DUBIOUS (24 page)

By habit, I rode by Felicia’s house. Her car was there, but that didn’t mean shit since old dude had picked her up. Luckily for me, I didn’t have time to stop or that would have blown my mind during the test for sure.

* * *

I found a parking spot close to the door of the testing center then rushed inside to get a seat in the front of the class. I purposely sat between two strangers so Jamie would not be able to sit next to me. The instructor gave out the test booklets, and we were instructed to fill out our names and contact information. After we filled out our information, we had to turn our booklets over and wait for the test to begin.

Jamie came in with only seconds to spare. He looked as if he had slept in his clothes. He had dark circles under his eyes. He had probably slept as badly as I had last night, but at least I wasn’t wearing my discomfort on my face. He nodded a hello and headed to the back of the room.

The bell sounded and the test began. We inserted our score sheet into the printers; it would record our answers as we pressed the appropriate buttons. All of my pre-jitters disappeared as I read each question. Surprisingly, these were the same questions that Jamie and I had been studying for weeks. I finished fifteen minutes early and I had passed.

I wanted to scream and shout, instead I turned in my scores and left the room. Jamie, however, looked as if he were struggling. I said a prayer for him then left the building. Twenty-five minutes later, I parked in Felicia’s driveway.

* * *

She answered the door as if she had just woken up. “Randy, what’s up with this dropping by unannounced shit? It isn’t cute.”

“
I passed my CPA test. I just needed to share that with you.” I went inside.

“
I’m happy to hear that, but the next time call first.”

“
Why, you got company?” I imagined someone upstairs in
my
bed.

“
That’s none of your fucking business.”

“
Sorry, you’re right. I was out of bounds. How did your date go last night.”

“
It was fine.”

She didn’t elaborate and it was killing me. I wanted to know if she had slept with him. I tried to think of something else to say but all I could think about was her date.

“
Is that all?” She opened the door. She was dismissing me.

I ignored her gesture.” I called the kennel last night to see if I could get my personal effects from the office. I was told that you had already picked them up.”

“
Yeah, I have them.”

“
I can take them off your hands since I’m here anyway.”

“
I have to go through it first to make sure no company materials are contained in the boxes. Sam just threw everything in boxes without sorting it out.”

“
I’ll do that for you. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time.” I prayed that she would bite.

“
It’s okay. It comes with the territory. I’ll call you after I’ve been through it all.”

Shit! If I ask for the tapes, she is going to want to watch them. If she watches them, my ass is toast.
“Dag, I was just trying to be helpful. I’ve got some of my old college stuff in there and other personal correspondence. I could go through it a lot faster than you can.”

“
I appreciate your offer, but I still want to go through the things myself. I’ll give you a call later in the week once I’m done.” She looked outside for emphasis.

***

My cell rang as I was getting into my truck. “Hello.”

“
How did you do?” It was Jamie.

“
I passed, how about you?” I looked back at my old house then drove away.

“
Barely. I can’t believe I botched it so badly since I knew all the information. I guess I had a lot of things on my mind. I’m going to take it again to raise my grades.”

I didn’t even bother to ask what was on his mind. I wasn’t ready to face that music just yet.

“
So, what you up to?” he said.

“
I just stopped by my ex’s house to share the good news, and now I’m about to head on home and get wasted.”

“
I hear you. Want some company? I need to get shit-faced myself.”

What do I say? If I told him no, he would know I had read the letter. If I said yes, he might try to make a pass at me. “My roommate might be at home entertaining so I better not be trying to bring over company.”

“
So why not swing by my place?”

Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.
I hesitated for a few minutes before I agreed. It was obvious this situation was not going to go away until I met it head on. “What do you want from the store? I’ll stop on my way over there.”

“
That’s okay, I already stopped. We got enough booze to take out a small country.”

“
What about food? Want me to stop and pick up something?” I was stalling and I think he knew it.

“
We can order in if we get hungry. Hurry up, I’m ready to get my drink on.”

“
Alright. I’m on my way.”

I took the streets rather than jumping on the expressway. I was trying my best to get my act together. What the hell was I going to say to him if he asked me about the letter? I guess I would have to cross that bridge when I got to it.

CHAPTER 27

I was still tired from last night, but it was a pleasant kind of tired, at least it was until Randy had stopped by. Two unannounced visits in two days. I was going to have to put a stop to that shit quick, fast, and in a hurry. I went into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot. While it was heating, I went to the garage and brought in the boxes that I had brought home from the kennel. After fixing me a strong mug of coffee, I started going through the boxes. Justus followed me and settled at my feet.

I decided to make two piles: one for Randy to pick up; another to store in my home office if it related to the business. The first box contained pictures of us during our happier days. Seeing them brought tears to my eyes; and, again, I wondered what had went wrong. He also had photos of some of the dogs he had mated and sold. I decided to give those pictures to him since they meant so much to him.

The box also contained detailed journals of the animals and their medical histories. I decided to hold on to these records just in case one of the owners wanted some additional information about the dogs they had purchased. The only other items in this box were things from his desk: paperweight, nameplate, and other little knickknacks. I put those items in his pile.

The second box contained detailed records of every dog that had ever came to the kennel. Again, these records might become important in the future, so I decided to clear out a filing drawer in my office for them. The files contained the bloodlines of all the dogs. Copies of these documents were given to the owners at the time of sale. In case they lost them, I would maintain them.

The final box was full of video tapes. Randy apparently taped the birthing of all the pups. I watched a few, but they grossed me out so much I had to eject them. The final three tapes in the box were not labeled. That made me curious because all the other tapes had dates and labels on them. Assuming they were porno tapes, because he damn sure wasn’t sexing me, I popped one in. The date was illumined in the right-hand corner on the screen:
06/19/07
.

It was a tape of Justus. He was sitting in the corner licking his balls. Why Randy had felt compelled to tape this was beyond me. Justus spent several minutes doing just that. I could hear Randy talking on the tape.

“
That’s right, boy, suck it. Good boy.”

What the fuck?
I had to rewind the tape to make sure I had heard what I thought I’d heard. My ears were not deceiving me. I fast forwarded the tape. Randy had obviously put the recorder on a tripod because he was in this picture with Justus. My heart was beating real fast as I tried to comprehend what the hell I was looking at.

The phone rang, and I quickly shut off the VCR because I didn’t want anyone to hear the background noise coming from the tape.

“
Hey sunshine, how are you this morning?”

I started smiling just from hearing Sherman’s voice. “I’m just fine. How about you?”

“
I’ll be honest, I’m missing the hell out of you.”

“
You got a girl over here blushing.” All thoughts of Randy and his tape went right out of my mind. The only thought that remained was that I didn’t know Randy as much as I had thought I did.

“
What do you have planned for the day?”

“
Well, since someone messed up my hair last night, I’ve got to go by my hairdresser’s and see if she can do something with this mop.” I ran my fingers through my hair.

“
I happen to like that mop.”

“
You wouldn’t say that if you could see it now. I came home and fell face down on the bed, too tired to wrap it or anything.”

“
After the hairdresser, then what?”

“
I don’t have any plans.”

“
You do now. I’m going to hit the gym. Call me when you get back home, okay? I’ll swing by and come and get you.”

“
Okay. I’ll talk to you later.” I hung up the phone and immediately called Kenya. She was not going to be pleased with trying to fit me in early on a Saturday morning, but I was definitely going to make it worth her while.

“
Kenya, it’s Felicia,” I said as my mind drifted back to the tape.

“
I know who the hell it is and the answer is no. I’m all booked up.”

“
Aw damn, I didn’t even ask you nothing yet.”

“
But you will. I know that voice. You spent the night fucking, your hair looks like shit, and you want me to fix it so you can fuck some more.”

“
Damn, were you watching on Youtube?”

“
You were fucking! I was just playing. Get your ass over here. I have to hear the details, but make it fast because I do have a full day.”

“
I’m on my way.”

“
Wash that ass first,” Kenya said.

“
My ass is clean, heifer.” I grabbed my keys, my jacket, and my hat to cover my rat’s nest.

***

During the ten minute drive, I relieved my night with Sherman. Kenya’s shop wasn’t far, so I was pulling into the parking lot as she pulled up. I waited while she opened the door and turned on all the lights.

She practically dragged me to the shampoo bowl and whooped out loud when she snatched off my hat. “Girl, that dick must have been good!”

“
It was, girl, let me tell you.”

“
You and Randy are back together?”

“
Naw, I’ve moved on.”

She stopped, switched off the water, and sat down at my feet. “Lawd, Jesus, I’m not believing this! You and Randy have been together longer than peanut butter and jelly.”

“
He moved on and now I have to. Now get up off the floor. I’ve got a date when I leave here, and I don’t want to get caught up in your morning crunch.”

“
So who is this mystery man?”

“
Believe it or not, he’s a client,” I said.

“
Oh no you didn’t! You don’t fuck where you work.”

“
I’ve completed my assignment with him so he’s fair game, and if you saw him, honey, you would drop your drawers, too.”

“
Damn, it’s like
that
?”

“
Girl, I thought Randy knew what he was doing in bed but his ass was just clowning around. I found out what it was like to be made love to.”

“
I’m happy for you, girl. You deserve it after the shit your husband put you through.”

“
Ex-husband.” I started to tell her about the strange tape I was watching, but I decided to keep that information to myself a little while longer until I had found out what the hell was really going on. There had to be at least ten good reasons why Randy had lain naked on the floor with his dog, but I couldn’t think of one.

Kenya ran the water over my head as her other appointments started coming in. I knew they were pissed, but they would just have to get over it. I had helped Kenya get this shop so VIP service came with the perks. She quickly washed and conditioned my hair. Instead of having me sit under the dryer for forever and a day, she blew dry and flat ironed my hair straight. I gave her receptionist a hundred dollars for Kenya’s time and trouble because she wouldn’t accept it from me.

“
Don’t forget to call me later in the week to tell me about your date,” Kenya called out as I was leaving the shop.

“
We’ll do.” I was in and out of the shop in less than an hour.

Since I still had some time on my hands, I went and had my nails and feet done. I also had them touch up my eyebrows, which tended to get bushy when I let them grow unattended.

My cell phone started ringing, but I didn’t want to risk messing up my nails fishing it out of my purse. Whomever it was, I would call back after my nails had dried. I debated on whether to go shopping for a new outfit, but clothes, however, was the last thing I needed. All I had to do was go home and fish through my closet. I was sure I could find something suitable to wear. I didn’t even know what we were going to be doing. I was just happy to be spending time with Sherman.