I went downstairs and checked to make sure the tickets were still tucked away in the pocket of my suit jacket. I called Channing up and told him it was a go. While we were at the restaurant, he was going to come over and set up the flowers and candles I had bought earlier that day.
When I got off the phone with Channing, I glanced at the clock and noticed time was flying by. I put on my suit jacket and yelled upstairs, “Baaabyyy, we’re going to miss our reservation if we don’t leave in the next fifteen minutes!” I warned her.
“I’m almost done,” her sweet voice yelled back down, and I couldn’t even be upset that she’d been working on her makeup for over an hour.
I was a fucking nervous wreck. In my mind, Tameka was already my wife. I didn’t need a marriage ceremony to make that any more valid. But with all of the mess going on with Rodney popping up out the blue, the day wasn’t heading in the direction I had originally planned.
Rodney’s visit validated that eloping to Hawaii was a good idea. We didn’t need him trying to ruin our wedding, since he’d claimed he wanted Tameka and that he was prepared to fight for her. Don’t get me wrong; Tameka was indeed worth fighting for, and she deserved the world, but I was hell-bent on being the one to give it to her.
I snapped out the fog of my thoughts as soon as Tameka walked down the stairs. It was as if time had slowed down, and everything in the universe re-centered around her. She had donned a beautiful yellow dress that clung to her curves and summoned me from across the room.
I would have to take a moment to check my bottom lip for drool after she seemed to glide down the stairs and across the room. I gawked as I followed every step she took, fixing my stare on her glistening cocoa skin as she inched closer to me.
I gave a wide smile as I watched her eyes twinkle upon seeing me. Her smile was enough to make me weak. I felt my legs wobble simply from being in her presence. I was hooked, and I’m sure she absolutely knew. Tameka was a drug I always wanted to be high on. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, I still couldn’t take my eyes off her.
“You ready, babe?” she asked with a gleaming smile on her succulent lips.
I dre
w her close to me and went for a peck, catching the light smell of her sex-inducing perfume. She had me under her spell, and I loved every moment of it.
“Yes,” I said as I carefully placed my hand on the small of her waist, letting her lead me out the door as we began our night.
I hurried to the passenger side of the car so that she didn’t have a chance to reach for her doorknob. I opened it and admired the way she gracefully positioned herself into the car. I carefully closed the door behind her and rushed to get in the driver’s seat.
As we drove to our destination, we remained silent but in a trance as if we were in a love stupor, drunk on each other, and still not ready to sober up. I kissed her hand as our fingers interlocked. She glanced at me, and her face lit up.
It didn’t take long before we arrived at the restaurant. I found a parking spot and swiftly hopped out and opened the door for Tameka. She climbed out of the car, and I led her into the packed restaurant that she had raved about. She had gone on and on about how nice it was, so I had to bring her here. I hadn’t made an official reservation though, but I got a little help from a friend in securing a table since this wasn’t the type of place one could walk into and expect to be served. He hooked me up with a nice, candlelit table on the rooftop of the restaurant at the spare of the moment.
Our view overlooked the calm and peaceful small city. The weather was beautiful, not too hot or sticky, and offered just enough of a breeze to keep the air breathable and airy for our night of love.
As the hostess led us upstairs to the rooftop, I could see Tameka drawback at the sight of it. She gasped and squeezed my hand tighter when she noticed the view.
We sat down together and perused the menu. She talked about prices, letting me know that somethings she hadn’t tried because they were so expensive, but I squeezed her hand and said, “Get whatever you want, baby. Don’t worry about that tonight.”
“No, we’re saving money for the wedding,” she said, and her eyes lit up as she spotted and then ordered one of her favorites, salmon.
I didn’t want to start our date off talking about the Hawaii idea, so I told Tameka about a new potential partner I had for the club.
“So I met with an investor earlier today. Actually, he walked into the club and talked to me about some ideas he had for expansion, and they sound good. Of course, I didn’t tell him that. I told him we could meet to go over the details, but he has the funding to expand the club into franchises in places like Atlanta and Las Vegas,” I divulged.
“That does sound good, Jeb. Do you think you will work with him?”
“If the paperwork looks right, I’m all for expansion. But the club here in Lafayette, our small little city where the brand originated, I’m keeping full control of it,” I said.
“Yes, definitely,” she replied, looking at me with a look of amazement in her eyes. “I’m happy for you. What’s the investor’s name?”
“Oh, it’s Trey Cox.”
“Trey Cox? The drug dealer?”
“He’s not in that business anymore. He has gone legit, and his dealings are clean.”
Trey was known to have illegal dealings back in our college days, but he had since changed his life and started investing in real estate and stocks. People still assumed he was selling drugs because he had become quite wealthy from his investments.
“You might want to check into that before you sign anything with him,” Tameka said with a look of distress on her face.
“Baby, don’t worry. I will check with both law enforcement and my lawyer before any deal is made.”