Night of Seduction (8 page)

“Oh, he
didn
’
t say. But he did indicate he might be busy on
Saturday. So I don
’
t expect
him.
”
TK said as she walked toward the stairs.
“
I
’
m a little out of it. I
’
ll talk to you
guys in the morning.
”

“Good night
TeKaya,
”
Kerri said with a concerned
mother
’
s smile. When her baby girl was up the stairs and
out of hearing range, she turned the television back on.
“
Is there something you need to tell me about Silk
Davies?
”
She asked Siri who appeared to be unaffected by
the question.

Looking away
from her mother
’
s eyes she shook her
head and replied,
“
He has a wonderful
voice.
”
Then added,
“
You know I have
another busy day cleaning tomorrow so I think I will turn in for
the night.
”
She walked over, kissed her
mother
’
s cheek.
“
Good night
Mommy.
”

“Good night
Siri.
”
Kerri sat back, put her feet up and shook her
head,
“
Who does she think she
’
s
fooling?
”
She smiled and settled back to watch her favorite
program, reruns of the Cosby Show.

Siri

J
ason, Eric and a van
of eight other men arrived at the school a little past nine
Saturday morning. TK met them at the door and escorted them through
the hallway. She introduced them to a few people along the way. She
was so flustered by seeing Jason again she forgot a few names, but
he corrected her blunder. If it was possible, he was more handsome
in his jeans and t-shirt then the last time she had seen him. Since
that night, he had awakened her every morning with a call and they
fell asleep on the telephone together every night. She learned more
about him in a week than most people would learn in a lifetime, and
yet she still wanted to know more.

“This is quite
an undertaking. How many volunteers did your sister
get?
”
Jason asked.

“Not enough,
but your friends will definitely help the outcome. My sister gave
up having her room painted so the cafeteria could be done.
That
’
s where you guys are going to help. Are you
ready?
”

“Point me to
the paint and brush,
”
Eric smiled. Looking around it was
clear that the building had been neglected. It felt good to be
doing something to bring a school back to life.

Upon entering the cafeteria, a few people
were standing on tables and ladders painting. There were buckets of
paint and brushes near the door. A few long handles were leaning
against the wall and a few rollers on the floor next to them. The
huge room looked more like a penitentiary common area than a
cafeteria for children. The few windows had bars on them and looked
as if they had not been cleaned in years. This was definitely a
place that needed a lot of TLC.

TK looked around but did not see Siri. She
asked one of the workers and they pointed to the kitchen area,
where it sounded as if a confrontation was in progress.

“We did not
agree or discuss painting this area. Now it may have been your
ex-husband that put you here, but you answer to
me.
”

“Roscoe what
difference does it make where the paint goes. I gave up painting my
room so we could do the kitchen. It does not make sense to paint
the outside and not in here. The children eat out there but the
cooks work in here. They need to be comfortable with their
surroundings as well as the children.
”
Her back was to the
door as all five feet three inches of her stood with a brush
pointing at a man that stood at least six feet and a clear three
hundred pounds.

“My name is Mr.
Ford to you. I have had enough of your disrespect. Just know, Mrs.
Austin, is well aware that you were the one that talked Carl into
this and she is not pleased. I think it would behoove you to
remember how persuasive she can be. You may be able to sway him;
God only knows why, but me, huh, I know what you
are.
”

“Is there a
problem here?
”
Jason asked with the authoritative
voice that was natural to him.

The two turned and Siri dropped the brush
she was about to swing at Roscoe. Her eyes widened and her lips
separated apart, but not a sound came out. She turned away quickly,
but not soon enough.

“Siri?
”
Eric called out as he stepped towards
her.

“You know my
sister Siri?
”
TK asked smiling.

Eric looked at
TK, then at Jason then back to Siri. He wasn
’
t sure
what he was reading in her eyes. Surprise was definitely one of the
emotions, and he certainly understood why. But there was something
else.

“Who in the
hell are you?
”
Roscoe demanded.

Jason stepped
forward,
“
I
’
m Jason Davies,
manager of Silk Davies standing right there. We came to assist Siri
with her painting project. And you are?
”

“Oh,
”
Roscoe quickly changed his
tune.
“
You
’
re Silk Davies, the
singer. I didn
’
t recognize
you.
”
He extended his hand grinning broadly.
“
Welcome, welcome to our little project
here.
”
When Eric was slow in extending his hand, Roscoe
turned and grabbed Jason
’
s.
“
We were having a little disagreement on the extent of the
project. As you can see this is a huge
undertaking.
”

“What
’
s the problem
Roscoe?
”
TK asked defiantly and ready to back her sister
up.

Eric stepped
closer to Siri who was still avoiding his eyes. He extended his
hand,
“
Eric Davies, I
’
ve heard so much
about you from your sister.
”

Siri was still
motionless. What in the hell was he doing here? What would Roscoe
do if he found out about that night? Would she lose her job? Be
humiliated all over again? Did he always look so good, so kissable?
Her eyes traveled down the t-shirt that covered the defined muscles
she knew were underneath. Then on to his slightly bow legs she
remembered straddling her, that were now covered in jeans. Then
back to the eyes that had completely captured her that
night.
“
Hello,
”
she replied so low,
she wasn
’
t sure he heard her.

Cashmere walked
in,
“
Mr. Ford you better come see this, you too
Siri.
”

“What is it Ms.
Wagstaff, can
’
t you see we are busy
here?
”
Roscoe responded.

“I
’
m pretty sure you
want to see this,
”
she replied.

They stepped
back into the main cafeteria and were shocked to see the number of
people standing there.
“
They heard Silk
Davies was here to paint and they decided to help
too.
”
Cashmere whispered then winked at Siri.

Siri looked
around and smiled brightly,
“
I think we now have
enough people to do the entire school. What do you think
Roscoe?
”
She slapped him on the back then walked out to
the crowd to begin taking names and passing out equipment. She was
sure that someone upstairs was looking out for her. If she had
stood in the room with Silk Davies for another minute, she would
have lost her dignity
—
that, she was sure
of. Even now, she could not concentrate on the names people were
giving her, for the sense of him staring at her. She chanced it and
looked up. Yep, he was staring at her.

Seeing Siri was busy, Cashmere began
organizing which classrooms workers would go to. Soon they had at
least two people in every classroom, several in the cafeteria and
kitchen, and several in the auditorium. A few hours later, some men
came in with spray guns to help speed the job along.

Because the
number of helpers had increased so dramatically,
Kerri
’
s lunch spread was not going to feed all of them.
Jason gave one of the band members his card and instructed him to
bring back whatever was needed to feed the volunteers. TK, Jason,
Eric, and Kerri were all seated at the back of the cafeteria eating
when Siri emerged from the kitchen.
“
Siri, come here, sit
down, and have some lunch with us.
”
Kerri
ordered.
“
That child is going to work herself to death
trying to clean up this school.
”

“You know how
she is about the kids Mommy, don
’
t
fuss,
”
TK pleaded.

Siri slowly made her way over. The last
thing she wanted to do was be near the man whose presence affected
her so deeply she could barely breathe. Eric who was sitting at the
oblong table next to Kerri never took his eyes from Siri as she
approached. She was more beautiful than he remembered. Something
inside him stirred as she came closer. He had hoped that when he
saw her again she would not have the same effect as she had that
night. That hope faded when he saw the bluish gray paint on the tip
of her nose and in her hair that was held up by a clamp. The gray
midriff shirt and sweat pants that hung seductively low on her hips
were stained as well. He swore there was nothing more exquisite
than the woman standing before him.

Kerri reached
into the cooler and pulled out a container.
“
Here I
fixed your favorite salad, with grilled chicken, tangerine, green
peppers, sweet peppers, raisins mixed with spinach and
lettuce.
”
She sat the container on the table then reached
down and pulled out a bottle of water.

“Thank you,
Mommy,
”
she replied softly. She looked around and knew
she could not sit at that table with Silk.
“
I
’
m not very hungry. I think I
’
ll go get
started on my room.
”

Kerri
frowned.
“
Nonsense, girl. You
’
ve been here since
seven. You didn
’
t eat breakfast and
have been working since you got here. Of course
you
’
re hungry and if you
’
re not sit down and
eat anyway.
”
Kerri reached down into the cooler
again, speaking her mind as she did.
“
If that ex-husband of
yours was any kind of a real man, he would have paid someone to do
this. Not sucker you into going out with him again. Where is he
anyway? Some kind of councilman he turned out to
be.
”
She finished just as she pulled out her famous
strawberry shortcake.
”

Normally Siri
would have been fighting with TK over the dessert, but her nerves
were too in tune with Silk. Noticing she was still standing and not
fighting over the cake, which TK and Jason were now sharing, Kerri
became concerned. She stopped fidgeting and looked up at her
daughter who was busy trying not to look at the man sitting next to
her. Kerri looked from Siri to Eric, who was not even attempting
not to look at her daughter.
“
Siri, honey, are you
okay?
”

Smiling
fictitiously she replied,
“
Yeah, Mommy,
I
’
m fine. I just want to get things finished before
people start leaving.
”
Avoiding the eyes she knew were
watching her, she nervously picked up the bottle of water and the
container.
“
I
’
ll eat
this in my classroom.
”
She started to walk away then stopped
and turned to the people at the table.
“
Thank you for
coming to help with the school. I truly appreciate your help.
I
’
ll make sure the children know who you are and what
you did today.
”
She smiled bashfully and walked away
quickly.