What a Fool Believes (19 page)

Authors: Carmen Green

BOOK: What a Fool Believes

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They walked through the office, with everyone watching.

Bryon put his hand on the small of her back, and the women she passed smiled. At least they didn't think he was arresting her.

Inside the elevator they stood side by side. Until the doors closed.

Then Tia was in his arms, and Byron lifted her practically off her feet.

Their mouths met in an urgent embrace that expressed need and desire. “I missed you,” she whispered when he pressed his mouth up and down her neck.

“Likewise,” he groaned, no longer official. Just Byron.

Tia liked him this way. She could love him, she knew.

“What floor are we on?” she asked.

“Three.” He kissed her mouth. “Two,” he said and let his hands explore, and when his eyes widened in surprise, she just grinned.

When the elevator opened, the people waiting to board had no idea he'd just fingered her in the elevator.

Standing by her car, Tia couldn't stop her body from humming. “You're coming by tonight. Megan's going to come home tomorrow.”

“I can't,” he said, squinting into the sun.

“Can you take those things off? I can't see your eyes.”

Byron lifted his glasses. “Better, Ms. Bossy?”

“Yes.” Tia looked at her little blue Honda. “I can't believe I missed her so much. How'd you get her here?”

“The wrecker.”

“How much is it?”

“Nothing, ma'am.”

Tia glanced over her shoulder and saw why he'd ma'amed her. Chance was glaring at them. Tia turned back to Byron, hoping maybe a bird would fall from the sky and take Chance out. One could hope.

“Why is it nothing?” Tia asked Byron. “Is this wrecker fee amnesty day?”

“No, smarty. There was a little convincing from law enforcement to return the vehicle to the rightful owner since it had been towed illegally.”

“You stood up for me?”

“Don't get all gooey-eyed. It was a collaborative effort between my department and the wrecker company. He's statewide and had some tickets he needed a little more time to pay. Several departments came together and made a deal.”

“You stood up for me. I guess you think you're going to be thanked big time, huh?”

He grinned down at her, and her legs turned to mush. “Affirmative. Your boss is still standing there. What is her deal?”

“She's just weird. Stop looking. Any minute a bird is going to poop on her head. That would really make my day.”

They both laughed.

“Sign here, please,” Byron said. “Do you have your keys?”

“There's one in the glove compartment.” Tia tried the locked door. “Do you have one of those thingies?”

Byron rested his hands on his belt. “Another day we're going to have a serious talk about why you should never leave a key to the car
in
the car.”

He walked to his trunk, got the instrument, and opened the door. Reaching inside, he got the key and put it in her hand.

“Is your boss still there?” he asked.

“No, she's gone. Probably planning how she's going to write me up again.”

“That sounds too stressful. I'd seriously consider looking for another job.”

“I could give you that same advice. You should try and not be so good all the time. Might change your perspective about life.”

“My perspective is just fine, thanks.”

“I'm just suggesting you might not be so boring.” He moved very slowly and stared at her.

Tia slapped her hand over her mouth. “I just mean that you might have more fun.” She giggled. “Never mind. I will say that since all this has happened to me, I have a greater appreciation for others. I'm just suggesting you might, too.”

“I like people just fine, and my job is great,” Byron informed her. “After tomorrow, my life will be exceptional.”

“What happens then?”

“Anger management class will be over, and I'll get my promotion to detective.”

A lump formed in Tia's throat. His life
was
fine. “Detective? Wow. That's quite a leap. Congratulations.”

Before she could think twice, she hugged him and stepped back. Byron had to finish the class and so did she. And they had to do it without getting into trouble. Being together tonight was best for both of them.

“Did you like my elevator surprise?” she said, suddenly kittenish. She had to convince him to come spend the night with her.

They stood side by side, and Tia could see his reflection in the window of her car.

“The thong? Hell yeah. That was a sexy, sweet surprise. You've messed up my head for the rest of the day.”

Tia grinned. “There's more where that came from.”

“Can I handle it?” he asked.

She chanced a look at him. “You've done a stellar job so far. I'll bring the Italian food. You bring the wine. Seven o'clock okay?”

“I'm off tonight, so seven is good.”

“I know. Bring the handcuffs, and I get to wear the shades.”

Tia walked back to the building, and before entering the revolving door, she looked over her shoulder and gave him a glimpse of what he'd be getting.

His head fell back, and she smiled all the way to her desk.

At her desk, Tia dialed Rusty, the attorney, and held her breath while she completed a wire transfer of money from her account to his. Within ten minutes, he called her back.

“Tia Amberson,” she answered.

“Young lady. Your hearing with Judge Dunn is Monday morning at nine, his chambers.”

She blinked in surprise. “You're amazing. I've been leaving messages with his office for a week.”

Rusty laughed. “Helps that I've been around the block long enough to have known a lot of these judges before they became judges. Mutual respect. Fax over that lease agreement and let me have a look-see. I'll see you at eight-thirty Monday at the courthouse, in the lobby.”

“Thank you, Rusty.” She wanted to say more but knew she'd said enough. “Thank you.”

“You're welcome. Be good this weekend.”

“Yes, sir. Good-bye.”

Chapter Twenty-one

Stressed beyond belief, Tia stepped onto the elevator at 4:30 p.m., and tears welled in her eyes. The pressure of the job had finally gotten the best of her. Although she'd declined the money, many of her coworkers still believed that she was stealing from them.

If they only knew what she'd been through to try to get her life back on track, they would know she was a woman of integrity.

Tears slid down her face, and she brushed them away as the doors opened and Ronnie/Rhonda boarded with his mail cart.

“Hey, Peacock,” he said happily, until he looked closely at her. “What's with the tears?”

Tia went into his waiting arms and burst out crying.

“I didn't steal from anyone. I've done everything I can to get my life back on track. I spilled my guts to the entire office, telling them everything,” she rattled on. “I know they think I'm a basket case. Then they were trying to give me money. I turned it down, but they still think I'm a thief. Your sister is treating me like I'm from an alien nation, and it's too much. I can't do this anymore.”

Tia threw up her hands. I was hired to be a meteorologist, not a glorified flunky. No offense to anyone who might have a low-paying, low-respect job.” She leaned back to see how he was dressed. “Ronnie. I'm just tired of the nonsense, and I'm hungry.” The tears kept falling as she fumbled inside her purse. “And the old Tia would have had tissue in her purse.”

Pitifully, Tia cried harder.

Rhonda/Ronnie gave her his hanky, and she opened her mouth to continue her rant, but the bell rang, and the doors opened for new passengers. Tia turned away from them. She didn't feel like being the brunt of any further office gossip.

After the other passengers exited, Rhonda/Ronnie guided Tia off at the fifth floor and took her to a small office.

“Calm down, Peacock. Let's figure this out together.”

“I'm quitting, Ronnie. I can't do this job anymore. The mental struggle is off the chain. And, for the record, I've never said cunnilinglus on the air, so explain to me how Alison is a better choice than me for second chair?” Tia demanded. “I don't think so.”

“You are the better choice. The best,” Rhonda/ Ronnie assured her, “but if you quit, what are you going to do?”

One tear after another streaked her cheeks. “I don't know. I can't really think right now. I need some space. I need for all of this to be over.”

“You are right about that.” Rhonda/Ronnie rummaged through a file cabinet, pulled out a piece of paper, and handed it to her.

“You have a doctor's appointment, and that requires you to have the whole day off. This way you can think things through and still have a job.”

Despite knowing in her heart that she wanted to quit, Tia saw the practicality in Rhonda/Ronnie's thinking. She caught him in a tight hug. “You're a great friend.”

“Thank you. Tia?”

“Yes?”

“Remember when you told me about the woman who slapped Chance? What did she look like?”

“She was white, severe hairstyle. In fact, everything about her was severe. Dark hair, dark clothes. Sour look on her face. She looked like she meant business. Like someone you didn't want to cross.”

Rhonda/Ronnie inhaled sharply but didn't comment further.

Tia didn't care. The nonsense that had nothing to do with work had finally broken her.

Chance had won.

Tia would tender her resignation tomorrow.

Rhonda/Ronnie pressed a kiss to Tia's forehead. “Go home and chill. Call me tomorrow if you're not going to come in.”

“OK.”

Tia thought about what she was going to do with her life as she drove toward Megan's.

She was immeasurably glad to be in her own car again. Taking the bus had been fine, but there was nothing like her car, her music, and her privacy.

Tia had to admit, though, that part of her tension was due to the fact that anger management class was ending tomorrow.

And she was frustrated about work, stressed about her appointment Monday with the judge, and anxious to get on with her life.

She fished her cell phone out of her purse and wanted to call Byron and tell him to come over now, but if they got into the hot and heavy business of lovemaking, he might not want to stay later tonight. And she needed to help the ladies; she'd promised.

Pulling up in front of Megan's, she noticed Kirk's car and Megan getting out.

“Hey, you.” Tia ran over and hugged her friend. Megan had parted her hair in the front and combed the short strands over to the side. The ends flipped up. She hadn't bothered with make-up, letting just a hint of gloss outline her tentative smile.

She looked beautiful.

The vacant look of pain and hurt was gone from her dark brown eyes, although she now had trouble meeting Tia's.

“You look great,” Tia told her softly.

“For someone that's crazy, right?” Low self-esteem swirled around her friend, and for a moment Tia felt sorry for Megan. But the feeling washed away as the sun burst through the clouds.

For a few seconds, they all shielded their eyes, watching Mother Nature show off.

“You're not crazy.” Tia held Megan's cheeks. “You're a little to the left, just like me and Kirk. We've been waiting for you to join us. Now you're finally normal.”

Megan laughed then, sounding like her old self for a few seconds. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I needed that.”

Regaining the strength in her voice, she looked at the town house. “I didn't mean to drop all the responsibility of my renovations into your lap.”

“It wasn't a bother at all,” Tia reassured her. “They did most of the work while I was at work. Get this. The foreman leaves a note about what to touch and what not to.”

“Wow. That is nice,” Megan said.

Kirk came around from the trunk, a handsome smile on his face. Tia gave Megan the eye. Kirk was one good-looking man.

“Um, Kirk,” Megan said, suddenly shy. “Would you like to come in? I don't know the condition of the house, but you're welcome to visit for a little while.”

“Sure,” he said, and Tia saw it. Love glimmered in his eyes.

How was that possible? He had only seen Megan a few times before today. And it hadn't been under the best of circumstances. But Kirk was a rescuer, and when Megan needed to be rescued, he'd stepped up, and now he seemed to want to stick around.

Tia's first instinct was to offer them advice, but she didn't. Just a couple of months ago she, Megan, and Rachel had sat inside, berating their love lives and talking revenge, and look where that had gotten them.

Rachel was no longer Tia's friend, and Megan had just come from a short stay at a mental institution.

Tia could recount every upheaval in her life of the last few months and swallowed any words of caution she might have wanted to offer, because the only time her life made sense was when she and Byron were together.

Walking up the stairs behind the couple, Tia realized that their presence would ruin her evening, and she didn't have a plan B. She turned and started down the stairs.

“Tia, why are you home so early?”

In that instant, Tia decided not to heap any more of her problems on Megan. They were both healing and would have to do some of it on their own. “I just needed to get out of work a little early.”

“What happened?” Kirk asked, not buying that story.

Tia shook her head. “Nothing important.”

“I hope you still have a job,” Megan said. “You need health insurance. The APC wasn't a country club, but they charged country club prices. I'd have been better off going to Hawaii.”

“Another career is just a phone call away, Tia. You have choices,” Kirk said, and Megan touched his arm.

“We all do. I learned that,” Megan said. “Tia, are you coming inside?”

“I-I need to take care of something. You don't need me right this second, do you?”

Kirk looked at Megan and shook his head.

“I guess not,” Megan said, opening the door. “Should I expect you back?”

“Definitely. But maybe not tonight, unless you absolutely need me. Hey, do you have my extra car key? I'd feel more secure having more than two.”

Megan handed over the key without question. “Tia, I'm going to be fine. Is it the cop?” she asked, digging a little.

She couldn't contain her smile. “Yes.”

Tia realized she missed this part of her relationship with Megan and Rachel. They used to share their lives, their pain, talk about their men, and it was like having sisters.

After all she'd been through, Tia wondered if she and Rachel could be friends again. All she could do was try.

Sometime soon Tia vowed to call and apologize.

“Megan, he's something else,” Tia said, knowing there wasn't another phrase that said it better.

A smile lifted Tia's mood right off the ground. The joy of being with Byron filled her with energy.

“Goodness, you're practically glowing. We have a lot to talk about, but not now. Have fun,” Megan said and winked.

Tia hopped into her car, raced to the ATM, and withdrew a hundred dollars.

She rationalized that in order to fulfill her obligation to the class, she'd need working capital. After she'd bought all the necessities, Tia called Byron. “Where are you?”

“On my way to your place,” he answered. “Traffic on 285 isn't too bad, so I should be there in about twenty minutes. I thought you'd be there by now.” his voice dipped low enough to make her thighs tingle. “Waiting. Preferably undressed.”

Tia giggled seductively. “I was, but Megan came home today.”

“She's there? Right now?”

“Yep.” Tia sympathized with his groan of frustration. “I have a plan B, and a plan C, based upon what you might like.”

“OK,” Byron said cautiously. “What's your plan B?”

“I'm about a mile from the Eight-eighty Motel. We can get a room and have a great time, although it's a bit seedy, or plan C is we can spend the evening in my car. I know it's not big enough, but if we recline both the seats, you'd only have to leave your legs hanging out the window. The other important parts would be inside, with me.”

“So you just want me for myâ”

A horn blew loud and long. “Talk about great timing,” Tia said after they stopped laughing.

“I have a suggestion, not that yours weren't good.”

“I'm open to good ideas,” she said.

“We can go to my place,” Byron offered.

Tia's heart thundered. This was a leap for him, a major step in the relationship, and one she hadn't been expecting. They'd gone through a lot together, and Tia was glad to know that her feelings for him weren't one-sided.

She pulled into the parking lot of a Walgreen's to organize her thoughts.

“Tia?” said Bryon.

“I was just deciding if I wanted to go to your place.”

A long moment of silence passed between them. “What's your decision?” Bryon asked.

“Tell me where to go.”

Tia followed the directions right to Byron's front door and parked on his driveway.

They got out of their cars at the same time.

She drank in the sight of him.

Dark denim jeans and a white long-sleeved mock T-shirt covered him, and all she could think about was how much she wanted him to be undressed.

Tia pulled the bag of food from the car, along with a pink glossy bag from the lingerie store. He had bags in his hands, too.

Byron lived on a quiet street where the houses were spaced a good distance from each other. Peace emanated from the picturesque environment, and Tia was aware of how much someone like him, in his line of work, needed peace. She was glad to be in his world.

His keys tinkled as he unlocked the front door, and a gentle breeze billowed around the porch and kissed her cheek.

Tia smiled and looked up. Byron was looking straight at her. She stepped into the house after him, and he took the bag of food. “Hungry?” he asked.

“No.”

“Thirsty?”

“No.”

The strap to her purse slid down her arm, and she put the lingerie bag and her jacket on the kitchen chair. Byron smiled, and his dimple winked.

He backed up slowly as she advanced.