My White Hero (4 page)

“
What’s wrong with what I have on?” she asked. Rochelle gave her a sarcastic laugh.

“
I can think of ten things that are wrong starting with YOU ARE NOT GOING TO CHURCH,” she said just as Cynthia walked in wearing a green layered sleeveless mini dress. She looked at Desiree and then at Rochelle.

“
Are we going to make a stopover at Revival Baptist?” she asked. Rochelle laughed.

“
Even Cynthia, the more conservative one in the family, thinks whatever that thing is you are wearing is inappropriate for a club. Why do you insist on that hideous skirt while you have so many nice things in here?” Rochelle asked as she rummaged through Desiree’s closet.

“
I like this skirt,” Desiree said in a small sad voice. Rochelle held up two outfits and smiled.

“
You could go with the little black dress. That always works, or the hot pink round neck. I think they are both hot but I think the hot pink is a better pick,” she said. Cynthia took a seat on the edge of the bed and nodded.

“
I second that,” she said raising her hand. Rochelle put the black dress back in the closet.

“
We have our pick. The vote is unanimous,” she said. Desiree frowned.

“
Hey, don’t I get a vote?” she asked.

“
If there is anything that skirt proves, it is the fact that you have absolutely no idea what to wear to a club,” Cynthia said. Rochelle looked at Cynthia and then turned to look at Desiree.

“
In other words, no, you don’t get a vote. Now get dressed. My boyfriend is getting bored,” she said as she handed her sister the dress before she walked out. Desiree shrugged and reluctantly took off the skirt.

“
Hey, we are already late. Get dressed,” Cynthia said as she walked to Desiree’s closet. “By the way, I am borrowing your red heels,” she said as she picked out the shoes. Desiree smiled. It was good to see Cynthia doing better.

“
It’s okay. Get me the blue peep toes while you are down there,” Desiree said as she pulled the dress on. She then looked at Cynthia and wondered whether it was all just an act. Was she really okay? Or was she just putting on a face to look strong? “Thanks,” Desiree said as Cynthia handed her the shoes. Cynthia started walking away but Desiree held her arm. “Hey, how are you? We’ve barely talked since you came back,” she said looking into Cynthia’s eyes. Cynthia smiled.

“
I am fine, Dee. Don’t worry about me,” she said before walking out. Desire took a long deep breath. Cynthia had been away for a good three weeks and in that time she never once called or picked up when Desiree and Rochelle tried to call her. She seemed okay, happy and relaxed and Desiree knew that even yoga could not have such dramatic results. She looked at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. Rochelle and Cynthia were right. She looked so much better than she had in the skirt. She quickly applied her makeup and then put on her shoes. As per Rochelle’s suggestion, she had straightened her hair and worn it down, something she rarely did. She still looked gorgeous anyway. She took a long deep breath as she made her way out to the living room.

“
You take vava vavoom to a whole new level,” Tony said when she walked in. Rochelle walked past her and mouthed “you’re welcome” on her way to the kitchen. Taylor, who had been sitting next to Tony, stood up and walked towards Desiree. She smiled and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“
Is making me horny your sole mission? That dress, those shoes…it’s all I can do not to bend you over the kitchen table right now,” he whispered in her ear. She smiled and looked into his eyes.

“
Well, at the end of this night, I will be drunk and very easy. You can have me then,” she said.

“
I have a better idea,” he said before looking at Tony. “Why don’t you take the girls and head to Crooked Bar. I need to talk to Desiree for a sec,” he said.

“
Sure thing bro. Let’s go, ladies,” Tony said as he led Cynthia and Rochelle out. Desiree smiled as she looked at him.

“
We are not having sex,” she said. Taylor laughed.

“
As disappointed as I am, that’s not the reason I asked them to leave us alone,” he said. Desiree shook her head.

“
Of course. Because me in this dress is not doing anything for you, huh?” she said in a sarcastic voice.

“
First, ouch. Two, don’t get your panties all up in a bunch,” he said looking into her eyes. “Anyway, I have been thinking we’ve been together for quite a while and we have never had a weekend together. Maybe we should do that soon,” he said. Desiree smiled.

“
Are you going to ask me to marry you, Ericson?” she asked. Taylor laughed.

“
If I was, would you say yes?” he asked. Desiree hit him playfully on the arm.

“
Well, I wouldn’t say no,” she said. Taylor nodded.

“
How are you able to do that? Answer a question without really answering?” he asked. She leaned in and kissed him.

“
I guess it’s one of my many talents,” she said. “But yeah, I would love a weekend off,” she added with a smile. He slipped an arm around her and pulled her close.

“
This calls for a celebration, don’t you think?” he said. Desiree shook her head.

“
No sex,” she said sternly. Taylor frowned and pulled away.

“
Tough crowd,” he said as they walked towards the door.

When they got to the club, Tony, Rochelle and Cynthia were still in the parking lot probably waiting. That, and there was a never ending queue.

“Hey guys,” Desiree said cheerfully as they approached them.

“
Wow, that was the shortest quickie in history,” Rochelle said with a smile. Desiree rolled her eyes.

“
There was no sex.” She turned to Taylor. “This is what happens when you don’t wait for the appropriate time to have a talk,” she said.

‘
Well, you’re glowing and I’m just saying,” Rochelle said. Desiree knew she was just teasing but either way she was beginning to hit a nerve.

“
Why are we still out here, anyway?” Desiree asked turning her attention to Cynthia and Tony.

“
Well, there is the queue and there is that,” Cynthia said pointing to an unruly young man who seemed to hog all the attention with the two girls, one on each arm and the way he talked to the bouncers. He actually talked like he owned the place, as if he had no care in the world. Desiree raised an eyebrow when he began roughing up one of the guys on the queue for accidentally bumping into him.

“
I would hate to be on his bad side,” she said.

“
Trust me, you would not want to be on any of his sides at all,” Tony said.

“
Why? You know him?” Desiree asked.

“
Yeah. Who is that?” Cynthia asked.

“
Larry Davenport,” Tony said casually. Rochelle looked at him.

“
Who?” she asked.

“
Ever heard of the Davenport Foundation?” Tony asked.

“
Who hasn’t? There is the Davenport Memorial, Davenport Hospice, Davenport Ranch….the name is everywhere,”

“
Yeah, well he is nothing but trouble. Stay clear of him,” Tony said.

“
Now that’s a threesome I would love to be a part of,” Larry said as they walked past him. Tony stopped when he got to where Larry was.

“
I would be a bit more respectful if I were in your shoes, Davenport. That’s my girl you are talking about,” he said looking at him. Davenport laughed.

“
DeLuca, you are tapping that? Man, aren’t you lucky?” he said and then turned to the girls holding his arms. “You’re good too, ladies, but wow, DeLuca, you have hit the jackpot. That right there is the mother lode of asses,” he added.

Tony looked at Taylor and shook his head. He noticed Taylor walking towards him and mouthed an “I can handle this” to him even though he was not so sure whether he had seen it.

“Just stay away Davenport, for your own good,” Tony said.

“
Oh wow, suddenly DeLuca has some balls. When did they finally drop?” Larry asked. By this time, Taylor had sensed the situation at hand would need more than just Tony’s will to turn the other cheek. He walked up to the two of them and looked at Larry.

“
I would stand down if I was you,” he said looking at Larry. Tony looked at Taylor and then at Larry.

“
Seriously bro, no one wants any trouble here. We all just wanted to have a good time,” he said. Larry took a step forward and looked into Tony’s eyes. He was so close, Tony could feel his warm breath on his nose. Taylor was surprised at how much control Tony seemed to have. Given his way, Taylor would have bashed Larry’s skull in long before he even thought of taking a step towards him. He was so engrossed being a spectator to Tony and Larry’s schlong measuring contest that he did not notice Desiree walking towards them.

Desiree walked fast towards Tony and Larry, her sole purpose to pull Tony out of that mess before anything bad happened. She would have hated for Cynthia’s homecoming to be marred with violence or some other ugly outcome. Her heart was beating fast as she walked towards them. She had decided to do this herself because Rochelle would have taken to a much more dangerous plan. As young as she was, she believed in living by the blade…or in her case, kicks, and Desiree was sure that she would have charged at Larry, not giving any thought to the repercussions of her outcome. She made her way past Larry’s “girls” (whores in her eyes) and laid a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. Larry, perhaps startled, turned around and pushed her. Taylor watched as Desiree was flung to the wall and landed on the floor in a heap. That was it. His self-control was no longer a virtue. He stepped between Tony and Larry and looked into Larry’s eyes.

“That was my woman you just shoved,” he said. Larry smiled.

“
So, the whore with an ass was yours which means…” He never got a chance to finish his sentence as Taylor swung his fist, squarely meeting his face. Right now, he could not think of anything else except for the fact that the man he was fighting had just hurt the woman he loved. Somehow, this whole situation had taken him back to the battlefield. The man fighting was not Taylor Ericson the landscaper, but Sergeant Ericson.

Desiree felt as if the world was moving in slow motion. She could hear people around her talking but she could not make out what exactly they were saying. Her breathing had been reduced to short shallow breaths and she just did not know what she should do at this moment. She had just seen Taylor give someone a knock out. Somewhere between her panic and the craziness, she felt someone hold her and sit her down on the pavement. She could hear voice sin her head.

Dude show some respect…
that was Tony.

Hot piece of ass you got there…
Davenport.

You better shut up or I will shut you up…
Taylor.

Really? What are you going to do about it smart ass…
Davenport.

…
And then a scuffle and suddenly Davenport was on the ground and Taylor, still heated up, was being held back by Tony.

Desiree suddenly became aware of the sirens…police cars, the ambulance. The area outside the club had been turned to mayhem. What was happening? Why was this happening to her? She was still lost in her own world, and barely heard the cop in front of her talking.

“Miss, I asked you a question,” the policeman said. She looked up at the policeman and shook her head.

“
I’m sorry, I….what was your question?” she asked.

“
I understand. I was asking if you could give me your account of what happened here,” he said.

“
Well, um, the guy…he was being disrespectful and he provoked Ericson…”

“…
that would be your boyfriend, right?” the policeman asked cutting her short. She nodded and then turned her attention to Taylor who was being handcuffed.

“
Why are they doing that? Is that really necessary?” she asked as she watched Taylor being forced into the backseat of a police car. The policeman scribbled a few things in his notebook before he looked up and gave her a smile.

“
I’m afraid it is protocol, ma’am,” he said. “I would like you to come down at the station and give your statement. Again, you are not under arrest. It is simply protocol,” he said. Desiree nodded as he walked away. Rochelle walked over to her and looked into her eyes.

“
You okay?” she asked. Desiree shrugged.

“
I don’t know,” she said looking at her sister. “This is one of the longest days I have ever had,” she added.

“
Tell me about it. Maybe the Youngs are not as favored as we thought,” Rochelle said echoing the words of one of their foster parents. Desiree smiled.