Chapter 4

 

 

Haven watched as Kirsten, Daniel Wassermann’s sister, checked in a customer. She was slowly getting the hang of it but still had a little trouble navigating the computer system.

Titus had gotten up early to find out if Haven needed help with breakfast, and after he helped her cook sausage and refill the cereal canisters, he returned to the apartment to sleep. Haven was back standing next to Kirsten when a call came through from Angelina. Haven excused herself, stepped outside in the crisp, morning chill and answered, “Hey, girl?”

“Hey, woman. How’s it swinging?”

Haven laughed. “I’m in the middle of training.”

“Oh. Do you have to go?”

“No. I have a few minutes.” She glanced at her watch. “Are you on the way over here?”

“No. I left super early and I’m sure you were still in bed at the time so I rolled on out.”

“Seriously, Angelina? Ain’t no telling when I’ll see you again.”

“It won’t be that long. By the way, did you talk to Titus about your concerns?”

Haven smiled thinking about the night she’d spent with Titus. It was picture perfect – one of their best nights yet. “Yes, we talked. A little. Dinner with my parents went well if you don’t consider my mother chiming in with questions about when we would get married and have kids.”

“No, she didn’t!”

“Girl, she did. I was so embarrassed. Titus handled it pretty well, though.”

“But other than that, it was good?”

“It was. It turned out real nice,” Haven said, staring down at the sidewalk, kicking a few pebbles out of the walkway. “That’s a good sign, right?”

“I’d like to think so. See…you were all worried for nothing.”

“No, it wasn’t for nothing. My worry is valid.”

“Why? Because it sounds like Titus is not concerned about your marriage rule.”

She was right about that. He wasn’t concerned about it, but she was. “He’s not bothered by it. He really likes me. I think you were right when we talked Thursday night. I’m more bothered by it than he is.”

“Exactly, which means work it out within yourself, girl. You don’t want to go losing your man over something that can easily be squashed. So, squash it!”

“Okay…I have to get back in here before this girl blows up the whole computer system. I’ll talk to you later. Drive safe.”

“I will. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Haven walked back inside to make sure Kirsten was comfortable with answering the phones for a while before continuing to the breakfast room to check on the food. There were plenty of eggs, bacon, sausage and grits to last until 9:30 a.m. when breakfast was over.

After she finished doing inventory, she saw Titus sitting in the room amongst other guests, looking at his phone. He had a tablet on the table and a cup of coffee. She walked over to him, placed a hand on his broad shoulder and said, “Oh, so you wait until I go outside then sneak back in here with your notebook. Is this a working breakfast, Mr. Cassidy?”

A brilliant smile glowed on his face when he responded, “Yes. Sort of, although I’d much rather be spending the day with you somewhere away from here.”

“Okay. As soon as I get this area closed and make sure Kirsten is okay with the front, I’ll be ready.”

He glanced at his watch. “So, we’re looking at about 10:30 or 11:00 before we leave?”

“Yes. Is that good?”

“It is, but let’s shoot for closer to 10:30. We have an appointment at 11:30 and I don’t want to be late.”

“An appointment where?”

“It’s a surprise. Just wear comfortable clothes and shoes.” Titus gathered up his phone and notebook. “I’m going to run a few errands but I’ll be back here by 10:30 to pick you up.”

“Okay.”

He stood up, left a small kiss on her temple then headed out.

 

* * *

 

Titus was back at exactly 10:30 a.m. waiting for Haven in the parking lot. He saw her the moment she emerged, rocking a pair of Levi’s and a long, yellow blouse. Her hair was done differently – she had a curly side-bang and a ponytail swinging in the back as she walked toward the car. He got out, opened the door for her and took a kiss before she got inside.

“Ahh,” she said, settling in the seat, feeling relaxed already. Mid-sixties outside, it was balmy in his car and what a beautiful, sunny, Spring day to spend with her boyfriend.

Boyfriend.

Did grown women – like thirty-year-old grown women – refer to their man as their boyfriend? She didn’t know what else to call him.

She let the window down a little, closed her eyes and lost herself in the breeze as he began down the road.

“Are you hot?”

“No. It’s just a little warm today—not bad for late March, huh?”

“Not bad at all—it’s a beautiful day. I picked the perfect weekend to come see you.”

“You did,” Haven said then touched his thigh, feeling those hard muscles through his jeans. Could Saturday mornings get any better than this?

“How is Kirsten catching on?”

“She’s not. The computer system is proving to be a challenge. I guess that’s what Mr. Wassermann gets for hiring a family member with no formal computer training.”

“Can she type at all?”

Haven chuckled. “She is a pecker...types with her index fingers…drives me insane. Would I be wrong to recommend a basic-level computer class for her?”

“No. If she needs it for the job, it wouldn’t hurt, but hey that’s on them. When May first rolls around, she’s on her own.”

“Not entirely—at least not like I was. Mr. Wassermann has a crew coming. He’s bringing on a part-time morning person to handle the cooking so Kirsten is only concerned with handling check-in and the phones, he’s hired two maids to clean rooms and do laundry and then there are the groundskeepers.”

“Wow! That’s a lot of people considering you were doing it all.”

“I was, except for the outside work.”

“You shoveled snow.”

“Not all the time. Plus, when this good-looking guy showed up one day this past winter, he helped me shovel snow because I think he liked me.”

Titus smiled, knowing she was referring to him. He changed lanes and merged off the Interstate.

“Mr. Wassermann is going to convert my current apartment into a fantasy suite during renovations.”

“That should be nice.”

“If you say so,” she said. “It all seems too extravagant for my taste. People come to the mountains for the country, log-cabin feel—not to feel like they’re in some fancy villa in Cali.”

“True, but this is his vision, so let him run with it. You’re almost done working there, remember?”

Haven smiled just barely, suddenly struck with melancholy about her time at the Bed & Breakfast coming to an end. It was her life for so long and she’d mastered it. Now, she had to leave. “Anyway, enough about work—where are we going?”

“Hold your horses, baby. We’ll be there in a few shakes. All I want you to do is relax and enjoy this day. Okay?”

“Yes, Sir,” she said adjusting the seat back a little. She placed her hands behind her head and enjoyed the drive, staring out at the scenery. A perfect blue sky illuminated by the sun made an impression but not more than the majestic mountains that decorated the terrain. Brown grass was becoming green again. Trees were starting to bud and thicken with luscious green leaves. Spring was nature’s ‘New Year’ – a new beginning. It was also a new beginning for her.

Titus glanced over at her. The window was still down. Wind blew through her curls causing her strands to bounce in her face. He slowed behind a few cars at a red light, placed his right hand on her left and asked, “Have you made a decision about where you’ll be moving at the end of April?”

“No. Not yet.”

Titus’ jaw clenched. She didn’t mention the obvious suggestion of moving in with him or at least somewhere near Greensboro, if not Greensboro itself. Instead, she was still undecided. “What about your parents? They mentioned something about Asheville during dinner.”

She shook her head. “They’re not going to Asheville. They want to retire somewhere warm. Most likely, they’ll end up in Florida like every other retired American with a little cash who hates the cold.”

“Is that where you’re going to end up?”

“No.” She looked at him. “I don’t want to move to Florida. I’m not a retired American.”

“Then where are you going?” he pressed.

“I don’t know yet, Titus. When I make a decision, you’ll be the first to know.”

He nodded biting back the bitterness he felt. If she wanted to be with him, she had a weird way of showing it. Or maybe it was his eagerness to be with her that didn’t match her desire to be with him – at least not this weekend.

They pulled up at a park. From a large sign, Haven could see the various activities available – zip-lining, laser tag, coasters and hiking. She crossed her fingers hoping they’d play a game of laser tag.

Titus took her hand and while they walked to the ticket booth, he said, “You seem nervous.”

“I am a little nervous...hoping you’re not out here trying to be a daredevil today.”

“A daredevil? I thought women liked men who had a sense of adventure.”

“Adventure and common sense, yes.”

“Don’t worry—you’re in good hands with me.”

She looked at him sideways. “That’s what you said when you took me on that ski lift.”

“And you lived to tell about it.”

“Yeah...barely.”

He chuckled, then squeezed her nervous, twitchy hand before plastering a kiss on her temple. “You’ll be all right,” he told her. He needed her to be open to trying new things because she was a virgin in many ways. Sheltered and inexperienced. Diving head-first into her parents’ business didn’t afford her the opportunity to have much of a life, but now that the business had been sold, he felt as if a weight was lifted from her shoulders. That she was free. Right now, though, he could tell she was still holding on to that safe side of her life. The side that didn’t take risks and lived being comfortable with the ordinary. Truth be told, he didn’t like that side of her. It was the only thing interfering with their compatibility.

“Titus?”

“Yes?”

“What are we doing today?”

Standing in the ticket line, he turned to her and said, “We’re zip-lining.”

She frowned. “Nope. No way. I’m not doing that.”

He smiled off her hesitancy. “You’ll be fine.”

After paying for two tickets, he took her hand again walking over to the platform. Haven’s heart raced so fast she instantly felt light-headed. Was this a typical reaction to trying something new? Probably not. In this particular case, it was. It was a stretch for her to ride the ski lift. Now, he expected her to be suspended in the air, zipping at a high rate of speed over trees and whatnot while her legs dangled as she probably zipped right to her death? Okay, a little dramatic but that’s what goes through the mind of a woman fearful of trying new things no matter how hot and convincing her boyfriend was.

She couldn’t do this.

She’d probably faint the minute she jumped off the platform.

So, while she watched Titus put on a helmet and get fitted with a harness, she zoned out. It was at that point she fed into her belief that this wasn’t right. The feeling in her gut wasn’t right. She was scared out of her mind – scared of zip-lining but more afraid to be with an adventurous man when she was anything but. People dated to find out how compatible they were and to her, this was the opposite of compatibility. The racing, frantic feeling that claimed her senses told her that.

“Haven, come get your helmet.”

She shook her head. “No. I can’t do that.”

“Baby, we’re going to do it together. There’s nothing to be scared of.”

“I’m not doing it, Titus. You go ahead. I’ll wait at the bottom,” she said embarrassed having to walk past a line of people who didn’t mind doing this activity – people who’d probably found it amusing that the scared, thirty-year-old black woman was afraid to jump. She should have listened to her voice of intuition that told her not to climb up to the platform, but she pushed herself for the sake of her relationship since she knew it’s what he wanted. Had she become one of those women? One who lost themselves trying to please a man? And by doing this zip-lining crap, that’s exactly what she’d be doing – pleasing him – because God knows there was nothing in her that wanted any parts of it.

“Haven, wait up,” Titus said hurrying to catch up to her. “Haven.”

She stopped, turned around and said, “I’m just going to go.”

“Wait—what’s happening right now?”

“I just want to go home. Can you please take me home?”

“Okay,” he said managing to keep a frown from his face because he really didn’t understand her sudden shift in mood. This wasn’t like her, but she wanted to go home and whether he understood her or not, he would take her home.