Authors: Hailey Hogan
Garth watched the surveillance film as several people went in and out of the studio. Neither he nor Bach noticed anything out of the ordinary. “I want you to set up interviews with everyone that signed in on the roster list,” Garth said.
“Consider it already done.” Bach called one of his employees. “I need you to get me the number to everyone on this list pronto.”
“Those pictures were taken last night. I’m pissed at myself for not noticing.”
“Whoever is doing this is clever.”
“But they will slip up. They always do,” Garth said, assured that whoever was behind the fan mail would be caught.
“I’ll get the interviews scheduled for the next few days.”
Garth wrote down his fax number. “Fax the information to me as soon as you get the times confirmed.”
“Will do,” Bach responded, reaching out to shake
Garth’s hand.
“I’ll be in the building until
Eva’s ready to go if you need me,” Garth said.
Eva
was spouting out orders when he found her in a conference room. Watching her in action turned him on. She was like a spitfire that needed to be tamed. He was just the man to do it. He wished he would have recognized the fire between them long before now. He smiled when she smiled at him. She may not have realized it, but he knew Trevor was a thing of her past. She didn’t mention him not once when they were together the previous night. That was a first for Eva.
Eva
said, “If there’s nothing else, I’ll see everyone on Monday. Godspeed.”
Garth
waited for everyone to leave the conference room before going near Eva. Once everyone had left, he closed the door and walked up to her. He did something he had been wanting to do the moment he saw her earlier. He leaned down and planted a kiss on her mocha brown lips. Their tongues danced to a rhythm of their hearts. Garth felt like time had stood still for those seconds their lips were locked around each other’s.
Eva
attempted to pull away first. “Garth, isn’t this a conflict or something?”
“Only if you make it out to be one.”
Garth wanted Eva and he refused to let something like her being his client keep him from her.
Before she could respond, he felt her cell phone vibrate in her pocket. He released her from his embrace as she took the call. He could tell from her end of the conversation that it was
Trevor on the other end of the phone.
“I don’t see how you two remained friends. He’s so doggone selfish,”
Eva complained.
“I’m not the easiest person to get along with either as you always remind me.”
“You’re not bad. I just told you that to knock you off your pedestal.” She grabbed her day planner and he followed her out.
“I know you didn’t. I’m not the one with an ego problem.”
Eva laughed. She held out her hands with a large space in between the both of them. “Man, your ego is bigger than the atmosphere.”
“Oh, no, Ms. Think She is the Bomb didn’t try to talk about me.”
“I speak the truth and you know it.”
“True. But it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”
He and Eva always had this type of banter between the two of them. She would grate his nerves and he purposely would grate hers. By now they were in her office. To his surprise, Trevor was sitting across from her desk.
“What’s up? Caroline told me you were taking on
Eva’s case. I came down to see if I could help.” Trevor looked confused.
“Bach and I got it covered,”
Garth responded. Seeing Trevor there didn’t sit well with him at all. He knew it was just another tactic of his to get back in Eva’s good graces.
His chest tightened when
Trevor hugged Eva. Eva frowned as Trevor removed his arms. Garth sighed. Jealousy was a new feeling.
“Do either one of you want to tell me what’s really going on?”
Trevor asked.
Eva
responded first. “Tre, if you’re not here to talk business, then I suggest you leave.”
“All I’m saying is I heard about the problem but I get here and you two are hee hawing like all is well in the world. Are y’all two seeing each other behind my back?”
“Who I see is none of your business. You’re an engaged man remember,” Eva snapped.
“But you said you loved me. If that’s the case, why are you going after my boy?” he pouted.
“Tre. We are not an item. We have not been in a real relationship since college. What we have is a thing of the past. So get over it.”
“But you were the one just last week begging me to dump
Cheryl and now here you are all up in my boy’s face.”
Eva
opened her mouth to speak, but Garth intervened. “I got this. Tre, this is neither the time nor place to discuss personal business. I’m here to protect Eva. If you’re not here on GT Securities business, I suggest that you leave so I can take care of our client.”
Trevor
stood by the door and looked back and forth between Eva and Garth. “You’re supposed to be my boy and you.” He shook his head. “I see where your loyalties lie. I’m glad I chose Cheryl over you now.”
Eva
said, “Tre, you’re her problem now; not mine. Now please leave.”
Garth
stood in between him and Eva. “Man, leave. We’ll talk later.”
“We sure will. This is far from over,”
Trevor stormed out the room.
“I thought he would never leave,”
Eva exhaled.
“We’ll have to deal with Tre eventually but for now I’m trying to make sure you’re safe.”
Eva wrapped her arms around his waist. “Oh, as long as you’re around, I know I am.”
Garth
felt like sticking out his chest. Knowing that she trusted him with her life meant the world to him. He would do whatever he needed to do to keep her safe. He would not let anyone harm her ever again. Trevor was a man of her past and he was her future and it was about time Trevor realized that.
Eva packed enough clothes to last the entire weekend. Garth had finally convinced her to stay at his place for the weekend. She couldn’t believe she would have access to the bachelor pad for two whole days.
“This is Omar Sampson and he’s going to make sure nobody comes around while you’re at my place,”
Garth said, when Eva met him out in the hallway.
After the introductions,
Garth showed Omar around the premises. Garth had expressed to her earlier that he would have a trusted employee house sit for her. She finished packing as Garth gave Omar instructions.
She double-checked to make sure she had everything.
Garth knocked at the door. “It’s open,” she shouted.
“You’re only going away for a weekend,”
Garth said, as he noticed her two huge suitcases. He grunted after he reached down to pick up the bags. “Man, what do you have in here? The kitchen sink.”
“Just a few essentials. Now come on because you owe me dinner.”
“Since I have you for the entire weekend, why don’t I take you out somewhere tonight but cook for you tomorrow night.”
Eva
blocked the door entrance way. “I don’t know. I was looking forward to a good home cooked meal.” Eva decided to stop torching Garth. “Okay. Tomorrow night. No excuses either.”
She followed him down the stairs. She waited while he gave his employee some more instructions. “If anything and I do mean anything happens no matter how small you may think it is, call me as soon as possible.”
It took less than forty minutes to get to Garth’s place. She was surprised that he lived in a subdivision not too far from hers. She had never had a reason to know where he lived. She was impressed at the houses. “I see you’re full of surprises,” she said out loud.
The garage door opened and she saw his black sports car parked next to the open space. She waited for
Garth to punch in his security code and then followed him into his house. A nice floral fragrance filled her nostrils as he guided her through the house. “I know this isn’t grand like your place, but it’s home,” Garth said, as he hauled her luggage inside.
“Are you kidding me?”
Eva asked. “I love your home. It’s not what I expected from L.A.’s top bachelor.”
“Life with me is full of surprises Ms.
Ward.” By now, he was opening up a door to a mid-size bedroom. “Here’s where you’ll be sleeping.” He placed the bags next to the bed. “I’m not sure where you want your things. There’s a walk-in closet right there. A bathroom connected to the room so you don’t have to go down the hall.”
“Who decorated for you? One of your women?”
Eva asked.
“For the record, very few women have seen my place.”
She grunted. “That’s hard to believe.”
“I’m too old to play games. If I say it, I mean it,”
Garth assured her.
“I would like to wash up some, so I’ll meet you in about thirty minutes,” she said.
“Don’t you mean an hour?”
“Thirty minutes,”
Eva responded.
Garth
said, “I’ve never known you to be ready in less than hour for anything.”
She reached her hand out. “I bet you I’ll be ready in thirty.”
“Loser buys the pizza,” Garth said, as he shook her hand.
“Okay, you’re ticking into my time. Scoot,” she said, pushing him out of his own guest room.
Garth didn’t realize that as an ex-supermodel she was used to dressing in a hurry; she just chose not to. She liked taking her time, but a bet was a bet and thirty minutes later, Eva was calling out for Garth. They both had a huge smile on their faces. She said, “Make sure you have enough for the tip.”
“Do you want everything on your pizza?” he asked.
“Everything but onions,” she responded.
An hour later, they were sitting in the living room on the floor around his coffee table eating and watching a movie. Although they were not out at a five star hotel or at some big Hollywood premiere,
Eva was having the time of her life doing absolutely nothing with Garth.
She leaned her head on his shoulder. “I wish I would have talked to you first.”
“Me too,” Garth confessed.
“Let’s make a pact. Neither one of us will bring up you know who.”
“Well, I wish it was that easy. Tre and I are friends and you forgot we’re business partners as well.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot. You’ve made some bad decisions in your life.”
“Wow. Well thanks.”
“Not concerning me though.”
“So what do we have Eva? Are you saying, you’re willing to give me a chance? A chance to be your man?”
Eva
didn’t respond right away. “Garth, I need to be sure. I’ve wasted too much time pining after the wrong man. I don’t want to leave one dysfunctional relationship for another.”
“A relationship with me will be nothing like Tre’s. Trust me.”
“Easier said than done,” Eva admitted. Eva placed her hand on one of Garth’s cheeks. “Can you give me some time?”
Garth
responded, “By the end of this weekend I want an answer.”
“Why do we have to rush?”
“We’ve both wasted too much time with other people. I don’t want to waste any more.”
That’s exactly what
Eva wanted to hear. She kissed him intensely. Before long, Garth was laying on top of Eva’s clothed body. “Baby, you’re making it hard on me to resist you,” he said, in between kisses.
“Okay, we’ll stop for now.”
Eva said, as they both brushed the wrinkles out of their clothes.
Eva
didn’t know if she should feel relieved or disappointed that they each went to separate rooms that night. She thought about Trevor before going to sleep. At one point, she did love him. If she was honest with herself, it had been years since she had actually been in love with Trevor. She was just a woman who hated to lose. Eva felt like she had invested so much time and energy into their untraditional relationship that the thought of him marrying some other woman made her temporarily lose her mind.
Now that she had her full senses,
Eva would no longer settle for being anyone’s booty call. If she couldn’t have the real deal—the type of relationship she felt she deserved, she would remain by herself. Eva preached women’s empowerment to her audience and fans. It was way past time for her to live the life she had been lecturing about. Eva decided to take charge of her life.
The next morning, while Eva slept, Garth checked with Omar to get an update on what was going on at Eva’s place. Garth felt relieved. No strange events were reported. Eva remained sleeping, so he decided to surprise her by cooking a hearty breakfast. This time when he went to her room, she was awake. His labor was worth it when Eva gave him her trademark smile. He wanted to melt as he placed the tray over her legs in the bed.
“A woman could get used to this treatment,”
Eva said, as she took a bite out of her food.
“This is only the beginning.”
“You’re not going to eat?” she asked, in between bites.
“I’ve eaten. You were sleeping so hard earlier that I didn’t want to wake you up.”
While Eva was eating breakfast and getting dressed, Garth retrieved his messages. All was well with his clients as some of his employees that worked the night shift checked in. The doorbell rang as he was disconnecting the call.
Without asking who was on the other end or looking out the peephole, he opened the door.
Trevor was standing on the other side. “Man, I thought you were going to be at the gym this morning so since you didn’t show up I decided to stop by.”
“You should have called first.”
Garth wasn’t ready for a confrontation. He hoped Eva stayed in the other room.
“I tried, but I kept getting your voice mail.”
They stood in the foyer. “Then that probably means I was busy.”
“Hey, I was just coming over to apologize for how I acted yesterday.”
“No problem. But hey I got company so we can catch up later.”
“Oh my bad. I should have known. I just wanted to get that off my chest.”
Before Trevor could turn around and leave, Eva’s voice rang out, “Garth, what’s on our agenda for today?”
“I know that’s not who I think it is,”
Trevor said, as he turned and looked in the direction where he thought he heard Eva’s voice.
“Tre. Calm down,”
Garth said, while rubbing his sweaty palms.
“Is that
Trevor?” Eva asked, as she entered the room dressed in a pair of jeans and t-shirt. “Hey what’s up?”
“What’s up? You’re what’s up. My best friend and my girl.”
Eva crossed her arms. “I haven’t been your girl since forever.”
Garth
, trying to keep the peace, said, “We’re all adults here so let’s sit down and talk about this.”
“Man, you’re a joke.”
Trevor’s veins in his neck seemed to poke out.
Garth
said, “Look. What happens between Eva and me is between us. You and Eva are not together. You have a fiancé so you need to worry about her and who she’s with.”
Trevor
asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Garth
almost let it slip but caught himself. “Nothing. All I’m saying is that you’re getting married soon. Your concern should be about Cheryl. Let me worry about Eva.”
Trevor
threw a punch at Garth but he ducked before it could land. Garth got him in a headlock. “We either talk about this like two mature adults or you get the hell out of my house.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. This was the ultimate betrayal,”
Trevor said, as he squirmed to get loose.
Garth
released him. Trevor stood up but looked dazed a little. He looked back and forth at Eva and Garth and said, “You’ll both pay for this.” He didn’t wait for them to respond. Trevor walked out the front door and slammed it.
“Wow. I’ve never seen him that upset,”
Eva said.
“He’ll be alright.”
“There’s something more going on here. You two used to be tight,” Eva said.
“Our friendship hasn’t been right for a very long time now. Our interests don’t lie in the same place.”
“Have you tried talking to him about it?” Eva asked.
“Men don’t talk about those things,”
Garth responded, as he led her to the living room and sat next to each other on the sofa.
“But you were boys long before I knew either one of you. I don’t want to be the cause of your friendship ending.”
Garth took his hand and wiped the strand of hair off Eva’s forehead. “That’s why I care about you. You put up this front, but you are a very caring person. I wish others could see this side of you.”
Eva
tilted her head down, avoiding eye contact with Garth. “It’ll be our little secret,” she said, in a hushed voice.
Garth
spent the next few minutes talking to Eva about his confused feelings for his best friend. “I don’t blame him for being upset. I would have tried to punch me out too.”
“I have a feeling something more is going on here,”
Eva commented.
Garth
let out a deep breath. If he wanted their relationship to progress, he knew what he had to do. He hoped Eva would understand what he was about to reveal. “If we’re going to be together I don’t want any secrets between us.”
Eva
crossed her legs up under her. “I’m listening.”
“
Trevor’s fiancé Cheryl and I have been sleeping with one another.” Garth felt uncomfortable telling her about Cheryl but he didn’t want her to find out another way. He watched the shocked look on her face.
“How did this come about?”
“We met before she ever met Trevor. I had no idea the woman he claimed to love was the same woman I had been knocking boots with until much later.”
Eva
said, “Talk about a real life soap opera.”
Garth caressed Eva’s hand. “That’s why I say he and Cheryl deserve each other. Neither one of them knows anything about being committed to one person.”
Eva
said, “I can’t say I’m surprised about her. She looks like a gold digging tramp. But you. Y’all been boys for too long.”
“Like I said, I had no idea he was her man until much later. She was just a booty call to me.”
“But you could have stopped once you found out. In fact, you should have told Tre.”
“Believe me, Tre doesn’t tell me everything. Although you’re the first one I’ve ever loved, I was in a serious relationship before and Tre slept with her. He doesn’t know I know that.”
“Go back to the part where you said I was the first one you’ve ever loved,” Eva interrupted.
Garth
didn’t mean for his feelings to slip out. Now he had no choice but to be honest with her. “Eva, I can’t say exactly when it happened, but I am in love with you. I want you to be my woman.”
For a moment, they forgot about
Trevor and his problems.
“Can you honestly say you’re ready to leave the other women alone? I mean your roster is bigger than any rapper’s I know.”
“Eva you’re more than enough woman for me. Keeping up with you will be a full-time job.”
“Um huh. Well back to this
Cheryl and Tre mess. I think you need to tell him.”
“You saw how he acted when he saw you here. Just imagine how he’s going to feel about
Cheryl.”
“Frankly, I don’t care. Tre is not my favorite person in the world right now, but he deserves to know before he walks down the aisle with the tramp.”
“I’ll think about telling him, but for now, can we talk about something else?” Garth pulled her into his arms and hugged her and planted kisses all over her face.
“You never did answer me. What’s on our agenda for today?” she asked.
“How about sail boating? I have a friend who said I could use his anytime I wanted to. Today seems like the perfect day.”
Two hours later, they were sailing on the high sea. “Don’t go too far out,”
Eva said, as she re-tied the wrap around her waist. The wind blew giving Garth glimpses of the bottom part of her bikini and thighs.
Garth
wrapped his arms around her. “I can handle this.”
“I’m not saying that you can’t, but the winds seem a little high don’t you think.”
Garth planted a kiss on the back of her neck. “I wouldn’t let anything happen to you baby. I promise to keep us close to shore just to ease your mind.”
“Great,”
Eva said, as she turned around to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his lips down on top of hers. They kissed as the wind blew through her hair.
It was after six before they returned home.
Garth felt relaxed as he quietly reminisced about the day he had with Eva out on the open sea. He had promised her a home cooked meal tonight. He threw on a few steaks on the grill and baked some potatoes. Eva had made herself at home. He could get used to having her around.
Wiping her lips with a napkin,
Eva said, “This was delicious. You can grill for me anytime.”
Garth
tipped his imaginary hat. “Glad you liked it.”
Eva
took a sip of her drink. “You might be a keeper after all.”
“Does that mean you’re ready to give me an answer?”
Garth asked, as he held his breath.
“Not yet, but soon,”
Eva responded.
Garth
sighed. “In the meantime, let’s watch a movie. I’ll even let you pick the movie.”
A few minutes later, they were curled up on the couch watching to
Garth’s surprise an action flick. Eva said, “I wanted a role in that movie.”
“I can see you kicking butt now.”
Eva snuggled up closer to Garth. Garth’s body tensed up as his libido went into overdrive. He shifted to get comfortable. They watched the movie in silence. Before long, Eva had dosed off. He gathered her up in his arms and instead of taking her to the guest room; he made a beeline directly to the master bedroom. He watched her as she slept; hoping she wouldn’t be too upset waking up next to him.