White Lines II: Sunny: A Novel (3 page)

“Olivia,” he said, “your new clients are here. That gospel duo.”

Olivia nodded. “Told you, girl. Today is busy!” She set the photos down on the table and stood up. Sunny followed suit. “So think it over and then we can talk figures with the lawyers and all that if you decide to do it.”

Sunny smiled at her friend. “There’s nothing to think about. I’m doing it!” They hugged and Olivia clapped her hands excitedly. “Let me know when you’re free and we’ll handle all the legalities.”

“Okay,” Olivia agreed. “Now, you’ll have to excuse me, girl. I have to go style these lovely ladies for a Christmas show they’re taping.”

“I understand. Go handle your business and we’ll talk soon.”

As Olivia headed for the door, Lamin said, “I thought they were supposed to be Christians.”

Olivia stopped with her hand on the knob and frowned at him. “Of course they are. What do you mean ‘supposed to be’?”

“One of them got a thong on.”

Olivia shook her head and Sunny laughed.

“How do you know?” Olivia was afraid of the answer, but she couldn’t resist.

Lamin smirked. “Stephanie the intern dropped a bunch of papers in front of them and the one with the Mary J. Blige hairstyle bent over to help her pick ’em up. And that’s when I saw it.” His smile broadened at the memory. “That’s how they dressing in church now?”

Olivia shook her head again and rolled her eyes at her brother. “Good-bye, Lamin.” She winked at Sunny as she left, still giggling.

Sunny noticed that Lamin was still standing there as if he had something to say to her. Never one to beat around the bush, she called him on it. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”

He smiled at her. “Your cat can have my tongue any time.”

She rolled her eyes. “Now
that
was corny.”

“No, it wasn’t. You gotta think about it. It’s a double meaning.”

Sunny shook her head. “I get it. It’s still corny.”

Lamin laughed and so did she. “Okay, so let me start over.”

“Okay.”

“Say that again. ‘Cat got your tongue.’ Say that.”

Sunny chuckled at his silliness. She squinted her eyes and said in her sexiest voice, “Cat got your tongue, Lamin?”

He cleared his throat and put on his best Billy Dee face. “Well, actually,” he spoke in an exaggerated baritone, reminiscent of Barry White, “I was hoping to make better use of my tongue, Sunny. Do you think you could help me with that?”

Sunny laughed so hard that she was doubled over. Lamin cracked up seeing her so tickled.

Finally, she caught her breath. “You’re stupid.”

He winked at her. “Ladies love a man with a sense of humor.”

She nodded. “We do. That’s true.”

“So, all jokes aside,” Lamin said. He licked his lips. “You gonna stop running from me or what?” He had known Sunny for years. When her man Dorian had been alive, Lamin had gotten to know Sunny as part of the Family and as Olivia’s good friend. But when Dorian died and Sunny blossomed into a sexy socialite, Lamin—and every other man with a pulse—had taken notice. He had emerged from a messy divorce and scandalous criminal trial unscathed. And all he needed now was a woman who could handle him. He suspected that beautiful Sunny might be up to the task.

Sunny sighed, drained from laughing so hard. She looked at Lamin, took in all his splendor. He was a beautiful man—tall, dark and handsome. But he reminded her too much of Dorian at times. She couldn’t get past that. The gritty edge, the tall, chocolate Adonis thing … it was too familiar.

“I never
ran
from nothing in my whole life,” she corrected him. She retrieved her purse from the coffee table and winked at him as he’d done only moments ago. “But a real lady knows when to exercise her right to
walk
away.” Sunny strutted her stuff in true top-model fashion as she walked to the door.

“That shit was corny,” Lamin said, jokingly, though his face was deadpanned.

Sunny laughed as she called out over her shoulder, “Whatever!” And the door swung shut behind her.

2

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

There are some things that a mother stores up in her heart and never speaks of to anybody; secret thoughts and worries that they never verbalize. For Jada Ford, that was the case from time to time when she looked at her son. Sometimes, when Sheldon was in the middle of laughing at a joke or if he was angry and scowling, his brow would furrow in a way that reminded her instantly of his father. And it sent chills up her spine every time.

Jada could still picture Jamari’s creepy grins; the way her ex’s lips would spread into a smile that never quite reached his eyes. Jamari’s smiles had been sinister ones. He had been a monster, full of envy, selfishness and greed, and had assisted Jada in nearly destroying any chance she had for happiness. He had handed her crack cocaine with one hand while slapping her with a restraining order to keep her away from their son with the other.

She still felt guilty after all these years for having gotten high while she was pregnant with Sheldon. His early years had been plagued by illness and pain, and even now he had been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, and was demonstrating that he had trouble controlling his temper. Sheldon was also in the seventh grade, but reading on a fourth-grade level. Jada felt responsible for all of his troubles. He had been a crack baby and it was all her fault.

Jamari Jones was dead now, and Jada was happy about that. Still, remnants of brutal memories lingered in the corners of her mind and at times like these, when Jamari’s wicked face crept across her son’s countenance, Jada’s heart stopped beating ever so briefly in her chest. She hated him, even now; hated the memory of him. In some ways, she had managed to convince herself that Sheldon was
her
child alone, that his father had been merely a sperm donor to whom she owed nothing but what she had already given him—her blood, sweat and tears. But from time to time when she looked at Sheldon, she saw Jamari’s eyes staring back at her, saw his wicked smile reminding her of her past.

She often sat watching her son and wishing deep down inside that she had given birth to Born’s child instead of Jamari’s. Today was one of those days as she watched Sheldon sitting across from her at the best table in the house at her favorite restaurant, Conga.

Conga was an upscale, Cuban-style eatery located in the heart of Manhattan, and was owned by Frankie Bingham. Both Born and Frankie had been friends of Sunny’s beloved Dorian, and Conga had been the venue for many of the Family’s functions over the years. Big meetings were held in the ultraexclusive wine cellar, while the bar room hosted birthday and anniversary parties. There was a cocktail lounge for bachelor and bachelorette parties, while the upstairs rooms were for ultraprivate affairs. It was quite an establishment.

Born was by Jada’s side this night, along with Sheldon, Born’s son Ethan, and his “nephew,” DJ. It was her birthday and they had gathered to celebrate. Born had gone all out, ordering the entire appetizer menu as a generous predecessor to what would surely be a wonderful meal. Jada beamed in the company of her men.

“So, Dominique wants us to come and meet with some of the movers and shakers she works with. Maybe we can take DJ
double
platinum this time.”

Born was talking about DJ’s opportunity to sign with DoughBoy Records, and while talking, he absentmindedly chewed his food and spoke with his mouth full. It made Jada smile because after so many years together (and so many years apart), Born hadn’t changed much. He still wore his hat low over his eyes, still kept his heat on him, still loved her despite all she’d done wrong. He didn’t remind her of her past. In fact, Born was loving her again the way he had in the beginning. She had so much to be grateful for as she entered another year of life.

Jada ate a quesadilla while listening to Born’s story.

“She’s good at what she does. The artists on her roster are all multiplatinum; we’re talking household names. That’s what I want for DJ. He’s got a nice buzz, got some fans and a strong following. But I want him at the top. It’s where he belongs.”

Jada nodded and listened as Born told her that he wanted her to meet this Dominique Storms, who was an A&R—artist and repertoire scout—at Def Jam. Jada thought that the name sounded familiar. She finished her quesadilla and looked for another, but was puzzled to find the tray empty already. Quietly, Sheldon had loaded his plate up with all the rest of them. Born was talking and hadn’t seen it, and Jada saw DJ pretending not to notice. She became annoyed, but didn’t want to interrupt Born’s story. She cut her eyes at Sheldon admonishingly and then told herself that she was being silly. She reached for a tamale instead. But before she could grab it, Sheldon snatched the last one and shoved it in his mouth. The smirk that spread across his face was so sinister that she had to blink twice to get Jamari’s face out of her mind. That face was all too familiar. It caused her to shudder.

“Here comes Sunny,” DJ said, interrupting Born’s talking and Jada’s trembling. The location of their table offered them a view of the street outside and they could see Sunny and her daughter approaching.

Jada smiled at the sight of her friend, grateful for the distraction. She wanted to shove the fucking tamales and the quesadillas down Sheldon’s throat.

“You all right?” Born asked, sensing that her mood had shifted.

“Yeah,” Jada nodded as if, of course, she was fine. She didn’t look at Sheldon.

Sunny and Mercedes entered the packed restaurant, looking around for Jada and the gang. “We’re joining Jada Ford,” Sunny explained to the maître d’. The young gentleman nodded and led the way to the best table in the house.

As Sunny and Mercedes neared, both of their faces spread into radiant smiles at the sight of their loved ones. Born stood up and greeted Sunny with a hug and gave Mercedes a kiss on her cheek. Sunny hugged Jada and the kids and then took a seat beside DJ. She smiled at him and her eyes beamed with pride.

“You get handsomer every time I see you!” she said, shaking her head in awe, and smiling at Dorian Jr. like a proud mama.

DJ blushed despite his chocolate-brown complexion. He loved Sunny, always had. When she and his dad were together, Sunny had always been kind to him, treating him as if he were her own child. Despite the many things DJ’s mother, Raquel, had done to hurt Sunny over the years, Sunny had never taken it out on him. And in the years since his parents’ death, she had never wavered in her love and support for DJ.

Mercedes took the seat that had been reserved for her by Sheldon’s side. She had a big-brother type of admiration for Sheldon, having been raised practically side by side with him. Mercedes smiled at him in greeting and then her eyes scanned the table.

“So, Aunt Jada, what did Uncle Born get you for your birthday?” Mercedes asked without hesitation as she took some of the quesadillas Sheldon had hoarded off his plate and put them on her own. Sheldon frowned as Mercedes helped herself, but didn’t protest and Jada took notice. At least somebody had Sheldon under control.

Born laughed at Mercedes’s brazenness while Sunny chided her daughter. “You don’t
ask
adults questions like that, Mercedes!”

Jada defended her. “No, Sunny, hold up. She’s right! What
did
you get me?” Jada stared at Born with a smirk on her face. She gave Mercedes a thumbs-up, as much for the question about the gift as for the fact that she had taken some of Sheldon’s food.

Born was momentarily caught off guard, but recovered quickly. “I’m giving you
me
,” he said, grinning.

DJ and the boys laughed at what they interpreted as Born trying to smooth talk his way out of not having a gift for Jada.

“That’s a cheap gift,” DJ joked, to laughter from everyone present.

Born shook his head at his protégé, chuckling to himself. “It’s actually a very expensive gift.” Born placed his hand over his heart. “This right here is very costly. In fact, it’s priceless. And I’m giving it to you.” He winked at Jada.

Jada smiled, touched by Born’s words even though the kids clearly thought it was corny. Sheldon and Ethan booed as if they were in the audience at the Apollo.

Sunny held her glass in the air for a toast. “To the birthday girl,” she said, cheerily. “Jada, girl, you are my very best friend in the whole wide world. We’ve been to hell and back together and the best is yet to come. To forty more years of friendship!”

Jada had been smiling, but it faded fast. “Bitch, I’m not forty yet! I’m thirty-nine.”

Sunny waved her off. “Girl, please! We know that’s just your stage age.”

Everyone laughed, and the adults clinked glasses in toast.

Sunny pulled out a medium-size box and handed it to Jada. “For you!”

Jada gingerly opened the paper that the box was wrapped in, smiling in anticipation the whole time. She folded back the tissue paper and pulled out a beautiful Hermes scarf.

“Sunny!” Jada exclaimed. “This is gorgeous! Thank you so much.”

Sunny smiled, pleased to see Jada so happy.

“So, Uncle Born, this dinner is really
all
you got her?” Mercedes asked, her voice dripping with disappointment.

Sunny looked like she was ready to pop her daughter. Mercedes’s eyes widened, defensively.

“
What
, Ma?” she asked, genuinely confused as to why her questions were out of line. “I mean it’s a nice restaurant, but…”

Born laughed hard. Then he leaned over and kissed Jada, stared into her eyes, his own welling with tears.

Jada wasn’t sure how to respond. Born looked almost scared and it was an emotion she’d never seen him deal with before. She wondered if the tears in his eyes were from laughter or from something else.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, blocking everyone else out. “What’s the matter, baby?”

He shook his head. “Nothing.” He held up a blue velvet box. “Not unless you say no.”

Jada stared at the box for a moment, dumbfounded. Then it occurred to her that this was a proposal and she really took leave of all her senses. She squealed and her eyes flew open at the sight of the flawless diamond in a platinum setting. Her mind wrapped itself around the reason for Born’s tears—the reason for that fear she saw in them. She understood that he had been serious about giving
himself
as her birthday present, that he must be scared to death to give her his heart again.