No One in the World (25 page)

“Why you all concerned about my relationship all of a sudden?”

“You brought it up.”

“Naw, but you really all off into this. There's somethin' goin' on with you,” Blac said, leaning closer to get a good look into Eric's eyes. “We been about this close, twenty-four-seven for the last two years. I know when something's up. What is it?”

Eric surrendered the bag to Blac. He spotted a bench to sit on. “Let's go over there.”

They sat with their butts on the backrest, their feet on the bench. Eric told Blac what Austen told him about Cobi's arrangement. How he was going to pay her to marry him so Cobi could get his trust fund.

“Trust fund, huh?” Blac said. “How much is it?”

“I don't know.”

“Okay, he got this woman livin' at the house, he gonna marry her to get his trust fund,” Blac said. “What's the problem?”

“The woman's the problem. Like I told you, she's fine as hell, and somehow—”

“You fucked her.”

“Yeah, I fucked her. And I feel guilty as shit, but—”

“But what?” Blac said, a smirk on his face.

“I loved Jess, and I always felt she was sitting out here waiting on me. I never thought about being with another woman. Turns out, she with some dude. I'm by myself, and now this woman is here, and—”

“You slept with her one night. Don't go telling me you falling all in love.”

“I ain't in love. It feels good to be with her, and I kinda like this girl, is all. But this is the woman my brother is supposed to be marrying, and while he trying to help me with Maya, giving me a place to live, a job, I'm fucking his fiancée.”

“Your brother's gay. Trust me, he don't care.”

“How in the hell would you know he don't care?”

Blac hesitated a moment, then said, “It ain't rocket science. Punks don't like women, all right?”

“I haven't known the dude long, but I've known him long enough to know how he would see it if he found out. It's the fucking principle. I gotta break this off now, before something really gets started.”

A
usten and Julia had spent the last half hour browsing through Neiman Marcus. The two stood near the fitting rooms with a short rack of dresses they'd selected for the affair Austen was attending tonight with Cobi.

Austen stood in the three-way mirror, holding a sequined dress up under her chin.

“What do you think?” Austen said.

“Too nineteen-twenties. Tie a couple of bananas to it, and you'll look just like Josephine Baker.”

“Whatever,” Austen said, passing the dress back to Julia. “Give me that one. The black one with the silver.”

Julia picked through the last few dresses Austen hadn't tried on and held out the black one. She took a quick glance at the price tag and said, “Uh, you probably don't want it.”

“Why not?”

“Because it cost a little less than the Honda you bought the other day.”

Austen smiled and took the dress from Julia. “In that case, I'm trying it on.”

Julia followed Austen and stood just outside the fitting room door. She could see Austen's feet and the top of her hair.

“So the other day you were all about trying to spend as little of Cobi's money as possible,” Julia said, on her tiptoes, trying to get a look at the dress. “And now you're trying to buy the most expensive piece in here. What happened?”

After a little rustling from inside the fitting room, Julia saw Austen holding up a black AMEX card over the door.

“Okay, yeah, so what? You knew the man had money.”

Austen stepped out wearing the perfectly fitted black silk dress with one bare shoulder.

Standing on her toes to simulate heels, Austen spun in a circle and did a short modeling run for Julia.

“Girl, that dress is hot!”

“Thank you, darling,” Austen said, batting her eyes. “That means I'm getting it.”

After buying the dress, Austen and Julia walked into the women's restroom. “I'm still waiting for you to tell me why the change all of a sudden,” Julia said.

Austen placed her bag on the diaper changing station, then walked by all the stalls, softly pushing each door open, checking to make sure they were empty.

Julia watched Austen suspiciously. “Please tell me exactly what you're doing?”

“I told you, we've been followed before,” Austen said, relaxing a little after making sure they were alone. She walked over to the door, locked it, then came back to Julia, who was leaning on the edge of a sink.

“I found a new reason to stay.”

“Exactly what do you mean by that?”

Not telling Julia about Eric being an ex-con, because she knew how judgmental her friend was, she said, “I accidently slipped and fell on top of Eric's dick last night.”

“What?” Julia said, shocked.

“It was my bad, but we made the best of it.”

“Geez,” Julia said, pacing away from Austen. “All the shit that's at stake for you and you're risking it for sex. Can you stop playing for a minute? This is serious shit.”

“Oh, you wanna stop playing?” Austen said, instantly stone-faced. “Fine. Let me stop fucking playing and lay it all out here. These people
have just bought me like a piece of property. It feels like that bitch Sissy knows exactly where I am every minute of the day and to whom I'm speaking. They tell me what to do, how to do it, and when, and I'm not even married to Cobi yet. I needed something that was mine. I needed a choice, and I needed to be the one to make the decision. And the decision I made was not to be put up like some perfect little doll in a glass case. If Cobi were straight, and he was fucking me, then I wouldn't screw Eric. But he's not, so I am. That's all there is to it.”

“So when does it stop?” Julia asked.

“It just started. Last night was the first—”

“I said, when does it stop?”

“I don't know. If I have any say, I don't think I'll be quick to end it anytime soon.”

“You know you're playing with fire,” Julia said, giving Austen a long stare. “And when you do that, shit gets burned the fuck up.”

T
o say that I felt like everyone's eyes were on me and Austen the moment we climbed out of the limo was an understatement.

I felt handsome in my simple black tuxedo and tie, but Austen was downright dazzling. Her hair was pinned up, her makeup was flawless, her lips were a sparkling red, and that black dress was something that could've been worn by Halle Berry or Kerry Washington on the red carpet Oscar night.

The event was held at the Field Museum on the lakefront.

Beneath the high ceilings, ice sculptures, balloons, and champagne fountains, we stood among the busts of Roman emperors and ancient columns.

A full band of musicians dressed in matching tuxedos, complete with horns and stringed instruments, played beautiful, uptempo, big-band jazz.

Austen and I spent most of our time walking arm in arm among the hundreds of other well-dressed, well-paid professionals.

I had bumped into more old friends, associates, and former coworkers than I had expected. Upon seeing Austen on my arm, they all smiled brightly, hugged me, or shook my hand and asked who the gorgeous woman was.

After about half an hour of that, I leaned in to Austen and asked rather loudly, in order to be heard over the band music, “You doing okay?”

She smiled and said, “I'm having a fantastic time.”

As I continued to walk about the museum, smiling, laughing, talking, and drinking with Austen and my friends, I experienced something I never had before. I wasn't sure what it was, but it felt like a strong sense of pride for simply being seen with this beautiful woman. As if simply having Austen by my side made me a better, more confident man.

When I introduced her to other men as my fiancée, they seemed to look at me in a different light. Before some of the men walked away, they would nudge me with an elbow, and whisper from the sides of their mouths, “Fine-looking woman,” or “Dude, she's a ten,” or “You're a lucky man, Winslow.”

I wondered if this feeling of manliness had been something my father experienced when out at some function with my mother. And as I stood gazing at Austen, I wondered if this feeling, this moment, was what my father so desperately had wanted me to experience.

He had to have known that forcing me to marry a woman would never change me from gay to straight, but I was beginning to wonder if that had even been his intention. Could he just have wanted me to see what I had been missing all my life?

“What?” Austen said, noticing the trance I had fallen into. She was truly beautiful. Gay man or not, I was not so blind I couldn't see that.

“You are beautiful,” I told her.

She looked surprised, blushed a little, then leaned in and gave me a peck on the cheek. “And you are one of the most handsome men I have ever met.”

I instantly inflated with pride, grabbed her hand, and was about to lead Austen toward a couple of friends, when someone grabbed me by the arm. I turned and was shocked to be looking directly into Tyler's smiling face.

“You've been gallivanting around here all evening and can't even stop to say hello to your old friend,” Tyler said. Kennedi was standing at his side, looking beautiful as always.

“And who is the mesmerizing woman standing beside you, Cobi, you old dog?” Tyler said.

“Tyler, Kennedi,” I said proudly, “please allow me to present Austen Melrose Greer, my fiancée.”

Kennedi cupped a hand over her mouth, then said, “Oh, no. Where have you been keeping this beautiful woman locked up?”

“He has a special cave under the basement, where I do all the dishes and laundry,” Austen said, stepping around me and Tyler to give Kennedi a hug. Tyler gave me an approving nod. Kennedi whispered something to Austen, then rested a hand on Tyler's shoulder. “I'll be back. I'm going to the ladies' room.”

“I'll go with you,” Austen said. “Give these guys some time to talk.”

Austen grabbed my hand, squeezed it before leaving, as if we were a real couple. When the two ladies left, I felt strangely alone, even though I was standing right beside Tyler, the place I had wanted to be for so long.

Tyler looked left and right at all the people in the museum, then took one step closer to me. “She's wonderful, Cobi. Sissy did a great job.”

“Well, you know Sissy,” I said, not looking at Tyler. I ran a finger around the rim of my wineglass instead.

“You're doing the right thing, you know. I've been watching you. I've seen the reception you've been getting from everyone, and I know you have to have noticed yourself. Do you see the difference that a woman can make?”

“I don't know what you're talking about,” I lied, knowing full well now what Tyler meant.

He laughed, still knowing me better than I'd like him to. “Play with me if you want,” he said. “But once you get married, you'll see what I mean. More professional opportunities will start to present themselves, friendships, more powerful alliances will be made, all because of that woman.” Tyler moved closer to me, looked directly into my eyes. “And maybe some old relationships can be rekindled.”

T
he next day, Eric sat in the passenger seat of Cobi's Mercedes.

He was dressed in a dark jacket, tie, and white shirt. He rode beside Cobi quietly as his brother drove him to the family law court building.

“So, just like that?” Eric asked, this morning, while he was standing in Cobi's room, letting Cobi knot the tie around his neck. “If the judge says my rights should be taken, that's it.”

“Yeah,” Cobi said. “Just like that.”

“I'll never be able to see my little girl again.”

Cobi looked Eric in the eyes, tightened the knot in his tie, then said, “Let's worry about that if it happens.”

“No,” Eric said, grabbing on to one of Cobi's wrists. “Does it really mean what she says it does, if she wins?”

“Yeah, Eric. Jess's fiancé can adopt Maya. You will no longer have any rights pertaining to her. You'd only be able to visit her if Jess and her boyfriend allow it.”

Those words echoed in Eric's head, no matter how hard he tried to force them out.

Cobi pulled the key from the ignition of the Mercedes and said, “We're at the courthouse, Eric. It's time to do this.”

T
he hearing took place in a small room. Jessica Freeman and her supporters sat on one side of a long conference table. Eric, myself, and Austin Harris sat at the other end. In front of us, on the other side of the table, sat an older, clean-shaven man. His name was Judge Peters.

Beside Jessica sat a tall, good-looking, attentive man who held her hand. Jessica's mother was there, as well as a younger sister and a girlfriend.

Everyone was briefed by the judge as to how the hearing would proceed. Testimony would be heard from Jessica and those who represented her, then Eric and anyone who represented him. Sadly, I was the only person to speak on his behalf. After that, the judge would render his verdict.

“I don't feel good about this,” Eric leaned over and whispered to me.

“Everything's going to be fine,” I said, steadying him, holding on to his arm. “I told you, I trust Mr. Harris. He's a good attorney.”

Jessica's little sister, Lisa, was called to speak first. The judge asked her to give her account of how Eric treated his daughter.

Eric leaned over to me again. “Why they asking her that? She know how well I treated Maya. Ain't that just gonna help my case?”

“Let's hope so, Eric,” I said.

Lisa stated her name and swore that the testimony she was about to give was truthful.

She began by saying, “One day I stopped by Jess's house, because I knew she had to work and Eric would be there by himself with the baby. When I knocked on the door, nobody answered. I didn't leave because I knew Eric didn't have a car, so wherever he went with Maya, I knew it wouldn't have been far. Five minutes later, Eric walked up to the door, but I didn't see the baby with him. I asked him where she was. He told me he had only planned to be gone twenty minutes, so it was easier leaving her at home.