Your Love Is King (9 page)

Carla laughed. “I really liked him, you know? But he was all into his education.  He wasn’t gonna let anything get in the way of that. I missed him for a long time after I got back to Arkansas.”

“Hey, weren’t you and Bryan together back then, too?”

She raised her eyebrows. “Well, yeah, and I figured what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. I mean, it’s not like we were
married
back then.”

I rolled my eyes. “Lord help you, Carla.”

“Anyway, I said all that to say this: I think you should give the guy a chance. It ain’t like you been strutting around here with Morris Chestnut or somebody.”

“Wow, thanks, Carla.”

“Look, I’m just being real with you. He’s fine as
hell
—he’s got this Brad Pitt kind of thing going on except he’s got much more swagger. He sounds black, his family’s black; hell, he even walks like a black man. It’s like you get the best of both worlds. I don’t see a problem.”

“Carla, I’m being serious.”

“Okay, let’s get to the important stuff then. He’s employed, got a nice ride, and he likes you. I say go for it. Shoot, if it was me, I’d be all over that. Besides, what do you have to lose?”

“Not a thing.”

Eleven

“Every Word”

True to his word, Chris called me that afternoon shortly before I left for work. We talked for a few minutes and made plans for him to call me later on, during my break. I was happy to hear his voice, and I looked forward to talking to him again. I liked Chris, but then again, he was a hard person to dislike.

Work started out a little slower than usual. I was there for almost an hour before my first patient arrived—a ten-year old who’d been hit in the eye with a baseball during a little league game. I took his history and checked his vital signs, and by the time I made it back to the nurses’ station to chart, there had been an influx of patients. The ER was so busy that I missed Chris’s call and wasn’t able to take my break until much later than usual.

When things finally slowed down, I headed outside, sat on a bench, and dialed Chris’s number, hoping that he was still awake.

“Hello?” answered his familiar voice.

I smiled. “Hey, it’s Marli. Sorry I missed your call earlier. It’s been a zoo here tonight.”

“Yeah, I figured. Glad you called me back, though. Where are you? In the cafeteria?”

“No, I’m outside the ER. I needed some air.”

“They’re working you hard tonight, huh?”

I nodded. “Yeah, they are. I was afraid I’d wake you up. Had you gone to bed yet?”

“No, not yet.”

“What are you doing, then?”

“Besides talking to you?”

I laughed. “Yes, besides talking to me.”

“Well, right now I’m walking out the doors of the ER lobby, headed your way.”

“What?”

I felt a tap on my shoulder and nearly dropped my phone when I saw Chris standing next to me, holding a single yellow rose. He was smiling widely as he lowered his phone from his ear, took a seat next to me on the bench, and handed me the rose.

“Surprised?” he asked.

“Well, yeah. How long have you been here?”

“I’ve been here a couple of hours hanging out in the canteen. If you hadn’t called me back, I was gonna fake chest pains so I could get back there to see you.”

I laughed. “Now why would you go to all that trouble just to see me?”

“Because you’re special, Ms. Marli, and I missed you.”

I shook my head. “Chris, you don’t even know me. How can you say you missed me?”

“Okay, since you’re all hung up on the fact that I don’t know you, how long is your break?”

I checked my watch. “Another fifteen minutes.”

“All right, tell me five things about you. When you’re finished, I’ll tell you five about me.”

I sighed. “Okay, um, I’m thirty-three, I have one half-sister. I have an eighteen-year-old daughter, Tiffany. I was married once, and my favorite color is fuchsia.”

He nodded. “Well, I’m thirty. I have a son, Russell, who’s eight now. Never been married. I was in the marching band in college and, uh, my favorite color is brown.”

“I bet it is,” I said under my breath.

Chris grinned. “What was that?”

I shook my head. “Oh, nothing. Does your son live here in St. Louis?”

“Um, I don’t know. It’s kind of a long, complicated story. Too long for fifteen minutes.”

“Actually, it’s more like twelve minutes now.”

“Okay, where’s your daughter?”

“In Atlanta, at Spelman.”

“That’s good. Great school.”

“What school were you in the band at?”

“Grambling.”

“You went to Grambling?”

“Yep, on a minority scholarship.”

“Get out of here! Are you serious?”

He nodded. “Dead serious. Still go visit for homecoming.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Wow, you never cease to amaze me, Mr. King.”

He leaned closer to me. “And I’m just getting warmed up, Ms. Meadows. You have no idea the things I can show you.”

I smiled and looked away from him. I could feel my cheeks heating up. “Um… were you telling the truth before? You’ve really never dated a white girl?”

“The truth and nothing but the truth.”

“Why?”

He shrugged. “Just my preference. I love black women. Always have.”

“I see.”

“Mm-hmm. So, what’s your favorite thing in the world?” he asked.

“That’s easy. Music.”

He smiled. “I love music, too. It’s good we have that in common. Are you a musician yourself?”

I laughed. “Not unless you count playing the clarinet in junior high school. I wish I was one, though.”

“Maybe I could teach you one day.”

“Trumpet?”

“Or piano or guitar.”

“You play those, too?”

“Yep.”

“Okay. Well, maybe so, then.”

He smiled and nodded. “I’d be glad to. Who’s your favorite singer?”

“Sade. Yours?”

“His purple majesty, himself. Prince!”

I laughed. “Ah, so you’re a Prince fan, huh?”

“
Always
. The man knows how to get his point across, you know? You ever listened to ‘Adore’? The man is talking some serious stuff. By the end of that song, you feel like he took you to church!”

I grinned. “I’ll have to listen to that one again.”

“Yeah, you should do that. So, what’s your least favorite thing?”

I thought for a moment. “Hmm, people who lie. I
hate
being lied to. That really gets on my nerves.”

“Okay, I’ll remember that. Not that I’m in the business of lying, anyway.”

“Good to know. What about you?”

“My least favorite thing? I guess that would be sleeping alone.”

I smiled. “Hmm, I see. Do you sleep with a teddy bear or something?”

He looked me in the eye. “No, I don’t.”

“So what do you do?”

“I hug my pillow real tight and pretend it’s you.”

I wrinkled my brow. “Um, is that a come-on, Mr. King?”

He licked his lips and shook his head. “Unh-uh. It’s the truth. Ever since we met, I’ve imagined what it would feel like to hold you and touch you.”

He leaned closer, and once again, I could feel his warm breath on my lips. I raised my hand to my chest, trying to hide its rapid rise and fall.

“R… really?”

He nodded. “
Really
. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life,” he whispered.

I dropped my eyes, suddenly feeling shy. “Um, th… thank you.”

He moved his head and kissed me on the cheek. I released the breath I’d been holding.

He stood and reached for my hand. “Come on, let me walk you back inside before I get you in trouble.” That statement definitely had a double meaning.

He walked me to the employee entrance and kissed my hand, then he pointed to the rose he’d given me. “That’s a friendship rose, or at least that’s what the florist said. The next time I give you a rose it won’t be yellow.”

“How do you know there’ll be a next time?”

“Oh, there will be. I can guarantee it.”

I shook my head and smiled. He had enough confidence for the both of us. “Okay, so what color will the next rose be?”

He smiled. “You’ll see when I give it to you. Good night, Marli.”

I watched as he turned and walked away. “Good night, Chris,” I whispered.

~*~

Tuesday brought a day of much needed sleep and another hectic night of work. This time, I managed to take my break at the regular time and spent every minute of it talking on the phone to Chris, as I did my lunch and my second break. Somehow, we never ran out of things to talk about—and the more I learned about him, the more I liked him. He told me he had a degree in music education and had been with The St. Louis Kingsmen as a founding member and manager for five years. The band, which consisted mostly of some high school buddies of his, travelled all over the country, but their largest following was at home in St. Louis. Before the formation of The St. Louis Kingsmen, he taught music at a high school.

He was both intelligent and smooth. He loved to talk but was also a very attentive listener. When he told me the band would be leaving for Memphis on that Wednesday, I can honestly say that I hated for him to go. I knew I’d miss him, but he assured me he’d be back by that Friday night. We made plans to see each other on Saturday.

Wednesday and Thursday were my off nights for the week, and I looked forward to watching a movie with Carla or just hanging around the apartment with her and catching up.

Evidently, Carla had different plans.  By the time I crawled out of bed late Wednesday morning, she was already gone. The only trace of her was a note informing me that she’d be back in time for work Friday night. I knew she couldn’t be with Quinton since he was on the road with Chris. God only knew where she was or who she was with. I decided I wouldn’t confront her about her behavior anymore, realizing that it would only alienate her and put her on the defensive. I just prayed for her safety and hoped she’d eventually come to herself.

I guess it’s just me
, I thought. I ended up spending the evening listening to music. I listened to “Adore” by Prince about six times before finally drifting off to sleep on the couch. Around 1:00 A.M., I was awakened by the ringing of my cell phone.