“Yes, those were the days. But things have changed and here we are.”
“Right. But how did we get here is the question? We used to be soooo close, and our bond was unbreakable. But look at us now.”
Sad, wasn’t it? I had to admit that we did have some good times too. “Truthfully, we got here because of Kayla’s selfishness and her thinking she was always better than us. I wouldn’t have ever started sleeping with Cedric, if Kayla wouldn’t have treated me like a nobody. As for us, we’ve had our issues too. But you already know how much I care about our friendship. It means a lot to me.”
“You say that, Evelyn, but sometimes your actions don’t show it. Where Kayla is concerned, no matter what, you never should have been sleeping with her husband. She may have been selfish, but that wasn’t a reason for you to open your legs and get pregnant by Cedric.”
“There you go taking her side again. I wish we would eliminate Kayla from our conversations. What’s done is done. It makes no sense to keep harping on the past. Besides, she’s supposed to be real happy now. She sent me a selfie of her and Cedric, holding their divorce papers. I don’t know why she went there, but I guess you may know better than I do.”
“That wasn’t a bright idea, but whatever. I won’t mention her name again, nor will I keep on bringing you my sob stories about Keith. I’m going away for a few days. Need some time to think, so I’m heading to an art show in L.A. this evening. I’ll be gone for three days. When I get back, maybe we can hook up.”
“Sounds good. Keep your head up, girl, and don’t let no man stress you. Have a good time, and we’ll hook up when you get back.”
Trina and I left it there. I felt a little bad for her, but that’s the way the boat rocks sometimes. Her news also had me thinking. If she wasn’t going to be around for a few days, hmmmm. I sat for a few minutes, pondering. Then I got up and went into Bryson’s office. I closed the door and hurried over to his desk. I’d seen several keys in his drawer, but one key had a piece of tape on it that read Keith. I assumed it was a key to his house. I searched Bryson’s desk, but the only thing I came across were a bunch of pens and pencils, notepads, and a few pictures of unattractive women. I tossed the pictures in the trash, especially the one of a woman who had a pudgy stomach and a tattoo between her legs. Yucky. When I lifted a camera, that was when I saw a silver key and one with Keith’s name taped to it. I tucked the keys into my pocket and hurried to get back to my desk.
Five o’clock rolled around; I couldn’t wait to get home. I showered, changed clothes, then sat back on my couch. For some reason, I was a little nervous about reaching out to Keith, so I picked up a Newport and lit it. I took a puff, and then whistled smoke into the air. Took another puff and did the same. Before I knew, the cigarette was almost finished. That was when I picked up my cell phone to call him. My pussy thumped a little from the sound of his sexy yet sad voice.
“I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time, but I wanted to ask you a few questions about Bryson, if you don’t mind.”
“You’re timing is cool. I’ve been painting all day and need to take a break anyway. Shoot.”
“Well, I’m not sure if you know this or not, but Bryson and I have been getting a little close lately. I’m finding myself feeling him, a lot, but I’m also feeling someone else too. Then there’s the situation with him and Libby. I was at his place one day and she showed up. She was pretty distraught, and I felt terrible for hurting her like that. Bryson seems as if he cares for her, but a part of me feels as if I’m in the way. Do you think I should back off? Or do you think I should stop seeing him altogether and direct my attention to the other person I’m feeling?”
“First, I will say this to you. Libby and my brother have been together for a long time. Eventually, he’s going to settle down, and if he does, it’ll probably be with her. Then again, he’s so hard to figure out. He is involved with several other women too. From what he’s said to me, I’m sure you already know that, right?”
“Yes, I do. That doesn’t bother me, as much as this thing with Libby does. To see her so upset like that really troubled me. I wouldn’t wish the pain that she’s going through on my worst enemy. A big part of me feels as if I’m contributing to her pain.”
“In a sense, you are. But so are other people. If it’s bothering you that much, back off. Chill for a while, and pursue the other person you’re interested in. That’s what I would do. At the end of the day, Bryson will be just fine.”
“I think he would be too. I know his kind all too well. Now, in reference to the other guy, he’s in a tricky situation as well. The woman who he likes is confused. She really doesn’t know what she wants and she’s a little drama queen. I think he’s just about had it with her, but I’m not so sure. He’s one of the nicest men that I’ve ever met, and I can’t stop thinking about him. All I want is one night . . . one night with him and I would want no more.”
Keith stayed silent for a moment. Then he cleared his throat. “One night to do what with him?”
“One night to have passionate sex with him. There is something in his eyes that says he wants me, but he’s afraid. Afraid that what I intend to do to him will get back to his girlfriend. Thing is, it won’t. My lips are sealed and I would take that secret to my grave. My question to you is, do you think I should pursue this man?”
Keith paused again. I heard his breathing increase then a sigh followed. “I don’t know if he would risk losing everything for one night of passionate sex. You may have to offer him a little bit more than that.”
“I would offer him anything he wanted. I’m feeling him that much, and if he wanted more, the sex could be viewed as a jumpstart.”
“Anything?”
“Anything.”
“I don’t see any man rejecting your offer, but if the confused woman is a drama queen, shouldn’t you be worried?”
“Women don’t scare me. They never have. I always go for what I want, even though, sometimes, people tend to get hurt in the process. I like to deal with those situations as they come. They’re always after the fact. After I’ve gotten what I wanted, and the other person has gotten what they wanted too.”
“So, in other words, let the chips fall where they may.”
“Exactly. Now, I’ll ask again. Should I, or shouldn’t I pursue him?”
Keith hesitated longer this time. “I . . . I think you should. Maybe you should go by his place tonight, around nine, and see what’s up with him. If the door is unlocked, go to his bedroom where he’ll probably be watching TV, since the drama queen who is causing him plenty of headaches will be out of town. Wear something real sexy to entice him and don’t forget to bring condoms. You always want to stay strapped up, especially when you don’t know what he’s been into. I hope my advice helps, Evelyn. And let me know how everything turns out.”
“You’ll know soon.”
I ended the call and hurried to call Trina, just to see where she was. She was already at the airport, waiting for her plane to depart.
“Have a safe trip,” I said. “And be sure to call me when you arrive in L.A.”
“Okay, I will. If I see a piece of art that you may like, I’ll purchase it for you.”
I laughed. “Don’t waste your money. You know I prefer the cash over a painted picture any day.”
“Right. Bye, girl. Holler later.”
Much later, I thought.
I laid the phone on the table and tried to contain my enthusiasm for going to see Keith. I suspected that it wasn’t going to be as simple as he’d made it, and I figured I’d had to put up a fuss to get him to give me what I wanted. I could tell so by the way he hesitated, but there was no question that by the time the night was over, Keith would be like putty in my hands.
If the man wanted sexy, I was going to give him sexy and then some. That consisted of me wearing nothing but my silky skin, underneath a coat. I changed into just that and left my place in a hurry.
As planned, when I arrived at Keith
’s house, the door was unlocked. I didn’t even need the key I’d gotten from Bryson’s office, but I still kept it. The downstairs was pretty dark. Upstairs was too, but I could see light from a television coming from his room. I sauntered up the stairs and heard soothing jazz music as well. He was apparently trying to set the mood, so I made my way to his doorway. I peeked inside and saw him sitting up in bed with a sheet covering him from the waist down. I knocked on the door and then walked inside. Keith picked up a watch from his nightstand.
“You’re almost ten minutes late. I didn’t think you were coming. I was about to fall asleep, because these shows on the television are boring.”
“Then Evelyn to the rescue, right?”
I didn’t want to waste any time with this. Keith appeared to be on board, and that was a good thing. His eyes locked on me as I removed the belt from my coat. When I peeled it away from my shoulders, I saw him suck in a deep breath. I stood before him, with no clothes on and ready to handle my business. Keith patted the spot next to him then cocked his head back.
“Come here,” he said softly. “My brother said you were sexy as hell. I guess now I believe him.”
I crawled on the bed like a courageous tiger. Moved face to face with him then leaned in for a kiss. This time, he didn’t back away. He didn’t reject me, and his mouth opened wide. I couldn’t believe what a great kisser he was. No wonder Trina was hooked.
“Sweet lips,” he said, holding the sides of my face. He lightly bit my lips a few times, and then backed away when the phone rang.
“Sweet pussy too,” I replied. “Wait until you taste it.”
The ringing phone interrupted us again.
“You may want to go answer that,” I said. “Just in case it’s you-know-who. The last thing you may want is her showing up here tonight.”
Keith shrugged, but he took my advice. He snatched the sheet away from him. Lord have mercy on that body of his.
“I’ll go get my phone, and why don’t you run to the kitchen to get us some wine out the fridge?”
I really didn’t want any wine, but since Keith was cooperating, what the hell? I went to the kitchen to get the wine, and then stopped by the bathroom to pee. I could hear Keith going off on somebody over the phone, but then his voice went silent. It was probably Trina. Then again, she was on a plane to L.A. Keith’s ex-girlfriend came to mind, so I hurried out of the bathroom to eavesdrop on the conversation.
I returned to the bedroom with the wine bottle and two glasses in my hand. Keith was back in bed, lying on his side with the sheet covering him. The television had been turned off, and his cell phone was on the nightstand, ringing again. This time, he ignored it and didn’t say a word. I set the wine and glasses down then crawled on the bed next to him again. When I pulled the sheet away from him, that was when I got the shock of my life. I eased away from the gun that was aimed right at the center of my forehead, which was starting to build up a sheen of sweat. The look in Trina’s eyes was deadly.
“Bitch,” she said through gritted teeth. “You got five motherfucking seconds to get your coat back on and get the hell out of my man’s house! And if you ever, I mean ever, come back here again, I swear to God that I will blow your damn brains out!”
Trina didn’t look like she was bullshitting, so I didn’t bother to respond. I kept my eyes on the gun that trembled in her hand and carefully eased back on the bed. I bent down to pick up my coat, but didn’t bother to put it back on. I waved at her, and jetted down the stairs so fast that I almost fell and broke my neck. Keith awaited me at the door. His face looked like stone, as he held the door wide open. I was too embarrassed to say one word. After I ran outside, he slammed the door so hard that it shook the house. Apparently, he wasn’t down with my plans after all.
Chapter 13
Kayla
Trina called to tell me about her and Keith’s plan for Evelyn. She had me laughing my tail off. I couldn’t believe how desperate Evelyn had gotten. Since Cedric was no longer around, I should’ve expected something like that from her.
“I always knew she was scantless, but when Keith told me about her trying to hook up with him before, I couldn’t believe it. This last thing was his idea. He wanted to show me what was really going on behind my back. When she called to speak to him about coming over, I was right there listening.”
“Girl, I’m convinced that Evelyn is crazy. She needs some serious help. No woman in her right mind could be foolish enough to go into her best friend’s man’s house with nothing on and try to seduce him. Does she really think she’s got it going on like that? And what about Bryson? Did Keith tell him?”
“Nope. He said he wasn’t going to say a word, because Evelyn was going to get her feelings hurt, again, messing around with him. She’s always running after men, but she’d better be careful what she wishes for.”
“I know that’s right. Right away I could tell Bryson was no good. He started talking all that mess at the club that night, but all I did was smile and listen. I had fun, but the truth is, I need to take time out and see about me. I’m not pursuing any relationship, until I get my stuff over here in order and make sure Jacoby is on the right track. Something seems to be troubling him, but I can’t put my finger on it. Maybe it has to do with the divorce, but I explained to him that it was something I truly had to do for myself.”
“I totally get that. He’ll understand one day why you did what you had to do. And before I forget, thank you for interfering in my relationship. I’m glad you called Keith to come to the club. We needed to settle things down and talk through our differences.”
“I figured the two of you would. I only interfere when I feel as though I have to. I didn’t want you to make the mistake of losing him. Have you moved in yet?”
“Yep. Moved in a few days ago. I’m feeling good about this, too. Now, what about you? Have you heard from Cedric, and when are you going to start looking for another place to stay? Staying in that hotel must be driving you nuts.”
“It is, and I’m getting tired of the ongoing noise, too. I think I found a place near Chesterfield. The rent is ridiculous, but I love how the apartment is made.”
“Apartment? You’re moving into an apartment?”
“Yes. It’s a three bedroom, but it’s humongous. It’s perfect for me and Jacoby. We really don’t need anything bigger than that.”
“What about the house? Did Cedric put it up for sale yet?”
“He said he was going to next week. We’ve talked here and there, but more so about Jacoby and our finances. Cedric set me out. I must say that I’m very appreciative of the money we agreed upon in our divorce settlement.”
“That’s good. Seems like everything is working out for everybody, with the exception of Evelyn. Maybe she’ll come to her senses and start doing the right thing. If she does, I’ll never know about it because she would be too embarrassed to ever contact me again.”
“Tuh, don’t believe that for one minute. Sooner or later, you’ll get a call. She’ll be begging and pleading for you to forgive her. And I know you, Trina. You probably will.”
Trina denied it, but among the three of us, she was the one with the forgiving heart. To a certain extent, I was too. But it would be very, very difficult for me to ever forgive Evelyn.
We talked for a little while longer, but since I was supposed to meet Jacoby at the apartment complex so he could see it, I had to let Trina go. I then called Jacoby, but he didn’t answer his phone. I drove to Adrianne’s house to see if he was there. He was, and I found the two of them outside arguing. I didn’t like how heated the conversation between them seemed, so I got out of the car to go break it up. Jacoby was way too aggressive. I yelled for him to back away from Adrianne.
“Jacoby,” I shouted again. “Didn’t you hear me?”
He backed away with a mean mug on his face. Adrianne had been crying. This whole scene was kind of shocking to me because I thought things had been going well for them.
“Anybody wa
nt to tell me what’s going on here?” I said.
“Tell her,” Adrianne shouted. “Now is the time to tell her!”
Jacoby narrowed his eyes at her and shot daggers. “Shut up! Stay out of this, Adrianne, it’s none of your business!”
I couldn’t express how shocked I was. I put my hand on my hip and frowned. “Tell me what? Would somebody please tell me so that we can talk about whatever it is in a sensible way?”
“It’s nothing, Mama. If you want to go see this apartment, let’s go.”
“If this is about the apartment, please let me know. I’ll accept if you don’t want to live with me, and you prefer to live with Cedric. We will always be a family, and you are welcome—”
“Tell her now,” Adrianne shouted again. “She needs to know the truth!”
This was driving me nuts. I turned to Jacoby and let him have it. “The truth about what,” I yelled. “What secret are you keeping from me?”
Jacoby had the look of fire in his eyes. He turned to walk away, but I ran after him. “Is she pregnant? Is that what you want to tell me? I told you about having all this sex, Jacoby, and the least you could’ve done was protect yourself. You haven’t even graduated from high school yet and—”
“No,” Adrianne said. “I’m not pregnant. And if you don’t tell her what you did, I’m going to tell her myself.”
I was floored when Jacoby reached out and grabbed Adrianne’s face. He squeezed it tight and held his hand over her mouth. This time, I yanked him away from her and pushed him back. I pointed my finger near his face and gritted my teeth.
“No son of mine will ever put his hands on a woman like that! What in the hell is wrong with you? Who are you, Jacoby, and what in the hell are you keeping from me?”
Adrianne stepped back and blurted out the secret. “He paid Paula Daniels to kill Cedric. I begged him not to do it, but Jacoby wouldn’t listen. We don’t know why she hasn’t said anything about it, but he’s been so afraid that she’s going to tell someone.”
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