4

“Thank you for your time, Mr. Wilson,” Ansley said.

This was her third rejection. Finding a new gig was a job in itself. She had been unemployed for almost a month, and was beginning to feel deflated. January was well on its way out, and Ansley felt she had not gotten anywhere.

She decided to remain in school, but her focus was to secure a full-time job. Ansley had done some freelance writing for a few online magazines and Atlanta-based publications, but it was not the same as being on staff. There was no job security.

Ansley sat down to work on an assignment for school that would be due soon. As she located the file to start on her paper, she stopped when she saw her manuscript. It was still there on the drive and based on the last modified date, she had not even opened the file since around her junior year in college. If she were honest, she hadn’t been inspired to work on it since she called it quits with Ryan.

Maybe in some ways he was her muse. She chose being a goal digger in Atlanta over trying to have it all with him in New York. At that time, she just could not see her dreams in any other hue than the colors she chose for herself. That’s what made the most sense to her back then.

She shook off the thought and started on her assignment for her Media Law class, when her phone rang. When she saw Davis’ number on the screen she beamed.

“Good morning, handsome.”

“Hey, beautiful. I know you said you would be doing homework today. How’s it going?”

Ansley and Davis had been speaking on the regular since they met at the office party. They had attempted to meet up a few times, but had yet to have the date he proposed.

“Eh,” she murmured, her tone void of enthusiasm. “It’s coming along I guess. I haven’t made as much progress as I would like. I’m a little distracted.”

“Maybe you need a change of scenery. Have you eaten yet?” Davis asked.

“Not yet. I was trying to make some leeway with this paper first and then I was going to try to squeeze in a late lunch in maybe an hour or so.”

“I have a better idea,” Davis said. “Why don’t you grab your things and meet me at the Smyrna Public Library? Do you know where that is?”

While the invite would have been perfect any other time, she could not entertain his offer. “Thank you for the offer, but I really don’t have time,” she said. “Besides the library won’t allow you to bring food in there.”

Ansley sat listening to silence awaiting his response. She hoped he did not think she was trying to dodge his offer. She just really wanted to stay focused.

“I’ll give you some time to get ready and I’ll see you at two. Meet you at the front entrance,” he said before hanging up the phone.

“Hello?” Ansley took the phone away from her ear and looked to see if the call was still connected.

He hung up, guess I’m taking my butt to the library.

Ansley looked down at her heather gray Falcons sweatshirt with the hole on the upper right sleeve. Her tortoise shell glasses had slid to the tip of her nose, and her long black hair was pulled into a messy bun.

She contemplated on calling back to cancel, but in reality she was not getting much done here. It would not hurt to see if changing her environment would help her with moving forward with this project.

Ansley got up from her desk and walked into her bedroom. She went to her closet and pulled out a pair of jeans and a rust-colored, cable-knit sweater. She held the garments against her body as she looked in the mirror. He should have given me more time to get ready.

It was already half past noon, and she needed to shower and change and that did not include the amount of time it would take to drive across town to the library. Ansley had to admit it though, Davis was taking control of the situation and making demands of her time—she thought it was sexy.

Ansley reached into the top of her closet to locate her chocolate booties, then grabbed a leather jacket of the same color. She thought about taking her hair down, but decided she would just freshen up her bun. Though she wanted to look good for him, she didn’t want to appear as if she went out of her way to impress him.

She walked into her bathroom and over to the shower to turn the water on. She waited until she saw steam before undressing and stepping inside.

I’m only going because I’m hungry. Ansley snickered. She wasn’t fooling anyone. She was going because she was into Davis and could not wait to find out more about him. The universe was drawing them into each other but she was still waiting for the reveal. Maybe today would give her a glimpse of what the future held.

Ansley sat in her car in the library parking lot, contemplating on whether to get out. She chatted with Lanae the entire ride over. Of course she had questions like ‘who is he’ and ‘where did he come from’ and demanded that Ansley call her once it was over. Several scenarios played out in Ansley’s mind, the main one being, what if he did not show up? She did not even know what kind of car he drove to identify him. Ansley wondered if he was already inside waiting on her.

Getting antsy, she decided to get out of the car, find a quiet spot, and start working on her paper. She turned off the ignition and then sat for a second before turning it back on. Ansley unlocked her phone and typed Davis’ name into Google. She scrolled and selected a few Facebook and LinkedIn profiles that popped up in her search, but none of them belonged to the man she sought.

She gave a slight start at the tapping on her passenger side window.

It was Davis.

Ansley took a moment to put her rattled nerves in check before rolling the window down. “Seriously? That was a mean thing to do. Not cool.”

She wished he was not so cute because she really would not have minded reenacting David and Goliath and flinging a rock at his head right about now.

Davis guffawed. “You should pay attention to your surroundings.” He attempted to control his laughter. “Can I carry those things for you?”

“Yeah okay,” she said, rolling her eyes at him. “Thank you for the gesture, but this doesn’t excuse your behavior or your tardiness.”

Ansley had always been a stickler for being on time. From kindergarten through her college years, she was always on time and if she knew she would be late she made sure to let someone know.

“You look nice today.”

“Thank you,” she said, realizing that he wasn’t going to respond to her attitude. Don’t sweat the minor moments, dwell in those major moments Ansley. It was just a joke.

Davis offered his free hand to help her out of the car.

“Thank you,” she said as she took his hand gingerly and stepped down from her truck.

He never let go of her hand.

“What made you choose this location anyway? Is this your local library or something?” she asked, while attempting to ignore the heat radiating throughout her from his touch.

“I actually live downtown, but you mentioned that you lived near Cumberland Mall, so here we are.” He opened the door letting her into the library.

She was a true Charlotte York Goldenblatt, from the hit series Sex and the City, when it came to romance and any possible sign of chivalry from a man made her biological clock go into warp speed. Ansley could not wait to see if he had what it took to make her swoon.

She was preparing to settle into a spot near the computer lab, but noticed that Davis kept walking toward one of the meeting rooms. Usually those rooms booked early and walk-ins did not have a chance at getting a space. Realization set in and she realized that she owed him an apology for assuming that he was late. It was clear that he had gotten there ahead of time.

Ansley walked in behind him as he put her things down on the table. She grinned and mouthed “thank you” as he pulled out her chair.

“Okay, my lady, I have a turkey Swiss sandwich and a chicken salad sandwich. Which one would you like?”

Ansley couldn’t help but giggle like a teenager. Sneaking in food reminded her of her high school days, when she and her friends would go to the library during lunch and smuggled in snacks. “This is so wrong, but I’ll take the chicken salad sandwich, please and thank you.”

He passed her the sandwich, grazing her hand with his own. His touch ignited a sensation deep inside of her. Try as she might to ignore it, those darn toes of hers were always a clear sign of surrender, she was helpless in this moment and while she was not sure how she would feel—she was not afraid of what this could lead to with Davis.

She watched Davis as he prepared a place for their meal. He set everything up for her before biting into his own sandwich.

“How are you doing in school overall?” he asked in between bites.

“It’s going great,” Ansley said, not looking up from her laptop. “I didn’t really think I could do the online classroom format, but it’s been working out well.”

She did not want to make eye contact—the eyes always told the real story and her story had them becoming much closer. She had to pace things out, even though their spark was brighter than fireworks on the Fourth of July, Ansley did not want to take the dive just yet.

“Good, good…glad to hear it,” he said. “I won’t be disturbing you again. Go ahead and enjoy your sandwich. Let me know if I need to get anything for you.”

“Davis, I have to say thank you. I honestly think I needed this.”

He exposed a dimple in his left cheek. As if he wasn’t sexy enough. She loved a man with dimples, but just the one would do just fine.

“I’m going to read my book and you just work on your paper.”

“Don’t you have to get back to work?” Ansley asked.

“I’m a contractor,” he replied. “I don’t have any jobs today, but I do have a full load the rest of this week. Right now I’m exactly where I need to be, so don’t worry about me.”

She lifted her eyes in his direction. Is he for real?

With that, Ansley nodded and went back to her paper. She enjoyed how Davis just wanted to be there for her. They had not known each other long, but she felt a sincere connection to him, and wondered if he felt the same way. Ansley decided not to put too much thought into it—she would enjoy the moment and her time with Davis. Time would reveal the next page in this budding romance.

Davis pretended to be enthralled in his book, but he sat at the table observing Ansley using as much discretion as possible. It was hard for him because he wanted to just look at her and study the freckles that accessorized her eyes and accented her narrow nose. He loved how her deep brown eyes shined when her mouth curled upward. He loved the way her lips were slightly thin at the top, but plump at the bottom.

She was a beautiful puzzle that he could not wait to put together. He had always loved a challenge, and would stop at nothing to win her over. He could tell she was holding back, but he saw everything he needed to see on New Year’s Eve. The way their connection was unspoken, but so clear to them both—she was into him too.

Davis hoped that this mini date would give her a glimpse into what it would be like to be his woman. He was convinced that by the time Ansley left the library, the walls around her heart would start to crumble. He felt certain that she would be his woman—if she would just give him a chance.

Davis had every confidence that he would have Ansley wrapped around his finger in no time. He had not met a woman who was immune to him. Davis thought about the other women he was entertaining, but they weren’t like Ansley—she was special and he was not willing to risk his potential relationship with her. This time I think I’ll choose pleasure before business…the others will have to wait.

Ansley could not believe that Davis sat with her for two hours while she did homework. The entire time he read his book, and catered to her every need from running to get coffee to providing light conversation when she needed a break away from staring at the screen.

As they walked out of the library, Davis escorted her to her vehicle and placed all of her things in the back of her truck. He surprised her when he wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. He must have read my mind.

“Thank you for doing this, Davis,” Ansley stated. “This is exactly what I needed.”

He did not say anything, everything he wanted to communicate was narrated by his eyes. “I guess I’d better let you go, but I hope to see you again.”

She blushed. “It’s a strong possibility.”

“I’ll call you.”

Ansley loved how Davis waited until she was safe in her car before walking away.

As she pulled out of the parking lot, she saw him walk over and sit on the bench at the bus stop. He was from Chicago and told her that most people used public transportation in the city. She also learned that part of the reason he lived downtown was because he preferred easy access to the eateries, events and shopping by foot or transit. She was not that surprised that he didn’t ask for a ride home. He had made it clear that this day was all about her, and he only wanted her to focus on what she needed to complete.

Ansley decided to treat herself to a manicure and pedicure before heading home. She had an interview tomorrow and her nails looked terrible.

The nail salon was super busy, so she went and signed in with the receptionist. They were playing one of the local radio stations and the host Mocha Love was talking about dating in the city. She loved this show.

“What’s up Atlanta? It’s your girl, Mocha Love and we have a hot one for you today. Ladies, I have to know, do you really know your man? If not, please turn your ears on to our special guest, founder of “Don’t Date Him, Girl,” a website dedicated to exposing the men that all women probably need to avoid. You don’t want to miss this one, ladies.”

Ansley laughed. This is why she planned to take things nice and slow with Davis, no matter what her biological clock was telling her. There were a lot of men out there with nothing but a calling card of drama. At this point in her life, Ansley wanted to stay focused finishing her master’s degree program and building a successful career.

Love could wait.

Simeon heard a knock at her front door. She was not expecting anyone. Opening the door to see Montgomery standing there, caused her to suck her teeth.

She stood with her arms folded across her chest. “Why are you here?”

“Whoa, I was hoping for a more enthusiastic greeting like happy New Year or heck… even a good morning. You haven’t even invited me in.”

Simeon cocked her head to the side. “You have some nerve. You stood me up and I haven’t heard or even received a text message to say that you’re sorry. It’s been almost a month.”

“You’re right. I had a family emergency, but that’s no reason not to follow up with you. Do you forgive me?”

Simeon tapped her foot. Her patience with him was minimal, but it was Montgomery and he had left a mark on her that she wasn’t ready to erase. “You still haven’t told me why you’re here. Am I only good enough for you to sleep with… is that it? You come to my door wanting to be invited in, yet when I invite you to be my date—you don’t bother to show up.” Deep down, Simeon knew that Monty liked her. He could easily have disappeared at this point, but he was standing here trying to apologize.

Montgomery ran his hand across his face. “Listen, do you want me to leave? I’m here now. So what’s up? You gonna let me in or not?”

Simeon took a deep breath. She could tell he wasn’t willing to discuss his absence from the party any further, but she wanted to know why he left her dateless at her office’s New Year’s Eve party. As it stood, it seemed as if his feelings did not run as deep as hers flowed for him.

“Fine. Bring your gorgeous behind on in here.” Her smile was flirtatious. She grabbed the center of his shirt and pulled him inside her home.

Simeon had a hunch that if she turned him away—there were plenty of others waiting for his attention. Therefore, she decided to drop the subject for now, but he was going to have to step things up if he planned to keep coming around.

“Hold on,” she said, stopping him with her hand. “I need you to know that I’m not trying to chase after you. So you need to make up your mind… either be here or be there, but not in between.”

Simeon began unbuttoning her blouse.

He shook his head and approached her. Putting his hands around her waist and dipping his head so that their lips could connect for a kiss.

“You’re wild. You know that, right?” he whispered in her ear after allowing her lips a break from the workout.

“Monty, you have no idea just how wild I can be, but you will before the night is over.”

He began kissing her again.

This time when they connected, it was more intense, but lacked the passion and heartfelt emotions she craved. Simeon wanted more from him, and she was determined to keep him around. No matter what it took, she planned to become the main attraction in his life.