapter 6. These are delicate times
“I haven’t been to the movies forever. That was fun. My side still hurts from laughing so much.”
“Your side? I think I cracked a rib.” I pretended to bend over in pain.
“It didn’t help that you almost choked to death on popcorn.” She laughed at my expense.
“I was really just hoping I’d pass out and you’d give me mouth to mouth.”
“No chance.” She lightly pushed my arm.
“A man can try, right?” I smiled.
She nodded.
I stepped in closer to her as we walked side by side. I grabbed her hand, interlocking our fingers. To my surprise, she didn’t pull away. She just kept staring forward like she didn’t notice it.
“So what’s next?” she asked. “Candle light dinner? Walk on the beach? Serenade?”
I tried to hide my smile, but I couldn’t. “No. I have something better in mind.”
“What could be better than you crooning out a song?” She flipped her long hair from one side to the other.
“Mmmm. I could think of lots of things that are better.”
She stopped and looked at me with slight irritation.
“I’m joking. Geez. Come on. It’s just around the corner. It’s a little spot I want you to see. It’s within walking distance.”
“I hate this.”
“You hate surprises? Nobody hates surprises. Live a little. Come on.”
I tugged her down the road to a place that would forever hold sentiment to me. This was a special spot that was hidden, yet in plain sight. We walked until we hit a thick patch of bushes surrounded by trees. I stared down at the ugly, thorny bushes with disgust. This was always the worst part. You had to experience a little pain to see a lot of beauty. I winced. She looked at me confused.
“This is it. We have to cut through.” I nodded my head toward the bushes.
“Wait. You want me to walk through these tall bushes?”
I nodded.
“Are you crazy?”
I nodded again.
She released a long sigh.
I grinned and grabbed her hand so I could pull her behind me. The trail was hardly even visible. It was like walking through a war path. Humans versus bushes. I could hear her sputtering off a few curse words. It only took a few minutes to make it through all of the branches and thorns that poked at us. The pain was always worth it in the end to me. I stepped out first and she stepped out behind me. She was angry for a second as she dusted off her clothing, angry until she looked around.
“Oh my god,” she gasped. “This is beautiful.” She turned in circles. “Who drew all of those murals?”
She pointed to the brick wall that was filled with art. Not a single space of brick was clear to see.
“I don’t know who he is exactly.” I smiled seeing her light up. She was beautiful.
“The gardening back here is amazing, so many roses. Why is this not open to the public? It’s so shut in, so enclosed. The world needs to see this.”
“It is open to the public. There’s just a bunch of bushes and trees blocking it.”
“Why? This is gorgeous. Somebody should remove those nasty bushes.” She looked at me again for answers. There was this sparkle in her eyes as she grinned. “How did you even find this? I would have never thought to look back here.”
“My dad brought me to this place a lot when I was young. He said it was beauty that the city didn’t see. He told me he used to come here before the bushes were put up. It must have been nice.” I took a breath. “Rumor had it that a man lived on the other side of this wall, just over those murals. If you drive over to the next street, there is a boarded up house. That’s where we thought he lived. Somebody told my father that story, not sure what the truth was on that, but the man had an obsession with painting people as they walked by. I guess at one point he pretty much painted the whole town. Well, the business across the street thought it was an eyesore and the artist thought it was beautiful. They both fought over it. One fought to keep it and one fought to destroy it. I guess the artist won, because it’s still here. However the business across the street was tight with the city and persuaded them to plant some trees and very nasty bushes, and that’s the story that I have always known.”
“That’s crazy. This is a masterpiece. To hide beauty like this is a shame.”
“It’s beauty hidden behind fear of the unknown, kind of like you.”
She stared up at me captivated. With our eyes locked, it felt like the right time to kiss her. I leaned in and with one hand pulled her into me. I heard a short gasp. I lowered my head and let my lips gravitate to hers. I was gentle. I was slow. It was seduction at its best. I pulled back, but not before giving her a love bite on her bottom lip. It was something to remember me by later when she was alone. I licked my lips still savoring the taste of her on me. I smiled at
her and she smiled back. She was blushing now. That was new. The sexual tension between us thickened with each passing second, but the best course of action would be to change lanes, because I knew how Emily operated and too much too soon would trigger her fight or flight response.
“Umm. Do you want to sit down for a bit?”
She was dazed and speechless. All she could do was nod.
We sat down in the grass next to each other, facing the sun. She scooted closer to me and then laid her head upon my shoulder. This felt good, but I continued to hold back sticking to my too much, too soon rule with Emily.
“It’s like our own private park. It’s perfect here, James.”
“I know, right?”
“So…your dad. What was he like?”
“He was a good man. I strive to be like him every day. Honest and caring.”
She pulled her head up and stared at me. “You already are.”
I remained silent. She laid her head back on my shoulder and reached through the gap under my arm and grabbed my hand.
“Hey, hey, hey woman. Friends don’t hold hands.”
“A girl can change her mind. It’s not illegal to do so.”
“So that’s all a guy has to do to get you, is take you through a bunch of bushes.”
She playfully pushed against my rib with her free hand.
“I didn’t say you had me. I just find your shoulder very soft, and your hand comforting that’s all.”
“Let’s say I did have you, and we were a couple. Would I lay in your lap like this?” I positioned my body to where my back was now on the grass and my head rested on her thighs.
She smirked. “I suppose you would,” she replied, trying to hold her laughter in.
“I think if we were a couple you would be inclined to run your fingers through my hair.”
“Is that so? Okay I’ll play along,” she said, looking down at me.
She ran her fingers slowly through my hair, which honestly felt amazing.
“Then you would say something sweet like—” I waved my hands around.
“I love you,” she blurted out. She chuckled for a minute before she realized what she said.
I watched her body tense up, as she sat up straight and removed her hand from my hair. I pulled myself up into a sitting position. She was back stepping. I could see it in her eyes. It was time to take a mental detour.
The Silver Lining Page 10
