The Joneses (11 page)

“I knew you were no good when you gave in to my advances.”

I lost control and slapped Jason.

He grabbed my wrist. “That'll be the last time you put your hands on me.”

I attempted to twist my arm away but was unsuccessful. “Let me go,” I said, between clenched teeth.

“I know you're a little upset because your secret is not really a secret, but you better get a handle on your anger.” He released my arm.

I rubbed my wrist with my other hand. “I came here to speak with you to see if we could come to some type of agreement. I see now that coming here was a huge mistake.”

“Lexi, you have no room to negotiate with me. Sure, expose me. But, lose the man you claim to love in the process.”

I stood up. “I can't wait for Royce to find out the type of man
you really are. You're a snake, and it's about time someone chopped your head off.”

“Many have tried, but I'm not going anywhere. Deal with it.”

His receptionist burst through the door. “Is everything okay? I could hear you two arguing outside.”

I looked at Jason and then at her. “Things are fine. I think our conversation here is over.”

“Remember what I said. Let's keep this between us.”

I threw my hands up in the air and hightailed it out of his office. I was fuming mad when I reached my car. Something needed to be done about Jason and fast.

T
oday had been another busy day. Once I worked the last funeral, I decided to head to my favorite bar instead of going home. I sent Lexi a text message to let her know. Her response let me know she wasn't too happy about it, but oh well. She would be fine.

I needed to unwind and forget all of life's drama.

I scanned the room from my bar stool. The normal crowd filled the place. Men and women were talking and drinking. I turned my attention back to the drink sitting in front of me. It was my usual, a glass of bourbon with no ice, no soda, straight.

“Do you mind buying a thirsty lady a drink?” a woman in a short, tight red dress asked.

I shook my head. “I'm sure someone will be happy to, but I'm not the one.”

“Aww, you come in here in your fancy suit. Think you all that.”

Jason walked up to me. “There you go.”

“Man, you rescued me just in time.” I got up and walked with Jason to a table.

The woman was still talking as we walked away.

As soon as we sat down, Jason asked, “Have you talked to your wife today?”

“No. Haven't really had time. I had back-to-back funerals. After the last one, I headed straight here.”

“She showed up at my office today causing a ruckus with my secretary. You need to handle her or else I will.”

I'd been drinking, but I wasn't drunk enough to have any man disrespect my wife. “I'm sure she had a reason for coming to your office.”

“She was quick to tell me that my services were no longer needed. What I want to know is why am I hearing it from her? You should've been man enough to come tell me yourself.”

“I'm beginning to think what everyone else said is true. We should have never mixed business with our personal relationship.”

“But I've been your accountant for the last fifteen years. All I'm saying is, you should have come and talked to me man to man.”

“I didn't realize I needed to consult with you on how I chose to handle my business.”

“We have a contract. So, you can't just take me off your account.”

“Truth is, our contract expired several years ago. Neither one of us bothered to renew it.” I looked at Jason as if daring him to disagree. “So Jason, please, let's just table this for now and enjoy the rest of our night.”

“Maybe you can push it under the rug, but I feel like I'm getting the shaft.”

I knew Jason would be upset, but I never thought he would pitch a tantrum. I looked at him. “I've had a long day. I'm not in the mood for no drama. If I wanted to deal with drama, I would've gone home to my wife.”

Jason slammed his glass on the table and left.

Lovie walked up to the table. “Looks like Uncle Jason is a little upset.”

“He wasn't too happy about being let go.”

“If he's innocent, then he'll be cleared.”

“It's a complete mess. I hope you hurry up and finish your investigation, so things can get back to normal around here. I'm sick and tired of all of this. Money is important, but it's not worth me losing my friends and loved ones over.”

Lovie got the waiters attention and then took a seat. “Get him another bourbon and bring me a glass of Cîroc.”

Lovie looked at me and said, “Let me deal with Uncle Jason. Concentrate on the other part of the business. I got this.”

“It's hard. I'm not used to giving up control.”

“You trusted Jason with everything. I'm just asking you to trust me to figure out a way to recoup your money.”

I took a drink. “Have you talked to your mom today?”

“Not since this morning.”

“According to Jason, she caused a scene at his office.”

“You know Mom. She can be a little over dramatic at times.”

“Don't I know it. Her and your sisters.”

We both laughed.

I looked up just in time to see Jason look in my direction, turn, and storm out of the bar.

W
ith my family drama, I needed a reprieve. So, after stopping by Tyler's last night, I decided to spend the night for the first time.

Tyler walked in with a tray of food. “Breakfast in bed for my queen.”

He sat the tray over my lap. He sat beside me and fed me grapes. “Charity, what do I have to do to convince you that I'm sincere?”

After swallowing the grapes, I responded, “Right now, I'm trying to build my business. I don't have time for a relationship. Besides, most men would be happy with our arrangement.”

“I'm not most men.”

I gently brushed his face with the palm of my hand. “If you decide to see someone else, please let me know. I don't want to be the side chick. I would rather preserve our relationship and just be friends if it comes to that.”

“If I decide to commit to anyone else, you'll be the first to know.”

I twisted my head with a “yeah, right” expression on my face.

He added, “Well, the third person to know.”

“Exactly. Don't be like some men, who try to have their cake, icing, and pie.”

Tyler licked his lips. “All this talk of sweets got me hungry.”

Tyler removed the tray of food and placed it on the floor beside him. He eased his head under the covers, and I became his morning
dessert. No complaints from me because I was enjoying every minute of it. He had all the muscles in my body responding to the sensation of his tongue.

Two hours later, I was in the shower at my own place. I couldn't help but smile as I thought about my morning escapade with Tyler. He was becoming an addiction. More addictive than a box of chocolates. I might not want to be in a relationship with him, but I sure didn't want to give up our sexual encounters. I hoped it would be a very long time before he got into a serious relationship. Needless to say, my two-year drought was over and I didn't want it to end anytime soon.

I dried off and put my clothes on. I heard something that sounded like Hope crying. I eased her door open and saw her laid across her bed in tears. I rushed to the bed. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing. Every man I trust end up lying to me.”

I patted Hope on the back. “It'll be okay. What did your man do this time?” I still didn't like the fact that I hadn't met him.

Hope looked up at me with puffy, red eyes. “I called him all night and he never returned my calls. I promised myself I wouldn't run over to his place, but maybe I should have. That way I would know for sure if he's cheating on me.”

“Hope, I've told you if he was really in love with you he wouldn't be putting you through all of these changes. You should reconsider this relationship, and think about getting out while you still can.”

Hope sat up in bed. “I've tried. It's something about him that won't let me stop loving him. Now I see what all the guys go through who confess their love for me.”

I laughed.

Hope didn't see anything funny.

I grabbed her by the shoulder and made her look at me. “Are
you serious? Girl, you're a Jones. We may fall down, but we dust ourselves off and we get back into life. Don't let this man take any more from you than he already has.”

“For the first time, I experienced a real orgasm,” Hope confessed.

“That explains it. You're not in love. You just love how he makes your body feel.”

“No, it's more than that. We have this connection. It's hard to explain.” She looked down.

“Hope, look at me.”

Hope looked up. I continued. “Trust me, he is not the only man capable of making your toes curl and your body tremble. You might find better.”

“But, I want him.”

“Just from what you've shared about him, he is clearly not the one for you.”

“Would you be saying that if Scotty hadn't broken off your engagement?”

Ouch. She wanted to hit below the belt. Little did she know I'd come to terms with the demise of my relationship with Scotty a long time ago. I was naive like her then. “My friend Lisa tried to warn me about Scotty, but like you I ignored her. I wish I hadn't because it would have saved me heartache and grief.”

“But he is nothing like your Scotty. When we're together, he makes me feel like I'm the only woman in the world.”

“You've been warned. I hope you're using protection. The last thing you need is to get pregnant by this dude.”

“We are, but he did want us to start sleeping together without one,” she confessed.

“If you don't listen to anything else I've told you, please listen to this. Do not, and I repeat, do not sleep with him without
protection. There's disease. You could get pregnant. Trust me on this. Please.”

“Fine. I will always use protection.”

I sighed. “Good. I hope I'm wrong about everything else. I still want to meet him, so make it happen and soon.”

I got up and left Hope alone to deal with her feelings. I'd spent too much time on personal things. It was almost noon and I needed to get focused on planning my next event.

T
yler seemed to think because I was younger than him, he could continue to string me along. He needed to know there were plenty of men who wished they were in his position. I refused to spend another night alone crying over him.

Tyler finally returned my call. We argued right away. He snapped at me. “Hope, you need to grow up. Better yet, get a job like the rest of us, and you'll understand why I'm not always available to you when you call.”

“T, that's bull and you know it. You have access to text and email. It doesn't take but a second to respond.”

“I'm not going to be rude in front of a customer and text you back.”

I threw my hand up in the air. “Whatever. Call me when you can fit me into your busy schedule.”

I clicked the end button on my phone. Tyler called back, and I sent each call to voice mail. Two could play that game. Like Charity reminded me,
I'm a Jones and Mama didn't raise no fool.

I sent a quick text to someone, and got dressed in a violet pant suit with purple alligator-printed heels. I grabbed my matching designer clutch and drove to the other side of town.

“Ms. Jones, here's your key,” the clerk at the front desk of the Horseshoe Casino said.

The hotel suite's bar was filled with food and drinks. I hadn't eaten anything all day, so I chose a sandwich and sat at the table while waiting on my guest to arrive.

An hour later, I heard a knock at the door. By this time, I'd become relaxed. I'd removed my shoes and was watching one of my favorite soap operas. I placed the television on mute and went to the door. I looked through the peephole before opening.

Jason walked in and attempted to hug me, but I moved. “What's wrong with you?” he asked.

“You're late,” I responded.

“I was actually surprised to hear from you. It's been a few months.”

Jason attempted to kiss me. His lips were met with the back of my hand as I blocked him. I sat down on the couch. He sat next to me. I scooted toward the other end.

“What's with the attitude? You called me.” Jason popped his knuckles.

“This was a mistake. Our whole relationship has been a mistake,” I blurted out.

“You've been listening to your brother, haven't you?” Jason said.

“No, this has been wrong from day one. I shouldn't have ever allowed our relationship to get to this point. If my parents ever find out, they are going to be so disappointed in me.” Tears formed in the crevices of my eyes.