Wrong Way Renee (19 page)

Renee felt like a princess
in the luxurious suite
. She opened the drawer to find scented soaps, lotions, bath salts, shampoos and conditioners.
After
choosing
milk-and-honey scented
bath products,
she slid into the inviting tub and turned on the jets.
She
was
in
heaven.

When her fingers and toes looked like prunes, she
finally got
out
,
sla
thered lotion all over, then
slipped on the terrycloth robe. Leaving her clothes in the bedroom, she headed downstairs to get the hot chocolate
Cleave
had promised
.

She found him
in the kitchen
wearing a clean polo shirt and shorts
looking every bit the first black cover model for
Home and Leisure.

“I showered in the guest room.
”
He handed
her a steaming mug of hot chocolate.

“You're fast.”

“Actually, you're slow. But I wanted you to take your time to relax in there. What do y
ou think of my little retreat?”

“Little? I wouldn't say that. It's
…
heavenly. You certainly keep it well stocked. Is that for the parade of women in your life?
”
She sipped her drink and eyed him with amusement
.

He
moved close to her
, so close she
could smell his cologne.
“I don't have a parade of women in my life. I have
very discriminating taste. Which is why I wanted you to come over.”

She swallowed hard.
“So
I guess I should be flattered.”

“I'm the one who's flattered because you're here with me looking quite s
exy in that robe, I might add.”

Her
cheeks flushed.
He
took her mug and set it down. Then he
gently tugged on the robe's belt and it opened enough to reveal her
breasts
. He quickly seized the opportunity,
taking a good long look at her then
wrapped his hands around her back and pulled her bare body closer to him
before she could stop him
.

Sh
e
shoved away from him
and retied the belt
.
She wasn’t ready to move to that level. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
It had been a great day and she really liked being with
him but
thoughts of Joe crept into her head when she least
expected
.

“Sorry. Couldn’t help myself.
You’re a beautiful woman
.”
A wry smile played across his face.

“Y
ou planned this whole thing for a gli
mpse of my bootie. Is that it?”

H
e
threw his head back, laughing
.
“Yeah, right down to letting you drive the golf cart into the pond. It was actually on remote control. It wasn't your lous
y steering induced by alcohol.”
He was so much more handsome when he smiled. His eyes were alight with
warmth.

“I feel better that
I'
ve been absolved of all guilt.”

“In that case, do you think I could talk you into staying for dinner? I have some fine looking steaks I thoug
ht I'd throw on the grill.”

She
checked the clock on the wall. A
lmost five.
“That would be nice. Let me get dressed and I'll help you make a salad or so
mething to go with the steaks.”

In the bedroom,
sh
e couldn't help herself. She found it hard to believe
Cleave
wasn't dating anyone else. Perhaps it was her
own
guilty conscience.

The night table drawers called to her. The one on the right side of the bed was empty. As she
quiet
ly opened the one on the left side, she saw the butt of a gun peeking out from under some papers. She
quelled a gasp and
quietly closed it.

The mirrored closets were her next targets. Inside one were a dozen suits, shelves of folded dress shirts and a spinning rack of
about
a hundred ties. The other
closet
held all sorts of sporting gear; hunting rifles in a glass case, golf bags and shoes, scuba gear, a tennis racket and several pairs of assorted athletic shoes. Everything was painstakingly neat, each item surrounded by others for that sport. He was a man who liked his toys and had a ton of them.

She had no idea why she’d felt the urge to snoop, but suspected it had something to do with Dan cheating on her. Knowledge was power.
She dressed and returned to the kitchen carrying her bag of wet clothes.

“What can I do? Do you have stuff to make a salad?
”
She set
her bag on the floor next to the door to the garage.

“
Look in the crisper. I'm going out to the lanai to put these on the grill.
”
He picked up a glass platter with two big steaks on it.

Sh
e found a bowl to make them a salad and got to work. Then sh
e went through the family room
to the pool area
and
found
Cleave
standing off to the side of a hot tub watching the steaks cook on a brick grill in a very elaborate summer kitchen. It had a rack for wine glasses, a small refrigerator and a stainless steel sink. Duke sat next to him, eying the steaks
a lot like he’d done to her earlier
.

She set the salad on the table. “This is fantastic out here.”

“
I have lots of nice things, but I h
ave no one to share them with.”

She didn't know what to say so she just
sat on a wicker couch
and patted
the seat next to her.

H
e
joined her.
“I think I'm falling for the boss'
s
daughter.
”

Distilling his pronouncement, s
he put her arm around his shoulder.
“Let's slow it down a little.”

“Okay. You let me know when you catch up to me.
”
He squeezed her knee then got up to check on the steaks.
Sh
e strolled around the pool.
As the sun sank below the horizon
,
colored lights came on,
illuminating the area in pink, green and blue.

“Did you turn those on?
”
she asked.

“They’re on a timer.”

She
glanc
ed inside the glass at the perfect house. This could be a nice life.
A
lthough she'd just met
Cleave
, she
knew she
could have all this eventually if she wanted it. She could have
the same luxury and
ease as her sister
. No working, no credit card debt, shopping as much as she wanted. It was tempting to let
things
move faster, like
h
e
seemed to want.
She couldn’t say his
company was
n’t
enjoyable. He was smart, witty and g
enerous, but there was no spark. At least not
yet.

H
e
served dinner on the patio. They ate, drank wine and talked for hours, discussing boats, dogs, pool c
are and home ownership. But sh
e
again
found her mind wandering to Joe and what life with him would be like. She was getting ahead of herself, but she couldn't help it. If she ended up with him, she'd have to keep working indefinitely. Money would probably always be tight.
And her family might never accept him for both his race, and his working class background.

But, God, just thinking about that man made her toes curl.

“
…
So it's really dependent upon how much time you invest in it,
”
Cleave
was saying.
“Renee? Rene
e, are you listening?”

A prick of guilt stabbed at her gut.
“Oh, yes. I'm sorry,
Cleave
. I guess I'm worn out.”

“
I know what you were thinking.”

She widened her eyes and despite the fact that he couldn’t
possibly
know, her pulse leapt like a jackrabbit
.

“You were thinking that a dog couldn't
be trained that quickly.”

She let out the breath she'd been holding.
“You're right. That's exactly what I was thinking.
”
She had no idea what he was talking about.
“You kn
ow what I was also thinking?”

“What?
”

“T
hat you probably have to be at the office early in the morning and I'm pretty tired, so I
was hoping you'd take me home.”

H
e
stood up, extended
his hand.
“You
r chariot awaits, fair maiden.”

Corny, but sweet. He drove her hom
e, then walked her to her door.
“I won't ask to come in. But I will ask for a goodnight kiss.
”
He gathered her hair in his hands.
“I've had a great da
y, golf cart accident and all.”

“Me too,
”
she said honestly.
“Thank you for the
clothes.
Next time I'll let you drive.”

He kissed her goodnight. It was nice.
T
he electricity she felt with Joe just wasn't there with
Cleave
. But she liked how he handled all the details for her. She didn't have to think much when she was with him. It was freeing.

After he left, sh
e laid on her unmade bed, contemplating what she'd do. It was only fair to choose between them soon.
If she didn’t, it would be her luck to get
busted by one with the other.

Chapter Six

Clients
rang the phone off the hook Tuesday morning, making
appointments for haircuts, manicures and pedicures in preparation for
holiday
parties. Men called about gift certificates for their wives or girlfriends. They even had a few calls in response to the ad for a hairdresser that had run in the Sunday paper.

Renee sat at the desk after she'd given Melissa and Gerta their manicures. She spoke to a woman fresh out of beauty school and then a man named Antoine who said he had a following. She told the woman they didn't have enough walk-in business to fill up her schedule. Antoine wanted to come in the shop later to meet her and Becky. After checking their schedules, she set him up an appointment
when
both she and Becky were free.

When a light-skinned black man showed up in skin-tight purple leather pants, Renee knew it was Antoine. His short hair was dyed red
and
his eyelashes bore
the slightest traces of mascara.

He approached
her
nail table and gave her an exaggerated smile.
“You must be Renee. I could tell over the phone you were incredibly beautiful.”
Then he li
fted her hand to his lips and kissed it.

She resisted rolling her eyes as she shot Becky a
grin
.
The three
of them
headed to the kitchenette for a little privacy.

“So Antoine,
”
Becky began,
“Renee tells me you have a good following.
”
She sat on a barstool and motioned for
him
to do the same.

“Oh, honey, I do. I been doin' hair for six years
and my book is full, full, full.
”
He took the
s
eat
between the two
women
.

“And do you think they would follow you here?
”
Becky
asked
.

“Oh, yes. Them
girls love me. They say 'Antoine, I'd follow you to the ends of the earth.' And I says, 'Honey, I'm just goin' up the road.' None of us like the new owner
at the shop I’m at now
. He's one of them little Korean fellows. They don't like my kind.
”
He raised one well-arched eyebrow in Renee's direction.
“You know what I’m talking about, sister.”