Twisted (21 page)

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Authors: Tracy Brown

BOOK: Twisted
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James nodded. “He'll sure be surprised. He didn't seem like he was expecting you.”
Asia caught James's meaning. She wondered if she was too late. Had Rah-lo found Celeste already? “He didn't tell you who he was looking for?” Asia asked.
Who had told her that he was looking for someone? James immediately shot a penetrating glance at Brian.
James shook his head. “Nope. He didn't mention any names.”
Asia looked at Brian to see if he had anything to add. She wanted to see if he looked like he believed James. Brian shrugged, seeing that she was trying to gauge his reaction. He knew James was lying. But Brian couldn't say so.
James wanted to kick Brian's ass, but the phone rang. “Excuse me,” James said, and went into the kitchen to answer it. He hoped it was Rah-lo so that he could warn him of his unexpected visitor. The minute James was out of earshot, Asia turned to little Brian.
“I got twenty dollars if you tell me where Rah-lo went,” she said. “I know you know something.”
He smirked. He liked her style. She was so “New York”! “You can keep your twenty and let me see your titties,” he suggested. She was a dime piece for real!
Asia wanted to slap the shit out of his young ass. “Do you want the twenty or not?” She waved it in his face invitingly. Little bastard!
“Yeah. Rah-lo went to find his old shorty,” the kid said matter-of-factly. He snatched the money, smiling. He tucked it discreetly into his sock.
Asia was pissed. “He told you that?”
“Yes, ma'am. He didn't tell me her name, but he said he was here to find her.”
James came back into the room and cleared his throat heavily. He shot a look at the kid that made it clear that his
input wasn't wanted. The look on James's face said,
Shut the fuck up
, but Brian didn't seem fazed by it. He had a twenty in his sock, and that was all that mattered.
James looked at Asia. “This is Wanda's son Brian,” he explained. “She went out shopping again and his nappy-headed ass don't know how to stay out of grown folks' business.” James glared at Brian.
Asia suddenly needed to get out of there. She felt like she wanted to burst into tears, but she certainly didn't want to do so in front of Uncle James and his too-mature-for-his-own-age stepkid. “Okay. I'm gonna go. I'm staying at the Embassy Suites in Buckhead.”
“You want me to tell Rah-lo you're here?”
Asia was already at the front door. “No,” she said over her shoulder as she made a hasty exit. “I'll tell him myself.” Asia ran out to her car, got in, and peeled out. She looked in her rearview as she left and saw Uncle James pop little Brian in the head for talking too much. She wiped the tears from her eyes and dialed Rah-lo's cell phone number.
His phone went straight to voice mail and she was furious. When she heard the beep she began her tirade. “You motherfucka! I know you're with that
bitch
! And when I find her I'm gonna kill her, I swear. I went to your uncle James's house, so I know you're not there. And that little bastard he has running around there told me that you went looking for your shorty. Call me back, Rah-lo!”
Asia hung up the phone and immediately redialed. She left five messages and each one was more venomous than the last. As she pulled up at the hotel, she was eager to get to her room so that she could have a good old-fashioned cry.
 
 
Rah-lo rang the doorbell and waited. Soon he heard shuffling outside of the door and the locks being undone. A slightly smaller and much older version of Celeste peeked out the cracked door. “Yes?” Nana asked the handsome young man standing before her. Rah-lo was dressed presentably in a pair of jeans and a button-up.
“Hello, Mrs. Styles. My name is Rah-lo. I spoke to you on the phone.”
Nana smiled. “Yesssss, Oslo!” she exclaimed, opening the door wider. “Come on in.” She held the door ajar as Rah-lo entered. He started to correct her but decided against it. Judging from the volume of her voice, he assumed she was hard of hearing. As he entered the house, a large Rottweiler barreled up to him and Rah-lo was caught off guard. He expected the dog to bark at him and act aggressively. But instead, the dog jumped on Rah-lo and began to lick his face.
“Zeus! Get down!” Nana yelled at him. “He's not usually this affectionate,” she said.
Rah-lo smiled. “This is Zeus? I gave him to Celeste as a gift when he was a puppy. God, he got so big!” He petted the monster's large head and smiled.
Nana was amazed. “They say a dog never forgets a scent. I guess it's true.” She led Rah-lo into her living room, with Zeus following close behind. “It's too bad you just missed Celeste's mama. My daughter, Zara, just went down to choir rehearsal.” Nana gestured toward the sofa, and Rah-lo smiled and took a seat.
“It's all right. I doubt she would want to see me. I actually came to talk to you.”
Nana sat down slowly in her rocking chair and kicked her size 6 feet up on the ottoman. “Really?” she asked. “Why me?” She sized Rah-lo up and saw why Celeste was so smitten. Rah-lo was handsome, tall, and strong. He seemed like he'd be a real powerhouse in the sack.
“I came down here to see Celeste,” he explained. Rah-lo laid out his entire love life for Nana's inspection. He told her about loving her granddaughter while he was married to another woman. He told Nana about his children, his career choice, his love for Celeste, and his desire to be with her for real this time. Rah-lo spoke about the demise of his marriage and how he'd come to Atlanta to win back Celeste's heart. Nana listened in silence, nodding every now and then, absorbing all that he said.
“So, you say that you love my grandbaby, but you kept her quiet for how many years?” she asked, her brow slightly furrowed.
Rah-lo sighed. “It was a long time, Mrs. Styles—”
“You can call me Nana, handsome.”
Rah-lo smiled, caught off guard. “Nana, I really love Celeste. I do. And I did keep our relationship a secret for years. I know I messed up and I never should have let her leave. But I'm here to fix that now. All I need her to do is listen to me. I was hoping you could help me.”
Nana nodded. “Let me tell you a story,” she said.
Rah-lo sat back and crossed one leg across his lap. He figured that this could be a long one.
“I used to be something in my youth, chile. I had a man I loved back when I was nineteen years old. See, in those days there wasn't no shacking up or sleeping around. You got married or your daddy would whup somebody's ass for messing around with his daughter.”
Rah-lo laughed at Nana's narration.
“So when I fell in love with this man—who was twenty-four and married with two kids—I kept it quiet from my family. He kept telling me that he was gonna leave his wife someday soon and he was gonna marry me. I held on and waited and waited. One year turned into the next and before you knew it I was twenty-two and still waiting to be this man's wife. My family couldn't understand why I wouldn't date anybody or try to find a suitable husband. And I couldn't tell them because it was my big secret. I had to keep it to myself. Eventually, I realized that my mister wasn't going to leave his missus. So I finally managed to get over him and I met my husband. We were married, and then two years later Zara was born. A year after that, my husband died from
pneumonia. I can't help wondering if all those years I spent waiting for my married man could have been years spent with my husband, enjoying more of his time than what I had with him.”
Rah-lo sighed, figuring his attempt to get Nana on his side had been fruitless.
“We women often tell our daughters and our granddaughters to stay away from married men because they never actually leave their wives. Most of the time that's the truth. But you have actually done it. And you seem to be really in love with my Celeste. I think that is beautiful. And I hope it's not too late for you to win her heart. But what's to stop you from cheating on her and leaving her when the going gets tough?”
“Mrs.—Nana, I love Celeste. She's everything I ever wanted in a woman. Smart, funny, motivated, beautiful, supportive. What more could I want? I would never cheat on her. When a man cheats I believe it's because there's something missing at home. I couldn't talk to my ex about what I was missing. She wasn't approachable like that. But I can talk to Celeste about anything. She understands me and I understand her. I can't guarantee that she'll be happy for the rest of her life, but I can guarantee that I'll try to make it that way. For as long she'll let me.”
Nana smiled. “Now that was a good answer,” she said. She reached for the phone and dialed her granddaughter's phone number. “Hi, Celeste,” she said. “Can you come over here as soon as you can? My arthritis is acting up again and
your mama is out at the church.” Celeste assured Nana that she was on her way and she hung up.
 
 
Celeste walked into the house and froze in her tracks. Whirling around, she glared at Nana. “Your arthritis, huh?” She turned back to Rah-lo and shook her head. “You should be embarrassed, using my grandmother to get me to come over here.”
Nana intervened. “Hush your mouth!” she scolded. “Ain't no man used me in far too long!”
Rah-lo laughed and Celeste blushed.
“I spent the better part of this afternoon talking to Raheem about how he feels about you. Now this man has come a long way to talk to you I think it's only right that you hear what he has to say.” Nana peeked out the curtains. “But your mama will be back here shortly. And you know she ain't gonna like this one bit. Take Raheem on down to the diner and have some coffee with the man. Listen to him. And if you still don't want to be bothered, he said he'll leave you alone for good. Ain't that right, Rah-lo?”
Rah-lo was caught off guard once again. He had never agreed to that and Nana's words visibly shocked him. But he rolled with it and nodded. “I just want to talk to you, that's all.”
Celeste looked at Nana and shook her head. She reluctantly threw her hands up in surrender. Then she kissed
Nana on the cheek and said, “I'll call you tomorrow.” Celeste led Rah-lo out and turned to face him. “I guess you can follow me,” she said, storming off to her car. Rah-lo happily followed after, hugging Nana good-bye. This was his big chance.
 
 
Celeste sat across from Rah-lo in the Waffle House and sipped her coffee. Rah-lo had just spent more than an hour explaining his actions and professing his love for her. She tried not to be swayed by his sweet words and sincere confessions. He had told her that he loved her, that he had always wanted her and not Asia. He apologized, made promises, and told Celeste that he missed her. And she was moved by it. She set her cup down and looked into his eyes.
“One thing I always wanted was to be your friend,” she began. “I guess when I left and you went on with your marriage I stopped being your friend. But I loved you.”
“You don't love me anymore?” Rah-lo asked, searching her eyes for the truth.
“I wasn't finished,” Celeste said, dodging the question. “I moved on with my life, Raheem. I don't want to go backward. I have a man in my life who I care about,” she lied. Bryson had potential, but she certainly hadn't developed any strong feelings for him yet. And her relationship with Damon was over. Still, she needed Rah-lo to understand
that there was no room for him in her new life. “And I just want to move on. But I do want to be your friend. Nothing more than that.” Even as she said it, Celeste knew that she didn't mean it. But she was afraid to let Rah-lo back into her life.
Rah-lo sat back and nodded his head. “Okay,” he said. “I guess I have to accept that.” Several awkward and silent moments passed between them before he said, “Well, since we're friends now we can hang out and shit like that, right? Can I take you out tonight? Just as friends.”
She looked away and thought about it. She knew that if she went out with him he would wind up in her bed. Then she thought about Ishmael back at her house and she shook her head. “No. I have a date tonight. But I can call you and maybe we can get together some other time.”
Rah-lo felt dejected. He stared at Celeste, wishing he could say the words to change her mind. “Okay,” he said. “How about I come to pick you up for lunch tomorrow? You can eat with me and go back to work and that will be that.”
Celeste smiled. He was so persistent. “Okay,” she said. She handed him her business card and told him to meet her at her job the next day at one o'clock. Rah-lo summoned the waitress and paid the check.
When Rah-lo and Celeste left the diner, she turned to face him. “I guess I'll see you tomorrow,” she said. “It's good
to talk to you again.” She turned to walk to her car, but Rah-lo stopped her.
“Listen,” he said. “I asked you a question before and you never answered it.” He stepped in close.

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