Beale Street Blues

by Angela Kay Austin

  "Your mom said you're working on some issues with your office in Memphis." Her voice was soft and pleasant.

  "I think we have everything under control." He smiled to please his mother as much as he did her. "A little restructuring."

  "It can't be under control because he hasn't come home, for good, yet," his mother said. "Melanie spends a lot of time in Memphis. Maybe you two can go to dinner or something while you're there."

  "I'd love to if you have time, Jaxon." Melanie handed him a business card with her cell phone number.

  If that card had been given to him a few months ago, he would've taken full advantage of it whenever the need arose. But, now, every time he closed his eyes, he was bombarded with images of the only woman he wanted—and the beautiful woman staring at him wasn't her. "I don't know how much longer I'll be there, but—"

  "Of course, he has time for dinner," his mother interrupted. "Maybe I'll fly down and we can all make an evening of it.

  Any other time and he would say yes. But right now, he didn't know what he was doing. Spending time with Melanie wouldn't make it any less complicated. "Mom, I don't think I'll be there for much longer."

  "I haven't been to Memphis for a long time. I think it could be a lot of fun. We could see a play at the Orpheum. I used to love that theatre. Your father and I had season tickets."

  He forgot how good his mother was at getting her way. "Okay. Okay. I give up. We'll plan it. Dinner and a show."

  "I look forward to it," Melanie said.

  "So do we," his mother replied.

  The tiny little movie theater had quickly become one of Darling's favorites. It didn't show every movie that came out, but they served wine and cheese, so that put it on the top of her list. She chose a completely empty row, right in the middle of the small theatre and popped open her container of fruit.

  "Hi."

  His voice rolled over her as he sat in the seat beside her.

  Darling patted her hand at her throat and coughed. After a quick sip of wine, she responded, "Hi." What was he doing here?

  "No, I'm not following you," Jaxon said as if reading her mind. He tore off a piece of pretzel which smelled of cinnamon and sugar and popped it into his mouth. "You didn't see me when you walked in, but I thought I'd join you."

  "Oh."

  He stopped chewing. Not even the dim light of the theatre could hide the beauty or warmth of his eyes. "Is that okay? I can move if it's a problem."

  The only thing Darling could do was watch his mouth as he spoke. She wondered how he would taste with a little cinnamon and sugar. "That's not necessary. We're adults."

  He smiled and kept chewing as the lights dimmed.

  The actor in the love scene on the screen lifted the actress' leg into the air and kissed her knee. The actor ran his mouth down the woman's leg followed by his fingers. The only thing Darling could think of was when did knees become sexy? God, she needed some air. "Excuse me for a minute." She ran to the bathroom like a teenager.

  What's with me? Just because an attractive man sat beside her, smelling like—like a sexy male, didn't mean she had to immediately begin thinking of him with his clothes off. Honestly, she should just duck out of the theatre.

  She reached for her keys.

  Crap! She left her purse in her seat, reluctantly, she returned to the theatre. It would be childish to duck out now, but she wanted to run away from here. Away from Jaxon.

  "Are you okay?" he asked, concern in his voice.

  "Yeah." Did his voice always sound like that? Gravelly and…concerned?

  "You sure?" He stared through the darkness right at her.

  The flicker of the movie screen highlighted those beautiful green eyes and the worry behind them.

  He handed her the fruit and wine she'd practically thrown at him when she ran away. A flush of embarrassment flowed through her. There was more wine than she remembered and she was grateful. She took a long sip and sat back in her chair. She accepted that for the next hour or so, she was stuck in a chair beside a man whose attraction was slowly becoming more difficult for her to deny.

  Before Darling ran from the theatre, Jaxon was about to do it himself. Sitting near her watching the actor on screen pretend to make love only brought back memories of his one night with her. It made him want to take her where she sat. His need to touch her, to hold her and kiss her grew with each pretend caress on the screen. The only thing that would help him was a cold shower or at least splashing some water on his face.

  He walked out of the movie moments after she did to do just that. Even though he took the time to replace the wine and fruit she'd thrown at him, he still returned to their seats before she did. Maybe she was really sick, and didn't want to tell him.

  No matter how much he tried to pay attention to the movie, he couldn't stop watching her. The more she laughed at the actors' antics, the more relaxed she became. When she laughed loudly, she muffled it with her hand.

  His favorite moments were when something surprised her. She'd jump and lean into him just a little before pulling away. Each time, leaving the scent of fresh baked cake behind. Each time he wanted to grab her and stop her from moving away, but he didn't.

  They sat until the credits were over, and the house lights came up.

  "Did you like it?" he asked.

  "You couldn't tell?" She grinned. "I laughed so hard, I cried."

  "I wasn't sure I'd like it, but it was good." The theatre had been practically empty before they entered and now, those few movie watchers had left. The cleaning staff had begun to sweep and prep for the next showing. "I guess we should leave and allow them to do their jobs."

  "I guess so." Her tone didn't match her expression.

  If they sat in the theatre any longer, eventually, someone would ask them to help clean or leave. He didn't want to let her go, not yet. "Darling, let's go next door for coffee or dessert?"

  "I don't know. Do you think we should? With everything going on, I mean. Would that make sense?"

  "Probably not. You're right. But, it's just coffee." He reaffirmed, hoping she'd give in.

  "Only coffee." She smiled at him.

  "I promise. No games or tricks."

  "Just two co-workers having dessert." She paused. "Nothing's ever that simple. I'm sorry, Jaxon. Good night." She turned and walked away.

  As he watched her, he knew she was right, but he also knew he wouldn't be able to let her go. The pain that stole his breath begged him to run after her and kiss her. Hold her. Make her listen to him, but the rational side of his brain told him not to move.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Barbara parallel parked at the end of the block between a car with the hood up and another one missing tires and just sat there and watched. Darling pulled into the driveway, hopped out of her car and popped the trunk. Who could she know in this neighborhood? As Barbara checked the clock on her dashboard, she clicked her door locks one more time. This part of Memphis was nothing like where she lived. There weren't nearly enough street lights, and if anyone set up a make-shift mechanic shop on her street she was sure they would receive a citation from code enforcement and be told to move it out, quick.

  Darling grabbed some bags out of the trunk of her car, then headed toward the front door of the brick house and unlocked it. What? Is this where she lived? Another car pulled in behind Darling's, and Barbara watched as Darling held the door for the older couple. After filling their arms with as many bags as they could carry, they ambled up to the front door overloaded.

  Barbara sat until the stare of the middle-aged man working under the hood of the car in front of her and the sunset made her uncomfortable. She decided sitting there made her too conspicuous and she should leave before someone asked any questions. But a hasty exit flew out the window when she turned the corner only to be caught by the red flashing lights and electronic gates halting traffic for the passing train. Her Range Rover didn't blend with the line of cars waiting on the train to pass.

  Can't spy on so
meone like that. Next time, I'll get a rental car.

  The drive to her part of town took forever even without traffic. As soon as she walked into her condo, she stripped her clothes off, tossed them onto a pile of laundry and lay naked across her bed.

  Now what?

  At the office, Darling dressed in designer clothes and flaunted stylish handbags as if she lived in Germantown somewhere. Instead, it turned out she lived with some old couple, probably her parents, in a neighborhood definitely not on the scale of Germantown. Why? What was she doing with her money?

  I should've followed her weeks ago! Her entire body tingled with anticipation at her discovery. This was the best thing that had happened to her in a while. There was no way Jaxon Slater would be interested in a woman that had nothing to offer him. Nothing to add to his family's fortune. Why else would the man still be single? On the other hand, Barbara may not have come from millionaires, but her parents had enough money to pay for her to attend private school and make sure she graduated from one of the best liberal arts colleges in Memphis.

  There may not have been a coming out party in her background, but she would fit into his world a hell of a lot better than Darling. She closed her eyes and replayed the last few weeks, his face a constant image in her mind. Jaxon Slater was attractive and rich, not like that bastard Rodney, but she could barely get a moment of his time. He preferred she follow protocol and speak with Darling, who would then speak with Rodney, who would then speak with him. The protocol of hierarchy. Whatever. She hadn't seen Darling follow that protocol. Instead, she just walked in and out of Jaxon's office whenever she wanted to.

  The more she thought of him, the more her body ached with anticipation, instead of nearly vomiting at the thought of him as she did with Rodney. One day, she would know Jaxon's touch. As the image of him grew stronger in her mind, her hand slid down her body, doing the things she imagined he would do one day. The feel of her fingers at her core excited her. When the moan left her lips, she flipped over to get a better position and saw an image of herself in the dresser mirror. Damn! This is what she'd been reduced to, getting off by herself, and all because of Darling.

  I'll get her for this!

  "Barbara, do you have the final numbers for your budget?" Darling asked, again.

  The woman had zoned out, or simply ignored her. It didn't matter because the affect was the same. Everyone in the meeting focused on Barbara, instead of the work that needed to be done.

  "I emailed the report to you, yesterday." The woman's lips barely moved.

  Even though barely audible, Barbara's words were still a lie.

  "I don't have it," Darling replied.

  No matter how many times she'd asked Barbara for her numbers over the past several days, there'd always been an excuse. She was sick to death of the other woman and her obvious tactics to sabotage everything. The changes she'd talked Mr. Slater into would benefit everyone, including Barbara.

  "I need to pull this together for Mr. Slater," Darling reminded Barbara. "Please go print off a hard copy and bring it back to the meeting?"

  "I don't—"

  "What?" Darling leaned forward in her chair and rested her arms on the table in front of her. "They're completed, right?" She waited for Barbara to admit to everyone that she'd been lying. At this point, Darling could use it as a reason to fire her. She didn't need a headache with every request she made.

  "Yes, but—?" Wide-eyed, Barbara scanned the room as if searching for someone to jump in and back her up.

  "Then, we'll wait for you to bring the spreadsheets back to the meeting, so that we can review them and continue." She had penned in some projections for Barbara's numbers, but the actual projections were still needed. She didn't want to fall flat on her face when she presented the final numbers to Jaxon She didn't want him to think she expected any special concessions.

  Barbara returned within moments, reinforcing Darling's conviction that Barbara had the freaking work completed. The damn woman just wanted to be difficult and ignore Darling's authority.

  "Here they are." Barbara slapped the documents on the edge of the conference room table and sat.

  Darling stared at the pages resting on the table beside Barbara. "Do you want to read those aloud, or do you want to allow everyone to have a copy to review?"

  Barbara slid the report over to Kathy who passed them on to Darling.

  After glancing at them, Darling handed them to back to Kathy—her assistant. "Could you please make a set of copies for everyone here?"

  "Sure." Kathy hurried from the room.

  "It looks like my projections for Barbara's group were pretty accurate," she told everyone. "Mr. Slater approved my plan as long as the numbers matched the proposal. He has given us permission to plus up quite a bit for the end of the year. That means a lot more travel for everyone."

  Some team members smiled, while others waited. Maybe because they wanted to know about the part she hadn't shared. The part she'd hoped would get the last remaining hold-outs on team Barbara to switch teams.

  "How does the timeline work for the people with families who didn't travel before you took over?" Barbara interjected.

  Perfect!

  "Because of the increased travel, I've asked Mr. Slater to take another look at everyone's compensation plans. As a result of that and added responsibilities, he's in agreement with me that everyone should receive adjusted compensation and benefits, including increases in paid time off."

  "Darling, that's fantastic!" Kathy said as she entered the room.

  "Human resources will be contacting everyone regarding the changes," Darling continued. "And they will be immediate."

  "That's not possible," Barbara said with a nasty edge to her voice.

  Why? Because I got something done that you couldn't? "What do you mean?" Darling asked.

  "Rodney told me that there wasn't enough money in the budget when I went to him for my team last year."

  That's because Rodney didn't listen to you; he screwed you. "I know, but there have been some changes since then. Because of the added responsibilities that we'll all be taking on, it's the only thing that made sense to me, Rodney and Mr. Slater."

  Barbara sat up in her seat and for once, paid attention to the numbers displayed on the presentation in front of her. "But how can you—I wasn't able to—"

  "We've been working on the changes since the announcement was first made. It's the only way," Darling continued as she scanned the room. "We feel comfortable asking you guys to take on the additional obligations."

  Various voices around the room, including the few huddled around Barbara spoke, "Thanks, Darling."

  Darling knew the additional money would win over a few of Barbara's loyal team members, but she still had to figure out what to do about the woman herself. She wasn't going to make anything easy.

  Darling was determined not to lie down and let Barbara take this away from her. The politics between Rodney and Barbara and the humdrum of the call center didn't excite her. But, with the role changes, it was worth the fight. She could get her life back on track. Move out of her parents' house with or without money from Steve.

  "Steve, I don't care what you do." Darling paused. "I just want my share of everything. How I get it doesn't matter."

  She did not need this on top of everything at work. She didn't want to have another annoying unproductive conversation with her soon-to-be ex. He never had anything positive to say and she always felt like crap when she hung up the phone.

  "All I'm saying," he said, "is that instead of us selling the house, my future wife wants it."

  "Your future wife!" Why would she give a damn about what his future wife wanted? "You didn't care about anything when we were together. I begged you for everything you're asking me to help you give to her." She thought about the struggle she had dragging him out to look at houses. She and the realtor viewed half of them without him. He'd flown out of town minutes after closing, and she'd spent the first night in their new home
alone.

  "I—I—"

  "Never mind, I don't care. I get it." She gave the bastard everything, but he gave her nothing, and now, he wanted what was left. But, this time, he wanted her to give it to him, so that he could give it to his future wife. It made her want to scream!

  "We like the schools in the area. And when the baby is older—"

  Baby? What the hell! She'd wanted children. His children.

  She didn't want to hear any more about anything. "I don't care. I don't need to know the details." She already had her answers. He liked magazine covers, and she'd been traded in for the latest one. She'd made the mistake of falling in love. He didn't. She wanted to slam her cell against the wall. "Just have your lawyer contact mine. I've got to go."

  No matter how many long deep breaths she took, nothing worked to take the edge off her anger. Like a caged animal in a zoo, Darling circled her room over and over replaying Steve's words in her head. All the things she'd wanted with him, he was willingly giving to someone else. All the years they'd been together hadn't meant a damn thing to him! She walked to the bathroom to run a bath. The closed door signaled that one of her parents was in it, and she didn't want to wait. Doubling back to her room, she grabbed her purse and headed out the front door.

  The longer she drove, the more the street signs and headlights of oncoming cars blurred. Only when the dampness of her shirt began to send a chill through her did she realize she'd been crying the entire time.

  Where she was headed might be the biggest mistake of her life, but it was the only place she wanted to be, and he was the only person she wanted to be with. She pulled into the crescent shaped drive and opened the driver's side door. At the request of the valet, she handed him her keys.

  "Ma'am are you okay?" asked the valet.

  "Yes, thank you." She dabbed at her eyes with her palm. "Allergies." She walked through the revolving doors shivering a little as the cold air hit her wet shirt. Her sneakers squeaked across the marble floors. She didn't stop 'til she reached the elevators.