Heels of Love (G Street Chronicles Presents From Love to Loathe Series) (23 page)

I wondered if he noticed his own double meaning, and then again I don’t think he cared. After our very tiresome session, we laid in the bed wrapped up in each other. Jyme was tracing his fingers up and down my arm in a soothing motion. I was right on the edge of passing out. Jyme sat up and then laid back down.

“Happy Birthday,” he whispered.

“My birthday is over.”

“You officially have five more minutes.”

I smiled and pulled him a little closer.

“Cricket?”

“Yeah?”

“Please?”

I lay there not saying a word while he caressed my arm.

“Have you ever heard that song by Foreigner called, ‘I Want to Know What Love Is?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Mariah Carey did a version of it a few years back.”

“I’ve never heard it.”

“Well, the lyrics are, ‘I’m going to take a little time to look around me. I’ve got nowhere left to hide; it looks like love has finally found me. I want to know what love is. I want you to show me. I want to feel what love is. I know you can show me.’

He turned me onto my back and sat up on one elbow. “Will you open up completely to me?”

“I’ll try,” I told him.

“Then I’ll show you.”

* * * * *

We got back to the condo Tuesday evening after dinner. Jyme helped me out of the truck, and we headed towards the door. Robert wished me a belated birthday, and he shook and patted Jyme’s hand.

Randy came from behind the counter and greeted us both. He handed me an envelope and wished me a belated birthday.

“I still have your spare key, and Sergio will be right around to pull it into the garage for you.” He shook Jyme’s hand and told him he was glad to see him.

We got on the elevator, and D’Artagnan stood inside with some pretty young thing (PYT) in the famous words of MJ.

We spoke to each other awkwardly, and then the silence around us killed me.

“I looked for you Sunday evening, but you had already left,” I told him.

“I was not feeling well.”

“Baby, you were fine Sunday night,” the PYT slurred.

“Well, I’m glad you’re feeling better now, D’Artagnan.” I said.

“D’Artagnan, you told me your name was Jyme,” the PYT slurred.

My mouth dropped wide open, and Jyme burst out laughing, I elbowed him to shut up. The elevator dinged at the eighth floor. D’Artagnan snatched the PYT off the elevator, and she yelled at him. Her shoe came off, and D’Artagnan still pulled her even in her protest about her shoe. I picked up her shoe and chucked it down the hall. When the elevator door shut, I heard, “Ouch, bitch.”

At the tenth floor, I stormed off the elevator and bustled through the door. I slammed my bag and purse on the counter and went straight to the bathroom, not saying a word. I cut the shower on and stepped out of my clothes. I got in and let the tears fall silently. D’Artagnan used to be my friend; he was my best friend for a few months. Now, he had turned back into that thing. He is not Mr. Crain, and he is not D’Artagnan. I fixed my face and got out the shower. I slid the robe around me and yanked my clothes off the floor, chucking them in the hamper. I walked back into the front room a little more cool now.

I went straight to the counter to retrieve my clothes. Jyme had set my garment bags over the couch, but he was not in sight. I looked out on the patio, but he was not there either. I checked the spare bedroom and bath, but still couldn’t find him. I called out to him, but he didn’t answer. I went back to the front door, and it was locked. I opened it and poked my head out, but he was not there.

I pulled my phone out of my purse, and I had no missed calls or text messages. I shoved the chain lock on the door and shut off all the lights. I sat my phone down on the nightstand in its cradle. I hung all my clothes up in the closet and found something to wear to work for the next day. I put on a nightgown and got into bed. I tossed and turn until I finally settled. Beyoncé belted from my phone, and I turned away from her singing. Then the doorbell rang, and I shot straight up. I walked over to it and peeped out the peephole. I opened the door, and I just stood there in his way so he couldn’t get it. Jyme stood there holding a bag from Best Buy. “You went to the store?” I asked.

“You didn’t see my note on the counter,” he asked. I looked over on the counter, and there was not anything on it. Jyme slid his jacket and shoes off. I looked around on the floor, and there was a note in the kitchen doorway.

“Oh.”

He walked past me and went into the bedroom. He sat down on the bed and pulled something out the bag. I sat on the bed looking at him; he was hiding what he had…I stood up on my knees, peeking over his shoulders.

“Dang, nosey,” he teased.

“What’s in the damn bag?”

He handed me a CD.

“Um, thanks,” I said, frowning. The CD had four men standing in a shop window on a deserted street.

“Put it in the CD player.” I went over to the CD player and slid it in.

“Number five.” he said.

The song started with someone playing a guitar. I turned to face him in protest, and he snatched me back around towards the CD player. Then he was at my ear.

“Listen” he whispered. “Remember?”

I nodded at him, and Then I picked up the case; the group was called Mumford and Sons.

“It came out today, and I wanted to get it for you but we never left the room. So I couldn’t.”

“Thank you.”

He kissed the side of my neck, stepping out of his clothes.

“What other songs are good on here?” I yelled over the shower.

“I haven’t heard anything but like three songs on there, but what I’ve heard is good.”

I listened to the whole CD, and my absolute favorite was the one Jyme sang in my ear that night, but I loved a song called, “The Cave” and “Little Lion Man.” They said
fuck
in that song a lot, and I loved it.

I woke up the next morning to Jyme’s kisses. I smiled at him.

“There she is,” he crooned.

“You need to stop spoiling me like this. I can get greedy and start demanding these morning kisses daily.”

“You don’t have to demand,” he breathed.

I looked at him. There was heaviness in his eyes.

“What is it?”

“It can be a reality if you want.”

I watched him. He was so serious now.

“I know what you’re thinking, but if we’re a mistake, I want you to be my best mistake.”

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to upset him anymore than he already was. “Hey, what are you doing today?”

“Nothing really.”

“I think your fedora hat is here.”

He said nothing; just let the wheels runaround in my head. I told Jyme my game plan, and he was all for it. If we were meant to be, we would see.

I had to follow up on my favorite shop this morning. I walked in and, of course, everything was perfect. I was greeted within first thirty seconds of me walking into the shop. Everything was white glove clean, and all of the condiments were full to the rim. The smiley faced girl was there again; I caught her name now: Raven.

“Hi there, and welcome back,” she smiled. It had been about three months since I had last been here, and she still remembered me. She was great.

“We still have some of our Valentine red velvet cookies with the cream cheese frosting,” she teased, bouncing her eyebrows up and down while she nodded her head.

I took the bait again; this girl was good. I ordered a latte and two of the specialty cookies. I heard the door chime twice while I was making my order, but when the third chime hit the door, the look on Raven’s and the other female employees faces behind the counter was priceless. I knew it was show time.

I thanked her, went, and found a two-seater in the crowded shop. I pulled out my computer and began writing on my new laptop with the privacy screen up so wandering eyes couldn’t see what I was doing. I laid my Blackberry on the table next to my laptop. About a minute after that, I heard someone clearing his throat, and I looked up from my laptop.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?” the mud god asked. Jyme had these certain looks that would transform me back to the very first day we met. It was a smile here or there or even a clearing of his throat. I’m sure he was unaware of these small little things, but I always noticed. And just thinking about that day so long ago now, made my insides warm up.

“No,” I assured him. I looked back down at the laptop and began typing again. I heard a couple of women two tables over say, “Is she blind?” I coughed back a laugh, and I grinned at my screen.

“Something over there must be pretty amusing,” he said. I looked up at him.

“Yes, it is.”

“Well, I bet I can tell you something that’s way more interesting than what you’re reading.”

“Alright.” I agreed. I closed my laptop and gave him my full attention. He rolled up both of his shirtsleeves all the way up to his elbows. Then, he went into a show of all the scars he had collected throughout the years. Some were funny, and some were sad. By the end of his journey, I noticed we had an audience sitting at the tables surrounding us and standing in line. A few employees were even captured by him. Before I knew it, an hour had gone by and it felt like five minutes.

He walked me to my car, and I told him, “I would have given you my number this time, but we have more light in the day, so we will see.”

“Girl, I’m going to get your number every single time.” he grinned. And that he did.

We met up at two more of my assignments that morning, and then had lunch at Pike Place. We then went to three more of my assignments that afternoon, and played out the same scene; he won my attention, and I would have given him my number every single time. I had so much fun with Jyme that day; I saw another side of him. He showed me his more vulnerable side and I melted like chocolate when he gave me those killer grins. He seemed so light and animated; his dark and bruiting side had slipped away somehow. I saw how people flocked to him no matter what; he was sharing his soul, and people like to be around that.

Jyme told me he needed to make a few runs before we went to dinner. We decided to meet up at the condo at 7:30. I desperately needed to go to the store for household products. I made it to the front of the condo at 7:15. I had six bags to haul in, so I went through the front. Robert held the door, and Randy met me at the counter with a floral arrangement that was obviously from Jyme. There was also two other packages for me. Randy helped me upstairs with the packages and he set them on the counter.

“He sure does know how to pick an arrangement that grabs your attention,” Randy admired.

“He sure does.”

This particular arrangement was remarkable; it had a wild forest feel to it. There was so much going on, that you could barely keep up. There was a knock at the door, and Randy opened it. Jyme greeted us both and walked in. He saw what we were gawking at and grinned.

“You need to write this stuff down for the rest of us poor smucks, Mr. Samson.”

“I’ll get right on that, Randy.”

Randy left, and we showered and dressed for dinner. While Jyme was finishing his shower in the guest bedroom, I decided to organize the mail, which was now piling up into a mountain. Most of it was junk mail, and then I remembered I had two packages from downstairs. I brought the packages and my letter opener over to the couch. There was no return address on the first letter-sized manila envelope. I slid the contents out, and there were two hand drawn pictures from Ayashe’s twins and two birthday cards from Chelle’s boys. They were so fucking sweet, I loved those kids dearly. Jyme passed through in a towel and came to see why I was gushing. He grinned at the pictures and read the birthday cards.

I opened the other package with the letter opener and slid the contents onto my lap. Three bloody human fingers and a gold ring fell out, and I screamed at the top of my lungs.

Chapter 11

Cricket

J
yme had his arms hooked around me like a backpack. My arms and legs were free from him, but he still secured me like a turtle shell.

“Shh. I know, Babe, I know,” he soothed in my ear.

I cried and cried, but I didn’t feel trapped by him. I still felt free enough to breathe, and I didn’t feel an attack rising. Dr. Barnes, the good doctor, had me practicing some breathing techniques, and I took a little white pill every day. I hadn’t had an attack in months, but I hadn’t been around Jyme for months either.

I calmed down, and Jyme released his grip on me. He turned me to face him. “I want you go into the bedroom and play that new CD until I come and get you, okay?” he said sternly. I nodded and went into the bedroom. He shut the French doors.

I looked at the clock. It was 7:50. Jyme came into the room at 8:58. The CD had started over all by itself. He came over to the bed and laid behind me. I snuggled up to him, and he held me.

“We’re going to dinner, and we’re not staying here tonight.”