A Love Like This (Book 1) (43 page)

I give Charles the address to Sarah’s hotel then I send her a text message while we drive.
 
She’s waiting out front when we arrive.
 
She’s wearing tan saddles with a tangerine shirt dress that stops about two inches below her behind.
 
Her blond hair is pulled into a high ponytail and she looks young and bubbly.
 
The car stops in front of her and she hops in before Charles has a chance to get out and open the door for her.
 
I give him the next address and we merge onto the 405 freeway towards ‘Nappies Beauty Salon’ in Compton.

“You look happy,” I say to Sarah.
 

“I really like your cousin,”
 
She says just bursting with chirpiness.

“Please don’t tell me he slept over.”

“No we sat in the lobby and talked until around 2 AM.”

“He’s a really smart guy.
 
He has an AA degree in liberal studies and he’s training to become an EMT.”

“We’re still talking about my cousin
 
Nogood
 
right?”

“Lawrence,” Sarah says rolling her eyes.
 
“We talked about our families and our futures.
 
He was so thoughtful and attentive.
 
I can’t wait to see him again.”

“I haven’t seen you this excited since you dated Kinsley.”

“I feel like myself with him.”
 

I want to ask her if she checked her wallet after he left last night but she seems so excited that I can’t bear to disappoint her.
 
“I’m happy for you,” I say.
 
We drive down the 405 to the 710 freeway in very light traffic for LA.
 
We coast to a stop in front of Nappies. The place hasn’t changed a bit.
 
The streets are lined with the same old buildings with iron gates covering the windows.
 
A few of the businesses have shut down.
 
I’m assuming due to the bad economy.
 
Charles rustles around on the front seat for a few seconds.
 
Sarah reaches to open the door.

“Please remain inside until I’ve secured the perimeter,” Charles says in his pubescent voice.

“What the fuck,” Sarah says looking around to see Charles exit the car with a Smith and Wesson tucked inside a gun holster.

“He was not wearing that when he picked me up.”
 
He opens our door and stands near us looking intimidating while we gather out purses and climb out.

“Why are you wearing a gun,” I ask once out of the car.

“I’m an armed guard Mrs. Bradley.
 
Carrying a gun is part of my job.”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Sarah says cracking up laughing.
 
“Tucker hired a body guard?
 
Where did he think we were going, Kuwait?
 

“I’m so embarrassed,” I say lowering my head and walking into the shop with Charles just inches from my heels.
 
 
“You really don’t have to follow me.
 
It’s my sister shop.
 
I’ve been here a thousand times before.”
 
He just stares at me.
 
“Seriously it’s not dangerous as long as you don’t piss Keisha off.”
 
He remains expressionless.
 
I throw my hands in the air and march over to one of the salon chairs leaving Charles standing by the front door.
 
He crosses his arms over his massive chest and stands stone faced like a British soldier at arms.

It’s before noon on a Monday and the shop is completely empty.
 
It looks just like I remember it with marble counter tops at the stations and framed pictures of Madam CJ Walker on the walls.
 
Keisha and
 
Nickie
 
emerge from the back of the shop.
 
Keisha stops in her tracks and looks over at Charles.
 
“Who the hell brought tiny Tim,” she says motioning her head towards the place where Charles stands frozen.

“Leila’s hubby hired a body guard,” Sarah says with a chuckle.
 
 
 
Nickie
 
laughs and Keisha just shakes her head.

“Did he think Compton was a war zone,”
 
Nickie
 
asks.

I rummage through my purse for my cell phone.
 
This goes beyond being protective.
 

“Come on and let me start your hair girl,” Keisha says as I dial Tuckers cell.
 
His phone goes straight to voice mail so I try again.
 
“
Momma
told me he and daddy are playing basketball.
 
He’s not going to hear the call so just let it go.”

I shove my phone back into my purse in a huff. “Really would you let it go if Doug did something this ridiculous,” I ask.

“Girl I would be thrilled if Doug showed that much interest in me.”

“Doug loves you.
 
He’s just not smothering,” I say following her to the shampoo bowl.

“I just want you to appreciate the attention now because after you settle into your lives you tend to take each other for granted.”
 
She drapes a cape around me and
 
Nickie
 
walks over to wash my hair.

“You haven’t said much about Tucker,” I yell out over the sound of the water.
 
“What do you think of him?”

“We talked while you were sleeping last night.
 
He’s a good guy.
 
I like that he stood up to
Momma
.
 
Not many people have the nerve to do that.
 
No man’s perfect but I can tell that he loves you and that’s all that matters.”

“It doesn’t matter to you that he’s white?”
 
Keisha gets all
 
pissy
 
every time she sees a black man with a white girl.
 
She says there are so many single black women in the world and the
 
brothah’s
seem to be over looking them all.

“I knew he was white.
 
You sent me wedding pictures remember.
 
Besides, you can’t help who you love.”

“So where is everybody,” Sarah interrupts.
 
“I was all set for beauty shop gossip.”

“The shop is technically closed today.
 
I just opened it to do Leila’s hair for her birthday.”

“Speaking of good guys what’s up with you and Mike,” Sarah says to
 
Nickie.

Nickie
 
smiles and blushes a little.
 
“I guess he wore me down.
 
I agreed to meet him for drinks later tonight.”
 

“That’s great,” Sarah says.
 
“I’m meeting Lawrence we should all hang out together.”

“We won’t be hanging out for a while.
 
We have to go shopping.
 
Tucker wants us all to have pretty new shoes for my birthday.”

*****

Tucker is sitting at a booth at Madison’s Bar and Grill with Xavier, Mike, and
 
Pookie. They just finished playing basketball with the most brutal group of men Tucker has ever met.
 
He took at least three elbows to the ribs and was called bitch more times than he could count.
 
He didn’t want his new father-in-law to think he was weak so by the end of the game he was the one throwing elbows.
 
His phone rings and he instinctively sends the call to voicemail.
 
The threatening calls started before he left for LA.
 
“Do you know
where your wife is?”
 
The caller would ask repeatedly in a disguised voice.
 
He figured it was Amy trying to get back at him for breaking up with her.
 
However, knowing his track record it could have been any number of women.
 
He started to worry when the messages became more ominous.
 
“I’ll take her away, I’ll make you pay,” A few of the calls said.
 
 
The last call said, “I know where you are and I’m going to kill her.”
 
He
 
managed to get out a few threats of his own in response but the caller simply laughed and hung up.

He knew that Leila would never agree to stay home on her birthday so he hired someone to watch over her.

“Tucker,” Mike says.
 
“Are you still with us?
 
What do you want to drink?”
 
Tucker looks up and sees their waiter patiently hovering over the table.

“I’m sorry I’ll just have water,” He says vacantly.
 

“You seem a little distracted,”
 
Pookie
 
says.
 
“Is everything ok?”

“No,” He stammers. “I mean yeah I’m fine,” he says shaking his head.
 
Mike looks at him suspiciously.
 
He’s seen how often Tucker’s checked his phone and he suspects something’s wrong.
 
Mike takes out his own cell phone.

“My battery’s low,” He lies. “Let me borrow yours.”
 
Tucker absentmindedly shoves the phone into Mike’s hand then directs his attention to Leila’s father.
 
Xavier has been quietly observing the whole scene.

“Mr. Peterson I want to ask you something,” Tucker says.
 
Xavier looks serious.
 
Tucker rubs his sweaty palms on his pants.
 
The waiter brings over their drinks.
 
Tucker grips
the glass with white knuckles and takes the water down fast. “Um,” Tucker says tugging at his collar.
 
“Wow it’s hot in here.”
 
Tucker told
 
Pookie
 
that he wants to ask Xavier’s permission to marry Leila.
 
He said he wants to give her a real wedding one with her whole family present.
 
 
Pookie
 
smiles at Tucker knowingly and raises his hand to get the waiters attention.
 

“He’s goin
g to need something stronger tha
n water.
 
Bring us all shots of
 
Patrone
 
please.”

Mike excuses himself from the table and walks towards the bathroom.
 
He scrolls through Tucker’s list of missed calls.
 
They are all from private numbers.
 
He presses the voicemail button and listens to the first message.
 
“You think you can replace me?
 
I’m going to take her away from you forever,” The caller screeches.
 
Mike’s mouth goes dry.
 
He listens to the next message, “Kill, kill, kill I’m going to kill her Tucker do you hear me that bitch is going to die,” the caller screams in a frenzy.
 
A dull ache pulsates in his head as he listens to the next eighteen messages.
 
Each new message is crazier and more manic than the last.
 
Mike walks out the front door and dials Amy’s number.

“Bitch
 
have
 
you lost your fucking mind,” He hisses into the phone when she answers.

“Who is this?”
 
She yells.

“I’ve always known you were insane but threatening to kill someone is a brand new level of crazy.”

“Mike,” She says once she recognizes his voice. “Either
 
explain
 
what you’re talking about or I’m hanging up.”