Be Bad For Me(21)

"What?" she inquired.

"Nothing. Just thinking, that's all."

"No, tell me. What are you thinking?"

"I guess now that you know what my intentions are, you definitely won't be calling me."

"Why do you say that?" She absolutely disagreed with that and she didn't need to ask him why. She already knew.

"The last time we spoke, you made it clear to me that you were in a quote, unquote committed relationship."

"I am. But it would be a lie if I said that I never wanted to see you or  talk to you again. Besides, I really respect you for respecting me and  my relationship. That says a lot about a man."

"I told you that I don't want to come between you and your boyfriend, if  that would make you happy. But then I would be very unhappy if you  don't accept me as your friend."

"I can do that. I can accept you as my friend."

"Even after what I just told you."

"Even after that, yes." She nodded, not sure if that was true. Friends  just didn't have strong sexual feelings like that towards each other.

"That's gonna be hard to do. You want to be friends, yet knowing that I want something more?" he asked.

"I trust that you will respect me like you did tonight … if it comes to that."

"Are you happy in your relationship, Annette?"

She was quiet for a long moment before she answered that question. "Yes." Her answer wasn't convincing, not even to her.

"I guess it would depend on what the definition of happy is, right?"

"What are you trying to say?"

"It's just that when I first saw you that night at the club, you didn't  seem happy with him. You seemed so distant as if your mind were  elsewhere. How long have you been with that guy?"

"Two years."

"That's quite a long time," he said, shifting from one foot to the other.

"It is. I love Anthony, but he has a problem with taking things to the  next level. His life revolves around the club and the studio. It's his  business and how he makes money, so he has no choice really."

"The next level?"

"Yeah."

He reached out, grabbed her right hand, and turned it from side to side,  examining the rock that Anthony had just given her. "Is this not the  next level?"

She pulled her hand away. "You don't know Anthony. He expresses feelings  with material things, but I've been waiting for the day that his words  became reality. And to answer your question, if it was moving to the  next level, then it would be on the other hand."

"Well, is that what you want?"

"I-I don't know." Certainly, it would be expected. Or else she wouldn't be wasting her time with Anthony, right?

"Well, if you don't know what you want and you don't tell other people what you want, then how are they going to know it?"         

     



 

She looked at Jordan, narrowed her eyes, "Who's side are you on?"

"Your side, of course," he said, smiling, "It's just that, as your  friend, I want you to be able to tell me anything that you want to. If  you don't like something, you tell me. If you want something, you tell  me. That "keep quiet and I hope he'll figure it out" stuff doesn't work  with me. Because if you tell me to do something, I'm gonna do it. If you  are so important to him and he loves you, if you tell him to do  something, he should do it."

"I agree."

She and Jordan talked for almost another hour until people began to  leave. When her phone rang, it was Bianca and she knew it was time to  leave. As they walked down the stairs, she spotted Bianca and Denise in  the driveway. When they saw her, they began to smile and point towards  her and Jordan. Jordan walked her over to the two of them.

"Hey, Jordan, can we see your motorcycle?" Bianca asked. Bianca knew that she just wanted to see TJ again.

"Yeah, come on," Jordan said, politely. They followed him out of the  gates and down the sidewalk, where a group of guys and girls were  crowded around some motorcycles. Two guys were speeding up and down the  road doing wheelies in the street and acting a damn fool, while several  girls stood around looking at them. She knew that Bianca was happy when  she saw TJ seated on his bike talking to a couple other bikers. Jordan  walked over to a shiny black Kawasaki Ninja and picked up a helmet that  was located on the handlebars.

"Hi, TJ," Bianca said.

"Hey, girl, what's up," TJ greeted her, smiling. "Hey, Annette. And I haven't met you." TJ was looking at Denise.

"I'm Denise."

"Nice to meet you," TJ said, politely.

"I thought you said you weren't going to be here," Bianca confronted TJ.

"I thought I wasn't," TJ replied.

As he and Bianca made small talk, Annette was admiring Jordan's bike.  She ran her hands along the handle bar and across the leather seats. She  wondered what it felt like to ride a motorcycle, speeding down the  freeway, the wind blowing through her hair, with not a care in the  world.

"Like what you see?" Jordan was watching her, examining his motorcycle.

"I do … "

"You got a ride home?"

"We came in a cab. Denise just called him back out here."

"Maybe next time, then."

"Hey, feisty!" a voice called out from the left of them.

Annette turned around at the familiar voice of Troy. She rolled her eyes  when she saw him sitting on his motorcycle. The guy who propositioned  her at the car repair shop was also beside him. She noticed that they  were on the same bikes she saw spinning wheelies up and down the road  just a few moments ago.

"Hi, Troy."

"Jordan, I'm crashin' out at Mike's tonight. We got some hoes waitin'  for us at the Waffle House. I won't be home ‘til in the morning," Troy  said to Jordan.

"All right." Jordan nodded. With that, Troy and his friend, pulled on  their helmets, revved up their motors, and sped off down the street,  almost running a couple over that were trying to cross the road to get  to their car. The man yelled out several curse words at them, but they  were long gone down the street, the motorcycle sounds fading in the  distance.

"Are you going to the Waffle House, too to meet up with the hoes," Annette asked.

"What do you think?"

"I don't know … shoot."

"No, I'm not."

"Annette, that's our cab," Denise shouted at her. She looked up the street and saw the cab moving slowly towards them.

"Well, I'll give you a call. But this time I won't ask you to promise to answer your phone ‘cause I know you won't."

"I will."

"Yeah, right." He gave her a doubtful look. He swung his legs over his bike.

TJ had pulled up his bike beside Jordan's, indicating that he was ready  to go. Jordan reached out and grabbed her hand. "If you can't call me,  you know where I work. If I'm not there, ask Troy or one of the other  guys to give me a call."

"Annette, come on, girl! This cab is fixin' to leave us," Bianca hollered.

"Tell her to let him leave, I'll take you home," Jordan replied.

"Not this time, Jordan. Next time."

Annette gently pulled her hand away, turned around, and walked away.  When she was in the cab, she looked out of the window and watched as  Jordan put on his helmet and revved up his motor. He and TJ sped off and  several other motorcycles sped off behind them down the street. Annette  smiled the whole way home.         

     



 





Chapter 14





The very next night, she and Anthony were at the movies watching a new  release when her phone began vibrating in her purse. She looked down at  her phone and saw the name Jaguar on the caller id.

"Bathroom break," she whispered to Anthony, who was snacking noisily on  popcorn. "Want me to bring you back a refill or something?"

Anthony shook his head no and turned his attention back to the movies.  She got up and hurried down the steps and out of the chilly movie room.  She didn't know why it was always so cold in the movie rooms, even in  the spring and summer times. She walked as fast as she could to the  other side, near the bathrooms. She redialed, Jordan's number and he  answered on the first ring.

"Oh … this is a surprise," he answered.

"Hey, Jordan."

"How you doing?"

"I'm all right. I'm at the movies right now."

"Oh. I get it."

"So I won't be able to talk too long."

"That's okay. I just wanted to hear your voice."

"Okay."

"Well, I actually called to ask you if you want to go riding with me  next weekend. A group of us are going to a Car and Bike show here in  Atlanta. You seem to have a passion for nice cars and you liked my  motorcycle, so I wanted to take you."

"Jordan, I don't know."

"As a friend, Annette. You can ask Bianca and Denise to come along, if you like."

"Okay, but I'll have to let you know a little later on in the week."

"Well, call me when you know and I'll go ahead and purchase advance tickets. Call me tomorrow, okay?"