All I Want... Is You (8 page)

“Do you really think things are that certain?” I couldn’t resist the urge of asking. She opened the door for the conversation. “We’ve come so close in the past, just for it to slip away.”

“I know my daddy,” Toni replied, looking straight at me with the most arresting pair of eyes I’d ever seen on a woman. “He and Mr. Parker work like yin and yang, and I know for a fact that the demo tape made it to him because I personally sent it off.”

I was ready to explode when I heard that!

“I’m not wrong too often, and even though D is one of the best photographers in the business – yeah, I’m a little biased – he’s had a hand in the last two groups that the label has signed. One went Platinum, and the other went Gold.”

“Oh, wow, I didn’t know Derrick had an eye like that.” I remarked, taking another bite of the pancakes in front of me. “So, were you and D an item? You seem to have a real feel for him.”

“Yeah, we kicked it for a minute, but that was when we were young and enjoying life,” Toni said, a smirk across her face. “He’s one of the good ones, Cori, but he’s been burned… badly. Don’t tell him I told you, though. In time, he’ll probably tell you everything you need to know.”

I was trying to keep my affections for Derrick from showing too much, but Toni could see right through me. Yeah, I still thought that Derrick was a player. A man that
fine
usually is. But I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt.

For now.

~Derrick~

“
Okay, D, who is she,
and what did she do to get you out of your funk?”

I was in the midst of an outdoor photo shoot at the home of Terry Blanchard, one half of the producer duo of Blanchard and Barnett. It was an album cover shoot and promotional stuff with one of their newest male singers, I forgot his name because, quite frankly, I don’t keep up with the dudes all that much, that’s not my flow.

Anyway, they wanted to do the photo shoot with some of the models that I usually work with and some new girls that the singer has a vibe with. I was fine with that; it didn’t matter to me. I was in a flow this morning, coming up with some outside the box type of stuff to match with what the cover concept was discussed with the artist.

From the glances that I kept getting from the models that I was shooting, and the question that one of them asked me while I was reloading cartridges in my digital camera, it was safe to say I was not all that pleasant to deal with when that shit went down with Stacy.

That’s the last time that I let a female fuck with my flow.

The new girls were trying to flirt with me through the camera lens, giving me all the pouts and kisses that I wanted to make things even hotter for the artist that they were draped all over. I guess dude didn’t realize that they were only doing the job that they were paid for. He found that out the hard way when one of my regulars, Lita, had to take him down a notch or two when he thought that she was giving up the rhythm during a couple’s segment of the shoot for the inside of the cover.

When will these male artists learn that the women that are in the industry have seen them all and, in a few cases, have done them all? Save that shit for the regular women and girls that are ready and willing to fuck you just for breathing in their direction.

Anyway, Alexis, the one who asked about Cori indirectly, tried to corner me once the shoot was over so she could get a more in-depth answer from me.

She had to be a glutton for punishment or she didn’t care, because my mind wasn’t on her at that moment. I was back in my business mode, the one where I can stay professional and not let wayward pussy fuck up my money.

Especially when I’m on loan from RP to do what I normally do for them.

“Come on, D, you can tell me who she is,” Alexis started in on me, still wearing the bikini ensemble that all the girls wore for the final shots. “I wanna know who it was that helped you get your swagger back.”

I winked at her, staring at the curves that I’d managed to run my hands over years ago before I got into my last relationship. The memories came flooding back to a particular shoot in Barbados, where she damn near turned me out with another model that wanted to have me, too.

My body betrayed me, and Alexis could feel it.

“My swagger has always been there, Lexi,” I tried to shake off what my body wanted, and I was losing that fight with each passing second that she was so close to me. “I know I’ve been off my game a little bit, but I had some stuff to go through, and now I’m out of it and I can get back to what I do best.”

“I remember what you did best, D,” Alexis slid closer to me, giving me an up close and personal whiff of the combination of the perfume that she was wearing and the pheromones that were begging me to take her right there in the open, regardless of who was watching. “I was hoping that we could get back to doing that again now that you’re back on the market. You sure you don’t have room for one more?”

Lita walked around my truck, catching me and Lexi in the compromising position we were in. A slick smile spread across her face as she approached us.

“So, is he game or what?” Lita asked Alexis. “I wanna know what it is about Derrick, too.”

At that moment, all I could think was,
This cannot be happening right now
.

I did my best to make it look like I was letting them have the upper hand on me, but two women who have a desire to have you and didn’t care if the other one watched or participated or both?

I was just a “yes” away from making a quick phone call to the nearest hotel to get this off my chest, literally and figuratively.

Then another image flashed in my head.

Cori.

I had lunch plans with her in a little over an hour. I even planned my day around it.

By the time that I’d gotten back to my senses, Alexis’ lips were already searching for my tongue, while Lita had managed to get my shirt unbuttoned.

I wanted this, badly. I’m not going to lie about that.

Even though it was an especially mild day today, the heat that these two created made it feel like it was the middle of June already.

I could smell their scent, and the exotic mix of the two nearly had me ready to succumb to the beauty that surrounded me.

I had visions of doing some major damage to a hotel room, not giving a shit about who might hear the screams and moans that came from the room because I had planned to leave a generous tip for the housekeeping staff because I knew the mess that those two would create.

My phone singing in my pocket was the only thing that kept me from following my thoughts to their conclusion.

“Morrow.” I answered quickly, trying to sound like I wasn’t distracted.

“D, I need to holla at you, man.” I heard Omar’s voice over the phone, sounding hyperactive. “I know you’re at the gig right now, but I need to get at you ASAP.”

“O-dawg… make it quick… I’m in the middle of… shooting now, just had to… reload smartcards.” I struggled to hear what he was saying because Lexi was on my spots, triggering all kind of defense lapses.

“Naw, bruh, I need to holla at you now.”

“Nigga quit trippin’, you know I can’t blaze the set unless it’s life or death,” I snapped. “And from the sound of it, you’re still breathing if you’re trying to cuss me out.”

“Nigga, whatever,” I heard him spit. “Go handle your business and I’ll be at you later on in the week.” Omar replied, cutting the connection before I could get another word in edge-wise.

Talk about a buzz completely gone.

Damn it, O. You can fuck up a wet dream, I swear.

“Okay, ladies, that’s enough fun for now,” I slowly slipped Lita’s hands off my chest and hesitantly managed to get Alexis to calm her advances down. “I have another appointment that I have to make, and I don’t want to be late for it, okay?”

I tried to keep it professional sounding, but women are very intuitive creatures, damn it.

Alexis looked over at Lita, and they both looked at me, trying to assess what to make of my attempt at blocking their advances. Alexis moved in close again, this time to gauge the look in my eyes, daring me to change my mind.

You know you want it, D
, I could feel her saying with her intense stare into the windows of my soul.
All you have to do is say you want it
.

Lita pressed her breasts against my back, kissing my neck. I cursed Alexis for giving away my

weak spots, and my body was a nibble on the ear away from telling me that this was what it wanted, regardless of what I said I had to do.

I don’t know where I found the strength, but I stared back into her light grey eyes with conviction,
Whether I want it or not, the timing’s all wrong. There will be another time, Lexi. You know that already
.

I was taking a chance by turning her down; women can be worse than men when it comes to rejection sometimes, and I still wanted to keep our professional relationship intact. She was one of the best in the business, and being on her good side was always good for business.

Her eyes widened for a moment, and then a knowing wink and another warm smile spread across her lips.

I guess I didn’t upset her too much after all.

“I hope she’s worth it, D.” she said as she kissed my lips a final time before she took Lita’s hand and disappeared around the front of my truck. “But if she isn’t, you know where to find me. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Lita’s game, too.”

I slowly banged my head against the glass window on the side of my truck, trying hard to calm down the revolt that my body was waging against my mind right then.

Yeah, I hope she is, too.

I had Cori meet me at
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse in downtown.

I was in the mood for steak, and I remembered that Cori had a weakness for lobster and crab, so it felt like a good spot to do a lunch date.

Considering where I came from in Alpharetta, I knew she would beat me to the restaurant and already be at a table by the time I got there. I did that on purpose because I wanted to see what she was wearing while she was seated.

It sounds a little petty, but I wanted to get a peek at those pretty legs again, and on my terms this time. Call me a bit of a control freak, but it’s the man in me.

“I’m sorry if I kept you waiting too long.” I said to Cori as I kissed her on the cheek before sitting down at the table. “The shoot that I told you about was in North Fulton at the B&B estate.”

“That’s fine, D, I was just getting something to drink, so you’re not too late.” Cori let me off the hook as she winked at me. “Maybe I should order something really tasty and expensive to make you pay for making me wait an extra ten minutes on you.”

“Oh, now you’re just being mean.” I teased back, enjoying the banter between us. More importantly, I was enjoying the smoothness of the exchanges between us, as if there was nothing in the way of things taking their natural course. Not her pending record deal, not my international fame as a photographer.

It was… nice.

“So, are you ready for the questions in my mind?” Cori asked me, this cute little inquisitive look in her eyes that made me want to tell her anything.

“What do you want to know? I’m 26, born and raised in the A, anything else you will have to ask me.” I replied. “And I do mean anything.”

I observed her as the wheels began turning in her head after I made the clarification. The minute that she realized that I was serious a devilish smile began to spread.

For a minute there, I was actually worried about how far she would carry the questions or how deeply she would try to trek.

“The answer to your question is yes, it is true.” I smirked, thinking I had her off guard.

“How did you know if I would ask that? I could have been thinking about anything.” Cori answered, but she was definitely blushing as she replied.

Yeah, I had her off guard.

“No, I didn’t know anything, I’m just guessing here, Cori,” I admitted to her, trying to calm her a little. “So, what’s really on your mind, Cori?”

I took her hand and stared into her eyes for effect, and I could feel her hands trembling the minute our eyes locked. I knew the effect my eyes had on the women I was interested in, and they didn’t fail me this time. Cori exhaled slowly, as if trying to regain some sort of balance and control, and she subconsciously licked her lips before I snapped her back from whatever world she was traveling to.

“Cori?”

“Mmmhhmmmm?”

“The question you were gonna ask me?”

Cori shook out of her trance, refocused on my face, and then asked, “I would have figured that you have a girlfriend or someone special in your life. You’ve got things together, not like the other brothas I’ve dealt with.”

Damn.

She went for the jugular.

Talk about your brick walls. That question hit me hard because I hadn’t thought about
her
in at least two months or so.

Alright, so she wants to talk about it, I guess I can talk about it.

“I had someone—“ I uttered as my voice trailed off. I really wasn’t sure that I was ready to talk about it yet, but there was no turning back once I started the sentence.

“D, it’s okay, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Cori squeezed my hand to get my eyes in her direction again. The look of concern on her face, her eyes told me that I might be okay if I get that ghost off my shadow.

“Her name was Stacy. I spent my last year doing everything in my power to try to please her. Then out of the blue, she starts talking about marriage and kids, and I wasn’t ready for all that. In the end, I found out that I wasn’t her ideal anymore, at least not like the next man that she’s probably getting to know and want to marry.”

The confession coming off my lips felt like I’d swallowed pure acid. I wasn’t willing to admit that I was wrong or that I might have had some hand in the demise of my previous relationship until I looked someone else in the eyes to tell them what happened.

“Before I met her, yeah, you were right; I was a player on levels that most couldn’t even touch. Young, dumb and full of come and didn’t give a fuck who I hurt or how badly I did. I guess this was karma letting me know that all of that shit was gonna come back to haunt me.” I continued swallowing dagger after dagger in front of a woman that I wasn’t sure would even want to bother with me by the time I got done bearing my soul.