"Jordan said that you didn't want him over here, so that's why I'm here … to deliver his message."
"What? Are you working for the US Postal Service or something now?"
"You can say that. But I do want to know why you still mad at my brother. He ain't do nothin' wrong."
"Well, even if he did do something wrong you would still be on his side," Annette said, taking her bags from Troy's hands.
"Depends," Troy replied.
Annette disappeared in her bedroom to put the bags full of new clothes in her closet. She couldn't believe that Jordan had sent his brother to relay messages to her. She had been taking his calls. She just refused to see him. When she came out of the bedroom, Troy had opened a fresh bag of Doritos that she had just bought the other day and was just stuffing them bad boys in his mouth one after the other. Annette gave him a look like you know better.
"What? I was hungry. I been waitin' on your shoppin' ass out that door for about forty minutes." He sat down on her couch with the bag of chips and a bottle of water.
"Most people call before they come and the people they are visiting are usually there to greet them because they're expecting guests."
"If you answer your goddamn phone, then you will see that I called."
"Someone kept calling me from a private number. If you and your brother would stop blocking your numbers out, then I might answer. How'd you get in the gate, anyway? It's private entry."
"It's easy to tailgate in that slow ass gate," Troy said. "Besides, I ain't come here to argue wit' yo ass. You ain't goin' have me walking around with my nerves bad like you got my brother. Believe that."
"For your information, I haven't been arguing with your brother, either. What are you here for?" Annette demanded as she walked over to her kitchen to fill a glass with water.
"Annette, my brother loves you very much. I'm not just saying this and he didn't tell me to come over here and say it. I know he does. No girl that he's dated has ever made him as happy as you have and I see that."
"This isn't just about your brother, Troy. I can't pretend that this situation won't change things." She sat on the couch beside Troy, snatched the Doritos bag from him and helped herself to a few.
"You put him between a rock and a hard place, you know. Like choosing between you and his child."
"I'm not asking him to choose me over his baby, Troy."
"You are just making that decision for him by pretending that nothing ever went on between you two. You know, just like Jordan and I, what it's like to grow up without a father. He wants you in his life, but he is not going to let this baby go without a father."
"I respect him for that. I just need time for it all to digest."
"I here ya'," Troy said, snatching the bag of Doritos back from her. "Don't take too much time. I'm tired of seeing him grumbling around the house. By the way, some of us are going drag racing this Saturday. We'll be representing for Heat Ryderz. I'm driving the Cadillac down there and we'll be around here to pick you up at eleven. See ya later, partner."
Before she could protest, he grabbed another handful of Doritos and let himself out the door.
Chapter 29
Annette was surprised that Jordan was not in the Cadillac when Troy picked her up Saturday morning. Jordan hadn't called her either. It had been days since she last spoke with or saw him and she had to admit to herself that she missed Jordan's company more than ever. She wouldn't admit that to anyone else, though. As Troy threw her bags in the back, she greeted Tara, Mike, Denise, Nick, and Justin. Cynthia, Troy's date, and her friend were also in the SUV. Annette took a seat beside Tara and Mike in the back seats. She listened as Troy told Justin, who was in the front seat with him, that they were headed to the gas station up the street where everyone else had stopped off for beer and ice for the coolers.
When they pulled up to the gas station, she immediately spotted Jordan bent over several coolers pouring ice from plastic bags inside. TJ was assisting him. She was the glad that the windows were tinted and that Jordan couldn't see her when they realized that Troy had pulled up behind them. She watched as they lifted the coolers in the back of the Hummer truck. She couldn't seem to tear her eyes from the muscles moving in his back as he lifted the coolers in the truck. His whole body just seemed to be calling out to her to be touched. She nibbled nervously on her bottom lip the whole time. They all left a couple minutes later.
"Annette, how long are you two gonna stay mad at each other? I know Jordan is stubborn and everything, but I didn't know you were stubborn, as well," Tara said.
"Oh, you don't know? Annette is stubborn when you get on her bad side. You have to pretend you're giving in to Annette for her to budge," Denise told her.
"We're not mad at each other for your information," Annette replied, "We're just separated."
"Well, are you two gonna stop pretending that you don't belong together," Tara asked.
"Nobody is pretending, Tara," Annette said. She made it clear that she didn't want to talk about it again, by turning on her iPod and putting her earphones on. She didn't care how stubborn she looked. Everything didn't revolve around Jordan.
An hour later, they were at their destination, with the guys pulling everyone's belongings out of the trunk. Jordan broke the tension between them, by coming over to say hello.
"Hi, how are you doing?"
"Good, and you?" She avoided looking at him. The moment she looked in his eyes, she knew that she would forget what she was upset about and she couldn't let that happen.
"Not so good. You know how I get when I can't see or talk to you."
"I know. Usually you call several times a day. You haven't called me since Wednesday."
"I'm just tired of hearing your voicemail. And it's not even your voice, it's a machine recording."
Annette finally looked up at him when she heard the arrogant tone in his voice.
"Well, let's have fun here today. There's something I want to ask you a little later this evening," he said.
"Why don't you ask me now?" Annette shrugged. She hated unnecessary suspense.
"It can wait until a little later. Nothing important," he replied. "By the way, you're beautiful as always."
He walked off before she could say anything. She couldn't help but to smile. But, she was not smiling because of the compliment he gave, but because she knew what he was trying to do. Now it was clear why Jordan had stopped calling her after she had been pretending that she wouldn't care if he called her one way or the other. It explained why he deliberately planned to ride in a separate SUV from her on this trip. Now, he was playing hard to get with her and she wasn't the one who caused the tension between them in the first place. Annette had played that game too many times to know all the rules. She also knew how far to go with the person involved to make them give up and give in. She made a mental note in her head to see just how far he was planning to take this with her. Annette thought that one of his rules was not playing games with females. Well, it appeared that he had certainly changed his rules under the circumstances.
Annette was having so much fun chatting and laughing it up with all the girls that came along that she didn't have time to think about her situation with Jordan. It was so easy to forget when you were having so much fun with the people she cared so much about.
The girls were laughing at Denise because she was worried about Nick driving well over 100+ miles an hour and was frightened at the sight of the car dragging across the race tracks every time his car turned a corner or swerved to miss someone.
"Cool it, girl," Tara said. "These guys do this a few times a year, at least. Besides, if you're frightened at the sight of that, you'll have a hard time learning to ride."
"I know … I know. Nick and I talked about that. We know that if it came down to it that I'll never ride solo. I was okay when we rode together last weekend though."
"Is Nick the one that looks kinda like Ginuwine?" Cynthia's friend asked Denise.
"Yes, why?" Denise asked.
"Oh, you're together?"
"Yeah, that's mine," Denise said, boldly.
Annette smiled at the protective tone in her voice.
"Oh … just checking." The girl shrugged.
"Denise, Nick'll be fine. Stopp all that worrying you're doing because it looks like he just won that race," Tara said, reaching in her handbag for lip gloss and reapplying it.
All of a sudden Denise jumped up, screaming. "Yeeeaahhh!. Go, baby, go! That's right! Beat their ass!"
"Ah! Whatever," Arlene spat at Denise. "Looks like a close tie between TJ and him, anyway. We'll see."