Twists and Curves - A Sexy BWWM Interracial BBW Romance Novella from Steam Books (Romantica) (6 page)

“Okay. Sorry.”

Yolanda gave her a forced grin, then turned her gaze back beyond the glass towards Shane. Just as Jill had said, in just a few more minutes, the program ended and after talking to the host off the air as well as signing a few autographs, he made his way to her.

“Now, this is a surprise.” He smiled at her.

“One surprise for another,” she told him.

“How did you find out I was here?”

“I have my sources,” she simply said.

He grinned. “Of course you do. Why did I even ask?”

She just chuckled.

Shane followed up with, “Perhaps I should ask why you’re here, instead?”

“Do you have anything else after this?”

Shane glanced at Jill and shook his head. “No. Why?”

“I thought I’d treat you to dinner this time.”

He scratched his chin. “Hmm.”

“Just to return the favor,” Yolanda added quickly.

“Well, that’s fine, but it will have to be take-out,” Shane said.

“Take-out?”

“Right. We can eat at my place so that way, you can finally meet Moses. Is that good?”

Yolanda nodded, smiling widely. “That’s…perfect.”

~ ~ ~

Indeed, the evening turned out to be perfect, just as what Yolanda had been expecting last Saturday. Even though they only had pizza, the ambience was lovely, with Shane’s house being as rustic and cozy as his music and the flames from the old-fashioned fireplace adding to the warmth. Moses, too, was just as amazing as she had thought he would be, a beautiful, intelligent creature who seemed very loyal to his master and eyed her curiously.

“I don’t think Moses has decided yet if he wants to be my friend or not,” Yolanda said after dinner, noting that the dog still kept his distance from her.

“At least he’s not growling at you,” Shane said.

“At least he hasn’t eaten me up,” she joked.

“It can take him a while to make up his mind.” Shane patted Moses between his ears. “Up to now, he still doesn’t really like Jill.”

“How long has Jill been your agent?” she asked curiously.

“I had a different agent when I started three years ago, but he only lasted about six months. Jill’s been my agent since.”

“She seems to really care about you.”

“She reminds me of my sister, except maybe a little more scary.”

Yolanda just grinned. She could imagine how Jill could be scary.

“By the way…” Shane stood up and got a picture from the mantel. “This is a picture of my sister and her kids from last Christmas. My Mom’s there, too.”

“She still looks young,” Yolanda said, running her hands over the picture. “And you look a bit like her. Except, you know, the male version.”

“They always said I got my looks from my Mom and my talent from my Dad,” he said. “My Mom didn’t really like that, but I guess she’s gotten used to it.”

Yolanda nodded. She didn’t have to ask where Shane’s father was. She knew that Shane’s father was also a famous country singer, before which he was the guitarist of a well-known rock band for many years, and that he died several years ago.

“Did your father ever tell you why he switched from rock to country?”

Shane shrugged. “Only that he kept saying country music was soothing to his soul.”

“I guess it is more soothing compared to rock, which has a different intention,” Yolanda agreed. “And you? Did you always want to be a country singer?”

“Ever since I learned how to play the guitar,” he confessed. “Although my Mom wanted me to be a pop singer, said I’d make more money.”

Yolanda chuckled. “Well, it looks to me like you’re doing well.”

“Better than I expected,” he said humbly. 

“I’m sure your father’s proud of you.”

“I’m not sure about that. He had pretty high standards. I remember he would get really angry if I messed up even just one note on my guitar.”

Yolanda grinned, imagining it. “He just wanted you to get better. Now, look where all that teaching got you.”

Shane just smiled, seemingly remembering his father.

“Besides, all parents are proud of their children no matter how high they claim their standards to be,” Yolanda added.

“How about you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Did you always want to be a talk show host?”

“I always wanted to be a journalist,” Yolanda said. “I’m not sure about the talk show host part, but it’s fun.”

“You sound like there’s something else you’d rather be.”

“Well, I enjoyed being a reporter. Sometimes, I miss the thrill of it. Then again, I’ve been having a thrill these past weeks.”

“Do you know who spread that rumor about you?”

“No,” Yolanda lied, not wanting to tell him about Roy for fear that he would get involved in the mess she was in. “But whoever it was, he chose the wrong person to mess with.”

“Damn straight.” There was a moment of silence before Shane spoke again. “Aside from that interview with Kian Matthews, which I’m sure is special to you, what other story or experience do you find most memorable?”

“Wow, you sound like you could host a talk show yourself.”

He grinned. “I’m just curious.”

“Well, there is one,” she said. “I did this interview with a young woman who was pregnant with triplets. She had some special medical condition and the doctors were recommending an abortion because there was a chance she wouldn’t survive giving birth, but she decided to go through with it. I remember asking her why she made that decision and she told me that if three lives could be born at the cost of one, then surely it was a better bargain. I was crying after that interview.”

“Well, she was a brave woman.”

“It’s one of the things I miss about being a reporter,” Yolanda said. “Meeting ordinary people who are extraordinary in some way, just like the guests on my last show, excluding you of course, since you’re a celebrity.”

“If you miss it so much, then maybe you should just go back to it,” Shane suggested.

“I’m thinking about it,” Yolanda said. “It’s a big decision.”

Shane paused thoughtfully, then got up. “I have just the song to help you make up your mind.”

He walked towards his guitar which was on a stand in the corner of the living room, unzipped the case to take the instrument out and then walked back towards her, sitting on an armchair.

“Have you heard all of my songs?” he asked her.

“I have to admit I haven’t listened to all of them,” she admitted.

“That’s okay,” he said. “Well, here’s one of the songs from my first album, one of my favorites, actually.”

“Okay.”

“And just so you know, I’ve never sang for a girl before. I mean, one-to-one.”

“Never?” Yolanda was surprised.

Shane shook his head. Then, before Yolanda could ask any more questions, he started strumming his guitar, silencing her, entrancing her so that she could only prop her chin on her elbows and watch him, listen to him.

“Everyone has a dream

Everyone has a journey that begins as a gleam

In a child’s eye

Everyone’s heart holds a seed of something great

Something to turn the wheels of fate

Wings to fly

I may not know what you wish for

I may not know what you can do

But I know you can do great things

If to yourself you just be true

Listen to that voice inside of you

Reach for the stars

Let your hopes travel far

Hold fast to your faith

Don’t ever be dismayed

You can make a difference

You can make it through

And I’ll just be here for you

I’ll just be here for you

Everyone makes mistakes

Everyone bends and falls and breaks

Life isn’t easy

But you just have to keep moving on

Keep taking chances, I know you’re strong

You’re much stronger than me

I may not know what you wish for

But I know there’s something only you can do

You can do great things

If to yourself you just be true

Listen to that voice inside of you

Reach for the stars

Let your hopes travel far

Hold fast to your faith

Don’t ever be dismayed

You can make a difference

You can make it through

And I’ll just be here for you

I’ll just be here for you

I’ll always be here for you.”

As soon as he stopped strumming, Yolanda broke into applause. “That’s a very wonderful song. Did you compose it yourself?”

Shane nodded, looking right into her eyes. “And I mean every word.”

The sincerity in his gaze filled Yolanda’s chest with warmth. “Thank you.”

Shane grinned. “Do you want to try playing the guitar?”

Yolanda raised an eyebrow. “You’d let me?”

“Sure.” He handed her the instrument.

She ran her fingers over it. “I haven’t played a guitar since I was in middle school. I think I’ve forgotten how.”

“That’s alright. I’ll teach you.”

“Let’s see.” Yolanda stood up and started plucking a few strings.

“Here. It’s better if you hold it this way.” He stood behind her, adjusting her left arm, then her right.

“Okay.” She started strumming. “This is the G chord, isn’t it?”

“This one.” He moved her finger lower.

She strummed again. “Oh, right.”

She started playing the first verse from a song she used to play, then stopped, not only because she had forgotten the rest but because she was suddenly aware of how close he was to her, even closer than he was the other night on her couch.

She was acutely aware of his arms on her, of his firm chest against her back, of his breath against her ear, making her skin tingle, and when she turned her head, she saw the heat of his body burning in his eyes, softened by a feeling she almost did not dare name, though she was pretty sure what it was.

Love.

The next thing she knew, his lips were pressing down on hers, soft and gentle like the first fall of rain, and she surrendered to it, willing the warmth from his lips to wash over her. After a while, she felt the tip of his tongue against her upper lip and she opened her mouth for him, letting their tongues mingle as the kiss turned from a drizzle of rain to a storm, sweeping her away.

She was beginning to fear that she would drop the guitar, but as quickly as the storm had begun, it died down, and he drew back, gasping for breath just as she was.

It was the most incredible kiss she had ever shared.

“Now, that’s one way to teach someone how to love music,” she teased, not wanting the atmosphere to get awkward.

He scratched the back of his head and smiled. “I guess I got carried away.”

She chuckled, then handed the guitar back to him. “I think it’s better if you play it for now. I’ll just listen.”

“Okay.” He took the guitar. “Let’s see. Ah, this is another of my favorites…”

He started singing again and Yolanda simply sat, listening. If before, she wasn’t sure how she felt about Shane, now she was. The joy she felt simply from hearing his voice and looking into his eyes confirmed it. 

For a moment, the words Jill had told her at the radio station drifted back into her head and she felt a bit of fear, but she set it aside.

Already, she knew that what she and Shane had was special and she would not let anyone get in their way or hurt them both.

Just let Roy Carmichael or anyone else try.

~ ~ ~

“No one can try to blame you for falling in love with him, you know,” Deana said over the phone the next afternoon after Yolanda had given her all the details. “You’re one lucky bitch.”

“I know,” Yolanda said, smiling as she shifted her phone to her other hand to set down her purse and keys on the counter. Somehow, since last night, she could not help but keep smiling. “Remember, it’s a secret, though, alright? I don’t want to be in the center of another whirlwind just yet.”

“I know, I know. You can trust me.”

“I know I can.”

“But you are planning to tell the public sometime, right? You can’t keep it secret forever.”

Yolanda didn’t answer.

“Yolanda?”

“I’ll call you back. I have a message from my stepbrother’s wife and my stepsister. Something must be up.”

“Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know yet.”

“Okay. Call me.” Deana hang up.

Yolanda pressed the button on the answering machine.

“
Message Number One. 10:34 AM
…Hey, sis. It’s Brenda…Please help me. My scholarship looks like it’s going to be cancelled. I don’t know what happened but the foundation said they made a mistake or something. What do I do? I don’t have any money to pay them back, much less to continue my studies. Please help me.”

Yolanda covered her mouth in shock.

“
Message Number Two. 12:16 PM
…Yolanda, it’s Catherine…Robert’s been laid off…I don’t know what to do…I could sure use some help right now.”

Yolanda closed her eyes, her chest suddenly feeling tight.

“
No more messages.
”

“No,” Yolanda whispered in the silence that followed, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. 

No.

Just then, the phone rang. Yolanda picked it up.

“Hello?” she asked in a shaky voice.

“You should have accepted my invitation the first time I called.” It was Roy Carmichael, the last person she wanted to hear from.

“You’re behind all this, aren’t you?” Yolanda told him, her temper rising. “You hurt my family.”

“Oh, it seems I’ve struck a nerve.”

“You can mess with me all you want but leave my family alone.”

“Then will you come be my guest?”

She paused to think about it, the pleas of her stepsister and her stepbrother’s wife crossing her mind. In spite of those, though, she said, “Never.”

“You paused, though.” He chuckled. “Pretty soon you will be mine.”

“Not even if you kill me.”

“He might get hurt, too, you know, that handsome country singer of yours. Are you sure you’d like that?”