“What time do you want me to tell my mama y’all going to dinner tonight? You might as well eat at a restaurant by Opry Mills Mall since your hotel is by the airport. That’s the halfway point between y’all.”
“Who said I was having dinner with your mama tonight? Don’t be volunteering me.” I didn’t mean to say it in a nasty way, but that’s how in came out.
“You said it. Didn’t you tell her y’all would have lunch or dinner when you came to town? I told her you’d be here to visit and for her not to come today. She cleared her schedule so that y’all could meet. It’s lunch now, so y’all will have to have dinner. I’ll call her and let her know to get with you about it. You ain’t got shit to say back but okay. What you thought you was gon’ do tonight? Cruise around downtown by yourself?”
“No, Dre, you know my extrascary ass wasn’t going to go cruising around anywhere by myself.”
I’m so glad he couldn’t read my mind; otherwise, he’d be cussing me out over my thoughts of meeting, let alone eating with his mama. I hadn’t made plans for the night, but going downtown and walking around Second and Broadway would have been nice. I hadn’t seen it since the floods washed it away and it was rebuilt. Like most cities, downtown is where the tourists hung out, and that’s exactly what I am now. It was time that I changed the subject.
“So, will you be serving all of your time at this facility? Getting here to visit you was easy. I know my way around Antioch, especially Harding Place.”
“Naw, that’s what I needed to talk to you about. I’ll be getting moved soon to a place in Whiteville, Tennessee, which is about two hours from Nashville. You don’t have to visit me there, but you need to keep money on your phone until I get me a cell phone in there. I also want to see some letters and pictures coming in from you.”
I was glad to hear that because commuting wasn’t how I wanted to spend all my weekends. I would do it if I had to, although I’d dread it. We finished our last ten minutes of the visit with talks of “how good I looked” and with him saying how he couldn’t wait until he could do more than look at me through the glass.
“What do you plan on doing to me once the glass isn’t there?” I asked seductively. Sex was my favorite subject and had been since I mastered the art as a junior in college. The action was one of my favorite pastimes, but the excitement I got from talking about it came close to trumping it. Wait, I’m lying. There’s nothing better than dick.
“You’re evil for that one, baby. Why are you trying to send me back to my bunk with my dick hard?”
“I’m not trying to send you anywhere besides in between my legs. I thought you would have known that by now.”
“I do baby, but I can’t get in that pussy right now, and my hand don’t fuck my dick like you.”
“Nothing or nobody will fuck and suck your dick like me. Don’t you ever forget it.”
I stood up and turned to the side slowly so that he could get a good look at my ass, and then I rubbed on it at the same pace. To my surprise, Dre stood up and grabbed his dick through his pants and gave that big ole thing a shake.
“You ain’t never lied. That nasty little mouth of yours will have me in here plotting my escape. You can throw that neck on the dick way better than you throw that pussy on it with yo’ lazy ass.”
Leaving Dre behind to do time left me sad, but I knew he’d be calling me soon. I stopped by a grocery store on my way back to the hotel and grabbed myself a gallon of ice cream. I was hungry and hadn’t eaten a thing all day, but I knew Dre was making dinner plans for me. I could wait until then. I kicked off my boots and curled up on the bed with my ice cream and watched whatever movie was on TLC. Suddenly, my hotel room’s phone rang and woke me up.
“Hello?”
There was nothing but silence on the other end of the phone. There wasn’t a background sound or any masked breathing. That paranoia Dre had confronted me about was ready to kick in. Then there was a clicking sound, and the front desk operator spoke up.
“I apologize, Ms. James. We seem to be having issues with our telephone lines today. There is a gentleman here waiting for you in the lobby. He said his name was Ryan, and you should be expecting him. He said he was sent at the request of an Andre Burns.”
Dre said he would be having someone contact me, but he never said there would be a face-to-face visit. If I recall right, he said phone and even mentioned Nashville’s area code. Paranoia wanted me to decline the visit, but the thought of not accepting Dre’s security made me accept. I threw on my boots and walked into the lobby. I didn’t have to check with the front desk to be directed to my visitor. His face was familiar to me. Standing in front of me dressed like a businessman, minus a tie and briefcase, was the same white boy that handed me the letter from Dre years ago in Atlanta. He was good-looking, like GQ magazine-style, when he wasn’t dressed like a hip-hop dancer.
“Nice to see you again, Savannah.”
He approached me with his hand extended for a shake. I grabbed it and shook it as if I just closed on a business deal with him.
“I don’t know if I can say the same. The last time I saw you, you surprised me with a letter that sent me into labor.”
He blushed as a sign of embarrassment. The redness in his cheeks made his ocean-blue eyes stand out even more on his summer-tanned face. His lips were thin, but he had a Brad Pitt/Johnny Depp sex appeal about himself. It was the middle-length haircut that grouped him with the famous actors. His looks really couldn’t be compared to theirs because he was the closest human-to-visual perfection I’d ever laid eyes on.
“I apologize for that. I was doing a favor for my friend, as I am now. Dre asked me to come and meet with you. If you’re okay with it, maybe we can talk over dinner? He said protection and safety needed to be the topic of our conversation. Does that ring a bell?”
Yes, it rang a bell. I started to ask about the dinner arrangements Dre was making for me with his mother, but Ryan informed me they had been canceled since this dinner meeting with him was more important.
“I don’t know if you’ve had the, um, pleasure of meeting his mama yet, but please know that I’m speaking in love and in truth when I say, hands down, I’m the better dinner date.”
“After talking to her on the phone and getting cursed out without her using a word of profanity, I won’t question that. Give me a minute or two to get myself together.”
“That’s Mama D for you, and I’ll give you ten.”
I excused myself to return to my room to get my purse. First, I freshened up a little, then returned to the lobby so we could head out to dinner. I waited to see if Ryan would ask where I’d like to eat, but that question was never asked. When I looked up, we were pulling into an Italian restaurant called Maggiano’s on West End, and he had us seated alone on an outside balcony. Once our orders were placed and our waiter brought out our wine, it was time to get down to business.
“Dre has kept me up-to-date with the events that have occurred since my delivery to you, so there’s no need to relive what happened in California. What I want to know is what type of person Melinda is. Give me some background information on her.”
I went back to Melinda’s and my childhood relationship up to the last day I talked to her as an adult. I gave him facts first, and then gave him my opinion on what I thought she was capable of now.
“I don’t know them anymore. As children, they wouldn’t have harmed a fly, but after being shot by Keisha, the most timid in their crew, I think Melinda would be capable of more. She was the—”
He held up his finger to silence me at the waiter’s return with our food. He reminded me of Dre with how he took authority and controlled the conversation. Other than a difference in race, the only difference between the two was that Ryan had more of a police style about himself. I could see why he and Dre were so close, though. It was hard to believe that I previously thought of him as a hip-hop dancer.
“I apologize. Please continue.”
“Melinda was th
e one that had the most promising future and lost the most. Big Ant was on his way to play basketball professionally. I’m not sure if they were still in a relationship, but he making it would have changed their child’s life. Out of all the people who could come after me, I’d fear her retaliation the most.”
“Well, Savannah, tell me what type of protection you would feel most comfortable with having, and I’ll tell you what Dre and I have come up with for you.”
Only five hours had lapsed since my visit with Dre, and he managed to come up with a plan with his friend already. I didn’t know what they were capable of, but I gave out my ideal anyway.
“In a dream world, I’d want to have an armed guard with me 24/7 that would transport me to and from work. I’d want the guard to live with me in my two-bedroom apartment like celebrities have their security.” I had to laugh out loud at myself before I continued. “I know I’m asking for the Secret Service’s protection, huh? But honestly, I’d be content with learning how to shoot a gun and obtaining a gun license until Dre is released.”
“How about a combination of them both?” he said in between eating the stuffed mushrooms he had ordered. “Dre and I were thinking that maybe I should go back to Atlanta with you tomorrow until I return to work after the holidays. You will need to learn how to shoot and a few other self-defense moves. I know Dre would feel a lot better knowing you learned that stuff from me, just like he had done. After I’ve returned to work, Dre said he could have his other friend, Mike, stay with you during the week, and I’d be here in Nashville when you come to visit before Dre is moved. After that, we’d set up for me to visit on my days off. How does that sound?”
“It sounds expensive and like it would potentially cause problems between you and your wife. I couldn’t ask you to stay with me for three weeks. That would be asking too much. Maybe you can teach me the self-defense stuff and how to shoot a gun. I’ll just have to tread carefully.”
He nodded his head while I talked and continued to enjoy his meal while I nibbled on mine. I was starving and wanted to pig out on my Parmesan chicken, but first impressions were everything.
“First off, you wouldn’t be asking me to. Dre would, and he paid me way before you ever got in the picture. Even if he hadn’t, that’s what friends are for. Dre is my boy, and he loves you. He said you’re going to be his wife, and I know you had his child, my beautiful, intelligent niece, Sade.” He looked at me and smiled. “It’s not a problem for me at all. If you’d prefer me not to be under the same roof as you, I can get a hotel room where you’re staying, and when you get moved into your place, I can check into a hotel closer to you.”
How could I say no to that? I told him that would be fine and that I’d feel a lot better with him under my roof. There was a weight lifted off my shoulders, and now I was able to dig into my plate.
“You’re a blessing, Ryan. I truly appreciate this.”
“That’s nice to hear from a mouth filled with food, but I have to remind you that I’m doing this for Dre, and next in line would be Sade. I don’t want you to see this as personal protection. I’ll be working a job, and my only employer is Dre. When I piss you the fuck off, take it up with him.”
“Wow!”
“Wow would be a great place to start. It will turn to hell later.”
After finishing our meals, we headed back to my hotel. Ryan confirmed a noontime departure to Atlanta for the next day, and I got out of his car.
As I walked away, he rolled down his window and said, “Oh yeah, Savannah, I’m not married, nor do I have kids. Y’all women are too much for me to handle, and after keeping up with you all these years, I’m scared to date in fear I’d end up with a woman who mirrored you.”
He drove off, laughing, and I was left thinking that maybe Ryan was gay. That would account for his cuteness and why he wouldn’t see me as the best catch Dre ever caught while fishing.
Dre didn’t call me that night. He waited until first thing Sunday morning. I told him I had agreed to Ryan coming back with me and our departure time, but he already knew it. He wasn’t calling me for an update. He was calling me to tell me what I needed to do.
“Look, Ryan is my nigga for a reason. He’s not gon’ take your shit, Savannah, so try not to run him off. He can teach you a whole lot of shit, but you have to be willing to learn. He taught me the majority of what I know, but he doesn’t have the patience for bullshit like me. Whatever he says goes, and that’s final. If he lays out a plan, I expect you to execute it. None of that back talk, Savannah’s-way shit you like to pull. He will be with you until January the sixth—that’s three weeks. You need to make the most of the time. After that, I’m going to have my boy, Mike, the one you met at the gas station, stay with you for a while—”
“Mike?” I interrupted. “The fool with the gold teeth in his mouth? Didn’t you say he messed up your deal, money, or something like that? You feel safe with someone with a dollar sign on their tooth protecting me?”
“Hell yeah, I feel safe with him protecting you. He’s been ten toes down for me since kindergarten. That shit with the money was a setup that I knew about weeks before it happened. He couldn’t stop that from happening, and from what I found out, he pushed shit to the limit trying to. And what the fuck does him having gold in his mouth have to do with your protection anyway?”
I should have responded to his question, but I knew he would have a negative response. He promised to call me back after dinner and wished me a safe journey home.
Ryan and I made it to Atlanta around four o’clock in the afternoon in our separate vehicles. When we made it up to my room, my boxes had arrived, and so did the office supplies I ordered. The welcome home basket that Stephanie had given me was sitting on the coffee table, and I saw Ryan lift an eyebrow to it.
“From another one of my enemies, but this is one I can handle.”
“What’s the name of the gift giver?” he asked, pulling out his Blackberry and retrieving a saved note.
“Stephanie.”
“Stephanie Teasdale, coworker, ex-secretary, ex-friend, and ex—” he said looking from his phone to Savannah’s face.
“Ex what?”
“Ex-lover, which makes this gift make sense,” he said, quickly putting his phone away.
“Ex-lover? Is that what Dre told you?”
“Of course not,” he said, pulling out his phone and flying through the files he had saved on it. When he found what he was looking for, he held his phone in front of me. “This is where I got that information.”
Ryan had a transcript of Stephanie’s and my text messages from what had to have been eight or nine years ago. Besides the sexual content of our messages, Stephanie had sent me a picture of her clit ring attached to her clit with a message that read, My clit can’t wait for you to lick it tomorrow, baby. She misses your freaky ass. We love you.
Before I could respond, Ryan said, “I don’t think Dre knows the severity of your relationship with her. In our talks, he references her as your best friend, but if he ever asks, I’ll tell him. I’ll also send him everything I have on the two of you, and if your memory serves you correct, this picture is rated PG compared to the others and the videos. I’ve seen and read more about you than I’d like to share with anyone, which is another reason why I’m doing this for Dre and Dre alone. You’re a handful.”
“Let me move my welcome home gift out of your way,” was all I managed to say.
I don’t know why I hadn’t thrown it out, but instead, moved it into my bedroom and set it on the nightstand. Through yells, I explained that the sofa let out into a bed and gave him directions to the book with all the features the hotel offered. I was too embarrassed for a face-to-face.
He gave me an hour’s worth of space, and after he had walked around the facility, he was ready for us to grab something to eat. We ate in silence at a Chinese buffet not too far away from the hotel. Then I started to get myself mentally ready for my first day of work. Dre had called that night, but not
for me and not on my phone. He called Ryan and had him pass a message to me.
“Dre said he’d give you a call tomorrow when he’s sure you’re off and asked me to tell you that he loves you.”
It somewhat upset me that I couldn’t hear his voice, nor did he ask to hear mines, but I had shit to do to prepare for the next day. After laying all my stuff out for work, I went to the gym, showered, and went to bed.
By the time my scheduled wake-up call from the hotel rang the phone in the morning, I was dressed and ready. Ryan was up, bed put away, and doing push-ups on the living-room floor. I told him good morning and to have a nice day as I headed out the door.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
I almost didn’t hear him and wasn’t sure if he had said anything or if my ears had turned his heavy breathing into words.
“Excuse me?”
He stopped his workout and stood up. “You’re excused. Where do you think you’re going? You’re leaving two hours before your shift starts to get somewhere less than twenty minutes away, and you’re trying to go there alone. Sit down another twenty minutes while I shower. Then I’ll take you to grab some breakfast to go and drop you off at work. I’ll be waiting in the parking lot for you when you get off at four o’clock.”
“No, I’ll take myself, and I’m leaving now so I can grab breakfast and start working on my office before I get into my accounts. This is my normal routine.”
“Right,” he snapped back at me, “this is your normal routine, and that’s why we’re switching it up. Come on and have a seat. I’ll be ready in twenty minutes or less.”
I wanted to protest, but I kept hearing Dre’s words about executing Ryan’s plans. I slammed the door closed to show my dislike for being told what to do and then sat on the couch and turned on the news until he was ready to go.
“Is this the sample of the ‘wow’ that will turn into hell you spoke to me about?”
“No, but if you think this is, I feel bad for you. It will get worse from here.”
Kismet 3 Page 12
