Talk a Good Game (4 page)

“
Hold up!” April shouted just as I
was about to click on the last one.

“
What?”

One of her brows went up and her
mouth kind of hung open. “
Hell nah! That
’s
Pat
’s
husband.”

I tilted my head and looked up at
her. “Pat who?”

She gave me a strange look.
“Patricia who works over at Hy-Vee in the deli
department.”

I clicked through all five photos
he had posted. “Oh shit! That
is
him.” We started howling with laughter. That fool
even had the nerve to upload a photo of himself stunting in her
Camry.

“
Niggas ain’t
shit.” April
shook her microbraids, with disgust. “I
’
m fina call
my girl Shonda and put Pat
’s
man on blast.” She
hurried out of the office and I was still shaking my head. There
was no telling how many of these dudes were
married.

I was getting ready to head up front for lunch when
an instant message flashed across my screen. It was from
Jaguar22.

What’s up sexy? You get my
message?

I couldn’t resist a smile. I
turned on the charm and typed away at the keyboard.

Me: Yep. I got it.

JAGUAR: So? Does that mean you’re
ready to get to know a real man?

ME:
I don
’t
know. You look mean.

I was grinning like crazy.

JAGUAR: Yeah, my boy said the same
thing when I posted the photo. LOL. My bad. Take the time to get to
know me and you’ll see I’m definitely worth getting to
know.

He just doesn’t know how much
grinning he had me doing over here. But there was nothing easy
about me.

ME: That remains to be seen.

JAGUAR: Then let
’s not waste time.
How about we hook up this evening somewhere mutual? You pick the
place.

As intrigued as I was to meet
Jaguar, I wasn’t sure if that was a good idea.

ME:
I don
’t
know about all that. You might
be some kinda stalker.

JAGUAR: And so can you.

“
I don’t
think so,” I
murmured under my breath. One thing Janelle doesn’t do is sweat a
brotha, no matter how fine he is.

JAGUAR:
C’mon. Pick a place.

I thought about it all of three seconds, then
typed

ME: How about Shakespeare’s
pizza at
7?

The restaurant was only a few
blocks away so that would be perfect. The last thing I wanted was
for him to come to my spot and I discover I wasn’t feeling
him.

JAGUAR: Cool. See you then. And wear something
sexy.

ME: One thing about me. I always look sexy.

I quickly logged off and hurried to the front to get
ready for the lunch crowd. I was looking forward to meeting Jaguar
later today.

* * *

We
were
so slammed all evening I had to hurry
to the pizza joint to meet Jaguar. I strutted out the door and down
Ninth Street with my bodacious ass swinging with every step. I knew
people were driving by, staring at me, just the way I liked it. I
was a dime or better yet, a double deluxe. Haters thought I needed
to lose a little weight but I loved my curves and had plenty of
brothas on speed-dial who would agree. I glanced down at my skinny
jeans that hugged my ass. I was also rocking a black and purple
corset with a short-sleeved bolero jacket. On my feet were purple
stiletto pumps. If I
’
d had time I would have run by
the house and turned it up a notch. Regardless, I was looking every
bit of sexy.

It was one of those perfect evenings when the April
sun was shining high, yet there was enough of a breeze to keep a
sistah from sweating out her shoulder-length weave.

I was just turning the corner when I spotted a
high-end, emerald-green car pulling up in front of the pizza joint.
To hell with my date when there was something prime parked ahead. I
tilted the Versace glasses away from my eyes and slowed my steps
and made sure I gazed inside as I swayed my hips past that
beautiful car. Much to my pleasure, what was sitting behind the
wheel was even more scrumptious.

“
What
’s
up sexy? You wanna go for a
ride?”

I did a double-take and then my
jaw dropped. “
Jaguar?
”

He gave one of those laughs that
made a woman
’s
pussy meow. “Actually
it
’s
Kaleb. Jaguar was just my username.”

“
Mmmm-Hmmm. I see.” I struck a
cute pose with one hand resting at my luscious hip and swayed over
to the curb. Smiling, I leaned inside the car that just happened to
be a Jaguar. Naturally his eyes strayed to my twins that were ripe
for the picking. There was nothing mean-looking at all about the
man sitting behind that wheel. As a matter of fact, he had a smile
with the type of lips that made you want to pop out your titty and
stick it inside his mouth.

“
You
’
re every bit as sexy as your
picture.”

At least he appreciated beauty.
“Of course… did you expect anything less?”

He chuckled again, revealing
perfect white teeth. “You
’
d be surprised the
clowns I’ve met.”

I batted my fake eyelashes. “I aim
to please.”

“
You wanna go for a ride?” he
suggested.

I looked around. The sun was out.
What were the chances of me coming up missing, although I didn’t
know shit about this dude. “For all I know you
’
re
one of them crazy mofos cutting up women and burying them in your
backyard.”

He nodded. “You
’
re
right. I could be.”

I thought about it a moment longer, then reached
inside my purse, removed my phone and snapped his picture.

“
What
’s
up?
” he said and
laughed.

“
Insurance.” I
took another picture then backed up, snapped his car and even went
as far as the license plate. The whole time he sat behind the
driver
’s
seat admiring the
view.

“
I can see
you
’
re going to be a piece of
work.”

“
Absolutely.
I
’
ma game changer.” I tagged all
the photos then sent a text to April.

Girl, I’m with Kaleb aka Jaguar in
his Jaguar. LOL.

I was tapping away at my keyboard
as I spoke. “Give me a second to send these pictures to my cousin
and I’ll be ready to roll.”

“
Are you serious?” he roared with
laughter.

I shrugged. “A
diva
’s
gotta be careful.”

He rubbed a hand across his nearly
trimmed goatee. “I understand. Now will you get in?”

“
In a second.” I wasn’t climbing
into that bitch until my phone alerted my message had been
sent.

“
You like to be in charge.” He was
observant.

“
Of course.” Damn, the message was
taking forever to send.

“
Then we
’
re gonna have a
problem.”

I looked up from my phone and at
him. He appeared to be a few years older than me.
“Why
’s
that?”

“
Because there can only be one
boss in this relationship.”

“
Who said
we
’
re in a relationship?” I said and
shuddered with excitement.

“
Me. Because
I
’
m not window-shopping. When I
like what I see, I grab it and you sweetheart have plenty to hold
on to.”

Ain’t that the truth. The message
finally left my phone and I reached for the handle and opened the
door. I climbed in and sat down on a butter-soft leather seat and
grinned over at him. Kaleb
’s
eyes were all over
me.

“
You
’
re delicious.”

For a chick who loved food that
was the ultimate compliment. “Thank you. Now take me for a
ride.”

He finally pulled away from the curb. The air
conditioner was on, blowing in my face. I put my Michael Kors purse
on the floor then relaxed on the seat and enjoyed the soft R&B
music coming from the speakers.

Kaleb drove through downtown. I saw a few people I
knew along the sidewalks. Too bad the windows were tinted. I wanted
everyone to see me.

“
You gonna tell me your name?
”

My headed whipped around to gaze
at the curious look on his handsome face. I felt my chocolate face
become hot at the way he was licking his bottom lip. Damn that
goatee looked good on him. “My bad. It
’s
Janelle
but everyone calls me Jae.”

“
Jae huh? Like in juicy?
”

I had to laugh. From anyone else that line would
have sounded whack, but he just had this swag about him I was
feeling.

As he stopped for a red light, he
said, “Tell me, as fine as you are, what made you decide to go on a
dating site?”

“
Curiosity. More than anything
else,” I explained as I stared out the window. “I meet a lot of
rejects.”

“
Are you seeing anyone
now?”

No one worth talking about. “Nope.
Single as it gets.” I waved my ring finger just in case he hadn’t
noticed it was naked. “What about you?”

“
No one. I don’t
settle for anything but the best. If you haven’t noticed
I
’
m a first-round draft
pick.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. He was
cute, but he wasn’t all that. However, what he was lacking in
looks, his car definitely made up for.

“
Why don’t you tell me a little
about you?” he asked, making conversation.

“
That might take all night.” I
gave him a saucy grin.

“
Babe, for you, I’ve got nothing
but time.”

I love when a man knows what he wants, especially
when that something was me.

As we rode around town, I talked
about my restaurant and growing up in that small-ass town. He was a
great listener. He didn’t interrupt and that was what I liked most.
Like I said, it
’s
all about me! When it was
finally Kaleb
’s
time to talk I discovered he
was from Atlanta and had been in the area for two years.

He made a right on Nifong into a subdivision
surrounding the Columbia Country Club of Missouri. It was one of
those status neighborhoods with big-ass houses to die for. Even as
hard as I worked at the restaurant I was a long way from living
this large.

He turned onto a cul-de-sac and pulled in front of a
magnificent brick home.

“
Whose house is this?” I asked and
looked at him.

“
Mine.” He reached across the seat
and laced my fingers with him. “And it can all be yours, if you
play your cards right.”

My eyes widened as I stared through the window at
the mini-mansion. And when Kaleb reached up, pressed a button and
the three garage doors opened, I spotted a Range Rover inside and I
knew I had to have him.

Janelle Fox has found a new sponsor!

NYREE

“
He said that?”

“
Yes!” Janelle
screeched in my ear. “Kaleb said, ‘it can all be yours if you play
your cards right.
’
I couldn’t believe it! You
shoulda seen his crib! Girl, it was something out of a fucking
magazine.”

I shifted on the seat, drawing the phone closer to
my ear. I could just imagine Janelle sitting in her office,
doodling dollar signs on a sheet of paper. She never got this
excited about anything other than men and money; and when she could
get them both in one shot, she was like a freaking lunatic.

While I scrolled through my
emails, Janelle went on and on about her latest catch. Don’t get me
wrong, it wasn’t like what she was saying wasn’t entertaining. My
best friend was beautiful and men were always falling on their
faces to get close to her. It was almost comical to say the least.
The problem was I had heard this story so many times before I
already knew what questions she was waiting for me to
ask.

“
Are you listening?” Janelle said,
when she finally stopped to take a breath.

“
Of course,
I
’
m
listening.
So what
’s
he do for
a living?”