The Pledge (8 page)

“Hey, Corky,” she said, switching her way over to me in these ridiculously high heels.

I groaned to myself, but I wasn't sure if it was because she used my nickname or because of what she had on. Her shoes were red patent leather, and she had on black fishnets and a red strapless dress that barely covered her butt. She also had on a mink stole and her freshly done weave was blond. She reminded me of Hottie from
Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School.

She didn't wait for me to respond before turning to Miles. “Miles King, is that you?”

“You guys know each other?” I asked.

She laughed. “Girl, please. You know I know all the major players in the big cities.” She turned to Miles. “I don't need an introduction, but I'm Loretta Danielle Dennis. You can call me Loretta. All my friends do.”

I had to try hard to keep from laughing, since I didn't know anyone who called her Loretta.

Miles smiled. Before we could say anything, the maître d' walked up and told us to follow him.

Once we were seated, I looked around, impressed by the ambience. “Is this your first time here?” I asked Allen, picking up a menu. Momma was right. There weren't any prices on it.

He shook his head. “Nah. My dad has brought me here a couple of times.”

“So what do you recommend?”

Allen made a few suggestions, and I finally settled on shrimp cocktail to start followed by filet mignon with a baked potato and salad. Allen and Miles ordered crab cakes and shrimp scampi, and Aunt Dani ordered two appetizers followed by a surf and turf, which I learned was a combination of lobster and steak, along with a bottle of Cristal champagne, which I knew had to be expensive because all the celebrities had it in their refrigerators on old episodes of
Cribs.
I thought it was rude to order so much, but the guys didn't seem to mind.

“Is my food too expensive?” I asked Allen, thinking maybe I had overdone it.

“Girl, quit tripping. Get what you want. Money's no object when it comes to you.”

“You're so sweet,” I said.

“You know I love you, right?” he leaned over and whispered.

My heart stopped. He had only said it once before, and I had relived that moment over and over in my mind, wondering if it had been a dream. This was the first time he was saying the words to my face.

“I love you, too,” I said. “More than you know.”

“Ahh, isn't that sweet? Y'all need to get a room,” Aunt Dani said, messing up the moment again. She started laughing all loud. “I forgot my niece doesn't need a room.” She leaned over to Miles and said loud enough for the entire restaurant to hear, “She's a virgin.”

My face turned bright red, if that was possible. I stared at my plate, wishing I could crawl under it.

Allen squeezed my hand, but it didn't really help. “I think it's cool that Courtland's a virgin,” he said. “I've been thinking about joining her club, too.”

I looked up in surprise, and he winked at me.

“Boy, please. You're about to go pro. In a few months you'll have so many women throwing themselves at you, you won't be able to see straight. They're probably already throwing themselves at you.”

“Just because they throw it doesn't mean I have to catch it,” he said. “Courtland is the only woman I want to be with.”

Allen and I grinned at each other and we all made small talk until the waiter brought our salads. Allen fed me a bite of his Caesar salad, which was amazing.

The waiter smiled at us when he came to refill our water glasses. “It's so nice to see young people in love,” he said.

I smiled. It felt good to be in love.

“It sure is,” Aunt Dani said. She was already on her third glass of Cristal, and she was still talking loud. “You know what, Miles? Let's get our own table and give these kids some privacy. They're going to be leaving soon for the homecoming dance, if they actually go,” Aunt Dani said, giving us a sly wink, trying to look sexy.

I was glad she made the suggestion, and I relaxed a little when Allen and I were finally alone.

“So what stuff was your mother asking you if you had?” Allen asked as we continued to eat.

“Oh,” I said, laughing, “she gave me twenty dollars, which she insisted I keep with me at all times in case you trip.”

He got this strange expression. “Why would she think I would trip on you?” he asked.

“I don't think she meant you, really,” I explained. “I think she just meant guys in general.”

“Why would she feel that way?”

I shrugged. “Maybe some guy tripped on her when she was growing up. Who knows? You know we don't get half the stuff our parents tell us to do.”

Allen wiped his mouth and threw his napkin on his plate. Before it had landed, a waiter came and refolded it so it looked like a bird, then he used some metal thing to scrape up the crumbs that had fallen on the table.

“Man, both of your parents are tripping. Do you know your dad threatened me while we were in the kitchen?”

“Are you serious?” I asked, my eyes getting big. “What did he say?”

Allen moved aside as the waiter slid our appetizers in front of us before he continued. “Something about you being his baby, and if I laid a hand on you he'd shoot first and ask questions later.”

I laughed under my breath, unable to imagine my daddy saying something like that. I thought about sharing my thoughts with Allen, but instead I said, “You know my parents can be overprotective. I'm their baby girl.”

“You're my baby girl, too,” he said, grasping my hand so tight my fingers started hurting. I looked down at our clasped hands, and Allen must have realized how hard he was squeezing because he let go. “Courtland, you know I'd never do anything to hurt you, right? You're the only woman I've ever loved.”

The image of the hickey he had on his neck flashed through my mind, but I brushed it away. “You're the only man I've ever loved,” I said. “I'd never hurt you, either.”

Allen smiled before he fed me some of his crab cake. I returned the favor by giving him some of my shrimp, and we both agreed mine was better. We ended up sharing it, which was fine with me.

The food arrived a few minutes later. While we were eating, a band started playing and couples began to get up and dance. The music was slow and beautiful and so infectious that before I knew it, I was moving in my seat.

“I guess you want to dance,” Allen joked.

“I don't, but my body does,” I said.

“What else does your body want?” he said, giving me a kiss that almost landed on my lips.

I looked down at my plate and tried not to blush. We had talked about sex before, and although Allen had admitted he wasn't a virgin, he promised me there was no pressure for me to sleep with him.

“Okay, I'm not going to tease you,” he said. He held out his hand, and I shyly took it so he could escort me to the dance floor.

I didn't expect Allen to be as graceful as he was. He wrapped his arms around me, and I felt so protected and loved.

We danced through two songs until Aunt Dani pulled Miles on the floor, backing that thang up like she was in the club. Allen thought it was funny, but it killed my mood. We headed back to the table to finish our food. The waiter was nice enough to warm it up for us, and it tasted even better than it had originally, if that was possible.

After we ordered dessert, I glanced at my watch. “I can't believe it's only eight-thirty,” I said. “We have time to stop by the homecoming dance and hang out for a while. What are you going to do with me for the rest of the evening?” I realized how my question sounded and shook my head. “That didn't come out the right way.”

“It's okay,” Allen said. “I know what you meant. Do you want to skip the dance? I have a few more surprises up my sleeve.”

I seriously thought about what he was saying. Although I wanted to go to the dance to show off my man, more than that, I wanted to spend some time alone with Allen, which we had never really done, since we were always around others at school or my house.

“We don't have to go to the dance if you don't want to. Are you going to tell me where we're going?” I asked.

“You'll see,” he said mysteriously.

I almost didn't finish my dessert I was so excited about where Allen was going to take me.

I watched as Allen paid the bill, and I couldn't believe it when he put down three crisp hundred-dollar bills into the holder with the receipt.

“Was our food really that much?” I asked in amazement. “I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was that expensive here.”

“It's not a problem,” he said. “I paid for your aunt and Miles, too.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, looking doubtful.

“Baby, it's fine,” he assured me.

“How can you afford this?” I asked.

He laughed.

“Seriously, I'm not trying to be funny or get all in your business, but I know you don't work 'cause you're too busy practicing.”

“I'm not trying to keep any secrets from you, so don't worry about getting in my business—my business is your business,” he said. “My dad makes pretty decent money as an engineer, and I get an allowance, so some of that money is what I've saved. Between practice, school and church, I don't normally go out much, but I have a feeling that's about to change,” he said, smiling at me. “Besides that, every now and then some of the recruiters hit me off.”

“But isn't that illegal?” I asked.

“I won't tell if you won't.”

“Did Miles give you that money?” I asked, suddenly worried.

Allen laughed. “Miles is too straight for him to do anything outside of NBA recruiting regulations. I've only met him one other time, but he's not one of the coaches who would bend the rules. I'm surprised he came tonight. He must be hard up for a woman.”

I decided that if Allen wasn't bothered by what he was doing, I wasn't going to be, either, but his words really bothered me. I knew what he was doing wasn't right, and I couldn't help but say something.

“Please don't take any more money from the recruiters,” I said after the waiter took our money.

Allen looked at me like I was crazy. “Why not?” he said. “How else am I going to do nice things for you?”

Immediately I felt guilty. Although deep down I knew I hadn't done anything wrong, I believed that the only reason Allen had accepted the money was because he felt like he had to to keep me.

I grabbed his hand and looked him in the eye. “Allen, you don't have to take me to fancy restaurants,” I said. “We can go to McDonald's or even sit at home on my sofa, and I'd be happy. I just enjoy spending time with you.”

“But I wouldn't be happy,” he said. “How does it look, me going pro and my girl is sitting up in McDonald's. That's not going to happen.”

“But, baby—”

“It's not happening, Courtland,” he said, cutting me off. “You deserve the best, and I'm going to do whatever I need to to make sure you get it.”

I opened my mouth to say something else.

“End of discussion,” he said.

I just nodded as I gathered my purse. We met Aunt Dani and Miles at the entrance, and Aunt Dani was barely able to stand she was so drunk. I was going to take her home, but Miles said he didn't want to ruin our date and he'd make sure she got there safely. It took a while for me to agree. I mean, Miles seemed cool and all, but for all I knew, he could be a serial killer.

After the valet brought the car around and Allen helped me in, he pulled out of the parking lot, then drove to Griffith Park. I looked up in surprise.

“Did we just have our first argument in the restaurant?” he asked.

I smiled. “I guess so,” I said.

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I wanted this to be a perfect night for you.”

“It has been,” I said. “It's just that…”

“What?” he asked. Before I could respond, he got out of the car and came around to help me out, then he led me to the swings on the playground, seated me in one and began pushing me. “It's just what?”

“This isn't about money for me. I know a lot of girls might be after you because of the money they think you're going to make when you go pro, but I love you, Allen. You could be broke, and I would still love you.”

“And that's exactly why I'm with you. I've dated other girls before, and you might not be the prettiest one, but I've known for a while that you've had my back. I need someone like you in my life.”

I was a bit insulted by his comment about me not being the prettiest, but I tried not to let it show. Instead I focused on what he had said about needing me in his life. “I need you, too,” I said.

He came and stood in front of me, stopping the swing, then he leaned down and kissed me so hard I couldn't breathe. I had never been kissed like that before in my life. It was so incredible. When he eased his tongue into my mouth, I didn't protest. Instead, I welcomed it, and I returned the favor, getting so caught up in the kiss and this man. I still couldn't believe that Allen Benson was my boyfriend.