OBSESSED WITH TAYLOR JAMES (16 page)

Taylor legs wobbled as she made her way to Kelly giving
her a hug. “Kelly, how are you?”

“I’m good, Taylor.  I didn’t know you would be here
tonight.  You look beautiful.”

“Thank you.  You look great also—I love the dress.”  She
looked around the table noticing all the men standing. “Please sit down,” she
said making her way back to her seat next to Mario.

Seated she placed her hands in her lap to greet everyone
else.  “Dillon, Anderson, Todd, how are you?  Mrs. Cartwright, Mrs. Brantley,
it has been a while since I’ve seen you. You both look well.”

Anderson’s unpleasant look did not change as he spoke to
Taylor.  “Ms. James, I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.  Associates
aren’t usually invited to the Mayor’s ball.”

Taylor’s heart pounded from his harsh stare; she could
not stand the short and doughy man wearing a penguin suit talking down to her
like she was dirt under his shoe.  “I was invited, Anderson.”

Dillon leaned back in his chair with a look of coy on his
face. “I guess you came with Mario Infante.”

Mario shot him a look. “I’m sitting here and capable of
speaking, Mr. Stevenson.”

“Well, then I guess it’s no secret that you two are sort
of dating.”

Mario narrowed his dark eyes at Dillon. “I'm sure, if
Anderson is interested in knowing about my love life, he would ask.”

Anderson’s authoritative scowl turned to Mario. “I’m
asking, Mr. Infante.  Are you dating Ms. James?  We have a strict policy
against dating at the firm.”

Mario did not let it concern him that Anderson was the
controlling partner of the firm, and the person who signed his paycheck.
Unbuttoning the jacket of his tuxedo, he got comfortable.  Taylor sat quietly
waiting for the ceiling to fall as Mario answered. “Quite frankly, Anderson, it
is none of your business what I do outside of the firm.”

Anderson’s graying crown of hair did not show any signs
of thinning for a man his age. “What you do while employed at Cartwright &
Associates is my business.”

“I disagree my personal life is not any of your
business.  But, yes, I do enjoy the company of Ms. James outside of the firm. 
And if Mr. Stevenson or you have a problem with that, then that’s a personal
problem you will both have to deal with.”

“Watch yourself, Mr. Infante.  Everyone is replaceable.”

Mario nodded. “Yes we are, and you may want to get a few
candidates in mind.  I may need to be replaced sooner than you think.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Anderson asked.

“It means exactly how it sounded.  Anderson, I don’t take
threats kindly, and I won’t subject myself to being controlled by anyone for a
paycheck.  I’m a self-made millionaire and don’t need your money or bullshit.”

The other guests seated at the table fell silent.
Dillon’s face reddened as he witnessed the smoke seeping from Anderson’s thick
ears.  Kelly gave Taylor a glance quickly looking away knowing Dillon had
started a war and Mario Infante was not going to walk away defeated.

Todd picked up his glass. “Come on, people, this is a party. 
No shoptalk tonight.  Let’s just relax and have fun…okay.  We can settle this
on Monday.”

Mario raised his glass and drank slowly staring at
Dillon.  Taylor squeezed his thigh under the table hoping to calm him down. 
Dillon had crossed the line making a big mistake.  She would warn him to back
off Mario before he got hurt.

*****

After dinner, Mario and Taylor said their goodbyes and
departed the party before after dinner drinks were served.

Inside the garage, Mario held the car door open for Taylor
to get in.  He saw Dillon and Kelly walking to their car.  He bent down looking
inside the car. “Babe, I’ll be back in a second.”

“Where are you going?” She asked pulling the gloves off
her hands and shoving them in the small clutch purse.

“I want to exchange information with a friend.  It will
only take a second.” He tossed her the keys. “Listen to some music and get in
the mood for me.”

He closed the car door before she could protest.  The
many glasses of champagne had put her in a mellow zone.

Mario walked across the garage until he was face to face
with Dillon.  Giving Kelly a smile, he spoke. “Kelly, do you mind if I speak
with Dillon, alone?  I promise I won’t keep him long.”

“No problem,” she said walking to the back of the car. 
Apparently, she had not given Mario enough privacy.  She saw him escort Dillon
by the elbow and walk with him to make sure she did not overhear their
conversation.

“What do you want, Mario,” Dillon asked loosening his
tie.

“What do I want?  I want you to know you crossed the line
at dinner.  I don’t know what you were trying to prove by mouthing off to
Anderson, but I’m too old for games.”

“I didn’t lie.  Taylor told me you two are dating.”

“That doesn’t give you the right to announce it.  I know
you are hurt and can’t accept Taylor is with me, but my advice to you is to
move on and get over it.  You have a beautiful woman; shower her with affection
for a change and leave Taylor alone.”

“I know what I have with Kelly.  I’m looking out for
Taylor.  She doesn’t know how big of a mistake she is making getting involved
with you. You are pushing her into a relationship too soon.”

“Oh, so you want to get her fired in order to keep her
away from me? I see how that would help her.”

“You could leave and she wouldn’t get fired. You have connections…go
somewhere else and practice law.  Then again you have no need to work, you’re a
millionaire and don’t need the money.”

Mario thinned his lips holding in his anger. “You would
like that but I won’t give you the satisfaction of quitting.”  He poked a
finger in Dillon’s chest. “Accept Taylor is a grown woman and not easily
persuaded to do anything she doesn’t want to do.  She is with me because she
wants to be and your interference in her life will only push you further away. 
I’m all for you being gone, but for some reason she values your friendship.  If
you value the same with her, then back off and leave her alone.”

Dillon released a crooked grin. “It won’t last.  She has
dated your kind before.  All of them were successful, handsome, and losers. 
You will fuck up and have her running back to me crying. I’ll bide my time and
wait like I always do.”

“Don’t hold your breath waiting for that happen.  Taylor
is onto you.”

Dillon rubbed his right temple. “I know Taylor; you
don’t.  I’ll give it another month before she serves you with walking papers.”

Mario balled his fists at his side.  “Look, you may think
you are one of the big boys by hanging out with Anderson tonight, but you don’t
want to mess with me or…”

“Or what, Infante!  What are you going to do to me?”

Mario chuckled putting his arm around Dillon’s shoulder.
“I’m not going to do anything.  I’m going to sit back and watch you bury
yourself chest-deep in your own shit trying to find ways to break me and Taylor
apart.”

Dillon swallowed hard. “I’m not scared of you, Mario. 
Your dark side you are hiding from the world doesn’t faze me.”

“Trust when I say, you do not want to bring that dark
side to the surface.  I know where you are coming from, but you have no idea
where I am coming from.”

“What are you supposedly dangerous now?”

“Let’s just say as a former criminal attorney, I’ve made
friends who owe me favors.”

Dillon’s eye twitched and his breath stuck in his
throat.   Before he could control it, he let the words fly from his mouth.
“Fuck you, Infante….fuck you!  Taylor will open her eyes, and you will be
gone….I promise you that!”

Mario smoothly spun on his heels to walk away. The bright
lights of the parking garage bounced off the high gloss of his Armani shoes. 
He got in the last word saying, “The countdown to self-destruction has begun
Dillon.  Tenga una buena tarde.”

He got in the car and was instantly met with the burning
sting of Taylor’s hard glare. “Why, Mario.  Why did you have to say anything to
Dillon?”

“It’s a man thing, baby,” he said backing from the
parking space.

Taylor gave a wistful sigh.  “I hate I consented to go on
vacation with them.  How is this going to work with the four us not even
speaking?”

“Does he know I’m coming?”

Taylor lowered her head. “No, I didn’t get a chance to
tell him.  Mario, you were taunting him.  He is so close to falling over the
edge.  I don’t want to see him go over, and it’s my fault.”

He tapped her temple frowning. “Dillon is playing with
your emotions, Taylor.  He is not about to crack! He didn’t have a problem
throwing you under the bus at dinner.”

“He’s not right, baby.”

“He knows what he is doing and now he’s involved
Anderson.  Do not think Anderson will forget about tonight.  I can walk away
and survive.  I’m worried about you being able to do the same.”

“Dillon did surprise me by doing that, and I was too
outdone by his behavior to address it at the table.  I will talk to him.”

“Dillon is gunning for blood.  You and Kelly had better
watch yourselves.  It is no telling what he will to either of you.”

“I agree Dillon is acting vindictive.  I hardly believe
he would hurt Kelly or me.”

“Really? What do you know about her miscarriage?  Was
Dillon in the house when it happened?”

The lump in her throat rose.  The alcohol buzz clouded
her memory and ability to think.  “I don’t know.  He might have been home when
it happened.”

“It is time to investigate what is going on in that
house.  Kelly is holding something over his head; that’s why he can’t break
free of her.”

“If that were the case, she would be glued to Dillon’s
side.  He comes and goes as he pleases.  Hell, if he wanted to get away, he
could take a business trip and never return to Cleveland.”

“Not necessarily.  If she is holding her miscarriage over
his head, that is stopping him from leaving.  If he dumps her, she might take
it upon herself to go to the police and tell what actually happened that day. 
He has to stay close to her to make sure that won’t happen.”

Taylor rubbed her forehead.  “I’ve had too much to drink
for my brain to filter all this investigation stuff.  Can we discuss this
tomorrow?”

He let her rest her eyes, and he concentrated on the
road.  The pieces were falling together.  Once on the cruise, he would observe
Dillon and piece more of it together.

                                                                                                                                                      
Chapter 11
           
 

After flipping on the light in her office, Taylor powered
on the computer.  While it did the grunts and sputters to get the programs up
and to run, she went to the lunchroom to fix her usual morning coffee. 
Removing her personalized mug from the cabinet, she stirred in the standard two
packets of Splenda and three half- & -half creamers and waited for the
strong Columbian coffee to brew.

Leaning her body across the counter, she paged through
the outdated Plain Dealer newspaper left on the counter.  She let her mind
drift to the night of the party.

What a disaster.  The night had such promise until Dillon
opened his mouth causing Mario to react.  Sighing, she took the section
containing the real estate and folded it in half.  Opening
Legal Minds
,
the name she had chosen for the firm, moved from the bottom of her list to a
priority.

*****

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee had a way of luring
people to the lunchroom.  Only Taylor was early, and not many people were
around at 7:00am on a Monday morning.  Engrossed in the article she was
reading, she didn’t look up from the paper to see who’d entered.  Dillon’s
breath caught in his throat seeing Taylor leaning over the counter reading the
newspaper. 
“Damn”
was the unheard communication that crossed his lips. 
The tight navy blue skirt stretched across her firm behind screamed smack me. 
She wore a light blue silk blouse tucked in the waist and secured by a wide
silver belt.  Her hair was free of curls with a silver hairclip holding her
bangs in place.  He knew the belt matched the hairclip because he’d given them
both to her as a Christmas present last year.

His eyes lowered to examine her shapely legs.  They were
fantastic as usual. Taylor was the most beautiful black woman he’d ever laid
eyes on.  And, a woman he could not get out of his mind no matter how hard he
tried.  What they shared went deeper than friendship; only she refused to let
nature take its course and join him on a quest to pure bliss.  She had
convinced herself that was what she wanted with Mario Infante.

Staring long enough, he cleared his throat.  “Good
morning, Taylor,” he said, taking the mug from the counter and filling it with
cream. When she turned to look at him with those eyes he adored, he became
aroused.

“Good morning, Dillon,” she said politely but coldly.

Taylor did not offer her trademark smile as she moved
from the counter to the coffee machine.  “Excuse me,” she said stretching her
arm across him to get the coffee pot.

Her arm brushed across his chest arousing him more.  He
knew she was upset and giving him the silent treatment, but it wouldn’t last
long.  She never stayed mad with him long. “Taylor, I can’t stand this tension
between us.  Please, curse me out, hit me, do whatever you need to do but don’t
give me the silent treatment.”

She turned her head to look at him.  She saw his color
was chalky, and the area around his eyes sagged with heavy bags.  He must not
have slept a wink the whole weekend.  He let his petty vengeance eat at his
conscious but not enough for her to withhold the guilt she was about to lay on
him.

She took a spoon and stirred her coffee. “Your display of
ignorance last night was new even for you.  Dillon, you got me fired!”

“Anderson is not going to fire you as long as Todd is in
your corner.”

Her eyebrow rose. “What spirits from the heavens is
channeling you this information?”

“C’mon, Taylor.  Anderson forgot all about it after Todd
stepped in and calmed the hostility.”

“Oh, please! Again, at what table were you sitting? When
Mario said what he did, you could see the veins in Anderson’s head throbbing
through his hair.” Taylor shuffled sideways to get to the door.  The tiny space
between the coffee station and the center counter dividing the room in half
didn’t leave enough space between them to pass without touching. “You won’t
have to worry about Mario flaunting me under your nose.  If I’m not gone by the
end of the day, I will be by the end of the week.”

He dumped his coffee in the sink to go after her.
“Taylor, wait.”  She kept walking until she was in her office.  He followed her
inside closing the door.  “Taylor, I was out of line, and I apologize.”

Sitting down at her desk, her fingers tapped hard on the
defenseless keyboard. “Save it for the next person you screw over.  If you
don’t mind I have to work to do.” She sifted through the stack of papers on her
desk.

Dillon covered her hand with his. “Would you stop
pretending you’re busy and listen to me!”

Taylor laughed from her place behind her desk. Her glossy
lips formed a straight line.  “Listen to you? Go away,” she demanded.”

“I won’t go away.  We are going to be stuck on a boat for
seven days.  How are we supposed to get through that if we aren’t speaking?”

“It will be easy for me; I invited Mario to come along.”

“You asked that pompous ass to join our cruise without
consulting me?”

Taylor burned to tell him off; instead, she chose her
words carefully and through clenched teeth, said, “That pompous ass happens to
be the man I’m dating.  And contrary to what you may believe, seeking your
permission to ask him to join me wasn’t even a consideration.  I paid for my
ticket, not you.  Who I share my bed with is none of your business either.”

Dillon shook his head and groaned sternly, “It didn’t
take him long to get you to a lot of things.  God, Taylor, you have turned naïve
in a span of months.”

Furious she pushed her chair away from the desk and stood
up. “You have worn your welcome.  Goodbye, Dillon.”

“No, I will not go away! We have to figure this out and
remain friends at the same time.  Look at us; we never fought until that fool
came along.”

She pointed her finger in his face. “We never fought
because we respected each other’s space!  Somewhere along the line, you’ve
promoted yourself overseer of everything I do.  I don’t need you to do that!”

“Taylor, I’m looking out for you.”

“Is that right? Well how many times have you put your ass
on the line for me? I’ve stuck my neck out for you on numerous occasions.  I’ve
bailed you out of trouble when your mistakes in court got back to Todd.  I even
took the blame for a default on a summary judgment deadline you missed!”

“I didn’t realize you were keeping count.”

“Some things you just don’t forget. Sort of, like how
you’re paying me back.  You’re so against Mario being a part of my life that
you don’t care my career may be tanked, and you caused it.”

He shrugged his shoulders feeling cocky. “You can stop it
all from happening, Taylor.”

She folded her arms. “You are going to tell me how,
right?”

He nodded. “Get rid of Infante.  I will speak with
Anderson about getting rid of him, and everything will return to the way it was
before Infante got here.”

She snarled her lips as his eyes glared at her. “Go to
hell, Dillon.”

He reached for the doorknob but drew back his hand
saying, “As I’ve said before, I’m already there. But if you want to continue
working at Cartwright & Associates, you have to play by the rules.”

“No, thanks, I’d rather go elsewhere than play by your
rules.  Even if Mario were to go too, there would be nothing between us….not
even friendship at this point.”

“I knew I ruined our relationship Saturday night.”

“Then why are you here? Your mission has been
accomplished.”

“You know what, Taylor,” he said circling around her. 
The angry heat surrounding her turned him on.

She didn’t answer him as he sat on the edge of her desk.
“I’m already in the doghouse with you, so I have nothing to lose by telling you
this.  I worshiped you.  Did you notice me?  No, you didn’t.  I was just a
friend,” he said with a sting to his voice.”

Taylor swallowed the knot growing in her throat.  This
Dillon was unfamiliar to her and her knees shaking indicated a little fear in
what he might do if he snapped. “Friends have a tendency to last longer than
lovers.  You know that, Dillon.”

He slammed his hand on her desk, and she jumped.  Her
reflex to his anger encouraged him to continue. He had her under his control
for once. “Not for me! I would have done anything for you.  If you had said
jump, I would have said how high. You never gave me the chance to prove I could
be the only man you would ever need.”

“Do you want me to feel sorry I don’t feel the same way
about you?”

With his face inches from hers, he admired the fact that
she continued to stand up to him and show no fear, but was uncertain of what he
might do next. “I want you to regret you never felt that way about me.”

Focusing on his vacant blue eyes, she said confidently,
“I don’t regret anything.  Regrets lay in the heart of the beholder.  What will
you regret from this, Dillon?”

“I will regret a lot,” he said smelling the fresh coffee
on her breath.  “I was there for you when Miguel dumped you.  Do you remember
that?”

“That was personal drama.  What you are doing is a danger
to our careers.”

“Yeah.  But, I regret my touching you didn’t make you
shiver.  I bet Mario makes you shiver hard—doesn’t he?”

She didn’t move away from him and asked, “Do you really
want me to answer that question?”

“Might as well.”

“Fine, but remember you asked for it.  He does make me
shiver just by kissing me.  I love when touches my body all over.  The intimacy
we share will never be duplicated with anyone else.  Did that satisfy you?”

Without warning, to himself included, he wrapped her in
his arms, crushing his lips against her mouth.  The coffee flavor mixed with
the sweetness of her taste excited his blood.

Taylor kept her arms at her side.  He was incredibly
strong, and if she fought, he would squeeze the life from her body.  His hand
cupped her neck as he forced his tongue in her mouth.  She wanted to bite a
chunk of the flesh alien invading her mouth and spit it at him.

Panicking Dillon released his hold pushing himself away
from her. “What the fuck am I doing?”  Sweat beaded his forehead. “Taylor, I’m
sorry.  I would never hurt you.  I don’t know what came over me.”

She stood frozen in place.  Too scared to move and too
afraid of what she would do to him if she did. In a low graveled voice, she
ordered, “Get out before I call the police.”

His heart thudded against his chest.  He had to explain
that was not him acting in a garish manner. “Taylor, I don’t know what came
over me.  I’ve been having these spells and acting irrational at times.  You
know I would never harm you.”

She repeated in the same voice. “Get out!”

Rubbing his face, he walked to the door looking over his
shoulder; she had not moved.  He dropped his head exiting her office. Closing
the door hard, he rushed to his office.  Leaning his back against the closed
door, if she did not call the police, he would be surprised. He’d forced
himself on her like an animal.

He held his head walking to his desk to sit down.  The
headache began pounding at his temples again. 
“What have I done?  I’m a
damn idiot!”
He scolded himself.  Opening his drawer, he removed a bottle
of aspirin.  They were useless and like popping candy since they did nothing to
relieve the blinding pain the headaches caused.

He swallowed four of them dry and laid his head against
the back of the chair to wait.  He waited for the headache to ease up or bang
hard enough to burst his brain and cause death.

*****

The diplomas on the wall shook when Dillon slammed the door.
Tightening her lips, she rubbed her neck where his handprint burned her skin.  
She tossed the ink pen lying on her desk across the office as hard as she
could.  What was wrong with that man?  Her hands shook uncontrollably. 
Grumbling she snatched the receiver off the base and punched in a number. 

“
Taylor, you’d better be hurt or sick to be calling me
this early in the morning.
”

“Sabrina, I’m sorry to call so early.  Girl, I have a
problem,” she said hearing the heavy coarseness of Sabrina’s sleep-laced
voiced.  At 7:30 in the morning Sabrina, normally didn’t get going before
mid-morning.

“What is the emergency?”

“I may lose my job and soon.  Sabrina is your day full or
will you be able to have lunch with me?”

“You’re in luck.   I’m off on Mondays.  What time and
where do you want to meet?
”

 “Lola’s on 4
^th
at noon. “I am buying before you
ask.”

“You gave me incentive to get out of bed.  I will be
there at noon sharp.”

“See you then,” she said hanging up the phone.

Placing another call, Mario’s assistant answered on the
second ring. “Hi, Denise, is he around?”

“Good morning, Ms. James, he’s in depositions this
morning.  He expects to be gone all day.”

She clicked her tongue. “Right, he did say he would be out
most of the day.”

“Would you like his voicemail?”

“No, it’s nothing that can’t wait until he is back in the
office.”  Taylor said a quick goodbye and hung up the phone.  Unfolding the
real estate ads, she perused the section for office space.