Only Skin Deep (19 page)

“Are
you now?”

“
Mhm
.
Do you go home to visit
often?”

“It’s
hard. I go once a year to see my parents, then on the anniversary of that
night. There’s a memorial of my two friends who passed. I go because I promised
if I made a hundred percent recovery, I wouldn’t waste my second chance at
life. I try to honor them. My parents meet up a few times a year with theirs.”

“Derek
Tresvant
you are an amazing man.” She curled her head
into the crook of his shoulder and held him.

“Does
that mean you’ll put me out of my misery and shackle yourself to me for life?”
Although his voice had a teasing tone, there was an underlying vulnerability
within. He bared his soul to her and confronted his past.
Deja
smiled and answered, “Yes.” Her fiancé must not have believed her because he
froze.

“You
didn’t say no.”

“In the great scheme of things.
I couldn’t imagine wanting
to spend my life with anyone else. We are having a baby too so that’s added
incentive. I’ve been thinking about us a lot and what not being with you would
mean for me. I came to the conclusion, sharing you and our child with another
woman wouldn’t work. You might make me crazy but I need you too much to be just
some sane chick.”

“That’s
good, since I only want you. I’ll have to buy a bigger bed though. You are a
total bed hog. A sexy bed hog though, you can near push me out any time. I’ll
take the ruthless plunge to the floor,” Derek teased, making her want to pummel
him with his own pillow.

“I
do not hog the bed. You know
what,
it must be a guy
thing. Jason said the same thing about
Taleena
. With
Nadja
it’s the total opposite. She wakes up crushed under
Donato’s
arms or legs pinning her down.”

“Yeah,
I can see that. You however, begin on your side tucked into me, then end up
diagonal. At least you don’t steal the covers you just stretch out.”

“In
my defense, you have to remember I have siblings and we used to have to share a
room, sometimes a bed. I had no space of my own.”

“Being
an only child is not as fun as others think. I missed out on the whole sibling
dynamics. But we’ll make up for that, we won’t have our child feeling all
alone.”

“Yeah.
I guess you’re right. I love them so much, you know.”
She stroked his arm with her hand.

“Why
don’t you keep photos up at your place?”

“That’s
a good question. I have a spot for them and books in a drawer. I have a ton, I
could say I never got a chance to display them but that would be a lie.”

“So?”
He locked her leg within his and pulled her further into his embrace. “Talk to
me.”

“We
come from different worlds and yet the same, it’s amazing. I just, like my
space. Not having to share anything with anyone I don’t want to. That’s why I
keep photo albums put away. I like not being surrounded by my family all the
time. I do so much all the time, I’m over at my parent’s place more than my own
at certain times, so when I go home to my pad, I don’t want to be stared at by
pictures of everyone.”

He
didn’t get her reasoning.
Hell
do
I?

“You
are an enigma darlin’. I am going to have a
helluva
time figuring you out. I hope piecing the unique parts of who you are takes me
a lifetime.”

“Smart ass man.”

“Smart ass woman.”
She rolled her eyes and bit his arm.

“Might
want to watch it, I bite back. Hard.”

“You
wouldn’t hurt a pregnant woman would you?” She totally played the baby card and
planned on using it to manipulate circumstances should the need arise.

“Low blow.”

“I
am so good, I scare myself sometimes.” Lord she’d missed out by keeping him at
arm’s length for long. Alone in bed with him, she never wanted to get out.
Scary thought that…

“The
candles are almost down to the wire. Good thing too since the dawn’s
approaching. When did you get up and light all of those?”

“When the second transformer blew.
I woke up in total black.
I’m not fond of darkness. Lucky for me, I’d found a flashlight on your computer
desk. I was able to go hunting for some candles.”

“Yeah.
I should’ve told you where the emergency rations
were. I have tubs of goodies. Meals Ready to Eat aka. MRE’s, water bottles,
blankets, flares, a battery operated radio and high beamed light and a huge
first aid kit.”

“Getting
ready for a war?”
Deja
believed in preparedness, but
he was on a whole new level of the term.

“More
like tornados, since you never know.”

“Yeah,
is there even a basement here?” Last year four cells touched down and moved
inward converging close. The tornados ate up everything in their path,
unrelenting and causing insurmountable damage, deaths and injury. The warning
systems only gave so much advance notice, and even then those on the road or in
between towns with nothing but wide open space were left at the mercy of Mother
Nature.

“Yes.
I’d never own a building in the Midwest without one.”

“I’ve
never really asked you how you began your business. You’re really young to have
amassed so much.”

“After
what happened, my mother won a suit against the city for their failure in
responding in a timely manner. Shit hit the fan when word of patrol cars and
first response vehicles were in the area but didn’t get to us. She won and put
the money aside. My step-father made me work my ass off, go to college and if I
wanted money for anything I had to do a cost analysis and projected return of
interest. I swear he should’ve been a broker instead of a doctor.”

“So
you use what’s been saved when you need capital to flip a business. I always
figured older men in their like fifties do what you do. Not someone as young as
you.”

“There
are plenty of young business men who do the same. Some go into business with
each other. I don’t trust easy so giving access to my money or money in hold
for me didn’t fit in with what I wanted. I have enough set aside that I don’t
touch the lawsuit money much now. It gains interest in the bank.”

“How
do you protect the people who work in the companies you buy though? You’re not
one of those ruthless tycoons I’ve read about in stories and romance novels.
You hear about people being cheated out of their savings.”

“Depends.
I can be ruthless but never to those undeserving.
I try to buy buildings and companies that are already stripped. If I somehow come
across something I want to flip, I negotiate a tight contract that protects
employees, their pay, future and pensions. I just imagine what I’d feel like if
my mother or my future wife lost all they’d earned due to a buy out or a
company bankrupting to avoid paying those they owe the most to. The upper level
executives don’t lose out the
most,
the ones who do
are the undervalued shadows that don’t matter to them. I know how living on a
near poverty wage to get from one day to the next or from check to check,
robbing Peter to pay Paul feels. It disheartens loyal employees who struggle to
pay bills they’re obligated to pay in a timely manner.”

“To
some money is the underlying factor, nothing else matters. Before your
accident—I mean what happened to you, what did you think you’d grow up to be?”

“Pro athlete.
I loved basketball and soccer, some baseball. Playing
any of those would make a better future for my mom and
I
.
You?”

“A fashion designer.
Until I realized I didn’t have the
talent to create as much as an eye for what to buy or how to accent the right
outfit with accessories. I enjoy buying and setting up, more than attempting to
slave over sewing machines with needles, threads and all the other goodies.”

“I
hear high fashion is
a shark eat
shark kind of world.”

“That
it is. What I love most is how there’s a chance for anyone who wants to look
good, to look smashing. Before me no one around here catered to all income
brackets. There’s something rewarding in seeing people dress to the nine’s,
knowing they didn’t overextend themselves into debt to do so, or that they
didn’t have to use an entire check for one shirt or pair of shoes.”

“Sounds great.
Not that I’m big on fashion. I go into a
store and pick what I want quickly. A nice shirt, slacks or jeans and I’m good.
I couldn’t begin to tell you what brand
I
use or the
style of what I like. If it looks good on a mannequin chances are it’ll be just
as nice on me.”

“At
least your socks match.”
Deja
laughed.

Derek
yanked the pillow from under his head and whopped her good.

She
retaliated as an act of war.

“You
can’t beat me babe. I’m not that much of a gentleman to let you win. You do
know that about me right?” He rolled, pinning her under him. “Besides I can
think of much better ways to spend the morning.”

Intensity
burned in his eyes.
Damn didn’t he have
enough this morning?

“Again?”

“Like I could ever get enough of you. “
Derek nipped her
neck and cupped her breast. “Come out and play,
Deja
mine.” With those sweet words how could she
resist.

Chapter Seven

Deja
took a break from mid-afternoon rush. She loved seeing
women come in on lunch breaks to browse. Since her return Barbie changed her
aromatic ways. No more thick fogs of incense perfumed the air. The light scent
of fresh air surrounded her. One of the perks to being pregnant she guessed.

With
reluctance she’d agreed to only work four hours in the store and do everything
else at home…rather Derek’s place. His condo continued to grow on her. He went
home with her to pick up a few boxes of her things, two closets of clothing and
her accessories, all while muttering she needed to have a garage sale or sell
some stuff online. She picked a picture of her family to set near one of his.
Surprisingly they fell into a comfortable pattern. The odd clash of bathroom
etiquette drove him to furnish the second one just for her to avoid bickering
over toilet seats left up, messy countertops and all his metro sexual hair
product mixed with her things.

He’d
even invited
Donato
and Jason over a couple nights.
They brought
Taleena
and
Nadja
with them. She’d missed seeing her friends and was more than glad for the extra
gab sessions while the men had guy time, disappearing into the man cave, a room
Deja
wasn’t allowed in, not even to clean. The door
even had a password protected entry doorknob.

Derek
also began to disappear for hours with
Donato
a
couple of times the past few weeks, coming home sweaty and exhausted, immediately
crashing to sleep on the bed. There was only so much sweaty man smell she could
stomach and began waiting with a fresh towel, thankful he’d accepted with
little fuss and showered, making her nose rejoice.

“What
are you doing?”

She
hadn’t sensed him coming in. “Hey baby. I’m changing out rack cards and
tagging.”

“In high heels on a step ladder?
What happened to the boots
I bought you?” He crossed his arms in the ‘oh I’m so annoyed’ way of his. She
felt an argument rising.

“Hey,
I’m not an invalid, you know. I know what I’m doing. I’ve been doing this for
years.”

“The boots?
All I’m saying is it pays to be careful. You can
wear some sneakers you know. A pair of Nike’s or some flats while you work.”

Deja
looked at him in horror. “I
do not
wear sneakers.”
Well,
that was a lie.
“I only wear tennis shoes when I’m working out at home or
at an all-girls gym with the girls. The boots made my feet hot. I brought my
heels with me. And before you ask, I wore a real coat today, faux fur-lined and
everything.”

Derek
laughed. “I can just see you chasing a toddler around in heels babe, funny but
totally you. Why not try wearing a low heel for now. I’m just concerned about
your safety, you know. I’ll even go pick you out something from the shoe
store.”

Deja
didn’t want to hurt his feelings. “You
realllly
don’t have to. I mean I’ll go out with the girls
to pick something out that’s a definite compromise.” He got lucky with the
stylish faux fur lined boots. They were attractive, warm, and just a tad bit
too cozy, no one liked sweaty feet.

Derek
snorted. Lucky for her the bell rang. She accepted his help off the ladder,
leaning into his lingering touch on her hip for a second. With a grin on her
face, she turned to go see to her customer, leaving him to his own devices.

Later,
she found him peeking through necklaces and tapped his shoulder. “What are you
doing here?”

“Oh.
I’m going to play some ball with Jason,
Donato
and
some others tonight.
Wanted to drop by to let you know not to
wait on dinner for me.”

“Sounds
fun but you could’ve sent me a text.”

“Yeah,
I was on this side of town.”
Deja
didn’t believe him
a hundred percent.

“I
am so proud of you for making new friends. They play on some league. Does that
mean you’re joining?”

“Yes.
And before you ask, no, females aren’t allowed to watch. It’s a guy thing,
love.”

“Well
that’s a
suckass
rule.
Why not?”