When It Rains... (11 page)

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Authors: Angie Daniels

BOOK: When It Rains...
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As usual, dinner was fabulous. George was sitting to her mother's right with eyes gleaming with admiration. When had Mom sought male company? Honey wondered. She wasn't mad or anything, just surprised.
Damn, Mama's gettin' her freak on.
It had never dawned on her that after all these years her mother was probably lonely too. Since Curtis Love had walked out on his family when Honey was five, Mom seemed to have resentedmen. Never once had Honey seen her date anyone.Mom had sacrificed so much for them, and had once told her that her children were all she ever needed. Now that they were all grown with lives of their own, Honey knew that was no longer true.
Glancing at George out of the corner of her eye, she wondered how long the relationship had been going on, and suddenly felt envious. Helen had lived a long, hard life, but maybe Honey was the only one that thought her life had been hard. Her mother had worked over thirty-five years as a maid while raising three children,doing the kind of work her children were ashamed of. But never once had Honey heard her mother complain.When her brothers were old enough they found part-time jobs, and against their mother's wishes they contributed to the household income. Honey had shared a room with her mother until junior high, when they were finally able to move to a larger apartment. By high school, Mom was finally able to purchase the home where she still resided. She was a proud woman and even now, when her children tried to give her money, she refused it, saying she didn't need it. Maybe she didn't, but they still used Christmas and her birthday as an excuse to shower her with the luxuries they believed she deserved.
Rashad and Shaquil took turns asking George his life history, while the women ate and listened. When the questions became too damn personal, Helen put an end to their interrogation and announced that George would be a regular at their Sunday meals.
Shaquil exchanged a long look with his brother beforeturning to Honey. “You know, sis, when you do find yourself another date, we're gonna have to buy Mom a new dining room table. It seems like the last chair has been taken.” His statement earned him an elbow to the ribs from his wife.
“You're a real comedian,” Honey replied dryly, and rolled her eyes with annoyance. Shaquil never could leave well enough the fuck alone. Then she turned to Marcus, who was sitting to her left, and draped an arm around his neck. “I don't need a date as long as I have this little sweetheart.” She lowered her lips to kiss the top of his head.
Helen grunted. “I don't need another table. I've had this one for years. We can always pull up a chair from the kitchen.”
Tequila brought her napkin to her lips briefly before asking, “Any hints for your birthday this year, Mama Love?”
Helen shook her head. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”She allowed her eyes to travel around the table. “I have everything I could possibly ever want right here around this table. What else do I need?”
“A day of pampering,” Honey mumbled.
Helen looked at George, who nodded. Then she turned to look at the others and said, “I do have an announcementto make.”
Honey lowered her fork and looked over at her mother with curiosity.
“I'm going away for my birthday this year.”
“What ... where are you going?” Rashad asked
Helen reached over and grasped George's hand. “George is takin' me to Vegas.”
“You? Vegas?” Honey was flabbergasted. Her mother never went anywhere.
Tequila smiled. “What a wonderful idea!” She ignoredthe frown her husband gave her.
Helen observed her children's stunned expressions. “I know what you are thinkin'. I never go anywhere. But things are gonna be different from now on.”
“I can definitely see that,” Honey mumbled and resumedeating. Everybody was getting some but her. She didn't even want to think about her mother in bed with George and his ole' shriveled-up dick.
“Well, I'll be damned,” Shaquil murmured. “Our littlegirl is growin' up.”
Helen pursed her lips. “Watch your mouth. Don't forget who still wears the pants in this house.” She paused to reach for another roll. “It's about time I start enjoying my life.”
“I agree,” Rashad said.
Not saying much else, Honey wore a grin on her face during the rest of the meal.
After dessert, the family moved to the living room. Shaquil and Tequila were curled on the couch together, with Tequila's head pillowed against her husband's chest. Rashad and Yolanda were on the love seat; her legs were draped across his lap. Marcus was lying across the floor, head propped up with his elbows, engrossedin a rerun of the
Steve Harvey Show
. Helen and George insisted on stacking the dishwasher. Honey didn't argue, assuming the two wanted some time alone.
Honey carried a cup of hot chocolate into the living room. Slipping off her shoes, she curled up in her mother's favorite recliner and covered her feet with a small blue flannel blanket. Watching the couples together,Honey found her thoughts drifting to Jay. She remembered the Sunday evenings she'd hurried home from her mother's just so the two of them could watch the Sunday night lineup together. She had never invited him over to dinner because she knew if she had, she wouldn't ever have been able to get rid of his ass—her family would have taken an instant liking to him.
She shifted in the chair uneasily, not wanting to think about Jay anymore, and listened to the sounds of Shaquil snoring on the couch. Good food did that to you, she thought as she rubbed a palm across her belly. She had eaten too much and would be paying for it in the morning.
A commercial came on, and Honey found her thoughts wandering again. She was still unable to dispense of the memory of seeing Jay's sexy ass the weekend before.Even though she knew they could never be anything more than friends, she found herself hoping to see him again. She remembered his sweet smile and easy laughter.How she missed sharing moments like this together. She so wanted to hear his voice, maybe even share the rest of the evening with him. How easy it would be to pick up the phone and call him. But she couldn't. She couldn't take the chance of him rejecting her when he found out she'd been hiding something from him. It was too damn risky.
Remembering her conversation with Sasha, she now knew Jay was up to something. Why else would he have been asking questions about her? The answer nagged at her heart. Visualizing his devilish smile, Honey anticipateddisturbing quakes in her tranquility. The thought brought a frown to her face. Yep. Knowing Jay the way she did, she believed he had some shit up his sleeve.
Five
H
oney pushed open the door and stepped into the dark room. Running her hand along the side of the right wall, she found the switch and flipped it up. The lights overhead flickered before pouring into the room. Followingseveral blinks, she glanced around at the dirt, the abundance of repairs needed, and the old furnishings.Honey cussed and said aloud, “I've got my work cut out.”
It was a dusty old room with faint reminders of gleaming white walls, now dingy and gray with cobwebshanging from the ceiling. She planned to cover the walls with washed-out mauve paint and murals, courtesy of her cousin Ben, a spray paint artist. She intendedto show the little wannabe gangsta how to put his talent to some other use than on the sides of several city buildings.
She pulled her sweater snug around her. Despite the heavy material, she felt a chill. The snow had finally stopped, and the weatherman had forecast sunshine, with a high near thirty degrees. The room was cold, but there was no point in turning on the heat; she didn't plan on being there long.
Stepping around an overturned chair, Honey moved toward the left side of the room and envisioned the changes to come. She had plans to knock out the wall separating the two suites, making the salon twice as spacious.
Moving behind the counter, she saw an old industrialstove and grill, covered with years of grease and grime. It was to be removed, and she would purchase a residential stove and refrigerator. Then she could finallyremove the dormitory-sized refrigerator from her office that was taking up needed space. The rest of the kitchen was salvageable, but would require major scrubbing. Drywall would be hung to hide the kitchen from the work area.
Coming from behind the counter, she stepped across the dusty room and spotted something lying on the scuffed floor. She stooped down and picked it up, then dusted it off with the front of her skirt. Staring down at it, Honey smiled and released a cry of delight. It was a lunch menu preserved in a plastic sleeve.
She remembered when Freddy's Diner was opened for business many years ago. In high school, Freddy's was the shit. It was the place to hang out on Friday nights for chocolate malts and Freddy's thick-ass burgers.Somewhere in the back of her mind, she could still hear teenagers laughing, and could almost smell the scent of the greasy quarter-pound hamburgers they all had adored. The burger joint had been closed for almostsix years.
Honey strolled over to the counter where three old stools were still screwed into the floor. Dusting off one red vinyl seat, she sat and took a twirl. “One chocolate malt, please,” she ordered, smiling at her own reenactment.
“Make that two.”
Honey whirled around sharply and found Jay standingseveral feet away. Her smile vanished as she stared at him with her brow arched high in surprise.
Well, I'll be damned.
It was becoming a habit of his, sneaking up on her. Cheeks flushed, she felt embarrassed and pissed the fuck off that he'd caught her goofing around.
Standing with his legs wide apart, he spoke again. “Hello, Honey.”
While remaining silent, she allowed her eyes to linger over his appearance. He looked sexy as hell, dressed in his usual eight-to-five attire. Crisp blue jeans outlined his long muscular legs and fit as if they had been molded to his body. Covering him was an unzipped quarter-lengthleather jacket, and his large hands were tucked in the front pockets. Honey watched the rise and fall of his solid chest covered by a green sweatshirt.
His beard had grown since she'd last seen him, but was still neatly trimmed, adding tantalizing dimensions to his fine chocolate ass. Brown eyes dancing, he looked deliciously edible. Just as she reached his thick juicy lips, Honey tore her focus away and frowned. “I wasn't expecting you. I thought you were sending one of your employees.”
Jay's mouth lifted in an irresistible smile. “I decided to do this job myself.”
“Oh.” Shhiiit. She'd never even considered the possibilityof him doing the work. Now Honey knew she was in trouble. Her decision not to get involved with him had been challenged at the baby shower, but now that he planned to invade her space while installing her security system, she'd have to stay on her toes. Otherwise,her efforts were going to be futile.
 
 
Jay had been watching her from the moment he enteredthe room. When he found her holding the menu in her hand, he had witnessed a tickled smile and eyes huge with delight. The sight had warmed his soul and made his dick stand to attention. Now he allowed his gaze to wander over her appearance, and took pleasure in looking at her. Honey had paired a white turtleneck with a red corduroy skirt and oversized sweater. White tights covered her shapely legs. Her hair was pulled away from her face, highlighting the attributes of a long delicate neck and giving him a full side view of her small, charming nose. Her skin was smooth, cheekboneshigh, lashes long and thick, eyes wide and bright, a complexion so natural that if she was wearing cosmeticsit was impossible to tell. Her mouth looked delectable:red, pouting, and begging to be kissed.
Honey braced her weight against the countertop while her heart slid back into her chest. As soon as she found her breath she asked, “Did you ever visit Freddy's when it was open?”
Carefully maneuvering around an overturned table, he answered, “No. I never did. We weren't allowed on this side of town.”
She nodded, remembering the stories of his strict upbringing. Jay had grown up in a big-ass house in the Central West End with servants and shit.
She watched Jay thoughtfully as he moved across the floor to a window in the corner, where he ran his hand across the sill, as though trying to determine a good location to install wiring for her security system. She had a bird's-eye view of his phat ass.
“Well, you missed out.”
Jay turned and lifted his gaze to her, giving her a sexy, lopsided smile that sent her pulse racing. She spun around and stared down at the dirty countertop as she took several deep breaths. “Freddy's was the bomb. Anybody who was anybody hung out here. His burgers were big and juicy, and his malts were so fuckin' thick you had to use a spoon.” She unconsciously traced figureeights in the dust with a slender finger. “Yeah, you missed out.”
“Sure sounds like it.” Jay pulled out a rickety old chair, resting his foot in the seat and his elbow on his knee. His eyes swept across the room. “I never had a place like this to hang out in. This looks like something we saw on
Happy Days
.”
“That it was,” she mumbled, then looked over her shoulder in time to catch Jay staring at her. With his eyes centering on her face, she found it next to impossibleto escape his penetrating stare.
“And you want to change it into a beauty parlor.”
She nodded before her eyes wandered to his lips. They were full, moist, and curved slightly with amusement.Again, warmth rushed through her as she rememberedwhat they had felt like brushed against hers. Her nipples tingled as she imagined his lips suckling her breasts like a newborn baby.
Honey slid off the stool and walked across the room to distance herself. She reached a booth once occupied by the in crowd. Staring down at the table was like déjà vu as she remembered standing in the same spot while enjoying good times with her friends. Combing fingers through her mass of shiny brown hair, she also remembereda time she'd rather forget.
It was right at this very booth that she had fallen in love with Walter. He was captain of their high school football team their senior year, and since she was a cheerleader, they both traveled in the same circle of friends. After victory games, the entire team traveled to Freddy's. Honey remembered sitting at that very spot with her chin resting in the palm of her hand while her eyes found their way across the room to where Walter was sitting. Sometimes they'd all share the same booth; other times Walter would sit close to the malt machine with his fellow teammates. She had thought him handsomewith dark mocha skin, long nose, dimples, and coal-black eyes. He was so damn fine that she'd refused to listen to Sasha's assessment of him as a conceited dog.
It wasn't until months later that Honey painfully realizedWalter was a self-centered bastard. He believed the world owed his tired ass something, and being in his presence was considered a privilege. Even Honey's being a member of the in crowd meant little to him. He ignored her. It wasn't until she became captain of the cheerleading squad that he finally found her worthy of his time. Honey had caught him staring at her on severaloccasions with looks of interest, causing a warm tingle down to the end of her toes. Then one afternoon, she found Walter standing in front of her locker. Her heart had raced so fast she thought she would faint. She believed herself to be the luckiest girl in the world when he asked her out.
How wrong she had been.
Returning from her reverie, she looked at Jay for several seconds without blinking before turning away from the puzzled concern in his eyes.
Jay's brow wrinkled. He'd watched the disturbing play of emotions on her face, and could barely restrain himself from comforting her in his arms. Honey had shaken her head, as if to relieve herself of painful memories. He hadn't missed the sadness her eyes held. Now she looked like she wanted to kick somebody's ass. He wanted to push for answers, and wondered again for the hundredth time how much longer it would be before she decided to share her pain with him.
“Hey, Jay, come here.” He heard the slight giggle in her voice. Whatever the hell had bothered her had quickly vanished. Jay walked over to the corner of the room and stood beside her. She pointed to the end of an old wooden booth, and he saw her name carved on the table.
Jay looked into her wide eyes. “Wow, you're famous.”His irresistibly sexy smile reappeared as he reached out to squeeze her shoulder.
Feeling heat emanating from his hand, Honey backed away, afraid of the closeness she felt. She turned away and reached up to pull a wooden board from the window,allowing sunlight to pour into the gloomy room. “Why are you really here?” she asked.
Jay wasn't at all surprised by her blunt question. He would never expect anything less from her. But he paused a second too long, and she turned around in time to see the desire dancing in his eyes as he replied, “Why do you think?”
“Shit, if I knew, I wouldn't've asked,” she answered shakily. “You tell me.”
“Because I want to be here,” he answered, taking a step forward. “I want to be near you,” he added, slowly, searching her face.
“But why?” she asked again, her voice a frantic waver.
He reached up to stroke her face, then dropped his hand again. “Why not?”
Only silence greeted him. Jay noticed her pained expression, and decided to restrain himself from sharinghis feelings with her. It obviously made her uncomfortable.
Then a thought washed over him. Maybe Honey wasn't hiding anything. Maybe she wasn't afraid. Maybe the reason she wasn't interested in a relationship was that she truly wasn't interested in him.
Oh, hell naw,
he told himself. No fuckin' way. His pride wouldn't let him accept such bullshit.
Honey shrugged her shoulders, almost as if to say, “What-the-fuck-ever,” then turned away. She didn't trust herself to respond when near him. She felt like crying and didn't know why.
There'll be none of that shit,
she scolded herself inwardly. Taking a deep breath, she moved to remove another board from the window.
Jay broke the silence by asking, “When will constructionbegin?”
Relieved he had changed the subject, she whipped her head around. “My brother's company will begin next week.” Putting some distance between them, she moved to the center of the room. “They'll knock down that wall over there.” She pointed to the wall dividing the two suites. “And add six more booths and a smaller kitchen.” She faced him, her mouth curled into a smile. “I plan to have a full-service salon. Everything from facials to manicures.”
Jay nodded, clearly impressed. “Congratulations. It sounds like this is gonna be
the
happening place.”
Hands clasped in front, Honey's smile broadened. “I hope so.”
Strolling around the room, Jay stopped within inches of her. “So, you want this room wired and operatingon the same system as next door?”
She could smell the spicy scent of his body. Dizzy with desire, Honey barely managed a nod.
Once again, he witnessed the same sweet smile he'd taken to his bed at night for almost eight months, and knew it was only a matter of time before she would share his bed. He could already imagine her lying on her back with her legs spread wide apart and him takingthem on a long hard ride. Oh, hell yeah, it was going to happen. He would just have to be patient.
“You have some dust on your nose,” he whispered. He lifted his hand and with the pad of his thumb, gentlywiped the dirt from the tip of her nose. She glanced up at him, and Jay saw a reflection of his own desire. He stared into her eyes, trying to see deep within her, hoping to find some hint of what Honey was feeling.

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