Nice Girl (12 page)

“Now that guy needs to calm down.   He’s going to explode from the strain of A and V growing so fast.  I can just feel it.”

“Maybe he needs to learn some Grace under pressure.”   I heard a voice yell from down the hall.

“SHUT UP Jamie.”  I yelled back.

Finally the office was quiet again as Jamie, Jamal, and Vinnie worked on their individual cases.  It was 1pm.  My hours were informally 9am to 2pm but I usually stayed until 3pm.  I was thinking of leaving soon to maybe get a head start on looking for a dress for tomorrow night.  My thoughts of the horrid experience of shopping were interrupted by my cell phone.  I saw Dee’s number on the caller id.  That’s odd, in the middle of the day?

“Hey Dee baby, what’s up?”

I heard a pause and then sniffling as if she was trying to compose herself.

I stood up alarmed.  “Dee?  What’s wrong?” 

“Grace.”  She barely got my name out.  “Go somewhere quiet where we can talk.”

I started to walk down the hall to the conference room.  I prayed that Vinnie wasn’t working on his project in there.

“Dee, talk to me now.  I’m getting scared.  What happened?”  I was trying to keep my voice low when I reached the conference room.  Good.  No one was there.  I quickly closed the door.

“I’m in a closed room.  Please just spit it out.”

“Janie was assaulted last night when she was walking back to her dorm from a party.”  Then she lost it.  She was sobbing so hard I knew she couldn’t hear me.  I felt paralyzed.  I couldn’t move.  Hot tears were flowing down my cheeks like a waterfall. 

After several minutes of crying, I finally found my voice.  “Dee, tell me she’s okay.”

“I don’t know much yet.  Timmy called me.  Her mom drove up last night when the hospital called.”  Timmy was Janie’s brother.  He was two years younger and we all adored him.  He shared Janie’s sense of humor.

“Hospital?  How bad is it?  Dear God, Dee. Was she raped?”

Dee couldn’t answer.  She was crying uncontrollably again.  To hear Dee in this state was overwhelming.  Dee was always in control.  She could handle anything.  I was worried that there was more to her conversation with Timmy than she wasn’t letting on.  Or that she couldn’t get out. 

“I know you’re at work.  I’ll let you go.”

“No!”  I practically shouted.  “Not until I make sure you’re okay.  Are you sure you don’t know anything yet?”

“Timmy promised to call me as soon as he hears from his mom.  Grace, she has to be okay.”

“She will be.  I just feel it.  You know we’ll be there for her no matter what.”  Then I paused “Does Eve know?”

“No, I don’t think I can make another one of these calls.”

“Don’t worry, Dee.  I’ll call Eve.  You let me know the minute you hear from Timmy.”

“Okay.  I can’t believe this happened, Grace.   Do you know how many women I worked with in the legal aid office that was assaulted?  I never thought it would happen to someone I loved.”

“Dee, it’ll be okay.  Let me call Eve now.  I know she gets out of school at 1pm on Thursdays.”  I was dreading calling Eve but I couldn’t imagine asking Dee to make another phone call.

My call with Eve didn’t go any smoother than it did with Dee.  I can see why Dee was hysterical.  Just getting out the words “Janie was attacked.”  brought a flood out of my eyes again. 

I was thankful that Eve couldn’t stay on the phone because the shuttle was there to take the graduate students from the reservation to their afternoon classes.  Eve had made friends with several other teachers that were like her, on the reservation teaching while completing their graduate degrees.  She immediately was surrounded by other women that would comfort her. 

When we hung up, it was then I realized I was in an office of men.   I knew there was no way I was going to walk out of here undetected.  My eyes were beet red and my face was puffy.  I cringed to think of what my mascara looked like.   I had a feeling that these men were not comfortable seeing a blathering weeping female.  Thinking how to escape was quickly interrupted by the squeak of the conference door opening. 

Jamie poked his head in.  “Grace, I’m sorry I heard.  The walls are thin here.  Is there anything I can do?”  

I realized then I was sitting on the floor.  I didn’t even make it to a chair.  He sat on the floor next to me and immediately enveloped me in a hug.  That brought the damn tears again.  How much crying is a person capable of doing? 

“I need tissue.”  I said sobbing like a baby.

“It’s okay, use my shirt.” Jamie just held me.

A minute later, Jamal came in the conference room with a box of tissues. 

“Thank you Jamal.”  I said with the upmost gratitude. 

Jamal sat in one of the chairs.  “Is your friend okay, Grace?”  He asked.  Concern spilling all over his face.

“I don’t know yet.  I think that is the worst part.”

“People are survivors Grace.”  I turned out of Jamie’s embrace to that familiar voice.  Vinnie was standing in the doorway of the conference room.  He continued “You’d be surprised at what someone can endure.  Your friend is going to be okay.”  He looked at me with a softness I had never seen. 

Jamie took my chin in his hand.  “Listen Grace, don’t ever.  I mean EVER go anywhere alone at night.  You’re not familiar with New York City.  Call me anytime you need a ride.”

“You can call any of us.”  Jamal added.

Just minutes before I was thinking of how lucky Eve was that she had girlfriends to comfort her.  Yet here I was sitting with three incredible men.  I couldn’t believe I was worried that I would be embarrassed by my tears.  They came to me with no judgment and no rejection.    So many emotional feelings were going through my head, I was dizzy. 

I started my adventure in New York determined to never again let a man intimidate me.  Could I have ever imagined that three street wise tough private investigators could give me such friendship and support? 

Chapter 12

I rolled over in bed surprised at the brightness of the sun.  My eyes adjusted and I looked at my alarm clock.  No way!  It was already 10am.  I haven’t slept this late since summer. 

I jumped out of bed so fast I was dizzy.  I still needed to go shopping for a dress.  That blew today’s exercise session.   I was kind of groggy anyway. 

I was up late last night web chatting with Dee and Eve.  Dee heard back from Timmy.  Janie was not raped, thank God.  She was attacked and tackled to the ground.  Some of her clothes were ripped but two good Samaritans heard her screams and came running.  The ironic part was that the two rescuers were both women.  Apparently, they were intimidating enough to scare off Janie’s attacker.  They called the police and stayed with Janie the whole time.  They even followed the ambulance to the hospital and waited with Janie until she fell asleep.  One day I would love to meet these two women.    When I finally went to bed at 2am, I felt more at ease.

Now it was time to focus on the big party for tonight.  I really needed to work out.  From Janie’s attack to being in charge of a hugely important event for my bosses, it was one stressful moment to another.  I knew though, I had to skip the workout.  I was too worried I would not find something to wear tonight.  As I quickly jumped in the shower, I was amazed at the change in myself.   I never used to feel guilty for not working out.  When did I become so obsessed?

In was a ten block walk to Macy’s.  That would definitely suffice as my exercise for the day.  I was pressed for time and wanted so bad to get a taxi.  However, I didn’t know what to expect for the cost of the dress.  I hadn’t bought a party dress in a long time.  Although, I had a weekly income coming in, I wasn’t at the point where I could blow my money.  

I chose Macy’s because I didn’t have a lot of shopping experience in New York.  I wanted a large department store with a big selection.  I didn’t have time to fool around.  I decided to go with the typical little black dress.  I figured it was hard to go wrong with that. 

Macy’s did not disappoint me.  The selection was massive.  I grabbed about five choices and went to the dressing room. 

There was one I really wanted to fit me.  It was all black with a scoop neck.  It had a stretch fabric type material so I knew it would be hit or miss with my body type.  What attracted me to this dress in particular was the subtleness.  It was all black except for at the neckline.  There it was lined with shiny vivid sequins.  They were the colors I often love to wear the most.  The gems were a sharp blue, red and purple.  Without the sparkle, the dress would have been the typical boring black casual dress.  The colors made it stunning.  There was just enough sparkle.  I told myself not to get my hopes up. 

I slipped the dress on.  It fit so that was a good sign.  My first reaction was to see how it covered my breasts.  Whoever said that black was the color to feel thin in definitely knew what they were talking about.  The symmetry shown by the solid black frame created a perfect proportion.  The dress hugged my curves.  The neckline was low enough for me to feel alluring but no cleavage showed.  I didn’t want to be that bold.   I was getting excited that I may have a found a winner with my first selection.  The true test, however, was to see how the dress fit from the back. 

There was a three way mirror at the dressing room entrance but not in the individual rooms.  At 11am, the dressing room was not crowded so I left my room to go stand in front of the three way mirror.  My biggest worry was those lovely rolls that used to show up on my back under my bra line. 

As I stood in the three way mirror, I almost gasped.  I didn’t recognize that body.   It felt like I was looking at a different person.  I guess in a way I was.   Being that the dress was two sizes smaller than what I usually wear.   I no longer saw a chunky girl but a curvaceous woman with a sexy ass!  It was shorter than I would usually wear a dress but my legs looked so fit and trimmed.  All the working out was paying off.  I was now totally excited for tonight.  I couldn’t believe that silly thought entered my head.  All because I found a dress that fit.

An older African American woman walked into the dressing room with a handful of clothes to try on.  She looked at me standing in the three way mirror and smiled.  “Girl, please tell me you are going to buy that dress.”

I laughed “I didn’t even look at the price tag but I don’t care.  I AM buying this dress.”

She nodded her head “If you have your eye on a fella, he will be yours with that dress on.”

Yes, I couldn’t wait for tonight!

I speed walked back to my dorm to shower and work on my hair.  I decided I would leave it down. Since it was so long, I was going to need to allow a lot of time to blow dry.  But I wanted to go for the long curly look.  I warmed up my hot rollers.  After what felt like an hour of carefully curling every hair piece, I now knew why I always put my hair up.

Jamie was coming to pick me up at 5pm.  He and Luke rarely drove in the city but they rented a van to transport the trays of food.  They were going to unload the food at 4pm and then Jamie would come and pick me up.  I had offered to take a cab.  Jamie wouldn’t hear of it.  He seemed freaked out about what happened to Janie even though he never met her.  It was probably my total breakdown. 

When he said he would come and get me, I told him Luke needed him more.  He said he was serious that I was not to go anywhere alone.  I reminded him that 4pm was hardly the same danger as walking around at night.  He still wouldn’t hear of it.  He said if it was anyplace where I was unfamiliar than I wasn’t to go alone.  I thought he was being a little obsessive but then after what I spent on my new dress, I suddenly appreciated not having to pay cab fare.

He was 30 minutes late which was not a surprise with city traffic.  I was waiting in front since the weather was mild.  I was definitely too anxious to sit in my dorm room.  He pulled up to the curb.  I hopped in.

“DAMN girl.  You look gorgeous!”

“Jamie, you always know the right thing to say to a girl.”

He wasn’t pulling ahead, just staring at me.  Then someone blew their horn and he snapped out of it.

“What?”  I asked impatiently.

“Why don’t you wear your hair down more often?”

“Because it is way too much work to style.”

“Take my advice.  Wear it down more often.  It is an instant aphrodisiac.”

“Oh please.”  I sneered.

“Don’t oh please me.  You just wait and see the attention you get tonight. “

“You didn’t say anything about the dress.”

“I like.  But I didn’t get that good a look at it.  I was still hung up on those provocative locks of hair you got going there.”

“I wonder if I have a pony tail holder in my purse.”  I pretended to dig.

“Don’t you dare!”

The New York streets were a nightmare and I was glad Jamie was driving.  He handled the cars darting in and out with a calm cool demeanor.  I was impressed.  He had a reserved parking spot for the van.  As we stepped in the banquet hall, I felt that bundle of nerves tighten in my stomach. 

“How’s Luke doing?”

“Now that the cooking is done, he is surprisingly calm.”

“Good, I need calm right now.”

“Stop it.  There’s nothing to stress about.  I was here earlier.  Everything is in place.  Remember Grace under pressure.”

Jamie was right.  Everything was in place.  The manager of the banquet hall, Jill, met me at the door.  It was funny that I had dozens of conversations with her but had never met her.  She was an older woman with a professional demeanor.  I felt she could tell I was new at event planning but she never once showed impatience with me.  Everything I asked for was done.  Tables and linens were set up as requested.  The flowers she suggested, since I knew nothing about flowers, were beautifully coordinated.  The bartenders were in place.

Jamie began setting up the equipment that would be used for a display.  They wanted the insurance companies to see the full extent of A and V’s technical capabilities.  Most insurance companies use private investigators for suspicious claims.  A and V want to highlight their expertise in the area of worker’s compensation.  Apparently they have caught a few high profile offenders.  Anthony hopes to capitalize on those past successes to impress the insurance executives.