Second Time Around (25 page)
Read Second Time Around Online
Authors: Darrin Lowery
Chapter Twenty-three
Bastard.
Why did he have to look so good? I mean, really, why did he have to look so damned good?
This is what Korie thought to herself as she rode back to Vaughn's place in a chauffeured Phantom Rolls-Royce. She and Vaughn watched highlights of the game on TV in the car as they were driven.
Vaughn poured himself a drink of bourbon from the car's minibar and Korie had a diet soda. She and Vaughn enjoyed the first half of the game. By the time the second half began, all Korie could think about was him. Her head was on the defense. Her head said things to Darren that her heart didn't want her to, but now as she rode home with Vaughn, all she could think about was him.
She took a few sips of soda and leaned on Vaughn's shoulder as if she were going to sleep. He enjoyed her embrace and smiled at her. He enjoyed their urban outings. He enjoyed it when they went among average people, and did average things like attend sporting events, go to the movies, or even roller-skating.
Both Korie and Vaughn relaxed in the car in each other's arms. Vaughn thought to that he was lucky to have her. Korie thought that she was lucky to be with a man like Vaughn. Still, her thoughts were of him. She tried her best not to compare the two men. She tried her best not to think of Darren and cherish the times that she shared with Vaughn. Still, she couldn't help wondering what could have been. She couldn't stop thinking about where they might be now, had they stayed together. She asked herself if she would still be as successful as she is now. Would he? Would they have children by now and be struggling, or would they still have made it to where they were now?
She certainly would never have seen Tokyo had she stayed with Darren. Chances are she might never have pursued her dreams had she not been laid off. Chances were if she would have been laid off, Darren would have picked up the majority of the bills, and she might have just ended up being a housewife or a stay-at-home-mom had they stayed together. She thought about what if. She also thought that he hadn't changed much.
He still wore Aqua Di Gio by Armani. He still wore his head in a bald fade. He still had an amazing smile, and he was everything that she rememberedâtall, dark, and handsome.
He was also arrogant. He was also presumptuous. He looked good. But his attitude seemed ugly. The years had not humbled him much. In fact, he might have become the man that she was worried he would become when they were struggling.
I bet he's not half as busy as I am.
That's what he said. That's what he let walk out of his mouth.
Korie thought about it. He might have been right. Vaughn was a remarkable man. Had she been dating anyone else, chances are they would not have been half as busy as Darren was.
If she were dating any other man.
But she wasn't.
She was dating DeVaughn Harris. She dated him because she chose to; because he was interested in her, and because of the woman that she was. Korie wondered why Darren seemed to expect so little of her. Then she thought back to the woman who she was five years ago.
The woman who she was five years ago would not have landed DeVaughn Harris.
The woman she was five years ago could barely hold on to Darren Howard.
Darren pushed her in the right direction. He saw the potential that she had, even when she didn't see it for herself. In part, she was who she was today because of him. He was the one who suggested that she open her own business. He was the one who suggested that she go back to school. He was the one who created her business plan on her laptop years before she seriously considered opening her own business.
He had two business plans on her laptop. One was for sewing and the other was for interior decorating. She used every idea and every spreadsheet. Korie thought that everything that he created was well researched and done exactly the way she would have done things. He did a good job. He created the business plans for her as he would have done for himself; with great care and detail. He really wanted to see her succeed.
All she ever wanted was him, struggle or not.
All he ever wanted was for her to be patient. In truth, he wanted the very best for her, whether he supplied it, or she supplied it for herself, he wanted nothing but the best for her.
He was right.
She was also right.
And they both were wrong.
She lay in Vaughn's arms and wondered if she had been too hard on him. She wondered if she should have taken his phone calls or at least listened to him. She wanted to be fair. She wanted to especially be fair with Vaughn and see where their relationship might be going. She weighed her options. She thought briefly about both men and decided in her head that she was done with Darren. She thought about how he left, without warning and without discussion.
She thought about the check that he left.
A check that she never cashed.
She didn't need his damned handout.
She didn't need anything from him.
She never asked for anything . . . but his love.
No. She would stay with Vaughn. She decided that she would move forward. It made no sense to move backward. She had a man. She had a man who was loving, caring, and attentive.
She had a man who had the ability to give her the world. A man who wanted to give her the world; a man who would never put her off for a five-year-plan, even if that plan had the best-laid intentions.
Darren was not that man.
That's what her head said.
Her heart; her heart was not so sure.
“So, what do we do next?” she asked Vaughn.
“Well, I need to put in more hours at the office. I have a number of loose ends to tie up this week and this weekend”âhe gave her a kissâ“you and I are going to the black creativity ball.”
“A formal outing?”
“A formal outing.”
“Good. I'd like to take my hair down and dress up. It'll be a great change of pace.”
“What? You didn't like the Bulls game? It was your idea.”
“I loved the game. I love hanging out and doing things like this. I love the fact that you're open to trying things in my world. Now, I think I'm ready to enjoy some of the things in your world, on two conditions.”
“And those conditions are?”
“One, no work at the event. And two, you dance at least three times with me.”
Vaughn laughed. “Okay. Okay, I can definitely keep my end with the dancing part, but I'll have to do some business while I'm there. It won't be much more than shaking a few hands and letting a few people know that I have my eye on their companies, but after that, I'm yours. So I tell you what, let me handle my business first, and after that, I'm yours for the night to do whatever you want.”
“Whatever I want?”
“Girl, you know I could never deny you anything.”
“Then what I want is in a few weeks, we go out for a three-day weekend, my treat.”
“Where do you want to go?”
“Hawaii.”
“Hawaii? Why Hawaii?”
“Because I've never been and after I finish decorating the district attorney's house next week, I should have enough money to take us both.”
“Girl, you know money is no object.”
“It is when I'm spending it.”
They both laughed.
Korie lay back in his arms as they headed back to Vaughn's place.
After arriving at Vaughn's place, he went to his den to get some work done and Korie went to the master bedroom and changed into her silk pj's. Since dating Vaughn she had a full closet full of clothes at his place.
The closet in Vaughn's master bedroom was about as big as Korie's apartment. Their relationship moved at a very fast pace. Korie spent at least three days a week at Vaughn's home. Sometimes he wasn't home. Sometimes he was working, but there were days that he got off and she would be waiting for him. For Vaughn it was always a pleasant surprise. Very often these days he asked her to move in with him. Korie declined. She told him it was too soon and she also wanted to maintain her independence. Vaughn understood.
Korie wondered what it would be like to be married to Vaughn, to manage his grand home, to decorate his home and to be a woman of means like the Real Housewives of Atlanta, only not so dramatic and narcissistic.
She wondered what it would be like to live with him. She hadn't lived with a man since Darren. She didn't want to make the same mistake twice. Before moving in or even taking their relationship to the next level, Korie had to know exactly where the relationship with Vaughn was going.
She decided the next time he was available, she wanted to redefine their relationship, to talk, to find out what exactly it is that they were doing and what exactly were Vaughn's intentions.
Their relationship was far from strictly one of a sexual nature. In truth, they only had sex maybe once or twice a week. Their relationship was more about their friendship; their bond. When other needs had to be satisfied, Vaughn broke out the Viagra and met Korie's physical needs. She wished they had sex more. Vaughn was a patient and attentive lover, but he was also in his late forties.
Because he was in such great shape, Korie was often surprised that he needed Viagra. Vaughn blamed his inability to perform at times on his job and his levels of stress. The truth was sometimes he was bored with Korie sexually. Considering all the models and escorts that he dated, when it came to beauty, the bar had been raised too high. It was like a man who masturbated frequently to porn, and couldn't perform with his wife.
He often needed Viagra with the escorts as well. Being with exotic women had become all too boring to Vaughn. When he was seeing the escorts sometimes it was to get his physical needs met. Sometimes it was strictly for image purposes in high-society magazines. Other times it was out of routine.
Dating Korie was a novelty to him because she was real and because she had flaws. He liked her personality, her natural breasts, and the fact that she was real. His past sometimes crept into his relationship with Korie, however. One time specifically was when he offered to pay for implants for her. This sparked their first argument because Korie thought Vaughn was trying to change her. He was. But his excuse was it was only a gift and meant as a kind gesture. At the time he made the offer, he was in fact thinking about an escort that he once saw who reminded him of Korie.
That was the only time that he offered to augment her body.
It was not the last time, however, that he thought about it.
Chapter Twenty-four
Korie hadn't heard from Jayna in a while and didn't want to be like some women who get a man and don't keep in touch with their girlfriends. Korie had been sending Jayna text messages and e-mails, but they hadn't seen each other in close to a month. Since she had free time on her hands, Korie decided to call her friend.
“Hello?” a groggy voice said.
“Jayna, it's me.”
“Hey girl.” She sounded flat, exhausted, depressed.
“You okay?”
“I'm fine. How are things with you?”
“Things are great. Vaughn keeps asking me to move in with him, but I'm not sure yet. Jay, I am so happy that you convinced me to go out with him.”
“That's great, sis. How was Tokyo?”
Korie went on to tell Jayna how Tokyo was, and all of the wonderful places that she and Vaughn went. She talked about the sights, the food, and the madness that happened in the bathroom on the final day. She told Jayna how Vaughn wanted them to move in together and how they were going to the black creativity ball that weekend.
“That's great, Korie.”
Jayna still sounded a bit flat, but she was engaged in the conversation.
“Jayna, is everything okay? How are things with you and Brandon?”
There was silence on the other end of the phone.
“Jayna?” Korie called out.
“We broke up.” Jayna sounded depressed and broken.
“When? Why?”
“While you were in Tokyo. We broke up because I'm a ho.”
“What? I don't understand.”
Jayna recounted how everything went down between her and Brandon. She went on to tell Korie how her past had finally caught up with her. Jayna was broken. She was hurt beyond words. Korie asked Jayna if she was okay and Jayna said that she wasn't but she would be.
Jayna started going back to church, she got back in therapy, and she continued on her grind at work. It was hard getting through the days. She took each day one at a time. It was especially hard to get through her days without Korie's support. But like a true friend, Jayna didn't want to burden Korie with her problems. Especially considering how happy Korie was.
It had been a long time since Korie had been so happy. Jayna finally figured out that she needed to work on herself. She needed to change the woman she was on the inside if she were to ever find love again. She loved Brandon. She missed Brandon. She wanted him back in her life. He hadn't called and she respected his wishes and didn't call him back after their last night together. Jayna was miserable without him. She prayed each night to God that one day Brandon would return to her.
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Korie was mad that Brandon would leave Jayna over her past. What was in her past, was her past and none of his business, she thought. When she got off the phone it was almost an hour later. She then went down to the den to speak with Vaughn, who was working at his desktop computer. She walked in upset, although her issue was not with him.
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“Did you know that Brandon broke up with Jayna?”
Vaughn didn't even look up from his computer. He adjusted his glasses and continued typing.
“Yes, I did.” His response was flat, matter-of-factly.
“Do you know why?”
He continued typing. “Yes. I believe it had something to do with her being promiscuous.”
“And you think he was right?”
Korie placed her hand on her hip. She was upset, but again, Vaughn was not the source of her ire. Brandon was.
“It doesn't matter what I think. It's none of my business.”
“But you know what happened.”
“Of course I do. Brandon is like a son to me.”
“Were you going to tell me?”
“No. Actually, I wasn't.”
Vaughn continued to type.
“Why not?”
He stopped typing. He took his glasses off and placed them on the desk, then leaned back in his chair and rubbed his eyes and yawned before speaking. He was still in the same clothes he wore to the game.
“Well, I assumed your girlfriend would tell you. In fact, that was a while ago that they broke up. I assumed that she told you.”
“And you didn't bring it up at all this whole time since you've known?”
“Why would I? Again, it's not my business. Actually, it's not your business either.”
“That's my best friend.”
“Then be there for your friend. Support her. Her thing . . . their thing . . . has nothing to do with us.”
Korie fell silent.
“You're right,” she said.
“I know.”
He continued typing. He hadn't even looked up from the computer. That response took her by surprise. It reminded her of Darren. That was not a good thing.
“You know?”
Now both hands were on Korie's hips.
Vaughn laughed.
“What's funny?”
“You are. Look, did you just really want to fight and that's why you came down here? Or are you upset about what happened with your girlfriend and you need to vent? If so, I have a really good therapist on retainer you can talk to.” Vaughn put his glasses on and went back to working.
“I don't believe you think this is funny.”
“Look, sweetheart, it's not funny, but your superhero pose right now is. Babe, I have a lot of work to do. I'm sorry about your friend's situation with Brandon, I truly am. But sweetheart, I'm not your enemy. And I'm not going to argue with you about Brandon and Jayna. In fact, I don't plan to discuss it at all.”
“And if I do plan on discussing it?”
“Then, sweetheart, that is one conversation you will be having by yourself.”
“Do you think Brandon was right?”
“Korie . . .”
“Just answer that for me. Do you think he was right in leaving her?”
“I do.”
“Why, if all that was in her past?”
Vaughn took his glasses back off. He got up and went to the bar in his den and poured himself some bourbon. It was clear that Korie was not going to simply let this go. He stretched before speaking.
“Okay, look, you really want my opinion?”
“I do.”
“You and Jayna, you all are in a different league now with a different set of rules. You all are society women now. Not that you weren't before, but the social circles you are in now are quite different from the social circles you all are used to. This is a close-knit group. Now how would it look for Brandon to go to, say, this event this weekend, for example and Jayna has slept with twelve of the thirty most prominent men who will be there. She'll look like a ho. Right or wrong?”
Korie shrugged.
“Now here Brandon is walking around town, claiming your girlfriend, telling people how much he loves her, and taking pictures for the press, when he hears from his staff membersâhis subordinates, mind youâthat she has been around. Our lawyers, our public relations people, and many of our consultants, one of which who has slept with Jayna, tell Brandon that she's bad business or that she's damaged goods. Mind you, they told him months after he's been seeing her. It's pretty hard to bounce back from that when it's common knowledge that the woman you are telling everyone you love is a whore.”
“Whore is a bit extreme and if she were a manâ”
“But she's not. That excuse is not a valid excuse and it has never been. I know what you were going to say. Had she been a man, she would be considered a hero or player, whereas when a woman does the same things as a man she is considered a ho. Well, Korie, I have a few things to say about that. One, she's not a man, so stop with that. Two, sleeping with a bunch of men makes a woman a ho. Is it right? No. But that's simply the way things are.”
“But if men and women are equalâ”
“They're not, period. There are exceptions to the rule. There are things that some woman can do that men can't do but if you want the truth, men and women are not equal. You all have your roles and we have ours. In the absence of one, the other sex must fulfill certain duties. But men and women, sweetheart, are by no means equal. We're stronger, and we have our dominate traits whereas women have their dominate traits. We're the hunters and you all are the nurturers.”
Korie was becoming incensed as the argument went forward. She kept telling herself that she opened this door, but she also needed to close it. But she did want to know more about Vaughn, more about who he was, and where their relationship was going, so she left the door open.
“What type of antiquated bullshit theory is that? Next you are going to tell me that I should be in the kitchen in some damn heels and an apron!”
“Why do things have to be that extreme? Seriously, why? In fact, why are we arguing about this? We were having no problems until your girlfriendâthe hoâcalled.”
“The ho?” Korie raised her voice even more.
“I'm sorry. The whore. Let's keep it real. That's what you young people say now, right? I'm quite sure that you were privy to your girlfriend's sexual escapades. I'm also quite sure that you don't approve.”
“I don't approve, but it's not my place to judge her. Only God can judge her. Neither you or Brandon have the right to judge her.”
“You know what? You're right. I don't have the right to judge her. She's not my woman and I'm not sleeping with her, but Brandon has the right to decide not to continue seeing her.”
“Because of her past?”
“Because of how her past may affect his future. Their future.”
“And if I slept with a bunch of men would you feel the same about me? Or would it be okay as long as I stayed in my place as a woman?”
“Okay, back to that. Maybe I should not have said that men and women are not equal.”
“You think? So you see that you're wrong, then. right?”
“No, I see that's one opinion I should've kept to myself to keep the peace.”
“So you really feel that way?”
“I do. But listen; to clarify what I mean, I will say this. Men should respect women. Women should respect themselves. It's obvious to me that in the case of Jayna, she didn't respect herself or her body. She put herself at risk. Now, without saying a whole lot, one of the men she slept with has syphilis. It's in its advanced stages, and he's had it for years. He had to step down from his post as a CEO at forty-five years of age because the STD damaged his brain. Now, does that mean your girlfriend has syphilis? No. But she put herself at risk. What if it had been AIDS? Your friend, Brandon's girlfriend, put herself at risk. In turn she could have put him at risk, period. Now back to what I was saying: A man should respect a woman. A man should respect his wife. If that man does not do his part, then the woman should step up and fulfill that role.”
“And aside from that, you're saying that a woman shouldn't do what a man does?”
“No, what I'm saying is that a woman should fulfill her role, whatever that is. Men and women should have the same goals, not the same roles. In that, I mean that although we may have common goals, we will most likely take different paths. Men and women are different physically, mentally, and spiritually. We are. We're more aggressive, you all are more subtle. There is strength in both, but we have, in my opinion, two totally different core strengths. We are givers, you are receivers; we're hunters, you are nurturers; we're stronger and you all are weaker . . . physically. We should be taking care of youâin our way. You should be taking care of usâin your way. Then together, we should be moving toward that common goal.”
“Vaughn, there are a lot of weak-ass men out there and there are women who will work circles around some men and Jayna is a prime example of that.”
“Okay, that's fair. In the workplace there are some formidable women out there. I will give you that.”
“Then that point I just made shoots your argument all to hell.”
“Maybe, maybe not. Listen. Once upon a time, giraffes had smaller necks. But over time, when food was scarce, their bodies adapted so they could get to the foliage above them. Over time, they did what they had to do to survive and save the species. It's the same thing with men and women. There are a lot of weak-ass men out there and in order to save the species, women had to step up and fill that void.”
“And you're trying to take us back to caveman times?”
“No, I'm trying to take you back to the way things should be. Korie, if we are a couple and you work, you should work because you want to work, not because you have to work. Korie, you should be taken care of.”
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