Trouble with Luv' (12 page)

S
ummer was in full bloom by the first week in June. Rain showers had come and gone, the scent of fragrant flowers overshadowed the city and birds twittered the melody of the season.

Ebony had started the week off with bright, enthusiastic energy, but by midweek, she was an exhausted executive running on empty. Ebony hated Wednesdays with a passion and it was the one day she struggled to wake up. By midweek, customers and employees were irritable and more times than not Ebony staggered through the day.

On this particular afternoon, her sinuses were acting up and the humidity only added to her foul mood. Ebony was angry, and not even the soft soothing voice of Roberta Flack could bring her out of her funk. She had butted heads with Kendall during the morning meeting and she was still smarting over the groundless accusations her partner had made. It had all started when Ebony suggested they work overtime to fine-tune the Women of Sensuality promotion. Kendall had quickly rejected the idea. She had plans with Turner and she wasn't staying a minute past four o'clock, she'd said.

Ebony had lost it. After labeling Kendall lazy and unmotivated, she accused her of neglecting the business.

Kendall had fired back, “You're a control freak who has no life. You can work all day and night if you want to, but I'm not going to.
I
have a life.
I
have a husband waiting for me at home.”

Three hours later, the insults were still playing in Ebony's mind.
Am I really that bad? Do I push my co-workers and employees too hard?
From time to time she struggled to control her temper, but everyone had flaws in their personality. Ebony had made her fair share of mistakes but she hadn't built a lucrative business by being a quitter. Or shunning her responsibilities. Her greatest characteristic was her tenacity and she wouldn't let anyone knock her down because she aspired to be at the top of her game. It didn't matter if Ebony was dealing with an insubordinate employee, or a disgruntled customer, she handled every challenge head-on.

Ebony wondered what Xavier was doing. It was six o'clock so he was probably at church getting things ready for tonight. Thoughts of Xavier had been sneaking up on her all week. He invaded her thoughts while she was driving to work, when she was soaking in the tub, and even in the privacy of her dreams.

Her eyes strayed to the window. Ebony wished she could look inside that handsome head of his. Maybe that would give her some insight. A week had passed since their argument at Oysters, but Xavier was still holding a grudge. He was carrying on as if she had hopped up on their table, hiked up her skirt, and given the patrons an impromptu strip show. She hadn't willfully embarrassed him, so why was he still upset? Was offering to pay for dinner a sin? Xavier was acting like a two-year-old on a self-inflicted time-out and Ebony was tired of feeling guilty. She hadn't done anything wrong! Part of her wanted to forget him but she couldn't stand the thought of him being mad at her. So when Ebony arrived at church that evening, she pulled Xavier aside.

“Can we go somewhere to talk?”

He led her into a dingy storage room with weak lights.

“Why are you avoiding me? If you're still angry about what happened last Saturday at dinner, then just say so.” When he didn't respond right away, she prompted, “Well, are you?”

Xavier hesitated. She was putting him on the spot and he didn't have an answer. Dinner at Oysters had left a bad taste in his mouth for more than one reason. Ebony had made a big production out of paying for the meal. She had acted like he lived on the streets and therefore couldn't possibly afford to take her to a nice restaurant. Xavier didn't know what type of men Ebony was used to dating, but based on the way she acted, he concurred they were parsimonious in nature. Men who would rather keep their money in their wallets than spend it on a woman. Xavier grew up seeing his father spoil his mom. His pops opened doors, pulled out chairs, paid for meals and bought flowers for no reason. In his father's eyes, his mother was the most beautiful woman to walk the face of the earth and that's how Xavier treated the women in his life. He loved to spoil. Loved seeing a woman's face light up when she opened an unexpected gift. He put time and effort into planning elaborate dates. Went the extra mile to let his girl know she was special.

Xavier didn't want Ebony paying for meals. Or reminding him that she could afford it. She insisted on making the decisions and it bothered him greatly. Ebony had to learn to back off.

“I'm not mad at you, but I…”

Ebony smiled and Xavier lost his train of thought.

There was no denying it: he was hooked. He liked her a lot. More than his last three girlfriends combined. They had been great in their own right, but none of them had Ebony's energy. Or confidence. Or sassiness.

The electricity that passed between them whenever they kissed had the potential to turn his life upside down. But Xavier welcomed the chaos. The woman standing before him in the off-the-shoulder top and fitted bell-bottom jeans, which hugged her full, very round bum like no other, was a tremendous woman. She had a personality and a way of thinking all her own. Ebony Garrett lived life by her own rules and played the game any way she saw fit. Xavier was drawn to her, and utterly helpless to resist her. But no matter how much he wanted her, he had to proceed with caution.

“Ebony, I think you're a fantastic woman who I'd love to get to know better. But we need to straighten out a few things first. I don't drive an expensive car. I don't live in a six-bedroom palatial home, and I don't have a six-figure salary.” Xavier locked eyes with her. “But I'm determined to reach the goals that I've set for myself. Everything I have I paid for with my
own
money. Ebony, I don't need anyone taking care of me. If I invite you out for dinner, or take you to a show, I'll pay for it. That's what a man is supposed to do. If you think I'm not good enough for you because I'm not a wealthy executive—”

Ebony didn't let Xavier finish. “I never said you weren't good enough for me!” Her hands dropped to her sides, her face marred with frustration. One deep breath helped to clear her mind. “Don't speak about what you don't know, Xavier. I've never said, or insinuated, that I was better than you. Offering to pay for dinner wasn't to embarrass you,” she reiterated for the fourth time in days. “If I had known my generosity would incite an all-out war, I would have kept my big mouth shut. Like I said that afternoon, picking up the check is no big deal. I do it all the time.”

Xavier was primed with a rebuttal, but the sound of chairs scraping across the floor and lively chatter coming from the kitchen forced him to hold his tongue. Now was not the time to be arguing with Ebony; the program was set to begin. “Let's forget about this for now.”

Ebony would let it go for now, but this matter was far from over. “Are you coming with me to Q's Joint on Friday night or have you changed your mind about that, too?”

Xavier had promised to be her date and he had a feeling things would get ugly if he attempted to back out now. “No, I haven't changed my mind.”

“We'll talk then,” she said turning away. Ebony flung open the storage room door, rattling the small eight-by-ten space, and walked down the hall.

 

At one time, Q's Joint had been a dilapidated-looking bar that served cheap food, entertained unsavory customers and enjoyed frequent visits by the local police. But all that changed when Kale Washington bought out the existing owner and poured a considerable sum of money into renovating the bar. The former professional baseball player had put Q's Joint on the map. Now, almost three years later, it was the hottest place in town. The sensual lighting, polished decor, formal attire policy and twenty-five-dollar cover charge set the establishment apart from all the other nightspots.

Reclining in her buckskin chair, Ebony surveyed the crowd. Q's Joint was a world all itself. College-aged women clad in slinky cranberry red cocktail dresses served drinks and appetizers; young athletes, who had tasted their first bit of fame, swaggered through the club with ten-men entourages; and scantily dressed women bounced from man to man like kangaroos. Simone T, a local pop singer with a number one hit single, pranced around the bar, her see-through lace one-piece outfit attracting attention from all four corners of the room.

Ebony returned her eyes to Xavier. He sat to her immediate left, discussing the nature of the NHL lockout with Opal's friend Spencer Daniels. The pair had been engaged in an animated discussion for three-quarters of an hour, and although their topic of choice bored her to the point of falling asleep, she was stimulated by the rise and fall of Xavier's voice. It was rich and strong. And turning her on in the worst way. She closed her eyes, and imagined his mouth on her lips. His hands on her breasts. His tongue working its way down the slope of her neck, then capturing a nipple in his mouth.

“Good evening. I'm Bliss. I'll be your server for the rest of the night.”

Ebony opened her eyes, just as the waitress handed her a cocktail menu. The brunette rattled off a list of the night's specials, her piercing blue eyes shifting casually around the room. Opal had excused herself to make a phone call, and the men were still arguing, so Ebony took the liberty of ordering a round of cocktails for the group. Handing the waitress her credit card, she said, “Charge everything to my account.”

The brunette nodded.

When she departed, Ebony took out her compact and discreetly checked her makeup. In the reflection of the mirror, she found Kale Washington watching her. His almond-shaped eyes glimmered under the bright lights of the bar, and he was wearing a wide smile. Vainglorious and overconfident, the multimillionaire thought he was God's gift to women. The tabloids said he cheated on his wife and engaged in kinky sex with females half his age, but Ebony knew better than to believe rumors. She wasn't keen on the man, but that didn't mean she believed everything she read.

The show was set to start, but if Ebony didn't go over and greet Kale, he would hold it against her. His wife, Amelia, was a regular at the boutique and the Hispanic beauty was one of Ebony's favorite clients. She didn't want to leave Xavier's side, but she didn't have much of a choice. This was business. Networking was the key to the game; it put her name out in the business world, and the more people she knew, the more opportunities would be afforded to her. Ebony wasn't fond of Kale Washington, but he was somebody she had to be on friendly terms with.

Ebony found a smile as she made her way over to the bar. Watching Kale watch her was enough to make her laugh. His eyes were wide and his lips moist. It had been three months since she last saw the club owner, and there was no doubt in her mind that he wanted to catch up. Ebony cast a glance back at her table, relieved that Xavier and Spencer were still talking. Xavier was so busy arguing his point, he probably didn't even notice that she had left the table.

“What do you think, Ebony?” Xavier turned to his right and was surprised to find her seat empty. His eyes moved carefully around the room. Befuddled, he watched as Ebony embraced a broad-shouldered man and then planted a kiss on his cheek. Xavier instantly recognized her companion. It was Kale “lady-killer” Washington.

Everyone knew who Kale Washington was. The former Twins pitcher smiled down from billboards, hawking everything from sneakers to medicine to cologne, and was a regular fixture around the city of Minneapolis. Visits to children's hospitals, generous donations to inner city schools and hosting a baseball summer camp kept him in the newspapers and on the evening news on a weekly basis.

The ex-bad boy of the American Baseball League was living the American dream. Happily married to an ex-model, he had three cute kids, million-dollar homes on the East and West Coasts, commercial investments and a staggering net worth of 125 million dollars. The media said he had it all. Money. Fame. Power. And last month he had been named one of
People
magazine's Sexiest Men Alive.

Xavier suddenly felt insignificant. He told himself it had nothing to do with Ebony rubbing up against Kale Washington, but his heart knew differently.

Spencer pointed in the direction of the bar. “Is Ebony talking to Kale Washington?
The
Kale Washington?”

Xavier nodded absently.

“Damn! Ebony knows everyone!” Spencer smacked his hand on the table. He spoke with pure admiration. “The last time we were here she introduced me to Kevin Garnett. I almost passed out when he approached our table. He gave me a pound and everything. Cool guy.” Spencer nudged Xavier with his elbow. “Must be nice dating a woman who rubs elbows with stars and celebrities.” He dug around in his pocket, removed a wrinkled ATM receipt, then held it up for Xavier to see. “Think Washington will autograph this? Maybe I can send Opal over there when she gets back.”

Xavier inclined his head to the right, in the hopes of getting a better view of the attractive twosome. They were standing as close as Siamese twins, Ebony's full breasts only a few inches from Kale's chest. Chasing away feelings of jealousy, he leveled a hand over his shirt. He had no claims on Ebony. She was free to do as she pleased. Xavier thought for a moment. They weren't a couple, but that didn't mean he was comfortable with her flirting with other men. He wasn't.