An Unexpected Love (Women's Fiction/BWWM Romance) (13 page)

“Here you go.” The waitress poured more sweet tea into
Layla’s glass. “Would you like anything else?”

“That’s fine.” Layla twirled her fork around in her
spaghetti. “Thank you so much.”

The waitress smiled and went to the table behind them.

“Okay, come on and guess who I had the monster crush
on when I was in school.” Cross chewed ravioli.

 
“I thought I
named everyone I could think of.” She wiggled in the seat, savoring the hearty
spaghetti. “You said she was huge in the eighties, blonde, and had a great
body.”

“
Mmm
-hmm.” He tore off a
piece of garlic bread. She shrugged. “Madonna.”

 
“Nope.” He
pointed his fork to her. “Here’s another hint. She’s very tall. She was married
to an eighties heartthrob twice.”

“Jeez, now I gotta guess who the guy is?” Layla dabbed
her mouth with a napkin. “Still I’m getting Madonna. She
was
married to Sean Penn, and he was definitely a heartthrob.”

“Enough with Madonna.” He tapped the table. “The guy had
a hit eighties TV show. It was a cop show.” He waved his fork. “Not the
conventional type cop show. Made for the MTV crowd.”

“Oh!” She jiggled.

The woman at the table beside them glanced up.

Layla pointed across the table. “Don Johnson?”

 
“Yes!” Cross
hit the table. “Now who was he married to twice?”

“Melanie Griffith!” She snapped her fingers and
guffawed. “You had a crush on Melanie Griffith?”

“God yes.” He sipped from his glass of icy, sweet tea.
“I was practically obsessed with her. She was beautiful and stylish. I loved
her voice.”

Layla dipped up more spaghetti.

“I never would’ve guessed Melanie Griffith.” She
chewed the pasta. “When did you stop liking her?”

“When her face started looking like a balloon.”

“Cross.” She reached over and hit his hand. “That’s
not nice.” She laughed.

“It’s true. If only she aged gracefully. I hate how
these beautiful women in Hollywood act like they gotta go under the knife to
compete. Melanie was a goddess. She didn’t need all that shit.”
 

“I don’t agree with plastic surgery either.” Layla
lifted her glass. “I’m not knocking other people’s decisions. But unless it’s
for a car accident victim or someone who’s been severely burned, I find it kind
of vain.”

“I don’t like it because the majority of people who’ve
had it looked ten times better before they did it. What’s wrong with just
getting old and accepting it?” He glanced around the restaurant. “I don’t worry
about getting older.”

“You don’t have to, you’re a man.” She chuckled. “Society
is a lot more tolerant toward old men than old women.”

He smirked, “You might have a point there.”

             
“I
know I do.” She snapped her fingers and laughed. “Now it’s your turn. Bet you
can’t guess who I had a crush on for…”

“Sean Penn.” He sipped tea.

 
“How did you
know?”

“The way your face lit up just now when you spoke
about him.” He ate a piece of bread.

“Am I wrong?”

“No.” She laughed. “I had a huge crush on Sean for
years.” She looked away from him. “My preference is white guys. I always dated
them until Patrick.”

Cross licked his lips. “That’s interesting.”

She nibbled on her lip. “What’s your preference?”

 
“I don’t have a
preference. Just give me a halfway-decent looking chick who’s breathing, and
I’m fine.”

She burst out laughing. “Stop.” She covered her mouth.
“You’re gonna make me spit out my food.”

“What you really wanted to ask me is if I’ve dated a
black woman before.” He leaned forward. “Right?”

“Have you?” She put her fork down.

 
“Yes, I have.”

She smiled. “I…”

Patrick walked through the glass door of the bistro,
followed by an attractive, petite, dark-skinned woman with short hair. He stood
aside and guided the woman in front of him. His eyes locked on Layla. She
dropped her gaze to her plate.

 
“What is it?”
Cross turned around then faced Layla. “As big as Houston is, who would think
we’d run into him of all people?”

Patrick and the lady sat in a booth while a waiter
took their orders.

“Layla?” Cross patted her hand. “You okay?”

“Huh?” She tore her eyes away from them. “I’m sorry. I
just can’t believe him. He claims he still wants me back, but he is having
dinner with another woman?”

The lady giggled at something Patrick said.

“What the hell is so funny?” Layla muttered. “He
wouldn’t know a good joke to save his life.” She caught Cross’ stern
expression. “Wait.” She took his hand. “I’m not jealous or anything. I swear I
don’t care who he’s with.”

“It’s natural to be jealous, even if you don’t want to
be with him.”

 
“I’m not,
Cross.” She let his hand go. “I guess it is a little shocking to see him with
another woman.”

“You wanna go?” Cross gestured to his plate. “I’m done
here anyway.”

“No.” Layla watched Patrick. “We were here first.
Besides if we leave, he’ll think it’s because he got to me. I want him to know
that he hasn’t.” She took her napkin out of her lap and laid it on the table.
“I gotta go to the bathroom to check my makeup.”

“No you
don’t
.”
Cross drank tea. “You couldn’t look more gorgeous if you tried.”

She smiled as she told him, “I’ll be right back.”

Layla walked across the restaurant and turned the
corner toward the men’s and women’s restrooms. As she pushed on the door to the
women’s room, someone pulled her back. “Hey.”

 
“Hey,
yourself.” Patrick smiled so big she could see every tooth.

She pulled away from him. “Let go of me!”

“Don’t be like that.”

“Don’t be like that? So you want me back? I’m supposed
to believe that, and you’re out here with another woman?”

“What do you care? Thought you didn’t want me.” He put
his hands in his pockets. “I see you and Cross are all cozy as usual. Is this
where he brings you for a date? This cheap-ass place?”

“Excuse me?” She pointed past him. “Isn’t this where
you and your date are having dinner?”

“She’s not my
date,
for your information.”

“Then what is she?”

“She’s a new accountant the firm has hired. I’m
working with her to show her the ropes.”

She crossed her arms. “I bet.”

“We worked late, and we decided to ride through and
get some dinner. She happens to like this place.”

“Patrick…”

“Nothing is going on, Layla.” He pointed behind him.
“If you don’t believe me, then you can go ask her yourself.”

“That’s not necessary, because I don’t care.”

“Right.” He moved closer to her. “That’s why you’re
jealous? Because you don’t care?”

“I’m not jealous.”

“And you don’t have to be.” He put his arm around her
waist. “The only woman I want is you.”

“Stop it.” She wiggled from his hold. “I’m not your
wife anymore.”

“You’ll always be my wife to me.” He lowered his head
to kiss her.

She turned her head and shoved him away. “I gotta go
to the bathroom.”

He put his hand on the door to stop her from opening
it. “Lay.”

“Get
outta
my face, Patrick.”

“You know how hard it is to contain myself right now?”
He sniffed her hair. “With you wearing that suit and that perfume? You know how
much I love you in this suit.”

“Move.” She slapped his hand off the door.

He pulled her to him again. “You have no idea how much
I miss you.”

“I do, and I don’t care!” She pushed him. “It’s over,
Patrick.”

“It’ll never be over for me. You were the best thing
that ever happened to me, and I was a fool for taking you for granted.” He took
her hands. “I love you, Layla. Please give me another chance to show you how
much.”

“I don’t want you anymore. What do I have to do to
make you believe it?”

He stood back. “Nothing, because I know its bullshit.”

“Forget this.” She shoved him aside and walked out of
the restroom area. She made it back to her table. “I wanna leave.”

“Are you all right?” Cross stood. “Thought you wanted
to stay.”

“I changed my mind.” She pulled her purse strap on her
shoulder. “I can’t stand to be in the same building with Patrick right now.”

She marched past tables, glanced at Patrick, and
walked out of the bistro. Cross ran out behind her.

“You’re not okay. What happened?”

“Nothing.”

She swung her arms as she marched down the sidewalk.

They stopped at his car. He got out his keys and
unlocked the car with the remote. “I hate we have to leave because of him,”
Cross told her as he held the door open.

Layla got into the passenger’s seat, saying, “
Its
okay.”

Cross slid in beside her and closed the door. “You
don’t wanna go home, do you?”

“Are you kidding?” She looked at her watch. “It’s not
even nine yet. You promised me some fun, so I wanna have some fun.” She put her
seatbelt on. “I deserve it.”

“All right.” He put the key in the ignition and
started the car. “If fun is what you want, fun is what you’ll get. I hope you
like to sing.”

“Hope I like to
sing
?”
She gasped. “I can’t sing to save my life.”

“You will tonight.”

“What? Where are you taking me?”

He winked and took off down the street.

“It’s hard to explain, Momma.” Corrine sat upstairs in
her bed with the phone to her ear. “I guess when a woman gets to be my age, she
starts analyzing what she has and doesn’t have. It’s depressing.”

“This doesn’t even sound like you, sweetie. You’re
always so confident and sure of yourself. That’s what makes you,
you
.”

“I don’t know why, but for the last few weeks I’ve
been doing a lot of thinking. I have a great job, I live in a beautiful home, and
I’m healthy.” She grabbed the pillow beside her and held it to her chest.
“Other than that, I have nothing.”

“That’s not true. You have me and your entire family.”

“That’s not what I mean.” She groaned. “I don’t have
anyone who belongs only to me in my life. I don’t have any friends. I don’t have
a man.” She propped her legs up under the sheets. “Maybe I deserve being
miserable.”

“Don’t say that.”

“This could be payback for all the dirt I did when I
was younger.”

“But you’re not like that anymore.”

“Still doesn’t mean I don’t have to pay for what I
did. Like they say…karma’s a bitch.”

“If you want a man, Corrine, I know twenty of them
that beg me to hook you up with them on a regular basis.”

“I don’t want any more hookups, Momma.” She moved the
pillow. “I’m too old for hookups. I want what Layla had and what Valerie still
has. I want marriage and maybe kids.”

“Marriage and kids?” Vanessa exhaled. “I thought after
that last so-called relationship—that I won’t speak of—you didn’t want to get
into anything serious.”

“I’m tired of coming home and being alone.” She ran
her hand through her hair. “I’m tired of not having anyone to share my deepest
thoughts with or to share my bed. I know I did some bad things to Val growing
up, but I was just acting out because I didn’t know how to deal with Daddy’s
schizophrenia and his suicide.”

“Yeah,” Vanessa whispered.

“I just wanna move on and start fresh. I want to have
the white picket fence and the husband. I want all of that.”

“Then you can have it, honey.”

“I can’t have anything until I make things right with
Val once and for all. We can’t keep going like this.”

“I agree. We can’t have this kind of fighting in the
family. If you don’t have family, then you have nothing.”

“I know that now.” Corrine caressed the pillow. “Momma,
you don’t believe that I purposely pushed Val down the stairs and—”

“Don’t even say it. Of course I don’t believe it.”

“I wish Val would see that. I’m willing to make amends
if she’d forget all this other crap. The ball’s gonna be in her court though.”

The doorbell rang.

She got out of bed and grabbed her robe. “Someone’s at
my door, Momma.”

“Is everything okay?” Vanessa asked.

Corrine looked out the window. David’s car sat in the
driveway.

“Shit,” Corrine whispered.

“What?” Vanessa asked.

“I guess if I’m gonna start everything off fresh, I’ve
got something major to take care of. I’ll call you soon, Momma.”

“Okay, I love you. Please, cheer up.”

The doorbell rang again.

“I love you too, Momma.”

Corrine hung up and laid her cell phone beside her
bed. She closed her robe, slipped on her house shoes, and went downstairs. She
turned on the front hallway light and opened the door.

“Hey.” David leaned against the doorframe, looking at
her as if she were naked.

“David.” She held her robe closed. “What are you doing
here? I was in bed.”

He stood up straight. “I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

She sniffed. “Have you been drinking?”

 
“Hold on.” He
chuckled. “I had a few drinks at a bar. I’m not drunk. I wouldn’t drive drunk.
You know that. May I come in?”

“I don’t know.” She looked back into the house. “Not
sure that’s such a good idea.”

“You acted like it was a good idea before.”

He walked in without her invitation. She cursed to
herself and closed the door. “I gotta work tomorrow, as I’m sure you do.”

 
“Your broadcast
isn’t until tomorrow night.” He stood close to her, smirking. “And I’m debating
whether or not I wanna go to work at all tomorrow.”

“You claim you have that big marketing campaign coming
up. Shouldn’t that be your main concern?”

“I’m tired of worrying about shit all the time,
Corrine.” He leaned against the wall. “I know you feel the same way.” He looked
at her cleavage.

She laid her hand over it.

“We’re connected.” He sniffed her. “You smell good as
always.”

She backed away. “David.”

“Like I said, we have a connection, Corrine. I’ve been
thinking long and hard about this. Get it?” He held his hands out as if to
measure something. “
Long
and
hard
,” he emphasized with a chuckle.

“You say you’re not drunk, but you’re sure as hell not
all here.”

“No, no, no.” He took her hand with a dazed look. “I’m
here, Corrine. I’m finally here, and that’s what you wanted all along isn’t it?”

He grabbed her and kissed her.

She shoved him. “David!” Then she slapped him. “How
dare you?” she asked as she went over and stood by the door. “I think you
should go.”

“Go?” His astonished expression turned into amusement.
“Oh I see. You’re gonna play hard to get now?”

“I’m not playing anything. I’m serious.” She pointed
to the door. “You need to leave.”

“What?” He seemed to come to his senses as if someone
had flipped a switch. “I don’t understand. I thought you wanted me.”

“I do want you, David. I’m even in love with you.”

“Then why are you pulling away?”

“Because I can’t do this, and you can’t either. This
isn’t you, David. You know you love Val.”

“I’m sick of Val.” He rolled his eyes. “I’m sick of
the fighting and having to beg for attention. Do you know what she did? She
went behind my back and set up an appointment to talk to Dr.
Seun
when I told her ‘no.’ Who does that?”

“A woman desperate to have a child.” Corrine crossed
her arms. “A woman desperate to be loved and who feels she needs someone around
to feel important. I know the feeling.”

“Why do I feel like you’re accusing
me
of something, Corrine?”

“Rarely is it just one person’s fault when a
relationship starts crumbling, David.”