Breaking All My Rules (14 page)

Chapter 16

J
erome felt as though he was walking on air as he approached the jury room. He switched the bag he was carrying to his left hand as he opened the door with his right. When he entered the quiet room, he was glad to see that he was the first person there. He'd set his alarm clock an hour early to make sure he wouldn't be late—that was how much he was looking forward to seeing Erica.

He shook his head and smiled, remembering yesterday and the way her tantalizingly curvy hips had teased him as she walked away, leaving him standing near the metro station in awe. Then, later that night, as he lay in bed, he wished she was there beside him so he could spoon her from behind.

He wanted to be close to Erica and to spend time getting to know her. He'd learned a lot about her yesterday, but he craved more. If he owned a computer, he would have used it last night to satisfy his curiosity. Jamel had been on him about getting a laptop for more than two years. Jerome had bought Jamel one so he could complete his homework assignments, but he hadn't seen much need to own one for himself. However, now that he was about to receive his GED and start JK Contracting, he knew he had to join the modern world. Hell, he didn't even have an e-mail account.

Jerome looked at the clock on the opposite side of the wall. In fifteen minutes his fellow jurors would start arriving. He knew Erica would be early, because he sensed that promptness was part of her nature, and the anticipation of seeing her walk through the door made his heart beat fast.

In an effort to busy himself, Jerome opened the bag he'd been carrying, removed the two cups of coffee he'd gotten for himself and Erica, and placed them on the table in front of him. He hoped she was a coffee drinker, and in case she was, he'd filled the bag with a variety of flavored creams and sugar for her choosing. He pulled out the chair beside him and placed his jacket in the seat to save it for Erica when she arrived.

When the door opened and Maude Feinstein walked in, Jerome was slightly disappointed. He thought the cheerful old lady was nice, but he was longing for Erica.

Maude greeted him with a warm hello as she looked at the two cups sitting on the table in front of him. “For me? Oh, you shouldn't have!” she teased.

I didn't
, Jerome almost said. He smiled and nodded. “Sorry. I'll be sure to bring you a cup tomorrow.”

“Oh, don't bother, honey. I was just kidding. I know who that coffee is for.”

Jerome looked at the wise old lady and chuckled. “I'm sure you do.”

“You two make a nice-looking couple.”

“Um, we're not a couple.”
Yet
, he wanted to say.

Maude winked. “You will be.”

They both turned when they heard the door open, and three people walked in, but none of them were Erica. As the minutes ticked by, the room began to fill, but there was no sign of Stanford 145. Jerome began to worry, and he wished he had her phone number so he could call and make sure everything was okay.

He pulled back the small flap on the lid of his coffee and took a sip, drinking it straight, no sugar, no cream. He looked up when he felt a light tap on his shoulder.

“Mind if I sit here?”

Jerome stared into the eyes of Sasha Moore.

Sasha was tall and slim, with a pretty face and cat-like eyes that were made more prominent by the green-colored contact lenses she wore. Her caramel-hued skin was smooth, complimenting the blond highlights that crowned the top of her dusty brown, shoulder-length hair. Jerome had heard a few of the other male jurors salivating over her during their break yesterday. They'd all said she was hot. But he knew what they'd really been thinking was that she looked like an easy lay.

Jerome knew he could easily sleep with Sasha if he wanted to. She'd been flashing him hints of her interest since last Friday, during jury selection. But her advances had gone unanswered on his part, which made her try even harder. He could tell she was the kind of woman who was used to getting attention from men, but for him, she held no interest. Her ass was way too flat for his taste. He was firmly in favor of juicy asses, curvy hips, and thick thighs.

Jerome was primed to tell Sasha that the seat was already taken, but before he could get the words out, she leaned over, brushed her heavy DD-cup breasts against his shoulder, and removed his jacket without warning. She wriggled her nonexistent hips into the seat and smiled. “How was your weekend?” she asked innocently.

Jerome was instantly annoyed. He knew that Sasha understood the deal—that he'd been saving the seat for Erica. He'd seen the tall temptress shoot Erica a nasty look yesterday, when she came into the room as they were finishing their lunch. She'd even trailed close behind them as they left the building at the end of the day. And now she was moving in, trying to stake her claim. He'd already dealt with a deadly stalker once in his life, so he knew how to spot crazy when he saw it.

Jerome looked into Sasha's eyes and read something unsettling behind her artificially colored lenses. It wasn't a stalker kind of crazy, but it was troubling just the same. He couldn't put his finger on it, but his instincts told him that just like the desperate housewife last weekend, the woman who'd just hijacked the chair beside him was nothing but trouble.

Just as Jerome was going to ask Sasha to move, Erica walked through the door. Once again, his breath was stolen from him, held hostage against his will. But very quickly he sensed that something was wrong.

He watched as Erica silently walked toward the table, barely looking his way. She took a seat across from him without saying a word. He studied her as she removed her large handbag from her shoulder and peeled out of her purple jacket. He noticed that her hair was pinned high on her head, exposing the same silver hoops that had danced at her lobes yesterday. She looked in Maude's direction, said hello, and smiled. But she didn't allow her deep brown eyes to travel the three feet that separated him from her.

By now all the jurors had arrived and the room was full. Various conversations were going on all at once, but Jerome didn't insert himself into any of them, because his mind was on Erica. He didn't know what to make of her distant behavior. She wouldn't even make eye contact with him. He wanted to get her attention, so he held up the cup of coffee he'd bought her and motioned it in her direction. “Erica, want a cup?” he said.

Erica barely looked at him, offering a half smile. “I had some on my way in, but thank you, anyway.”

If Jerome's skin had been pale, he'd have probably turned as red as a crayon. He was glad the others were so caught up in their conversations that they hadn't noticed the dis that Erica had just sent flying his way.

“I'll take it. I haven't had a thing all morning,” Sasha said as she took the cup from Jerome's hand. “You got any cream and sugar in that bag?”

Jerome lied and said he didn't. His mind was in a tailspin as he tried to figure out what in the hell was going on. He remembered how Erica had run hot and cold last week when he'd first seen her, looking at him one minute, smiling with light in her eyes, then shutting him down the next without even so much as a glance in his direction.

Damn. Maybe she's crazy,
Jerome thought. In his mind there was no other explanation for her erratic behavior. He knew she was the creative, artsy type, and in his experience, those kinds of people usually had far-out personalities and could have serious mood swings. He wondered if she might have a dual personality and hadn't taken her meds.

As Jerome looked at Erica, examining her face, he noticed a tired look rimming her eyes. She covered her mouth and yawned, as if struggling to fight sleep. He knew that something was definitely wrong.

Moments later they got in line, standing in the quiet hallway as they waited to enter the courtroom. Jerome's body was so close to Erica's that he could reach out and hug her.

“Are you okay?” he whispered.

“Yes, I'm fine,” she whispered back without turning around.

“No, you're not. What's wrong?”

“I said I'm fine.”

“You sure?”

Erica slowly turned around and stepped to within a few inches of his face as she spoke in a low voice. “Why would I lie? I'm not the one with anything to hide. So if I say I'm fine, it means exactly that....
I'm fine.
”

Fine and crazy as hell,
Jerome said to himself. Now he was really puzzled. “Listen, I don't know what your problem is or what happened to you between yesterday and this morning. All I know is that you're acting like I've offended you, when the only thing I want to do is make sure you're okay.”

He'd said his words forcefully, but also with a pleading emotion so tender that it startled even him. The weight of it made him dizzy with questions he couldn't answer.

He saw a softness wash over Erica's tired eyes, changing the expression on her face back to one of the woman he remembered. She was about to speak when the announcement came that it was time to enter the courtroom.

She nodded. “Let's talk at the break.” And without another word, she turned and marched in line through the courtroom door.

Jerome felt conflicted. His gut, along with all the crazy love-struck emotions he'd been feeling, told him that Erica was special. But his practical mind and his life experience told him that something about her wasn't right. There was a hidden piece behind the softness in her eyes that led him to that feeling. And now, as he sat in the jury box, listening to the first witness who'd been called to the stand, he didn't know which way to go or what to believe. He leaned back in his seat, glanced over at Erica, and wondered what the hell he'd gotten himself into.

Chapter 17

E
rica sat in the jury box, her writing pad getting a workout from her pen as she jotted down notes while the witness rattled off his testimony. She was doing a good job of concentrating, but then she was suddenly thrown off track by the feel of Jerome's knee against her leg.

“Excuse me,” he whispered in his deep baritone, never taking his eyes off the witness stand to the right of them.

He had shifted in his seat and had accidentally brushed his knee against her upper thigh. Even though he was wearing relaxed dark denims and she was business casual in a pair of tan trousers, the heat from his contact made Erica feel as though they'd touched skin to skin. She fiddled with her pen and sighed, quietly wishing she could explain herself and her actions to Jerome.

She regretted prejudging him and jumping to conclusions. But after her conversation with Ashley last night, and then the horrible nightmare she'd awakened to at three this morning, she wasn't thinking straight. She knew Jerome had done nothing to warrant her cool treatment in the jury room, and she was embarrassed by her actions. She'd barely looked at him today, but after hearing the worry in his voice just moments ago and seeing the confusion mixed with genuine concern on his face, she knew he was simply a thoughtful man who was trying to get to know her, not a stalker.

Erica wanted their break to come, but time inched along so slowly, she feared she might fall asleep. She thought about the coffee Jerome had offered her, and wished so badly that she'd accepted it, especially after the skinny, colored-contacts-wearing woman drank it. Getting her coffee had been another sweet gesture on his part, and again, she felt embarrassed about her actions.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the judge dismissed them for their morning break. It took Erica a little effort to rise, and when she did, she felt the weight of her sleepless night fall down on her. With slow movements, she walked in line until she reached the hallway.

“You gonna be okay?” Jerome asked.

“Yes, I'm just a little tired. Um, do you mind if we talk?”

Jerome led the way to a stairwell on the other side of the hall from the jury room. Standing alone with him in the quiet space, Erica thought about how she'd regarded Jerome with apprehension and skepticism last night. But now she felt perfectly safe with him. As a matter of fact, a quick burst of excitement made her perk up, despite her sleep-deprived fatigue. Being close to him outside the jury room felt good, and she was glad he'd taken her to this private place.

Erica shifted her feet, feeling Jerome's eyes on her. She thought about how she must appear to him, given the distant reserve and frosty attitude she'd displayed. Then she thought about her appearance.

I must look a hot mess!
Erica smoothed down a few wayward strands of hair on the top of her head. She wished she'd had time to use her flatiron this morning. But after the rough night she'd had, it was all she could do to run a small amount of oil cream through her tresses, brush them back into a neat chignon, and make herself presentable before she walked out the door.

As Jerome's eyes continued to hold her in a steady gaze, she wasn't quite sure where to begin, but since she knew their break would whizz by, she jumped straight in. “I'm sorry for the way I acted this morning. My behavior was uncalled for, and I apologize.”

She waited for a reaction, but he gave her nothing—at least not verbally. His tightly crossed arms and piercing eyes told her that he wanted more in the way of an explanation, so she continued. “I was a little leery of you, and I didn't know what to think because—”

“Leery of me?” Jerome repeated, cutting her off in mid-sentence. “I thought we were really vibin'. What did I do to make you feel that way?”

Erica let out a sigh and fiddled with her notepad. “During our conversation yesterday you found out a lot about me, but I walked away knowing absolutely nothing about you. Then, when I asked, you avoided giving me any answers. The more I thought about it, the more it made me think you had something to hide. Then I started thinking all kinds of things.”

“Like what?”

“Like, maybe you were a crazy stalker and you were just trying to get information on me.”

“You actually thought I was trying to stalk you?”

“Hey, it's not such a stretch. People are crazy nowadays.”

Jerome laughed.

“You think that's funny?”

“No, Erica. I don't think it's funny.” Jerome took a deep breath and shook his head. “Let me assure you. I'm not a stalker. The only reason I asked so many questions was because I wanted to get to know you. I'm feelin' you, and I'd like to take you out.”

There was a long pause between them. A shy smile slid across Erica's toasted bronze–colored lips. “Really?”

“Yeah . . . really.”

 

 

Jerome opened the door for Erica, and they entered Cosi restaurant. She would have preferred a quieter, more intimate setting, but since the eatery was across the street from the courthouse, it fit into their lunch schedule. Plus, she and Jerome had decided they should dine outside the jury room or the court cafeteria to avoid the prying eyes and gossipy tongues of their fellow jurors.

Despite Erica's protest, Jerome insisted on paying for their meal.

“But you treated yesterday, so now it's my turn. Plus, you agreed to it,” she said.

“Number one, I don't keep score of stuff like that. And number two, I never agreed to anything. I just listened to what you had to say,” he said with a smile.

Jerome found an empty table along the wall and led Erica to it. Once they settled in, they didn't waste any time with their food or their conversation.

“Have you ever done speed dating?” Erica asked.

“Uh, no. But I've heard about it. Why?”

“This break will fly by super fast, so I figured we can pretend this is a speed-dating session and I can find out more about you.”

“So you've done speed dating?”

Erica shook her head. “You can only answer questions. I'm doing all the asking this time.”

Jerome smiled and bit into his chicken pesto flat bread sandwich. “Okay, I'm game.”

“Where are you from?”

“Right here in the good ol' nation's capital. I was born at Howard University Hospital.”

Erica smiled. “Okay. Where did you go to school?”

“Ballou High.”

She waited for him to continue, but when she saw him avert his eyes to the bag of chips in front of him, she knew he'd completed his response, and that twelfth grade had been his stopping point. She took a sip of her double expresso and then continued. “What do you do for the city?”

“I've been with the Department of Public Works for ten years.”

“Doing what?”

“I work in the sanitation division.”

“Well, what do you do in the sanitation division?”

Jerome put down his sandwich and wiped his mouth with his paper napkin. He took a deep breath and looked into Erica's eyes. “Can we stop this speed-dating thing and just talk?”