Tayah won the award for volunteer of the year. According to Ian Laing’s assessment, she had a strong presence in the community, and was a faithful board member of the Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival. He could depend on her to do anything. She’d played a major role in helping to launch several fundraising projects, and had kept the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. alive through networking with many important people and awareness groups across the country. Civil rights activist, Dr. Benjamin Chavis placed an arm around Tayah, as half a dozen photographers drew near and went camera crazy. With all those bright lights slapping them in the face, Dominic was sure Tayah’s eyesight would have to be readjusted before she walked down from that podium.
He and Michelle stood and were clapping and whistling along with everyone else. It appeared that Tayah had many friends in the audience and seeing all of their smiling faces, loving on this woman, sent a warm feeling through his body. He was proud to be associated with her and would do anything to remain a part of her life for as long as he could. What a pity he’d let her slip through his fingers, he had practically handed her over to Phillip. It was the biggest mistake he’d made in his life and every night he paid for it. Now, he could only imagine holding her, caressing her, and kissing her – things only Phillip had the right to do.
The scripture forbade him to covet another man’s wife, but as she gracefully moved around in that fitted emerald dress, locking her smile on him; she caused him to sin without effort. If Sanchez got a sneak preview of his thoughts, he would scold him from sunrise to sunset, and tell him how much of a hypocrite he was. But Dominic had convinced himself that he knew where to draw the line. He would settle for Tayah’s friendship. Obviously, he wanted more, but it was not possible. It was certainly better to have her as a friend in his life than not to have her at all. As he watched her descend the steps from the podium, his BlackBerry buzzed crazily against his hip. He quickly retrieved it and scanned the text:
Hey gorgeous, you didn’t respond to my text. Should I take that as you trying to avoid me? I’m scheduled to leave tomorrow evening. Let’s get together tonight. I want to discuss…”
He didn’t get to finish reading A’moree’s message. With Tayah nearby, he didn’t want to risk raising any suspicion. He jabbed the phone back into its place.
“Congratulations, honey,” Michelle beamed, squeezing her daughter. It was the happiest feeling she’d felt in weeks. “Well deserved, well deserved!”
“Thank you, mother! I guess hard work does pay off.” She wheeled around and then threw herself into Dominic’s arms. “It means so much to have both of you here…”
“I’m glad that you called me,” Dominic said, holding onto her as long as she would allow him. “I really had fun tonight.”
“So did I,” Michelle said. “Abraham is such a loyal soul. He told me I would have enjoyed myself.”
Tayah released Dominic, her face now lit with concern. “He hasn’t called? He’s been gone a long time.”
“I know, dear, and I’m worried.” Michelle took out her phone and checked it as she’d done ten minutes before. “All I got from him was a text saying he had to leave.”
“Do you mind if I see it?” Tayah said, holding out her hand. She read the text aloud. “Something urgent came up. Sorry to leave you unattended.”
“I don’t know what to make of that,” Michelle said. “This is not like Abraham.”
You got that right, Dominic thought. You haven’t any idea who Abraham is. He shared a furtive look with Tayah and saw that she knew exactly what he was thinking. Loyal Abraham had gone to pick up one of those dirty prostitutes.
“He’ll be back,” he said casually. “I’m sure of it.”
“I hope so, Dominic, because I don’t have a good feeling about this.”
“I’m sure he’s fine,” Tayah said, rubbing her mother’s hand. “If you’re ready to go, you can take my car and I’ll ride with Dominic.”
“I am kind of tired,” Michelle said, seriously giving Tayah’s suggestion some thought. “And I’m not in the best mood right now…”
“Here then, take my keys…”
“How are you gonna get your car?”
“Don’t worry about it, mother. I’ll pick it up at the house tomorrow.”
The look in Michelle’s eyes told Tayah that her mother needed to talk to her in private.
“Dominic, would you excuse us for a few minutes, please?”
“You don’t have to ask me twice,” he smiled. “I’ll walk over to the bar and get some cider. You guys want some?”
“No, that’s okay,” Tayah told him. “I still have a half glass of fruit punch in front of me.”
“He’s such a nice boy,” Michelle said, as she watched Dominic shake hands with a gentleman in passing. “I always wondered why you never married him.”
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about the same thing,” Tayah chuckled. “Things have not been going well between Phillip and me at all.”
“I can say the same thing for your father and me. We are not on good terms either.” Michelle looked as if she was about to come down with another spell of crying. “I’m not staying at the house. I’m at the Best Western for the weekend.”
“You guys had another fight?” Tayah said that more as a statement than a question. “He came to visit me yesterday and told me to talk some sense into your head.”
“Oh, really? What else did he say?”
“If you’re so interested in what he has to say, why won’t you talk to him?”
“You know just how your father is,” Michelle said in her defense. “He would make me feel as if I’m overreacting.”
“Well, I’m inclined to agree with him.”
“That’s because you don’t know everything.”
“And, I suppose that you do?”
“Tayah, your father is a difficult man.” Michelle’s eyes had already begun to water. “He will find a way to wiggle his way out of this one.”
“Out of what, mother? Dad told me that he was having an argument with that woman. They were not making out in his office as you have imagined.”
Michelle couldn’t understand why people couldn’t see the ‘real’ Leroy. He’d fooled them with his good looks and charm, but behind that, he was a controlling, lying bastard who made it obvious that he was in charge. He’d even gotten their daughter to believe his hogwash. “I walked in on them. Did he tell you that he was all over her? They were giggling and enjoying themselves. Does that sound like an argument to you?”
“Mother, I was not there, but I believe my father has told me the truth.” Tayah kept her eyes locked on Michelle, knowing what she was about to say next would not be something her mother would want to hear. “You need to stop running from your problems and deal with them.”
“I’m not running from my problems…”
“Yes, you are. How do you expect to solve anything if you’re always back and forth, jumping from one place to the next?”
Michelle sat up, indignant. “You want me to stay in that house with your father? I’ll literally, lose my mind…”
“And you will also lose your husband if you don’t break this destructive habit!” Tayah refused to let her mother have the last word. “Here, take my car keys and go home to him. Listen to what he has to say.”
Michelle dropped her head in exhaustion, tired of the struggle to maintain a life of happiness. Tayah took her hands and caressed them, as if to let her know she wasn’t taking anyone’s side. She simply wanted her parents to get their marriage back on track.
“Please, mother,” she begged softly. “Do this for me. Do this for Eric and Sean.”
Half Hour Later
Dominic assisted Tayah into the passenger seat of his car and then made his way around to the driver side and started the engine. As they drove off, he didn’t think the night could get any better, especially after enjoying the best three hours of his life. He should be home with his head in the books, but any time spent with Tayah, howeve
r little it was, was worth the sacrifice.
“It’s only ten-thirty,” she said. She removed the Japanese sticks from her updo and then relaxed her head against the headrest. “We should go somewhere.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
She turned her head toward him. “Does it sound like I’m kidding? I want to spend some time with you.”
He kept his eyes on the road, fearing a direct stare would cause his heart to leap out of his body, “Where do you want to go?” he asked, his throat tightening with anticipation.
“I don’t care. Just don’t take me home.”
The only place that came to his mind was Temple Terrace, the location of his one-bedroom apartment. But he dare not listen to the dictates of his fleshly desires. Abraham had taught them that the devil was in the details. How sad that his mentor hadn’t heeded his own advice. He would not make such a grave mistake.
“I was really impressed tonight,” he said after a few minutes of wrestling of what to say next. “I hadn't any idea that you were so famous.”
“Famous? Please, don't make fun of me.”
“For real, girl. If I didn't know better, I would think you were a celebrity or something, striking that 'Halle Berry' pose in front of the cameras. You had those poor people jumping out of their skin. This one woman looked as if she was having the Holy Ghost. She was clapping so fast I thought she was gonna take off through the ceiling…”
Tayah's smirk turned into a full blown laugh when Dominic impersonated the actions of the woman. And even with his face wrinkled up and his body looking all funny as he did it, she still found him incredibly appealing.
“Boy, you crazy,” she said, as she tried to calm herself down. “You know it ain't that serious.”
“Oh, really? I bet when you all have the next meeting, they're gonna be talking about this night nonstop.”
“I did have a good time tonight, though,” she said, as she reflected on all the good music that had been brought in tonight. She gently placed a hand on his bicep, appreciating the firmness against her palm. “Thank you, Dominic. Really. I'd felt so down earlier – with everything going on with my marriage, and with my parents…”
“You don't have to explain, Tayah. I told you I will be there for you. Even before you married Phillip, I'd made that promise to you. I'm not happy about your decision, but I'm learning how to live with it.”
She kept her hand on his arm, eventually giving it a gentle squeeze. A thousand questions ran through her mind, but the only one that had always been at the back of her mind was why she and Dominic had never gotten together.
“Take me back to your place,” she told him, her voice now filled with desire. “I'm not going home tonight.”
Dominic took his eyes off the road long enough to give her a questioning glance. “You're not serious. We can't…we shouldn't cross the line…”
“Dominic, please, don't give me a sermon. How do you know what I'm thinking about if you're not thinking about the same thing? My intentions may have only been to talk.” She took at quick look out the window, noticing they were nearing the ramp for Temple Terrace. “Your turn is at the next light. What are you going to do?”
When he failed to respond, she leaned over and pressed her lips against his jaw. The warmth of her flesh sent electric bolts through every pore of his skin. Breathlessly, he turned to face her and found himself being drawn into a moment of irresistibility. Their eyes locked, their lips coming together as if they were being pulled by an invisible magnet. A light seemed to shine around them, which got brighter and brighter as they drew closer and closer. Unexpectedly, they were shaken by the unmistakable horn of an eighteen-wheeler, traveling sixty miles per hour in their direction.
“Dominic!” Tayah’s eyes looked as if they were popping out of her head. “Turn, turn, turn!”
The brakes of the eighteen-wheeler whistled in the wind as the driver struggled to steer its huge body out of the way. The distance between the two vehicles was closing in, and the only thing Dominic could think of to avoid a head-on collision was to lock the wheel to the left and pray his car made it around to the sidewalk. Tayah didn't think it was possible. She went ballistic.
“Oh my God, Dominic! We're gonna die! We're gonna die!” She squeezed her eyes tight and braced for the deadly impact.
TO BE CONTINUED….BUT HERE’S A SNEAK PREVIEW OF BOOK TWO…
Church Boyz II
When Things Go Wrong
A Novel
H.H. Fowler
Chapter One