At Last (8 page)

“D has not stopped talking about you.  He’s really pleased that you’ve come to escort him.  He’s really nervous about this year’s Grammys. Everyone is expecting him to finally break through and win his first trophies. He’s usually never nervous about anything.” She said with a smile. This bitch was agitating me. We were back to the “D” shit again, huh?

I laughed it off, “Yeah, if there’s one thing about Durran, he’s very sure of himself.”

She laughed along, “You are so right. He’s the most confident person I have ever met.”

The elevator finally made it to the 14th floor. Kendra got off first followed by the concierge. I trailed behind.

“I know you probably want to lie down and relax from your flight,” She said as she opened the door to the room. The concierge put my suitcases in the room and Kendra tipped him.  He thanked her and excused himself.

Walking into the room, I was blown away.  It was stunning.  I’d never seen anything so beautiful in my life.  The whole room had to be as large as my house.  I knew Durran was doing it big, but damn.  If I was staying there, where the hell was he staying?

The room had a living room with a cream couch and matching loveseat along with a mahogany desk and chair. A glass coffee table sat in front of an LCD 42-inch screen television hanging on the wall.

On the coffee table
laid
a peach corsage, just like the one he’d given me when he took me to the prom so many years ago.  I smiled a little at his thoughtfulness before picking up the corsage and continuing to explore the suite. There was a fully stocked bar on the other side of the room and two enormous windows with a breathtaking view of the Nevada skyline.

The bathroom was huge.  There were his and hers sinks.  The counters were marble and the all the fixtures were gold.  Inside was a huge Jacuzzi tub that was separate from the shower with a bench inside surrounded by glass doors engraved in
gold.
There was also a separate powder room with a bench of some sort, probably for massages.

The bedroom was just as breathtaking.  There was a California King sized bed in it that was covered in 2000 thread count sheets and big fluffy pillows. Two chairs surrounded a small table that faced another window showing off a beautiful view of Vegas.  There was also
another flat screen television on the wall. It was incredible.  I was speechless.

“Keisha?”  Kendra called. I was so awestruck it had slipped my mind that she was in there with me.

“I’m back in the bedroom.  I was just admiring how gorgeous this room is,” I said sitting in one of the chairs.

She walked into the bedroom.  “Yeah this is one of the most beautiful hotels in Vegas. D loves it.  So…this will be your schedule.” She pulled out that damn Blackberry and started reading an itinerary like I was in the damn military,   “Okay, first the masseur is going to be here at 11:30 AM. The manicurist is going to be here at 1:30 PM. to give you a pedicure and a manicure.  Room service is going to bring you lunch at 12:30.  The stylist is going to be here with your gown and accessories at 3:30. Around 5:30 the hairstylist is going to come to do your hair.”

“Well, I’m a cosmetologist, I can do my own hair and I brought some of my own equipment.”

“Uh yeah, D told me that you would say that, but he said that he insists that you let him do this.  I’m sure that you would do a bang up job. I mean you hair is so fly now, so I could only imagine what you would do.”

Okay, this bitch had taken it too far.  I knew that my hair wasn’t looking all that great, because it was in a damn ponytail.  I was tired of the passive aggressive shit, and I was tired of her.

“Excuse Me?”

“No Keisha.” She said touching my arm.

I glared at her for a moment before shifting my attention at her hand. She knew what was up, she was gonna lose that hand if she kept it on my arm for a second longer.

“What I meant was D just wants you to relax.”  She said removing her hand and looking back down at her
Blackberry, “Okay, where did I leave off at? Okay, the hairstylist is going to be here at 5:30 and the make-up artist will be here around 6:00.  D is going to meet you in the lobby at 7 o’clock sharp.   You all should be arriving at MGM Casino for the awards around 7:20.  Then you all should be walking the red carpet at or close to 7:30.”

“So I won’t be seeing him until this evening?”

“Pretty much.
  He has a lot to do and won’t be available until this evening. That’s why I fetched you from the airport instead of him.” She explained before standing up.   “I’ve got to get going. I’ve got a million and one things to do before this evening. I left the key on the counter along with my number. If you get hungry, you can always order from room service. Durran will take care of the bill. It was a pleasure meeting you, Ms. Morgan.” She said with another fake ass smile.

“Oh I’m sure it was.” I said shooting a fake ass smile back.

And like that she was gone.  I went behind her and put the lock on the door.  The clock it read 9:30 AM and I was a little hungry, so I decided to order room service and get a little sleep before the masseur came.

I called my mother, Yvette and Missy to let them know that I’d made it.  Afterwards, I called Durran.  No answer. It was just his voicemail, and that was full.
Great.
Just like Durran.

Chapter Six

I was so anxious looking into the mirror.  This afternoon had been short of a dream.  I had never been pampered like that in my whole life.  I didn’t know how to act. The massage I received relaxed my entire body. I guess I had a lot of tension, but the masseur took care of all of that.

The manicure and pedicure were on point and just what I needed.  Even lunch was the bomb, topped off with a glass of mimosa.  I was in heaven. The stylist had brought the most beautiful dress.  If Durran picked it out he did a damn good job. I couldn’t wait to slip it on.

The dress fit perfectly, which was a surprise to me.  Since I’m a curvy thing, dresses very seldom fit me to a tee, but this dress fit as if someone had made it just for me. It was peach, silk, and clingy.   The style was a halter dress with straps leading down to my cleavage, which was encrusted with clear jewels. It stopped mid-thigh and was fitted at the waist where a diamond shaped design covered in clear jewels rested.

My shoes were gold, clear-jewel adorned Jimmy Choo strappy heals were at least
four
inches. I wore a pair of beautiful diamond drop earrings, and a diamond encrusted tennis bracelet filled with the clearest diamonds I’d ever laid eyes on, both of which the stylist brought.

At first I was apprehensive about the hairstylist doing my hair, but I quickly got over it.  I had forgotten how nice it was to sit back and let someone else do all the work. She hooked me up. My hair was laid.  It was in a bunch of huge spiral curls, pushed and pinned to one side with a slight swoop in the front.

The make-up artist also did a great job bringing out my natural beauty. I was beyond pleased.  Applying one last coat of Oyster Girl Mac lip glass, I headed downstairs to meet up with Prince Charming.

I was so nervous riding down the elevator. My hands were shaking and my palms were sweaty. When I exited the elevator there was so much commotion and people around I wasn’t sure I would be able to find him.

             
I glanced at the clock on the wall behind the reservation desk and it was about five minutes to seven, so I decided to sit in the lobby. Before sitting down I smelled a familiar fragrance, BVLGARI.  I knew he was standing behind me.

“Excuse me, have you seen Keisha Morgan?” He whispered in my ear. My heart fluttered and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.

I turned around and he was looking so damn fine. At that very moment I knew I was gone. He was wearing a cream double breasted suit and a peach silk tie which matched my dress perfectly, like it was made from the same cloth.

He was wearing a pair of cream ostrich shoes and his Rolex watch was blinding the hell out of me. Last time I saw him, he was letting his hair grow out, but now it was cut close. He wore it in a Caesar cut that was tapered close on the sides.  His waves were so perfect and in place.

His mustache and goatee were precise like he’d just gotten a close shave only moments ago.  His smooth chocolate skin was an amazing contrast to the cream suit. He smiled at me, making me want to forget the Awards altogether and head back up to my room.

He then gave me a tight hug and kissed me on my cheek.  I didn’t want to let him go.  He felt so good next to me.

“Thank you for coming.  You look incredible.”  He said letting me out of his embrace.

“So do you.”  I said trying to compose myself.

“Come on; let’s go before Kendra’s ass
be
calling rushing us.”

“What? She’s not here?”  I said looking around for her.

“Naw, she’s already at the ceremony.”  He said grabbing my hand as we left the hotel. All eyes were on us as he ushered me toward a white Hummer limo.

“Who else is getting in here with us?”  I asked in shock.

“Just us.”
He replied smiling

“Oh,” I said still awestruck.

The driver got out to let us in the limo.  It was amazing.  I thought about pinching myself to make sure I was awake.

Sitting in the limo, we were quiet. Durran held my hand tightly and I did the same.  There was this awkward lingering silence.

“I’ve missed you,” He said finally breaking the silence.

Turning away from him, I was trying not to make eye contact, because I wasn’t sure what I might do, “Me too. I’ve been missing you, too.”

He moved closer to me, “I know I don’t always say it, but I’m really thankful for you always being there for me. No matter how fucked up I was or how selfish I acted, you never cut me off.  You’re the reason I’m in this position.”

“No Durran, you’re the reason.  You did it.  You were never scared to pursue your dreams.  You were gonna make everyone listen even if they didn’t want to.  You did it.  Not me.”

“Naw, Mama.  You never let me give up.  Even when I was fucking homeless, you would sneak me into the crib when ya Moms
was
at work. You let me stay the night and fed me when I didn’t have shit.  You were the only one telling me that I was gonna make it. You believed in me when nobody else did-not even my family.  It was
you.”  He was damn near in tears spilling his heart out to me. My eyes began to well up with him.

“I just want to let you know that I do appreciate everything. Th
ank you, Keisha.”
Looking into my eyes he took my hand into his and kissed it softly.

“You’re welcome.” We were still in a trance when the driver informed us that we had arrived at the location.

“Mr. Johnson we’re here.”

“Alright cool, Thomas.  Come on, let’s get out.”

Thomas came and let us out of the limo.  After getting out, I just stood there for a moment and took it all in.

“You ready?”  Durran asked pulling me towards the Red carpet.

“Yeah.”
  I said smiling.

Once we got up to the entry way Kendra was running up to us.  She stopped dead in her tracks and stared me up and down.

“Wow, Keisha you look amazing,” She said in obvious disbelief.

“Thank you Kendra.”  I responded dry. She picked up on my gruffness and went directly to Durran. “D, you gotta get going. The ceremony starts in 20 minutes and you have to get to your seat and walk the Red carpet in that amount of time, so we gotta move it.”

“Alright Kendra, chill. We got it.”  He said shutting her down as we began to walk down the red carpet.

I couldn’t lie, I felt like a movie star. Everywhere we walked or moved someone was taking a picture of us or screaming out his name. He just held my hand tightly and kept me close to him.  It felt so comforting. Kendra stayed closely behind us.

He gave some celebrities pounds and small talked with a few others.  Many of them complimented him on how
beautiful I was.  All it did was further stroke his ego and help him poke out his chest even more.

Finally we reached the end of the Red carpet, but not before coming in contact with the self-proclaimed Queen of Scandal, Ms. Cynthia Clemons.  Her mission in life was to get all the dirt and gossip on all celebrities and socialites.

She was known for her brash and blunt delivery- giving it straight, no chaser.  She’s the kind of person that people loved to hate.

I knew she was coming for Durran.  As we approached her, I could see her narrowing in on him.  With a mic in hand, she drew near him. “Get this,” She said to her camera man.

“Well hello there, Mr. Johnson.”  She said extending her hand to shake Durran’s.

“What up doe, Cindy baby.”  He said turning on the charm.  He moved in and kissed her on the cheek. She damn near fainted.

“Ohhh, what’s going on?” She asked smiling.

“Nothing much.
Just enjoying the beautiful Vegas weather, baby.  I’m excited about the nominations and I appreciate the support everyone has given me.” He said as he squeezed my hand.