Slow Seduction (22 page)

He followed behind Jenisha and waited by her desk while she flicked on the lights, turned on the computers, and opened two windows, allowing the fresh morning air inside the room. She brushed past him and tossed her purse on desk.

“Umm…Jenisha, I’m so sorry about last night and the things I said to you. All of it was uncalled for,” Clinton stated from his position by her desk.

Just stay strong,
she kept repeating
. Don’t allow his cologne, gorgeous smile, or sexiness to charm you,
Jenisha thought as she peeked at Clinton from the corner of her eye.

Walking back to her desk past Clinton, Jenisha pulled out the weekly math quiz. As she about to move, Clinton grabbed her arm. “You can’t ignore me for thirty minutes. I know you’re strong, but you aren’t that strong,” he spoke close to her ear.

Twisting her arm out of his grab, Jenisha laid each test face down on the desks. Moving around her desk, Clinton sat down in Jenisha’s chair, placing his feet on top of her desk. He watched her with a closed expression. He had to admit he did love the stubborn streak in his woman.

God, she made every moment so passionate for him. When he made Jenisha mad, it took a lot to soothe her back into the loving woman he cherished. Folding his hands behind his head, Clinton got more comfortable in her chair. He had a good fifteen minutes to kill and he couldn’t think of a better way to do it.

With his green eyes watching her, Jenisha couldn’t concentrate on the task in front of her. She needed to get the room prepared since Becky was at college taking her first class to become a full-time teacher. Smiling, she remembered the phone call last night from Becky. Becky told her how she had signed up for classes while she had been at the teacher’s conference. Without a doubt, Becky would make a marvelous teacher. Her bubbly personality and friendly smile drew children of all ages to her.

Laying the last test on the desk Jenisha sighed, knowing she had to face Clinton. Turning around, she was puzzled to see him gone.

While sitting at Jenisha’s desk, Clinton spotted Robin outside the classroom door walking down the hall. He wasn’t about to let her get away with what she did, so he got and followed her. He yelled her name a couple of times before she finally stopped and looked back at him. Clinton would make Robin understand once and for all that he didn’t want her.

“Hi, Clinton,” Robin said with a flirtatious smile.

He was pissed beyond reason and didn’t have time for her games. Grabbing her by the arm he pulled her near the stairs. “What in the hell do you think you were doing leaving this at my house?” Clinton held up the earring for her to see.

“Oh, I’ve been looking for this all over. Where did you find it?” Robin asked innocently.

“You know damn well I wasn’t the one who found this thing. Wherever you left it, Jenisha found it and jumped to all the wrong conclusions. What could you possibility want that would cause you to lie?” he questioned.

“You,” Robin whispered, pulling his head down for a kiss.

He grabbed her arms to push her away as Jenisha turned the corner. “Clinton, how could you,” she gasped from behind them.

Shoving Robin away from him, Clinton spun around to see Jenisha running back to her classroom. “Jenisha…. Sweetheart, it’s not what you think,” he yelled, racing after her. She beat him back to her classroom by a matter of seconds and locked the door behind her.

Moving to the back of the classroom away from Clinton’s line of vision, Jenisha cried her heart out, knowing she only had five minutes until the students started to arrive. Clinton banged on the door, begging her to unlock it. After a minute he finally gave up and went back to his office.

A day never dragged as much as it did that day did for Jenisha. It seemed like every time she left the classroom with her students, Clinton was there smiling or waving at her. One time he got so desperate, he slid a note under her door while she was grading papers. She didn’t bother to read it before tossing it in the trashcan.

When the last bell rang, Jenisha had never been so happy for a day to end. She spent the last few minutes of her day sticking notes in the cubby holes for tomorrow. She didn’t hear that someone had entered the room.

“You are the reason I never returned to being a teacher,” Charisma griped behind her. “Way too organized for me.”

Jenisha flinched at the sound of her friend’s voice before a huge grin lit up her face. “Come on, you taught me everything I know.”

Looking at her with a slight smile to her face, Charisma said, “All right, I’ll admit I pushed you in that direction a little.” She loved how Charisma was always trying to put something on her when it was really her fault.

Giggling, Jenisha stopped what she was doing to hug her silly friend. “Aren’t you a little early for our dinner date?”

“Yeah, I thought you might like to get something to drink first then go out to eat,” Charisma suggested.

Jenisha looked down at her clothes. “Is what I’m wearing okay to you?”

“Hell, girl, you look perfect all the time,” Charisma said with a shake of her head. She didn’t know why Jenisha was worrying about her outfit when she looked like she always stepped off the pages of a fashion magazine.

Jenisha looked at her friend and the cute two-piece pink pants outfit she had on. “Charisma, between you and True, I feel like Cinderella before the fairy godmother.”

“Well, True already has her Prince Charming and I think you might be next with Clinton,” Charisma teased because she didn’t doubt wedding bells were in her friend’s future.

“Hell, I don’t want to hear his name,” Jenisha choked out. She noticed how huge Charisma’s eyes got in her face at her words.

“What in the hell happened?” Charisma asked “The last time I saw the two of you everything was superb.”

“Let’s go and I’ll tell you over dinner.” Jenisha grabbed her stuff off her desk and went out the door with Charisma behind her. She locked the door then headed down the hall with Charisma talking about her day. Neither saw Clinton coming down the hall with a present in his hands for Jenisha.

“Okay, spill it what’s happening with your hunky boyfriend?” Charisma questioned after taking a sip of her drink. Jenisha wasn’t drinking any alcohol, so she ordered a diet coke.

“He’s just isn’t the man I thought he was,” Jenisha informed her and took a sip of her drink.

“Do you want to tell me more?” Charisma pushed.

Jenisha gave a quick shake of her head. “No, I want to forget about Clinton tonight and have a little fun.”

“I know a fun subject,” Charisma insisted. Jenisha cocked her head to the side and waited for her answer. “Men,” she whispered. “Girlfriend, I know you have a good-looking single man you can fix a sister up with.”

Just as Jenisha opened her mouth to answer, Robin walked past with a drink in her hand. “I hate her,” Jenisha muttered, sitting the glass on the table.

“Don’t worry about her,” Charisma muttered, noticing Robin from the corner of her eye. “Women like her are a cheap replacement for the real thing,” Charisma pointed out. “Clinton wants a classy woman, not a trashy one,” she assured Jenisha, trying to make her best friend feel better.

“I don’t know,” Jenisha paused to stare at Robin talking to a man at the bar. “Maybe Clinton was getting afraid of our closeness,” she finished in a whisper.

Charisma tossed a few bills on the table. “Let’s go,” she coaxed, and Jenisha stood up slowly.

“Where are we going?” Jenisha asked, adding some more money to the table as a tip.

“I’m going home and you’re going to see Clinton,” Charisma said, pointing a finger in her direction.

“No,” Jenisha’s usually soft-spoken voice burst out.” I know what I saw,” she continued in a hurt voice. “He had Robin in his arms kissing her.”

Resting her hands on the back of the chair, Charisma glared at Jenisha. “If Clinton had dumped you for Robin, why is she here trying to pick up a man?”

Jenisha tried to form an explanation in her mind, but it didn’t make any sense. No woman in her right mind would leave Clinton’s bed to cruise a bar.

“Can’t think of anything, can you?” Charisma taunted. “You better make your way back to him and quick, because he doesn’t seem very patient.”

Getting up from the table, Jenisha rushed around the table and hugged her friend. “T
hank
you for being the intelligent one this time.”

Charisma moved back from the embrace and grinned. “Nothing to it. I know you would do the same for me if I was acting like a nincompoop.”

“Are you okay to drive?” Jenisha asked Charisma.

“I’m fine. I only had two sips. Plus, I’m on my way to the restaurant to eat dinner,” Charisma answered

“Be careful on the way back to your car,” Jenisha warned, taking her purse off the back of her chair.

“Don’t worry, I will be.” Standing by the table, Charisma watched Jenisha rush out of the bar to find Clinton.

Closing his cell phone for the fifth time that night, Clinton wondered where Jenisha was with Charisma. He hoped she wasn’t out trying to find another man, because he wouldn’t allow it. No man’s hands would feel the smoothness of her body late at night and know how she loved to snuggle early in the morning. Or how sometimes she would wake him by nibbling on her ear while rubbing his chest. All those things were his and his alone.

Maybe he was getting overly possessive in his old age, but Jenisha was the sun to his darkest days. He felt so powerful around her. Shit, how could he let Robin’s scheme work? All she had ever been was a thorn in his side. He couldn’t stand being in the same room with someone as unbalanced at her.

Robin had problems that involved more than her drinking. She was searching for something and only she knew what it was. Being lonely with an overactive mind was scary, but it got more dangerous when drug or alcohol was involved.

He sensed Robin was an explosion waiting to happen, and the right thing hadn’t happen yet to set her off. He needed another guy to talk to. As close as he and Jim were, he thought Dave would be a better choice. Clinton knew Dave was inquisitive about Jenisha, but he never known Dave to date outside his race. Hoping he made the right decision, he locked the door and drove the short distance to Dave’s hotel.

Dave Turner sat in his hotel and stared at the television, not really seeing the picture. He wanted to finish this job for Clinton and go on vacation. It has been several years since he had taken one. Hawaii was wonderful this time of year, but he didn’t want to visit for his usual reasons of surfing and dating.

This time he wanted time alone to think about his future. Several of his friends were married, engaged, or planning their futures, and he was still wondering what he was going to do each day.

A knock at the door caught his attention. Turning down the sound on the television, he went to answer it.

“Hey, you have a minute to talk,” Clinton asked from the other side.

“Sure,” Dave replied in a surprised voice. “Do you want to discuss something about the school?”

“No, I want to talk about Jenisha,” Clinton admitted. “Jim wouldn’t understand since he’s going through a divorce. His opinion about it wouldn’t be the best.”

“Have a seat and tell me what’s on your mind, buddy,” Dave commented, shutting the door. Turning off the television, Dave waited while Clinton took a seat then he sat across from him. “What’s the problem with Jenisha?”

Clinton informed him on everything that had been going on the last week. “Should I be concerned about Robin? Is she a threat?”

Dave leaned forward, gawking at Clinton. “Hell, she’s a huge threat to your future with Jenisha. I would stay far away from her. She isn’t to be trusted. I’ve seen her in the hallway, and she is very peculiar.”

“If she has her mind on you I would be very cautious. Robin comes across like she would do anything to get her way. I repeat, stay away from her and keep Jenisha out of the line of fire too,” Dave added.

“That might be hard since Jenisha isn’t talking to me,” Clinton groaned.

“Oh, she’ll be back,” Dave insisted. “Just remember to apologize and give her a present. Women love to open presents from the men they love.”

“So, how many presents have you given out?” Clinton asked.

Dave massaged the back of his neck, trying to decide how to answer the question. “None,” he admitted. “I haven’t felt anything but lust for the women in my past.”

Clinton stared at Dave, seeing the man he used to be until Jenisha came into her life. He now knew what it felt like to be loved for the man he was, not the number of zeros in his bank account. “Dave, I can only say that when you find the one you will know it the moment you see her.”

“Have you had any problem dating Jenisha?”

“Problems? Like what?”

“People making comments or staring at you?”

“We haven’t had much free time to go out on real dates because I’ve been working so much and she has too. But when we do, most people just look and keep going. Why, are you thinking about dating interracially?” Clinton asked.

“Well, I never thought about a black woman like that. Truly I haven’t been around too many. All my friends didn’t have a lot of black friends. Does that sound racist?” Dave asked.