Gotta Get Next To You (27 page)

“What did you say about me?” Lee doubted
Denny would give him the whole truth, but asked anyway.

“I said there’s this dude from South Central
got some contacts. I mentioned the Crips and a little something
about making big money.” Denny grinned again. “That got their
attention.”

The Crips had a solid base in Shreveport,
Louisiana, a city in the far north of the state. Gang leaders with
family ties in the area visited to escape violent retaliation from
rivals. Shreveport was a sleepy small town compared to Los Angeles.
Unfortunately the young men had kept themselves busy by organizing
a Louisiana branch of the Crips. The Bloods, another ruthless L.A.
gang, had taken root not long after.

“Just so they understand I’m serious.” Lee
sat down again, but didn’t return Denny’s smile. “If y’all want to
make real money, you have to put business first.”

‘Trust me; these dudes are lookin’ to get
paid like us.” Denny nodded with vigor.

“Yeah? Then I don’t advise them to wait
around too much longer. The Latino Kings are moving in fast, and
they’re getting strong in New Orleans.” Lee crossed his arms.

“Damn! I heard a bunch of those chumps got
de-ported.” Denny sat down on a small stool across from him.

“Don’t think that’s gonna stop them. Blink
once and those guys will own this state.” Lee propped his elbows on
his knees. “I’m telling you what I know.”

“Yeah, they’re vicious. Hey, what say we hang
tonight? Help you get in with my boys,” Denny said with a grin.

“Sure,” Lee said.

“We can go to Sonny’s Pizza Place. The women
go there, too, man. Got some fine bi—” Denny broke off when Andrea
appeared suddenly. He coughed loudly to cover the profanity he’d
used.

“Hi.” She glanced briefly at him, then longer
at Lee.

“Hi, Miss Andrea. How are you doin’ today?”
Denny put on his good-boy expression.

“Great, as a matter of fact.” Andrea smiled
at Lee.

Denny looked from Andrea to Lee. “I’ve got
some work to do up front. See you later.” He winked at Lee and
left.

“Hi,” Andrea said again, and sat down on a
chair next to him.

“Hi.” Lee smiled. “I think Denny picked up on
the vibrations.”

“You think?” Andrea glanced over her
shoulder, and then turned back to him. “We’re not that obvious, are
we?”

“No, I guess not.”

Another lie. He was not at all sure of what
he could handle anymore. But there was no turning back.

Andrea breathed in and out. “About last
weekend.”

“Yes?”

“It was fabulous. Let’s do it all over again,
beginning with Friday.” Andrea leaned forward slightly.

“Uh, I can’t.”

Andrea’s smile faltered. “Oh ... I
understand.”

“No, it’s not like that,” Lee said, brushing
his fingers across her cheek. “I promised Denny we could hang out
more. In fact, we’re having pizza tonight.”

Her smile brightened again. “That’s great.
I’m glad you and Denny are getting close.”

“Yeah, well...” Lee’s face felt stretched
tight with the effort to force his mouth to smile back.

She touched the tip of her forefinger to his
chin briefly, and then sat back. “You’re good for him. We can get
together another time.”

Lee looked into her eyes and saw traces of
the passion they’d shared. “What about tonight?” he blurted out
without thinking.

“Oh?” She gazed at him, head tilted to one
side.

“It might be kinda late. But I’d really like
to be with you,” he said. That was no lie.

“Call me,” Andrea said.

His heart warmed at the happiness in her
eyes. “For sure,” Lee said.

She smiled at him and left the room. A few
minutes later Denny strolled back into the file room. He leered at
Lee and nodded in the direction of Andrea’s office.

“No hard feelings.” Denny leaned against a
desk.

“What are you talking about?” Lee turned his
back to him.

“I was going after that. She’s fine, even if
she’s older

than me. But you got there first. Guess I
moved too slow.”

“Stop dreaming, youngster. Slow or fast, you
weren’t going anywhere,” Lee said over his shoulder.

“Cocky. I see your game. Smooth move, man.”
Denny chuckled.

“Smooth how?” Lee swiveled the chair around
and faced him again, arms crossed.

“Get in with the boss lady and make our way
even easier.” Denny wore an expression of admiration as he nodded.
“Yeah, I can see we’re gonna do big things.”

Lee ground his teeth to hold back his temper.
He was as angry with himself as he was with Denny. Not only was he
lying to Andrea, but he’d made her the object of lewd
speculation.

“Ms. Noble is a fine lady. She cares about
you,” Lee said in a controlled voice.

‘Too bad she cares about you more.” Denny
grinned.

“Look—”

“Hey, hey, don’t go off about it, man.” Denny
held up a palm. “I’m just saying it’s good for business.”

“Right,” Lee muttered, and swallowed the
anger he felt. He could not get out of character now or Denny would
get suspicious. “So Friday is definitely on?”

“No doubt about it,” Denny said promptly. He
winked at Lee and went down the hall whistling.

Lee rubbed a hand over his face and
sighed.

***

Andrea hummed a tune as she worked late in
her office. The long day didn’t bother her because Jamal was at the
end of it. Everything seemed to be going her way. Her days at the
clinic were fulfilling. Both of her new programs were drawing rave
reviews from the people she’d most wanted to please, the patients.
The clinic’s advisory board was happy with her latest progress
report. The state health department seemed ready to forgive and
forget. Andrea’s assurance that there was no serious breach, merely
a lack of a paper trail, had helped, of course. Bureaucrats loved
documentation. But they liked they way her programs satisfied
federal officials even more.

Best of all, she got to see Jamal every day.
The days were sweet, but the nights were fantastic. She sighed and
stared out the window at the lovely view.

Buildings on both sides of the street cast
long shadows in the late afternoon sunshine. Most had been built
over fifty years ago and had antique charm. The oldest building, a
hotel built in the late nineteenth century, had been renovated
along with a dozen other structures. A local landscaper had helped
city officials plant trees and flowering plants along the streets.
Downtown Bayou Blue was coming alive again.

So was she, Andrea mused. It was just a year
ago she’d alternated between feeling numb and being angry. The
memory of strong hands kneading her breasts and hot kisses rushed
back. That she could be fulfilled both professionally and with a
man was a wonderful discovery.

“Ahem, I was going to say don’t work too
hard, but...” Katy stood in the door. She wore a teasing grin.

Andrea blinked her way back from the sweet
reverie. “I’m just taking a break.”

“I hear ya.” She came and dropped into a
chair. “You know the old saying, ‘Careful what you wish for’? Well,
we’re living proof. I’m beat, boss lady.”

“Speaking of busy, it’s time for me to review
invoices and the drug record again. Look at what I found.” She
handed Katy a trade journal.

“Effective inventory controls in clinic
settings,” Katy read. “So?”

“I’ve written up a new procedure, a lot of it
based on that article. Sally helped, too.”

Katy stood. “On that cheerful note, I’m going
home. What about you?”

Andrea brushed back her hair and smiled. “For
once, I’m going to leave on time.”

“Good for you.” Katy stood and walked to the
door. ‘Trust me; the work will be here when you get here in the
morning. Staying late won’t change a thing. Good night.”

“Have a nice evening,” Andrea called after
her.

She stayed in her office a while longer to
straighten her desk and files. The voices of staff faded as they
left for the day. Andrea followed soon after. She walked out the
door and saw Denny getting into Jamal’s car. They waved to her as
they drove out of the parking lot.

“Have fun,” she called out to them.

Andrea considered the two men. They were so
much alike. Jamal still had traces of a reckless young man. Maybe
that was why he understood Denny and why Denny listened to him. But
beneath that brash grin and confident animal stride was a kind
heart. Andrea smiled. Jamal was a real man. Later tonight she would
hold him close again and tell him so.

At home, the hours dragged by. She tried to
keep her-self occupied by reviewing the reports she’d brought home.
Yet her gaze kept drifting to die clock.

“Come, on, girlfriend. He said it would be
late. Now you’re mumbling to yourself. Not good.”

Andrea stretched to relieve the tension in
her shoulders. She put her feet up on the sofa and settled back to
read. The first report was a blistering assessment of the clinic,
completed two years ago. Andrea intended to contrast their progress
with the problems cited. To do that, she would attack the most
troubling issue. The improvements in tracking drug inventory would
be the first portion of her annual report. She put the audit aside
and went over the printout she’d gotten from the clinic
data-base.

“Hmm, I must have made a mistake somewhere,”
she said.

According to what she’d written, at least ten
invoices were missing. Each invoice had a six-digit number. Andrea
had decided to keep them in sequence as part of the new inventory
procedures. Yet the numbers skipped around. Still, she was not too
concerned since the amount indicated on the printout roughly
matched her review of the drug stock. More than likely, Denny and
Jamal were behind on entering data. Andrea tossed the papers aside
and tapped a foot nervously. Maybe there was something interesting
on television. She sat pressing buttons on the remote. Channels
flew by.

The doorbell was a welcome sound. Checking
through the peephole first, Andrea opened the front door. Jamal was
an even more welcome sight. He wore a white shirt with a dark green
stripe down one side and jeans that hugged his lower body.

“I’m later than I thought I would be.
If—”

“You’re right on time.” She took him by the
hand and pulled him inside.

He pointed to the piles of folders. “Do you
ever stop thinking about the clinic?”

Andrea looked at the papers, and then quickly
gathered them up. In seconds they were stashed away in the extra
bedroom she used as a home office. She strode back to the living
room with a smile.

“I’m not thinking about it now,” she said.
“Let’s have a drink. White wine okay?”

“Yeah, sure.” Jamal sat down on the sofa.

Andrea went to the kitchen and poured them
both a glass from a bottle taken from the refrigerator. “So did you
bond with Denny over hamburgers?” she said as she walked to the
sofa.

Jamal smiled as he accepted the glass from
her. “It was pizza, and I guess you could say we did.”

“Good. I’m glad you came over.” Andrea sat
next to him and drew her knees up onto the sofa cushion.

“If you’re tired, I’ll understand. It was a
long day at the clinic. I was running from the minute I stepped in
the door. So were you.”

“But we’re standing still now.” Andrea lifted
her glass to him in a toast. ‘To the weekend.”

“You know it,” he replied, and raised his
wineglass. Andrea watched him as she sipped wine. Jamal drank
deeply as though thirsty. “You look tired.”

“Like I said, a long day.” He did not look at
her. “Well, now you can relax.” Andrea turned off the television
and turned on the stereo radio, using another re-mote. “How’s this
for setting the mood?”

“Nice,” he said without looking at her.

‘Tell me more about yourself.”

Jamal shifted positions and glanced at her.
“Not much more to tell. I’m from Los Angeles. I moved here about a
year ago after my divorce. That’s about it.”

“And you have a son,” Andrea said.

“Yeah,” Jamal said with a wide smile. “One
good thing that came out of a bad marriage.”

“What’s he like?”

“Smart and smart mouthed.” He laughed.
“Seriously, he’s a good kid. Doing great in school now. He had a
rough time after the divorce.”

“Children do take it hard.”

“I should have been there more for him.”
Jamal’s expression became solemn. “My ex-wife reminds me of that
every time I visit.”

“It’s great that you moved to be near
him.”

“Guilt. I’ve got a lot of that,” Jamal
mumbled.

“And a lot of love for your child,” Andrea
added. “You’re a good father and a good man, Jamal.”

“Ahem, thanks.” He tapped a tightly clenched
fist on the arm of the sofa and didn’t look at her.

“You mentioned that relatives lived nearby,”
Andrea said.

“A couple of aunts in New Orleans, and
cousins in Baton Rouge.”

“Do you visit them often?”

“Holidays mostly.” Jamal drank the last of
his wine and stood. “Think I’ll have more wine.”

Andrea stood. She put her hand over his as
she reached for the glass. “Let me get it.”

“No, I can ...” His voice trailed off when he
gazed into her eyes.

She stroked the back of his hand with her
fingertips and moved close to him. “Why don’t we both have some
more,” she whispered, and covered his lips with her own.

She teased his lips wider with her tongue
until he gave in completely. He tasted sweeter than ever as Andrea
kissed him greedily. Yet he seemed to be holding back. Andrea ached
to touch him and to feel his touch.

She pulled away long enough to put both
wineglasses on the sofa table. When she turned to him again, she
was disappointed to see him checking his cell phone.

“I’ve been paged. I’ll just return this
call.” He turned away as he punched the keypad.