The Reunion Show (12 page)

“I understand that you're upset, but you agreed to be in attendance for the reunion show, no matter what. I have it in writing that I can sue you if you don't show. You'll owe me ten thousand in damages for not appearing. I don't want to go there with you, Roc, so let me set you up in a hotel for the next day or so. Calm down and come back to do the show. After that, your life gets back to normal and you can put all of this behind you.”

I was too pissed to reply. I knew damn well that I didn't want to go home with all of this shit on my mind. Maybe chilling in a hotel room wasn't a bad idea. I definitely had a few things that I wanted to confront that bitch, Chase, with.

With that in mind, I packed my bags and allowed Jeff to hook me up with a cab and hotel accommodations. On my way out, I stopped by the living room to look at Jada who sat with a grin on her face.

“Don't be upset with me, sweetie,” she teased. “It was either you or me. I can honestly say that I'm delighted to be sittin' here watchin' you take your walk of shame. I'll see you in a couple of days. By then, I may have my pedicure done that I was tellin' you about. What you think?”

I nodded and sucked my teeth as I glared at Jada. “I think you're full of shit. If you happen to holla at Chase, be sure to tell her that I got somethin' for her.”

Jada put her hand close to her mouth. “Oooo, you gon' give her some more? I'm sure she can't wait to get it.”

I heard a horn blow, knowing it was my taxi. After throwing up the deuces sign to Jeff, I left out the front door, only to hear Jada screaming “Yahoo” at the top of her lungs.

I hadn't gotten any sleep. All I did was toss and turn throughout the night, thinking about everything that had happened. I was glad that I was at The Marriott, though. I didn't want Desa Rae to see me like this. Knowing her, she would question what was up with me. I was angry and upset with myself for allowing this shit to go down. My hands were tied and I didn't know what to do. It had been a long time since I found myself in a fucked up situation like this. I didn't know how far Jada and Chase would go with the stuff they were sitting on. I was a fool if I believed they wouldn't do anything with it.

As I was in thought, there was a knock at the door. I made my way to it, rocking nothing but my white Calvin Klein briefs. When I looked through the peephole, I saw a Hispanic chick standing next to a cart full of food. I hadn't called room service, so I figured she had the wrong room. Before she knocked again, I opened the door wide.

“I didn't call for room service,” I said.

“You didn't, but someone else ordered the food for you. Do you mind if I bring the cart in?”

I figured the food was ordered by Jeff, so I opened the door wider and let the chick come in. She strolled the cart inside, leaving it near the couch in the living room area. When she turned around, her eyes scanned me from head to toe and then traveled back to my package that was on display like a mini mountain. A smile was on her face, and she rubbed her hands together to calm her fidgeting. Finally, her eyes shifted to mine.

“Is there anything else I can get for you?” she asked.

“Naw, but thanks.”

I wanted to tip her, but I didn't have any money on me. She made her way to the door, but before she exited, she turned around.

“Lance Gross,” she said, snapping her fingers. “Is that who you are?”

I moved my head from side to side. “No. Roc Dawson. The one and only.”

Her brows rose and she wet her already shiny lips with her tongue. “Well, good look, Roc Dawson. Are you married?”

“No.” I spoke too quickly. “I mean, yes. Well, almost. I am engaged.”

The chick smiled at my attempt to get my shit together. I don't know why it was hard for me to flat out say that I wasn't interested.

“Engaged, but not married. That's a good thing, and I may have to stop by later to check on you.”

This was my opportunity to clear things up and tell her that stopping by later would do her no good. But all I did was move my way over to the door and open it. I was ready for her to leave so I could get back to my thoughts.

With a grin on her face, the chick walked past me and left. I locked the door and went over to the cart full of food. On top was an array of fruits, pancakes, bacon, and toast. Orange juice was in one pitcher and apple juice was in another. The food didn't look as scrumptious as the food Jada had cooked, but it was doable. I grabbed a piece of toast and returned to the bedroom. While sitting on the bed, I reached for my cell phone and returned a surprising phone call that I had gotten from Chase about three days ago. According to her, we needed to talk. Talking wasn't what I wanted to do, but I dialed the number, regardless, to see where her head was at.

“It took you long enough to call me, but I figured you must've been tied up,” she said.

“Maybe so, but what is it that we need to talk about?”

“I'm not sure. I assumed you may have a few questions for me, especially since you now know that Jada and me did some really bad—terrible things to win the challenge. Let me first say that we don't regret anything that we've done. I am sorry that you feel as though we somehow tricked you into all of this, but the truth of the matter is you played yourself.”

“Nobody tricked me into anything. And on a for real tip, I don't have any questions for you at all. I suspected that you and Jada were doin' some foul shit, but you know what, ma? It don't matter. Y'all won, so go enjoy the money and have a dope fuckin' life.”

I had to pretend that what they'd done hadn't upset me. The objective was for me to remain calm and deal with this when they least expected it.

“The act that you're putting on is not impressive, Roc. I can sense how bitter you are. I know how much it probably hurts you to be put into a position like this, and I'm sure you're worried about your precious Desa Rae. Are the two of you still planning on getting married?”

“Absolutely. Nothin' is goin' to change that, and like I told Jada, y'all gon' have to come better than this. This game is weak, and to be frank, I'm done playin' it. Holla back, Chase. Better yet, lose my number. I don't know how you got it anyway, but move the fuck on and be done with it before you find yourself with dirt coverin' you.”

She laughed. “Your threats are hilarious. You would love for me to be done with it, wouldn't you? We'll see, Roc. In due time, we will definitely see if I can move on, or should I say, squash it. Right now, I must tell you that I'm not feeling that option. I still have certain issues that need to be resolved. Whether you accept it or not, you play a huge part in me resolving some of those issues. I'll talk to you soon, but I want you to get all of the rest you need for the reunion show. So, goodbye, and please give my love to Desa Rae.”

She hung up. I sucked my teeth, trying my best to calm my anger. I suspected that this bitch was going to do something drastic, so I dialed out to call my boy, Gage.

“What's up, Boss?” he said immediately. “I got one question for you. When in the hell are you comin' home? Everybody been lookin' for you, and Craig runnin' around at the shop like he the Head Negro in Charge. Niggas ain't down with that, so he's been catchin' a lot of heat. You need to get back here to stop the bleedin'. Quick, fast, and I do mean in a hurry.”

“When I left, I put Craig in charge, so y'all gotta respect that shit. See what you can do to calm things down for me. I should be there in a few days. Things gon' get back to normal real soon. As for why I hit you up, I need you to do a huge favor for me.”

“What's that?”

“I need for you to lay somebody down for me, for good.”

“You know that ain't no problem. Just tell me who and it will be done.”

“Her name is Chase.” I paused because I didn't know her last name. “I need to get more info on this trick. Give me a few minutes and I'll hit you back.”

“Cool. Let me know what's up.”

I ended my call with Gage, but as I started to reach out to my contact at the police station, someone else knocked at the door. I thought it was the chick from room service again, but when I pulled the door open, I was surprised to see
him
standing on the other side of the door.

“I hope you enjoyed breakfast,” he said. “May I come in?”

I wasn't sure what the fuck we had to discuss, but without treating the brotha ill, I opened the door to let him come inside.

When I received a phone call from Jeff, telling me that Jada had won the challenge, I was disappointed. Then again, I was glad that Jaylin hadn't won. Anyone but him was good news, only because he didn't deserve anything but a hard slap across his face.

Jeff advised me that I had to return to Hell House in two days. He also asked me to bring Jada a present for winning. I wasn't sure what to get her ghettofied self, and I had to mentally prepare myself to stand before backstabbing people who all voted me out of the house. I didn't think that seeing everyone again would be easy. But that was minor, especially in comparison to what I was about to do. That was have dinner with my ex, Jonathan. I was surprised that he agreed to it, but there was still so much inside of me that I wanted to say to him. I decided to come clean with him. I wanted him to know exactly how I felt when we last spoke. He'd told me about his engagement, but I couldn't handle the news that day. I was glad that he rushed off to a meeting and didn't notice how torn I was.

But, today was a new day. I was feeling better and I wanted him to know that I was ready to move on. It was now or never.

I sat at Bar Louie in the Central West End, waiting for Jonathan to show. It was almost ten minutes after six. He was late. That irritated me, but no more than when I looked up and saw him strut into the restaurant with a woman by his side. I had gone all out for this occasion. The spaghetti-strapped, purple dress that I wore hugged my curves. My hair was slicked back, but curled on the tips. Several strands dangled along the sides of my face and my gold-hoop earrings matched my bangles and necklace. Plum lipstick moistened my lips, and right before I came here, I stopped at the MAC counter to get the hookup on my makeup and lashes. It was important for me to look at my best, but with Jonathan bringing his woman with him, yet again, I was extremely on edge.

As they headed my way, I couldn't help but to notice how plain she was. She had no curves whatsoever, her long, stringy hair had no bounce, and the only makeup she had on was a loud, red lip gloss that did nothing for her pale skin. Her flimsy dress wasn't hugging a thing and it looked like it came from a clearance rack at the Goodwill. Either way, I smiled and pretended as his decision to bring her was fine with me.

“Sylviaaaa,” Jonathan said with a smile on his face. My heart slammed against my chest when I heard him say my name. I swear, I loved this man to death. Truthfully, I had no clue how to overcome my feelings. The deep gray suit he wore accented the minimal gray hairs on his head and the ones mixed in with his trimmed beard. Like always, he was clean cut, classy and sharp as ever. His business attire was always on point and his cologne infused the entire space around us. No matter where he was, he always presented himself as a professional.

I stood to greet him. “Hello, Jonathan. I'm very glad you could make it.”

“Me too. My fiancée was on her way out with some friends, so I asked her to stop by to meet you. Lesa, this is Sylvia.”

She extended her hand to mine. “Nice to meet you, Sylvia. I've heard so much about you. This is such a pleasure.”

Only Lord knows what Jonathan had told her about me, but it didn't really matter. “Same here, Lesa. I haven't heard much about you, but I suspect that it's all good, especially if you're going to be Jonathan's wife.”

“I am,” she hurried to say. “And I'm looking forward to being the new Mrs. Taylor.”

I cringed, hoping that she didn't notice a change in my demeanor. Lesa turned to Jonathan. She gave him a peck on the lips and then told him she would see him later tonight. If I could prevent that from happening, I surely would. After all, I didn't get all dressed up like this for nothing.