A Stainless Steel Cat (17 page)

They parked and got out of the car, and Tam told her parents to wait while she went and got some help for their bags.

She went inside and told Cammie and Royce that her parents needed some help with the bags.

"I got it." Royce smiled as he handed Nate over to Cammie, then kissed Tam quickly on the way out. Tam went out with him and they grabbed her parents' bags, much to the confusion of Joshua and Shawnda.

Royce breezed past them with a winning smile as he picked up two suitcases and headed back inside. Tam did the same, moving faster than her parents could react to seeing a white boy taking their bags into the apartment.

Tam had told them the spare bedroom was theirs for the duration of their stay.

When all the suitcases were in the spare room, Joshua and Shawnda were introduced to Royce properly.

Joshua still had issues with white people, but was polite when he shook Royce's hand, and impressed with the boy's firm handshake.

Shawnda wasn't as hesitant, and eschewed Royce's hand to draw him into a hug, which he returned warmly.

So far, it was going better than either Tam or Royce had imagined. Then her father decided to play 20 Questions with Royce.

"So, Royce. Are your intentions towards my daughter honorable?" Joshua asked, keeping his voice mostly level with just a hint of menace.

"Yes, sir. I love Tam, and I intend to stick with her for as long as she'll have me." Royce said, smiling back.

Joshua seemed to approve of that response. "Now, how old are you, exactly."

"Eighteen since March, sir." Royce answered truthfully.

"Eighteen? And you think you can provide for my daughter?" Joshua asked with arched eyebrows and a bit more menace in his voice.

"Yes, sir." Royce said in a level tone.

"Ok, you own a Ducati. Nice ride, by the way. But what exactly do you do for a living?" Joshua asked, contemplating that the boy might just be a drug dealer.

"I'm an Independent Security Consultant, sir." Royce replied, handing Joshua his business card.

Joshua looked over the card and started laughing. "Do you really expect me to believe this?"

"No, I didn't. That doesn't make it any less true, though. I was raised in St. Agatha's Orphanage up in Sacramento, and after the age of 11, they never caught me sneaking in or out again.

After I graduated, I decided to put my skills to use to make a living." Royce said.

"Do you have references?" Joshua asked skeptically.

"No, because I keep my clients confidential. Word of mouth spreads, though. I do what I do because security companies won't admit it when they screw up. So far, I've done three jobs, and made over 75K from them. I provide a service for my clients, making sure that the security companies don't cut corners, or call them on it if they do." Royce said seriously. "I get work when people don't trust that their security systems were installed correctly, or if there's a breach that went previously undetected."

The steadiness of his voice and the fact that he never broke eye contact with Joshua was what convinced him. Royce made sense in his assessment, and Joshua couldn't fault his logic. He wasn't about to let the boy off the hook, though.

"You're really young, Royce. What if you meet a girl that tempts you away from Tamara?" He asked, not as menacingly as before. 'This kid's got character. He hasn't stuttered yet!' Joshua's intimidation had scared away quite a few potential boyfriends his daughters had brought home in the past. Royce showed no signs of running for the hills, though.

"In that case, IF it were to happen, I would break the news to her as gently as possible, and that would be before I would do anything with the girl I might be attracted to, sir." Royce knew it wouldn't happen, and he gave Tam's hand a reassuring squeeze to hopefully let her know that too. He had emphasized the word IF, so that should also convey his message.

Tam squeezed his hand back, letting him know it was received, and Royce smiled and turned to give her a quick kiss.

"Daddy, Royce is the best thing that's ever happened to me. If not for him, I might just be dead right now." She said, letting her father know that in no uncertain terms, he was wrong to give her boyfriend the third degree like that.

Joshua actually looked thoughtful at that for a moment. "Ok, pumpkin." He smiled, then looked at Royce. "Royce, I'll just say this. If you hurt my daughter in any way, I will find you, but after I do, nobody else will. You feel me?" He said it with as much menace as he could manage.

Royce didn't even blink, just nodded his head once. "Yes, sir, and I would expect nothing less."

Joshua was even more impressed with the kid. He had absolutely no fear, yet he remained respectful.

"Now, on a lighter note, why doesn't somebody tell us how this kid beat the shit outta Darnell?" Joshua grinned.

Tam smiled radiantly at that, and related the first confrontation that was interrupted by the cops. Then Royce told of the second, and much deadlier confrontation that had ended with Darnell knocked out cold and then dead of a 'heart attack' while in jail. He wisely kept Mr. Wolfe's name or any suspicions about Darnell's likely cause of death out of his narrative.

"Well, don't that beat all." Joshua chuckled and shook his head. "Couldn't happen to a nicer guy."

"I agree, daddy." Cammie said, cradling the napping Nate. "But anyway, I told Jared that I was only taking the morning off, so I have to get Nate to daycare and then to work."

"No, Cammie. Give me my grandbaby." Shawnda said. "I think we can take care of him for you until you come back."

"Mama, you don't have to do that." Cammie said, knowing she was going to lose the argument, and silently thanking them for lowering her daycare costs.

"I know I don't have to, but we want to, don't we, Josh?" His wife looked pointedly at him, but it wasn't necessary.

"Of course we do, sugar plum." He said to his wife, and smiled at his grandson. "He's gettin' big."

"Yeah, he is. Takes after his daddy." Cammie said with a sad smile. She still wasn't over Juan's death, but at least she wasn't bursting into tears at the drop of a hat, anymore.

Cammie left for work, leaving the grandparents with Tam, Royce, and Nate. They caught up with Tam, giving her all the information from back home in New York. All her old friends, and even her old boyfriends.

"Oh, Malcolm asked about you the other day." Shawnda said, causing Tam to roll her eyes.

"Well, tell Malcolm that I am still not interested, and that I got a Man who treats me with respect, finally!" She glared at her parents.

Joshua and Shawnda liked Malcolm, since he was good looking, dressed well, and was now on the fast track to becoming a corporate lawyer.

"You didn't give him much of a chance, Tam." Joshua said.

"I gave him two years, daddy! In that time, he cheated on me twice. TWICE! First time, I took his sorry ass back. Second time, hell no!" Tam gritted her teeth at the memory, and Royce had another insight into what made her tick. "You never threatened him like you just did to Royce, either!"

"Now, dear, there's no proof that he ever cheated on you." Shawnda said in a motherly tone.

"No proof? So Janie and Helen were just lying, then? Two girls who had nothing to gain by telling me they saw him with Janie's roommate. They were just lyin' for no reason, and even got his BIRTHMARK right?!" Tam was ready to explode, and Royce put his hand on her back, stroking up and down her spine.

"Baby Girl, it's ok." He whispered to her.

"No it's not ok, Royce!" Tam snapped at him, then turned back to her parents. "That was the FIRST time he cheated on me, and you know, I gave him the benefit of the doubt that time, when he said they were lyin' on him! But that damn birthmark comment that Janie made just sat wrong with me. That was a full YEAR before I dumped him, too!"

Tam took a deep breath, and Royce figured it was best for him if he sat back and let her vent. He was wondering why her parents were so oblivious to her obvious disdain for this Malcolm clown.

"Tam, there still wasn't any proof beyond what some girls that could have just been starting a rumor..." Joshua said gently.

"No, daddy! I GAVE him the benefit of the doubt on that one! But the next time? Keith and George, who both screwed Lisa with him?! Were they lying too? Were they lyin' when they described them triple teaming that girl?" Tam looked like she was ready to detonate.

"He said he wasn't even there..." Joshua started.

"He was there, daddy! All three of them confirmed that! When I asked him about it, he got that deer in the headlights look that said he had no idea how I found out. He didn't even deny it directly, that time! Lisa ALSO knew about that birthmark right by his balls!" Tam stood up. "I have to go take a walk." She said simply and walked out the door.

Royce leaned forward. "You know, now I'm glad I didn't grow up with parents interfering in my life. The Nuns and Priests were pretty bad, but they would never take sides against their own daughter, and believe some guy over her."

"Don't you tell us how..." Joshua started, standing up.

Royce stood up too. "I'm going after her, and I suggest you think of a way to apologize to her. Otherwise, there's the door. Don't forget your suitcases on the way out. Your choice." He had to grit his teeth to keep from shouting at them, then walked quickly out the front door after Tam.

He caught her half a block away, walking toward Burger King.

"Hey, Baby." She smiled sadly at him as he caught up to her.

"Hey, Beautiful." He replied with a smile, slipping his arm around her waist and pulling her to him.

Tam's arms went around his neck and she cried into his shoulder. "They've been doing this all my life, Baby." She said between sobs. "Always trying to get me into a relationship when I wasn't ready, or set me up with the guy THEY liked, not the guy I liked!"

"Well, those days are over now, Baby Girl." Royce promised. You are your own woman, and while they're always going to be your parents, they don't get to arrange your relationships. That shit went out back in the middle ages, but your parents didn't get the memo!" He said the last part lightly, making a 'DUH' face.

Tam laughed in spite of herself. "Thanks, Baby." She said softly.

"You're welcome, Sweetheart." He replied and kissed her lightly before taking her hand and leading her toward the Burger King. "Lunch?"

"Mmhmm. Sounds good to me." She smiled and interlaced her fingers with his.

Royce and Tam sat across from each other in the booth at BK, eating, talking and laughing at each other's jokes. He was relieved that her mood had lightened.

"I'm sorry about snapping at you earlier, Baby." She said as she reached over and squeezed his hand.

"Hey, I understand, Honey." He replied after swallowing the fries he'd been chewing. "I like to think that food helps put things in perspective. Especially bacon." He winked.

"Bacon makes everything better, Baby." She agreed with a giggle. She knew that her blood sugar had been low since she hadn't had time for breakfast before going to pick up her parents. It had made her irritable with not just her parents, who were a huge source of her irritation, but with Royce too. He didn't deserve it, but he had understood.

They finished their meal and left soon after, holding hands and enjoying the cool summer breeze coming in off the Pacific as they walked back to the apartment.

When they got inside, they were met by Tam's parents and little Nate, who perked up noticeably as the couple walked in. "Aunty Tam! Unca Royce!" He grinned as he saw them, making Tam and Royce both smile and blush a bit.

"Pumpkin, we owe you an apology for earlier." Joshua said as he stood up.

Tam was thunderstruck by that. Her father NEVER apologized... to ANYONE... for ANYTHING. She stood there for a moment with her mouth hanging open.

"Daddy, you don't apologize. What's going on?" Tam asked, clearly puzzled.

"Your father just realized that driving away both of his daughters wasn't in his best interests, or mine for that matter." Shawnda looked at her husband archly, and he bowed his head sheepishly. "He's been pigheaded ever since we first met, and I'd had enough of it."

"Your mother has made me see the error of my ways, pumpkin." Joshua then turned to Royce. "And I apologize to you too, Royce. You don't know how much I owe you for saving my baby daughter's life."

"Mr. Jenkins, I love Tam. I won't do anything to hurt her, and I will do everything I can to protect her." Royce said with a smile.

"Daddy, I'm glad you finally see that I've grown up and can make my own decisions." Tam smiled. "Apology accepted."

The tall dark man with the close cropped jet black hair, blue-green eyes, and aquiline nose stepped off the plane at LAX. He was still wearing his Class A uniform with a blue cord under his epaulet, captain's bars, a chest full of ribbons, and a 2nd Ranger Battalion scroll on each shoulder. He wore his Combat Infantryman's Badge over the ribbons on his left breast pocket, and his Master Jump Wings. He scanned the crowd waiting for their returning loved ones, and spotted his mother an father immediately. His stern face, ruggedly handsome according to the ladies, broke into a grin as he marched towards them.

His father, a large muscled man with coal black eyes and slicked back jet black hair, and his mother, with her long auburn hair, blue-green eyes, and pretty face for her age, watched him approach with big smiles on their faces.

"Justinian!" His father greeted him warmly, drawing his son into a hug.

"Hello, papa!" Justinian replied with a smile for his father. He disengaged and turned to his mother. "Hi, mama!" He grinned and gave his mother a hug too.

"Well, Captain Wolfe! Are you home to stay now?" Linda Wolfe asked her son.

"Not quite. I have three more months after this month of Leave is over, and then I'm going to resign my commission after this tour is over." He said, and saw her face fall. "But don't worry. You know we Wolfes don't die easily."

His father, Anthony Wolfe, laughed as they walked toward the baggage claim. "Very true. You are living proof of that, Justinian."