Imagined Love (20 page)

“Ooh, I missed you,” he said, holding her tight. “I’ve been thinking about you all week. Did you miss me?”

“Is this your idea of a joke?” Jade frowned, as she got out of his grasp.

“What do you mean a joke? I just got back from Colorado and I drove straight here from the airport hoping I could see you.”

Jade was dumbfounded. “Wow, so you’ve been out of town for a week and didn’t think that was worth mentioning?”

“Well, I didn’t know I needed your permission to visit my daughter. I thought I was grown.”

“Okay so you wanna act stupid, right? Whatever, Richard,” Jade said then began to walk away.

“Wait, hold on, baby. I’m sorry,” he said, blocking her path. “That wasn’t necessary to say and I apologize. I just don’t get what the big deal is. I decided to go see Mya and now I’m back here with you,” he kissed her cheek. “I don’t see why that’s a problem.”

“The problem is that I’ve left messages and even stopped by your place thinking something was wrong and the whole time you were off on vacation and didn’t think enough of me to let me know you’d be gone. But I guess you would’ve told me if I was something more than the little whore you screw when it suits you!” Jade snapped then pushed past him.

“Whoa, wait a second, Jade, that was completely uncalled for!” Richard snapped, as he pulled her back to him. “You know damn well I don’t think of you as my whore! Don’t ever let me hear you say something like that again. You’re starting to sound like Landon.”

“Maybe he has a point. Why else would you be so inconsiderate not to let me know you were going out of town? I wouldn’t have wasted my time inviting you to things or cussing you out on your answering machine for blowing me off.”

“I’m sorry, baby. That was inconsiderate and I didn’t mean to make you worry or hurt your feelings. This is just how I am, Jade. I didn’t tell my mother I was going either. Mya said she missed me and wanted to see me so I called my boss to get the time off and I just left. I didn’t mean any harm and I apologize sincerely for upsetting you, okay? Let me make it up to you. What can I do to fix this? Come on, Jade,” he said when she continued to frown at him.

“My birthday is in a week and a half. It would be nice to have a date.”

“You got it,” Richard said then kissed her. “I don’t have to wait until then, though, do I? Can I see you tonight? I miss you so much, baby.”

“I miss you too,” she admitted before agreeing to see him.

When Jade got home and started gushing about Richard, Landon grew more frustrated with her. “What else does this dude have to do before you get it, Jade? If he can go on vacation for a week and not even bother to tell you, he doesn’t give a damn! What Richard wants is a sex buddy he can screw when he feels like it without the benefit of a relationship. And you keep agreeing to it every time you go running when he decides to see you. Have some respect for yourself, Jade. You’re not this dude’s call girl so quit acting like it. You had some good times with him but you need to find a way to let it go and move on.”

Jade knew he was right but she still cared about Richard and wanted to believe he could change. Landon was clearly disgusted with her but she couldn’t help the way she felt.

“Stupid,” he mumbled, rolling his eyes at her. He knew Jade well enough to know she wasn’t done with Richard yet. She was going to wait until he completely humiliated her first.

“I got your stupid,” she snapped. “Apparently you’re having some kind of memory lapse, but I recall Cassandra quite clearly, you bastard! It’s not always easy to let go of a person just because someone else thinks you should. Is it?”

“Dang, Jade, why I gotta be a bastard?” he chuckled, nudging her shoulder. “You got me. I was a fool for Cassandra. But look what it did to me. Do you really wanna feel like that?”

“No,” she conceded. “I just hate when you talk to me like that . . . like you’re better or something.”

“I’m sorry, baby girl. I definitely don’t think I’m better. I just hate seeing you hurt. Richard isn’t the one for you and I don’t want you to keep wasting your time with someone who’ll only keep disappointing you. He might straighten up for a few minutes but he’ll ultimately revert back to this same crap and have you all upset. And I know you always wanna understand people’s reasons for doing

things, but what difference does it make why he’s hurting you? He’s hurting you and that should be enough to let him go. You deserve better than that, baby, and you don’t have to settle for less,” Landon said, as he embraced her. “But it’s your decision. You have to do what you think is best.”

The following week Jade started planning Landon and Gabrielle’s wedding. They had gone to see a few wedding planners not having a clue how expensive they were. So Jade volunteered to plan the wedding once she realized she could do most of it at a fraction of the cost. She really enjoyed it and so did Landon. Gabrielle wasn’t the typical bride in that she didn’t really care about the details. She was more than happy to let her future husband and sister-in-law make all the arrangements.

“Happy birthday, beautiful,” Richard said then gave Jade a warm hug. “You ready? I’ve got something really special planned for you.”

“Where are we going?” she asked once they were in his truck.

“It’s a surprise.”

Jade sat back and got comfortable preparing for the ride. She couldn’t hide her anger at having been promised something special just to be brought to Richard’s townhouse. She was fed up with it being the only place they spent time together. The scowl on Jade’s face turned into a smile when he opened the door revealing hundreds of lit candles. Next to grab her attention was the magnificent table he’d set. Richard led Jade by the hand to his bedroom to show her all the beautifully wrapped presents spread across his bed for her to open later. Whatever he had prepared for dinner smelled heavenly and Jade felt horrible for being angry with him. Richard had obviously taken a lot of time and care planning a wonderful birthday surprise for her and she was acting like a spoiled brat.

He waited on Jade hand and foot and made her feel like a princess. He even carried her into his bedroom so she could open her presents. Jade was impressed with how well he knew her taste and how much effort he’d put into choosing the perfect gifts.

“Thank you so much, Richard. This is wonderful! I’ve never felt more special in my life,” she smiled. “A girl could get used to this. I might have to marry you just for the gifts.”

Richard didn’t find her comment amusing at all. Even after Jade explained that she was only kidding, his attitude didn’t change. He became serious and almost mean.

“I was just playing, Richard. It was meant to make you laugh not piss you off. It was a stupid joke, geez.”

“Yeah, you keep saying that but I don’t believe you. I think you really do believe we’re gonna get married and that worries me. I’ve always tried to be

straight with you and I definitely never wanted to hurt or mislead you in any way. And I just feel like I’m gonna end up looking like the jerk who broke your heart when that was never my intention.”

“I see,” Jade said, tossing one of the boxes back on his bed. “So how exactly will my heart get broken, Richard?” She hadn’t expected a silly joke to lead to something so serious.

“Look, it’s your birthday. Let’s just finish celebrating and enjoying each other. We can talk about that later.”

“Yeah right, like that’s gonna be possible. Just say whatever it is you need to say to me. I’d rather know what’s up before I waste any more of your time.”

“Don’t say that, baby girl. I haven’t wasted my time with you. I’ve really enjoyed you. It’s just that, well, I don’t see a future here . . . at least not like you do. What we’ve had this spring was great and I’m so happy I got to have you in my life. But truthfully, the woman I’d consider marrying would be more educated and have a career and not just . . .”

“Oh I see! So the stupid little clerk from Quik Stop is good enough to bone but not to marry, right?”

“No, baby, that’s not what I’m saying at all. You’re very intelligent and I know you’re gonna grow up to be a wonderful woman. It’s just that . . . wait, Jade, where are you going? Come on, don’t be like this,” Richard said, as he followed her out of the bedroom. “Please just sit down so we can finish talking.”

“There’s nothing to talk about, Richard. You made yourself crystal clear. I get it. The ignorant clerk who apparently isn’t even a woman yet gets it,” she said then grabbed her purse and headed for the front door. “Thanks for giving me something to do for spring, though. I appreciate it.”

“Come on, baby, don’t leave like this. Just let me explain, okay? I think you misunderstood what I was trying to say. Let’s just talk, alright? I don’t want you to leave, Jade. I wanna spend your birthday with you like we planned. Please, sit back down so we can talk this through.”

Jade couldn’t believe her ears! “Look, I know you don’t think much of me, but I actually did well in English Comprehension class! There was no possible way in hell to misunderstand or misinterpret what you just said! And for the record, I haven’t had any thoughts of marrying you either, although I did consider you as more than something to do for spring. That’s cold. But I guess that’s what I get for thinking you’d be better because you’re older. I just wish you had told me this was the plan so I could have gotten my next lover lined up,” Jade sneered. “Why did you even bother accepting my invitation for a date if this was all you were gonna do? I wish you had left me the hell alone!”

“See, now you’re hurt and that’s the last thing I wanted. I’m just being honest with you, Jade. I thought that’s what you wanted. So why does the

relationship have to be over? I really do care about you. I think you’re a really sweet girl and I would hope we could always be friends. It just might be best if we don’t sleep together anymore.”

“Really? I thought that was next on the agenda. You know, one for the road from your friendly neighborhood hooker!”

Upset by Jade’s comment, Richard grabbed her around the waist to prevent her from leaving. He was shocked by how aggressively she responded, swinging and punching at him.

“Whoa, whoa, baby, calm down! I’m not gonna hurt you,” he said, holding his hands up in the air.

“Just don’t grab me like that,” she panted. Her mind instantly flashed back to that day in Alonzo’s room. “I wanna go home.”

When Jade refused to stay and talk things out, Richard said he’d drive her home. Then he grabbed a garbage bag to pack her gifts.

“Now that’s symbolic, isn’t it?”

“Oh, no,” he moaned, realizing how it must have looked. “It’s the only bag I have that’s big enough to fit everything in to. I’m scared you’ll walk off and leave me if I have to make more than one trip to the truck, so I just grabbed this. But I would never disrespect you by trying to imply that you’re garbage to me, Jade. I truly do care for you and I don’t want to see you hurt.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” she snorted. “Can we go now?”

Richard turned to face Jade when he pulled in front of her apartment but she jumped out as soon as he stopped. He called to her but she ran inside and slammed the door. “Damn,” he grunted, upset by the way things had turned out. Richard really hadn’t meant to hurt her. In fact, he had begun to fall in love with Jade and that terrified him! There was no way he could take back the things he said or ever convince her of what he was really feeling. “Damn,” Richard shouted then hit the steering wheel. He debated whether to leave the presents at her doorstep or take them home. He opted to take them back hoping Jade would accept them once she’d had a chance to cool down.

Back at his townhouse, Richard blew out all the candles and put away the leftovers. He told himself not to call Jade, but after nearly an hour of nothing but thoughts of her, he could no longer resist. To his surprise, she answered the phone and gave him the chance to talk.

“You were right about one thing, baby girl. Older doesn’t necessarily mean better. I have the tendency to push away the people I love. I’m not sure why but I do. And it scares me to have such intense feelings for you. And not just sexual ones either. I feel like that for you in my heart too,” he admitted. “I know I screwed up, Jade, and I’m begging you to forgive me. Please. Come back so we

can finish celebrating your birthday. Whatever you wanna do we’ll do. I promise. I just wanna be with you.”

“I don’t know, Richard. I don’t think that’s . . .”

“Please, baby, just let me come back to get you. Please.”

Common sense aside, Jade went back with him for what was to be their last night together. She really did try to salvage what was left of her birthday and they even made love. However, Jade knew her feelings would never be the same for Richard and thought it best to just leave well enough alone. He called a few times and stopped by Quik Stop once or twice, but what they had was done and they both knew it. Another case of Imagined Love, Jade thought bitterly as she closed the book on Richard Sullivan.

On Saturday, November 23, 1991, Jade did a magnificent job organizing and executing Landon and Gabrielle’s wedding. When they returned from their honeymoon in Hawaii, a few people approached Gabrielle to find out who had done her wedding. And it was then that Jade and Landon knew what business to start. The two of them took the necessary courses to become certified wedding planners and worked hard to get their business up and running.

“So what do you think of weddings by Landon and Jade?”

“Umm, excuse me but why does your name get to go first? I think we should do it alphabetically. Then I’ll have you beat whether we use first or last names,” Jade teased. “Seriously, though, I don’t think we should use our names. I want it to sound romantic like . . .”

“Ooh, what about romantic weddings by . . .”

“I said I want it to sound romantic, not say romantic! It should be something like Mr. and Mrs.”

“His and her weddings where we cater to the bride and groom and you’ll both be happy.”

“Will all that fit on a business card, Landon? Geez!”

They sat silently for a few minutes trying to come up with the perfect name for their company.

“What about one guy, one girl weddings? No wait, a guy and a girl wedding planning,” Jade said.

“Hmmm. A guy and a girl,” Landon whispered, turning the idea over in his mind. “Yeah, I like it but something needs to be tweaked a little, you know?”

Again they were silent until it hit them both at once.

“Weddings planned . . .”

“By a guy and a girl!” Jade screamed excitedly.

It took a few weeks to get their license, business cards, and to establish their offices in Landon and Gabrielle’s new four-bedroom, two and a half bath house in Union City. After that, however, it was full speed ahead!

Mr. Phillips was heartbroken when Jade said she needed to leave Quik Stop to pursue her dreams with the business. He understood and told her she was always welcome to come back even though he was confident she and Landon would be successful. And they were. It seemed as if Weddings Planned by a Guy and a Girl was their niche. Gabrielle brought in clients from Kaiser Hospital where she worked as a registered nurse and Mr. Phillips kept flyers and business cards in the store which led to a few clients. However, most of Landon and Jade’s jobs came from word of mouth. Their satisfied customers were the best publicity they

could’ve asked for. Jade had really made a name for herself with her creative decorations and the way she gave a hundred and ten percent to each of their brides. Landon was great at pulling everything together and making sure every single detail was thought out and executed perfectly.

They got along much better too. With the business Landon had when Jade first moved to California they were arguing and on each other’s nerves most of the time. Yet with the wedding planning, they seemed to fit right into their roles and had no reason to bump heads. Each of their weaknesses was the other’s strength. Aside from dealing with the bride and groom, Jade was more behind the scenes. Her least favorite part of the whole wedding process was the rehearsal dinner. It never failed to bring some sort of unnecessary drama! Thankfully, those things didn’t bother Landon and he handled that part of the business.

Their lives changed for the better fairly quickly and Jade enjoyed that very much. She bought a new red Dodge Stealth, took a few vacations, and was finally able to take care of herself without help from anyone else. Landon was proud of Jade and encouraged her to be young and single and enjoy her life. However, when she got her own apartment, he went through the roof! Jade and Gabrielle tried to explain to Landon that it was time for her to move on and have a place of her own but he didn’t get it. He thought it was stupid and a complete waste of money for her to pay rent for a one-bedroom apartment when there was more than enough space in the house. Jade told Landon that he and his wife needed to have space of their own where she wasn’t always there. Again, he argued it made no sense because Jade was there all day, everyday anyway because of their business.

“I just don’t get what the hell y’all talking about. We’ve been living together for years and we all get along so I don’t understand what the problem is. I mean, why do you think I bought this house anyway? Gabrielle and I have a room, you and I both have offices, and you have a room! What am I supposed to do with an empty room that was intended for you?”

“It doesn’t have to stay empty, Landon. You could put a baby in there.”

“What? Girl, please, ain’t nobody thinking about a damn baby! That’s your room and I want you to stay in it, Jade. Please.”

Gabrielle was hurt by Landon’s reaction and fought to hold back tears. She thought they were trying to have a baby.

“You being here don’t interfere with anything concerning me and Gabrielle. We have our dinner guests, our quality time, and you know we still get our freak on all the time. So what’s the problem? I respect that you’re grown and I don’t bother you about your company or anything. So why do you need to leave, Jade?”

“It’s time, big brother. You make it seem like I’m trying to get away from you when that’s not the case at all. I’d just like to have my own space too. I need to feel like I’m leaving the office, you know? Lately it seems like I’m always at work

and I just wanna have a place that’s completely separate from A Guy and a Girl. You know how to block it off. When you get off work you lock that office and pretend like it’s just another room in your home. I don’t have that ability. Every time I go by my office I think about that one phone call I need to make right quick or something that ultimately draws me back to work. I love what we do, Landon, but I’m not trying to be one of those women who lives for work. And when I’m here, that’s who I am. I wanna start dating again and going out and having a good time when I get off work. I need to do this, Landon. Okay?

“Please don’t be mad or take it like a personal hit towards you because that’s not at all what this is about. I’m almost twenty-two years old and I’ve never lived alone. This is my chance to do that before I get married and have kids. A few years down the road I don’t wanna look back and feel like I missed something. I love you and Gabrielle, but it’s time for me to go.”

Landon stood in the doorway of Jade’s office glaring at her but she knew he was trying to keep from getting emotional. “So where is this place anyway? You better not be in the damn slums some where.”

Jade’s new apartment was still in Union City less than ten minutes away from Landon and Gabrielle. And on February 5, 1993, she moved in to it. It was a nice, spacious one-bedroom place that was perfect for her. Jade’s decorations made it very homey and welcoming. Tamara often fell asleep when she came over saying it was so peaceful and serene at her friend’s home. The fact that she was pregnant again may have had a little something to do with her need to sleep so much. Tamara and Jamel had gotten married after all and had another baby.

Before the birth of their second daughter, Jade took their small budget and planned the most elegant event Tamara could have ever dreamed. She thanked her profusely and promised to name her next child after Jade. Of course she didn’t take it seriously because her clients offered all types of things out of gratitude. So Jade was shocked and honored when Jamel and Tamara asked her to be godmother to their daughter Reanna Jade Addison! And now Tamara was pregnant with a baby boy they planned to name Terrell Devon.

Not much had really changed between Jade and her parents. She spoke with Willa much more than she did Miles but didn’t necessarily feel close to her mom. When Willa came to visit they had a good time, but having fun was never their issue. The problem Jade had was that it seemed easy for her mom to ditch or disregard her when it came to a man. And when she met forty-four year old Daniel Wade on her last visit, it was no different. Like she’d done when Jade was a kid, Willa couldn’t stop going on about how cool her new name would be if she and Daniel got married. And Miles was even more of a nuisance by continuously calling Jade whenever Willa was in town. He tried to make it seem as if he had

called to talk to his daughter when it was quite clear he wanted to know what his ex-wife was doing. Jade eventually stopped taking his calls because it hurt too much to feel used by her own father.

Landon was all excited about the idea of Willa getting married and wanted to start scouting locations for the wedding even though there hadn’t been a proposal yet. Jade, on the other hand, was unfazed by it all. Willa had been engaged so many times that it no longer seemed special. Plus, Jade knew her father was never completely out of the picture. So for a while Jade tried really hard not to like Daniel because she didn’t expect him to be around for very long. She did like him, though—a lot. He was a good fit for Willa and genuinely seemed to love her. Jade just hoped her mother didn’t hurt him by letting Miles back into her life.

Daniel was established in Hayward, California and owned a very successful real estate agency. So if he and Willa did get married it was a given that she’d relocate to be with him. Daniel had tried to get her to move in with him but she wasn’t willing to be just a girlfriend. If Willa moved in it would be as his wife.

She came back to California for Christmas and brought Daniel to the dinner Landon and Gabrielle hosted at their home. During dessert Daniel said he needed to make an announcement then got on one knee to propose to Willa. Landon had known about Daniel’s plans for weeks and had champagne waiting for everyone to join in a toast. Willa seemed so happy and Jade was sincerely happy for her.

Since they’d both been married before, Daniel and Willa decided to have a simple ceremony and a small dinner instead of a huge wedding. Landon and Jade made all the arrangements for a wedding only three weeks away. The only drama they had was dealing with Daniel’s twenty-six year old daughter and his ex-wife. Neither of them was happy about the impending nuptials and tried their best to be disruptive to the plans. It forced Daniel to make a painful decision and he told Jade and Landon not to include his daughter as a guest. He wanted his bride-to-be to have a beautiful wedding and wasn’t willing to let anyone spoil it, not even his only child.

On New Year’s Eve Landon suggested they all go to Jimmy’s nightclub in Oakland to celebrate the coming of 1994. Daniel had plans of his own for his fiancée so it was just Landon, Gabrielle, and Jade who went. Jade had just come back to the table after dancing for the umpteenth time when another man came to ask her to dance.

“Gone somewhere, dude! Don’t you see she just sat down? Back off,” Landon snapped.

“Thanks, Dad,” Jade said once the guy had left the table. “I told you to quit doing that junk, Landon! And it ain’t funny either,” she snapped when he burst out laughing.

“Aw, girl, quit tripping. He wasn’t about nothing.”

“I wasn’t planning on marrying him, Landon. He just asked for a dance. But how am I supposed to meet somebody if you keep scaring them away.”

“The fact that I can scare them away should let you know they ain’t about nothing. Besides, I haven’t been wrong yet, have I? You could’ve avoided all that heartache if you’d just listened to me in the first place,” Landon said, as he took a swig of his drink. “I’ll know when Mr. Right comes along. Trust me.”

“Well maybe I’m not looking for Mr. Right. Maybe I’m looking for Mr. Right Now. These long gaps without the bow chicka bow bow are getting to be too much! I don’t know if I can hold out much longer.”

“Ugh, so you on the prowl, hooker? Oh, uh, I mean, girl,” Landon said.

Gabrielle hated when they called each other names like those. She found it degrading and not at all humorous. In fact, she wasn’t a fan of being called anything outside of her name, not even nicknames. Gabrielle would go crazy when someone called her Gabby or Gabs, like Landon did periodically. She knew it was supposed to be endearing but she’d always hated it.

The three of them were laughing and having a good time when a blast from the past walked over to their table. Cassandra stood before them with hardly a stitch of clothing smiling at Landon as if she were about to devour him right then and there!

“What’s up?” she grinned.

“Hey, Cassandra, how are you?” Landon smiled.

“Much better now that I’m seeing you. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Too long if you ask me,” she smiled, devilishly.

“Yeah, it has.” There was a moment of awkward silence. “Oh, hey, this is my wife Gabrielle Campbell. Gabrielle, this is Cassandra Clark.”

They shook hands but it was obvious Cassandra’s attention was still on Landon. She looked close to pouncing on him.

“And who is this?”

“What do you mean?” Landon frowned. “You don’t recognize Jade?”

“Oh my god, Jade? Girl, you look good! So much better that you used to. I’m glad to see you started taking better care of yourself.”

“Well, I wish I could say the same but you look like the same old dude to me! You might wanna stop hitting the gym so hard.”

“Jade!” Landon snapped.

“Anyway,” Cassandra said, as she rolled her eyes at Jade. “I hear y’all got it going on with that business of yours. I guess things finally took off for you. Why you have to go and get all ambitious after we broke up,” she laughed. “I guess I missed out, huh? If I had it to do all over again I would’ve . . .”

“Umm, excuse me! I know all those protein shakes and weight lifting probably left you a bit brain damaged but he just told you this is his wife!” Jade shouted. “Don’t nobody wanna hear about your regrets! You weren’t the one, so get over it!”

“Thank you, Jade. At least somebody noticed me still sitting here!” Gabrielle said, as she stood up to leave the table. “Here you go, darling. You might wanna use this to wipe the drool from your mouth,” she snorted, knocking a stack of napkins into Landon’s lap.

“I’m sorry, Cassandra. I didn’t mean for . . .”

“What the hell are you apologizing to her for? Go after your wife!”

Landon jumped up to follow Gabrielle and Cassandra snarled at Jade before she left Jimmy’s altogether. Seeing Landon and not being able to have him was too much and she decided to go home to sulk in private.