Authors: Monique Miller
The Marrying Kind (2 page)
“Not Ashley. She is a good woman and I am not going to let her get away.” Then Billy chuckled.
“What's so funny?” Travis asked.
“Ashley actually reminds me a lot of Beryl,” Billy said.
“What do you mean ...” Travis's voice trailed off when he heard his uncle's cell phone ring.
Travis looked at the display on the ringing phone and saw a picture of a woman who looked pretty plainâshort hair, minimal makeup, with a toothy smile.
Billy grinned. “Hold that thought,” he said before answering.
As Billy spoke, Travis tried to wrap his mind around the fact that his best buddy was actually going to settle down and get married. He wondered how Billy was going to just give up the carefree life he'd been living. From Travis's point of view, Billy had it made. He had always been able to have his cake and eat it too.
After Billy clicked his cell phone off he said, “That was Ashley. That girl is something else. She told me to make sure I was home on time tonight for dinner, she has a surprise for me.” Billy took a deep breath. “I love that woman.”
“I know I must be having an out-of-body experience or something,” Travis said. “Where is my uncle? What have you done with him? I know you are not using the L word.”
“Yep.” Billy grinned again. “That woman keeps it interesting.”
“I guess you've got a hot night tonight,” Travis said.
“With her there is no telling.”
“Yeah, I'll just bet,” Travis said. He knew his uncle very well.
“Oh, no, sir. It isn't what you are thinking with that nasty mind of yours.”
“I know you know what I am thinking, 'cause I know how you are.”
“Okay, since it seems as though I've blown your mind a couple times already, let me do so just one more time,” Billy said.
Travis waited to see what else his uncle could say to possibly faze him.
“My fiancée isn't a virgin, of course, she already has a son, but she is and has been celibate since before I met her.”
“Say what?”
Billy stared at Travis, letting him know he'd heard him correctly.
“Are you trying to say that you and Ashley have never been together?” Travis asked, his eyebrows rising in disbelief.
“Yep.”
“I know you must have been abducted by aliens or something now.”
“Nah.”
“Well, it sounds like tonight might be your lucky night.”
“Nah, doubt that. She has made it very clear that I won't be getting any until we are happily Mr. and Mrs.”
“Well, dang. Wonders never cease. I just don't know what to say,” Travis said.
As the rain let up some, Billy cranked the car and pulled off. “Speaking of which, what's up, man? I've got to get home.”
Travis had almost forgotten about why he'd come to see his uncle in the first place. “I need a little favor.” Travis figured if his uncle could afford a new car and to give one away, he must be doing pretty good and a couple hundred dollars shouldn't be a problem.
Billy pulled out of the parking lot and into traffic. “Yeah, what do you need?”
“I need to borrow a couple hundred dollars until next month.”
“A couple hundred, huh?”
“Yeah, just until next month. It's been sort of hard having to try to make ends meet having to pay for this apartment all by myself,” Travis said. He knew his uncle got the point. If Billy had not reneged on him to share an apartment, he wouldn't be scraping by like he was.
Billy rolled his eyes. “Okay, I'll have to see. Let me check with Ashley and I'll get back with you.”
Travis did another double take. “Say what?”
“Yeah, Ashley and I have pooled our money together. We share the bills and expenses and if it were only a few dollars or maybe even twenty dollars or so, it wouldn't matter to me. But you're asking for a couple hundred.”
Travis couldn't believe the words that were coming from his uncle's mouth. “Man, you act as if you two are already married or something. How are you going to just let her decide whether it is okay for me to borrow a couple hundred dollars?”
“Look, I know what you are thinking and she doesn't dictate anything. We've decided to make decisions together. So I don't mind letting you borrow the money, but I just need to let Ashley know about it. We are building our relationship on trust, and I am not about to break that trust before we can even say âI do.'”
Travis held his hands up as if in surrender. “Okay, okay, I hear you.” He didn't like what he was hearing, but he was glad his uncle was doing well and for once in his life the man was actually trying to do right by a woman.
“I'll talk to Ashley and get back with you.” Billy looked down at the clock on his console. “Speaking of, I need to be heading home. I don't want to be late for dinner. Do you need me to drop you off somewhere?”
Travis needed to be taken back to his apartment, but it was on the other side of the city, so he asked Billy to drop him off at the strip mall that was just a couple of miles from his house. Maybe if he walked around the strip mall for a little the rain would die down so he could walk home.
“Take me to that strip mall over on Main Street.”
As Billy drove over to Main Street, the men rode in silence. Travis tried to brainstorm on how he was going to get through the next month if Billy didn't lend him the money. Things just had to get better sometime soon. It seemed like every time he took a step forward he was somehow shoved two steps back.
When Billy pulled up to one of the stores of the strip mall, he stopped to let Travis out.
“Thanks, man. I hope you have a good night with your lady.”
“I know I will. And I'll let you know what we decide about the loan,” Billy said.
“All right. See ya,” Travis said.
“See ya, nephew,” Billy said. Then he pulled off like a man on a targeted mission.
Travis thought about going into the mall and picking up some applications to fill out for a job, but he didn't feel like it right then. He stepped into one of stores and acted as if he were actually looking for something to buy as he pondered his situation. Something had to give for him and soon. He was tired of struggling, tired of always doing the right thing but never getting any breaks.
After he had walked around the store a couple of times without picking up anything, one of the clerks in the store started eyeing him as if he were going to try to steal something. He rolled his eyes at her.
As he walked by one of the mirrors, Travis did a double take. His stomach was protruding way more than he remembered. He tried to suck it in, feeling like he had let his body go, all except for his teeth; he was pleased with the dental work he'd had done. He smiled at the mirror, showing his teeth. They looked good. Gone were his crooked teeth and the many gaps between them that haunted his childhood. The job he'd held working as a telecommunicator had provided him with great dental benefits. But soon after the work had been completed, he had lost his job due to staff cuts and now he still had pending dental bills looming over his head. But he thought it was worth it. He patted his belly and knew he was going to have to start exercising to get it back into shape.
He was glad his teeth were fixed, and with enough exercise he'd be able to get rid of his potbelly, but there was nothing he could do about his height. At only five feet, six inches tall, he considered himself short. In middle school and high school many of the guys picked on him, calling him short. Normally they did it in fun, as Travis would pick some aspect of their bodies to pick on. Like this one guy named Harold. Harold had big ears and Travis often called him Dumbo, like the cartoon elephant with the big ears. Then there was another guy named Jeremy who the guys nicknamed Stinky, because of the way his feet smelled, especially after PE classes.
And even though most of the name calling was in jest, he still had a complex, especially when it came to having to literally look up to women. Therefore, he rarely dated anyone who was taller than he was. But other than the height, Travis considered himself to be a very handsome, cocoa-skinned brother with smooth skin. He flexed his biceps and knew he really needed to start lifting some weights, also.
A few minutes later he heard a page being made over the intercom for security to scan zone five. He figured zone five was exactly where he was standing. Travis was sick of the racial profiling that he as a black man had to endure. And instead of arguing with the nosey clerk, he gladly left the store.
The sun looked as if it was about to finally peek through the clouds and Travis figured he'd go ahead and start his two-mile walk home. As he stepped off the curb to head to the street, a car came just inches from hitting him.
Travis was startled and so was the driver, who was opening his door to get out.
“Oh, my goodness, sir. Are you okay?” the man asked.
Even though Travis's heart was beating a mile a minute, he was physically okay. The car had not actually touched him. He wondered how he could have been so preoccupied not to have noticed the candy appleâred BMW 135i driving toward him.
After taking a couple of breaths, Travis looked at the man and told him he was okay and hadn't been hit. It was then that he realized the guy looked familiar.
“Brent?”
The guy must have noticed him at the same time because he immediately said, “Travis?”
“Ah, man, what's up?” Travis stepped toward the guy and the two hugged like long-lost Siamese twins.
“I can't believe this. I've been trying to find you for years,” Brent said. “I looked on the social networking sites and everything.”
“I'm not on any of those sites. Thought about setting up a page but never got around to it,” Travis said.
The two men stepped up on the curb.
“I've been hoping I was going to eventually run into you or some of our other buddies from college,” Brent said. “I didn't know that one day I might literally run into you,” he joked.
“Glad to see you, but I have to say, I am glad you didn't run into me literally,” Travis said.
“So how have you been? What have you been up to? Where are you living now?” Brent rattled off questions.
“Well uh ...”
Brent cut him off. “Tell you what, let's grab a bite to eat; my treat since I almost mowed you down. Then we can catch up. Are you busy right now?”
Travis raised his eyebrows. “Ah, no. As a matter of fact I am free right now.”
“Then come on, jump in, and we'll go grab something to eat. I can't wait to hear what you've been doing all these years,” Brent said.
“Oh really? Well I can't wait to tell you,” Travis said.
Chapter 2
Travis and Brent followed the hostess as she led them to their table.
“Your waitress will be with you gentlemen in just a few moments,” the hostess said.
“Thank you,” Brent replied.
“Thank you,” Travis also said. He looked around at the swank five-star restaurant called Ginny's Brent had brought him to. Travis didn't think he had ever been to a restaurant as upscale as this one. Most of the people coming in, and who were already seated, looked as if they had money to burn. He doubted he'd ever see any of them at a McDonald's drive-through.
As soon as both men were comfortable in their seats, Brent commenced talking again. “It has been a long time. I hate that we lost touch after you left school.”
“Yeah, you know my mom was having a hard time with paying my tuition, so I figured I'd just return home and take some classes at the community college. I did end up getting my associate's degree in general studies.”
“Well good for you. I just completed my PhD in geology this past spring.”
Travis loved his friend like a brother, but thought at times he was a little strange. He wondered what in the world the guy was going to do with a PhD in geology. He wondered how in the world the guy was supposed to make any money digging for some rocks all day.
“Congratulations on getting your PhD. So what are you doing now?”
“I am taking a little break. I'm about to go overseas and do some humanity work abroad. You know, to try to help others. We are so blessed here in the United States and there are so many others who are not as fortunate as we are.”
As Brent spoke, Travis couldn't help but think that Brent was way more fortunate than even the majority of the people in the United States, period. Brent's parents were well-to-do, but most people wouldn't know it. They were millionaires but didn't carry the status with a wealthy air on their shoulders. Brent's mom was so down-to-earth that when his parents came up for a visit and took them out for lunch or dinner, the woman used coupons if she had them.
Brent never spoke much about the fact that his family was rich and Travis liked that about him. He also liked the fact that even though his parents were frugal in their spending, Brent, or his friends, never lacked for things during their days staying in the dormitory.
During the two semesters that Travis and Brent had roomed together freshman year, Travis never had to worry about how he was going to get around, never worried about getting hungry, and didn't even have to worry about books, because once Brent saw that Travis was having a hard time financially, he paid for Travis's books.
The guy was nice and down-to-earth just like his parents. Not once had Brent acted as if Travis was beneath him. And not once did he act as if Travis owed him for anything. And it seemed as though his friend was still the same as he had been all those years earlier as Brent was treating him to dinner.
Brent continued talking about all the things he'd been up to in the years since the two parted in undergraduate school. Travis sat listening and was especially enthralled as Brent talked about all the trips he had taken to various countries and the sights he had seen. Brent had even been to Hollywood, California.
Travis imagined going to Hollywood and finally being able to meet some of his most favorite movie stars like Blair Underwood, Denzel Washington, and Tommy Lee Jones. He'd love the chance to walk on a red carpet or ride down Rodeo Drive. Brent lived the life Travis was sure he was really meant to have.
All the while Brent spoke about his life and his adventures, not once did Travis feel like the man was bragging. The only feeling he got was that Brent, a true friend, just wanted to catch up with an old buddy. Brent spoke until the waitress came back with their appetizer, which was no surprise to Travis because even on campus years ago, Brent was known to be in many of the organizations and had even run for the student council freshman class president. What did surprise Travis was that Brent had not gone on later to run for political office.
It wasn't until Brent took a bite of his appetizer that he paused long enough to stop talking. Then he asked, “So what's going on with you? I tell you, man, I still can't believe I ran into you the way that I did.” Brent took a sip of water. “I did see Craig once, but he didn't know how to contact you either.”
“Craig Dawson?” Travis asked.
“Yeah.”
Travis rolled his eyes. “Man, you know Craig would have been the last person I would have given a forwarding address to.”
Both men laughed.
Brent nodded his head in agreement. “True that, true that. He was sort of an odd one, wasn't he?”
“That guy gave me the straight-up creeps. I used to avoid taking a shower when I knew we were the only ones in the bathroom.”
Brent continued, “So tell me what big things you've got going on.”
After all his friend had said about his exciting life, Travis knew his boring life couldn't compare. How could he tell this guy, who was so world traveled, that the closest he ever got to Europe was the European section of Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia, and that trip was over five years ago.
Even though he knew his friend wouldn't judge him, he couldn't tell him the truth about his job situation, the fact that he still hadn't actually received his paper degree for his associate's because he hadn't paid the final fees for the school, and that he was about to be evicted in a week if he didn't come up with the funds.
“Oh, me, well I've been dabbling in a little of this and a little of that. I was married but it just didn't work out. You know how that is.” Travis didn't want to go into specifics about his marriage to Beryl, nor did he want to talk about his two little boys, Cameron and Jayden. He quickly added, “I just moved to Silvermont trying to see how I like the place. You know, just trying the city outânew scenery.”
“I've traveled near and far, and I have to say, Silvermont has just as much or more to offer people as most of the other places I've been to,” Brent said.
Travis figured Brent must have realized he hadn't really wanted to talk about his marriage because he hadn't acknowledged his saying anything about being married.
“Yeah, I don't know though, my lease at my apartment is about up and I might be looking to make another change. I just don't know if this city is right for me.”
The waitress came with their entrees and both men dug into the food.
“So, you say your lease is about up?”
“Yeah, that's why I don't know if I am going to stay in the area.”
Brent forked a piece of shrimp into his mouth. “Wow, isn't that ironic.”
Travis took a bite of his lobster. “What is ironic?”
“You know I said I was taking a break to do some humanitarian work abroad.”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I have a house here in Silvermont. Mom and Dad bought it for me. I am playing with the idea of selling it but know my parents will not be pleased if I do.” Brent took another bite of his shrimp. “Anyway, I'll be gone overseas for at least six months and I was trying to figure out what to do with my place while I was gone.”
Travis listened, wondering what his friend was trying to say.
“I could pay someone to come in and water the plants and check on the house every now and then, but I would really feel more secure if someone really watched the place for me, so anybody looking for a house to loot won't be so tempted.”
Travis nodded his head as he listened to his friend.
“I mean you know me. I am not really a materialistic person, but I do have quite a bit in my home and most of what I buy isn't cheap. So while I am not materialistic, I don't believe in wasting money, either.”
Again Travis nodded his head.
Brent took another bite of shrimp. “So anyway, it is so ironic that you are here, a friend I trust, and you have a lease that is ending. Have you found another place yet?”
“Nah, not yet.”
“Okay ...” Brent's voice trailed off as if he was thinking about something. “All right, I have a proposition for you.” He held his hand up to his friend. “Now just hear me out before you say anything.”
Travis wasn't about to say a thing. Somehow he had a feeling that whatever Brent was about to say would somehow benefit him in a very good way.
“I am leaving in a week to go on this trip abroad. Like I said, I'll be gone for at least six months. And I was thinking since you already have a lease that is about to end, and you still want to check out Silvermont to see if it is a good fit for you, then why don't you house-sit for me? That way you don't have to get into another lease right away and it will give you time to decide whether you want to stay here.”
Dropping his head, his mouth opened agape in a “say what” motion. Travis said, “Say what?”
“Wait, wait, just hear me out,” Brent said, holding his hands up again. “I would feel comfortable with knowing I had someone I could trust looking after my place. And don't worry about having to pay rent or my mortgage or anything. I'll take care of that. Nor do you have to worry about the light bill or cable bill. I'll take care of those utilities too.”
Travis couldn't believe his ears. He was speechless. “The only thing I will ask is that you watch and take care of my place and mow the grass at least every other week and trim the bushes as needed. My homeowner's association can be pretty anal about the aesthetic appeal of the neighborhood. I have a mower and hedge clippers in my storage shed.”
Sitting in utter disbelief, Travis took his hand and pinched himself on the leg under the table, trying to make sure he wasn't dreaming. The pinch hurt and he was very much in the here and now.
“So, what do you think?” Brent asked.
Travis shook his head slowly. “Man, I don't know what to say about an offer like that.”
“Okay, you don't have tell me right now. Think about it. I know this is a pretty sudden thing to spring on you like that, but I was just thinking how perfect it would be for me.” Brent wiped his hands on his cloth napkin. “Let it marinate overnight and let me know tomorrow if you can. I don't mean to put pressure on you, but I fly out in a few days and I'd sort of like to have things squared away.”
“Okay, let me do that. Give me a night to think about it and I'll call you tomorrow and let you know.” Travis didn't want to seem too eager, but then as he thought about it, he didn't want Brent to think he was totally uninterested in the idea. “To tell you the truth, it doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. I just need to do a few calculations, on my end, to see if it is something we can work out. I'll be sure to give you a call early in the day tomorrow.”
Brent clasped his hands together in a clap. “Great.” He stood. “I am going to head to the bathroom before we leave. I'll be right back.”
Travis continued to sit in pure awe. He couldn't believe the proposition he'd just been offered. When the waitress came and set the bill down next to him, he quickly slid it over to Brent's side of the table.
Curiosity got the best of him and he slid it back to peek at the amount of their meals. Travis's eyes bugged when he saw the amount. The bill had come to a little over one hundred sixty-five dollars. He snapped the little folder shut and put it back down on the other side of the table.
A minute or so later Brent returned, picked up the bill, and glanced at it. Without flinching he pulled out his American Express card, slipped it in the folder, and set it back down for the waitress to retrieve. Then Brent pulled his cell phone out and asked, “What's your phone number?”
Travis told him the number. Brent dialed it and Travis felt the vibration of the phone in his pocket. He took it out, and looked at the caller ID to check and make sure the phone number had come through along with the call.
“All right, I've got your number,” Travis said.
“Make sure now. Save it, don't lose it. I want to see your number come up on my caller ID tomorrow saying you have accepted my proposition.” Brent chuckled.
Travis chuckled too. “Don't worry. I have a strong feeling you will not get disappointed.”
After the waitress took the payment and returned with the receipt, Brent left the woman two ten dollar bills as a tip. Both men got up to exit the building and once they were outside the restaurant, Travis told Brent he'd forgotten his keys. He ran back inside to retrieve them, then met Brent back outside.
“So I can take you back over to the strip mall to your car if you'd like.”
“Oh, my car is in the shop. Can you drop me off at home if you don't mind?”
“Sure. Where do you live?”
Travis gave Brent the address of his Uncle Billy's old apartment. He didn't want his friend to see the run-down apartments he was living in. And after Brent dropped Travis off and drove away, Travis headed to the bus stop.
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