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Tia stood before the full-length mirror behind her bedroom door. She had pinned her hair up to look professional with a hint of sexy, then she tried on several outfits before settling on a black skirt and matching yellow jacket.
She slowly turned before the mirror, smiling proudly at her still slim and shapely figure. She had inherited her build from the women on her father’s side of the family. And as a rule, they were slim and shapely in their twenties, voluptuous in their thirties, and extremely overweight by their late forties. Tia was determined to escape that fate, which was why she’d begun experimenting with healthy soul food as a teen in the first place.
She faced front and took a final, searching look in the mirror. She’d paired the yellow and black suit with a lacy black shell and black peep toe pumps with Cuban heels. The result was both professional and feminine at the same time. Perfect for her lunch date with Sam Hairston.
By the time she pulled into the paved lot across the street from her restaurant, the clock on her dashboard read ten thirty-three. She could see through the plate glass window that her father and Morrison were already hard at work. She quickly grabbed her purse and a leather gym bag from the back seat before hurrying across the street.
“Good morning, Daddy. Hi, Morrison. How’s everything going this morning?” she said as she pushed through the front door of the restaurant.
“Just fine, baby gal.” Arthur leaned over to allow her to kiss him on the cheek. “How you doing this morning?” he asked.
“I’m fine.” She pecked Morrison on his cheek, too, and said, “How about you, Mr. Morrison?”
He grinned. “I can tell you one thing,” he said. “I sure am doing a lot better now that I know you ain’t run off with that dapper young man who came by here yesterday.”
Tia chuckled. “Why would I do something like that when I’ve got two handsome men all to myself right here?”
“Hmmm.” Morrison speculatively rubbed his chin. “I ain’t seen your hair all twisted up like that in all the time I been coming here. And them some mighty spiffy threads you got on today, too. You sure you ain’t planning on running off with that young man of yours, after all?”
Arthur and Tia both laughed.
“Don’t pay this fool a bit of attention, baby gal,” said Arthur. “He done got so old, he ain’t got the good sense he was born with.”
“Old?” Morrison asked, turning to face Arthur. “Jacobs, you so old, the last thing I heard, they was planning to make your birthday into a government holiday.”
Tia laughed and lifted the gym bag to her shoulder. “Two much!” she said. “I’m going up to the office to return a couple of phone calls.”
She climbed the stairs to the second level and laid down her gym bag and purse, then she took off her jacket and carefully smoothed it across the back of the brown tweed armchair. The to-do list stared up at her from the top of a stack of papers on her desk, but her thoughts kept returning to Sam. Was he as interested as she was? Maybe he was just being friendly and she was reading too much into a touch on the cheek and a lunch invitation. She was single with no personal life but surely he wasn’t. A fine ass brother like Sam Hairston? Surely, some other woman had already snatched him up.
She sat down and tried to concentrate on her paperwork but had a hard time focusing. What she really needed right now was one of those no-nonsense, pep talks for which Roz was so famous. But last night on the phone, Roz had said she would be in seminars all day and wouldn’t be able to talk until about five or six o’clock.
And what was the deal with Steven? He hadn’t even bothered to return Tia’s phone call yesterday. Even when he was swamped with work, he would usually call back to say he couldn’t talk. She picked up the phone and dialed his private number.
“Steven Washington,” he answered on the first ring.
“Hey, Steven. It’s Tia.”
“Hi, Tia. I’m on my way out the door to a closing. Can I call you back? Is everything okay?”
“Better than okay,” she said. “But, I’ll tell you about it later.”
“Great. Talk to you in a few hours.”
Tia hung up the phone and headed down to the kitchen in search of a hot cup of tea. She was pleased to find that someone, probably her father, had already put the water on for her and it was now piping hot.
Back in her office, she sipped her tea and glanced at her watch. Eleven thirty? She was wasting the morning away. She picked up the telephone and dialed her landlord, Ruth Meyers, who was rapidly becoming a trusted advisor.
"Hello?" Ruth sounded slightly out of breath when she answered.
"Ruth? Hi, it's Tia. Did I catch you at a bad time?"
"Your timing couldn't be better, dear," Ruth said, her breathing growing more normal. "I just finished my daily walk on the treadmill."
"You have a treadmill?"
"Why, of course I do. Exercise is very important, Tia. Especially as one begins to age. My sister’s plight taught me that." Ruth sighed and said, "But moving on to more pleasant topics, how are you today, dear?"
"I'm fine, Ruth. To be honest, I'm calling to pick your brain again. This time about linen services."
"Then you've come to the right place."
Tia lifted a sheet of paper from her desk and began reading off the quotes she'd received from various companies.
Ruth interrupted after a few minutes and rattled off the name and telephone number of the linen service she and her sister had used. "They're inexpensive, reliable, and they do top notch work," she said. "And I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but after we hang up I'm going to jot down a list of the other vendors we used. People who will give you a fair deal."
Tia was still talking to Ruth when she noticed Sam's BMW glide into the parking space next to her Audi. She quickly brought the conversation to an end, saying that her "lunch appointment" had arrived, and grabbed her suit jacket and purse before rushing downstairs to the ladies' room.
She hurriedly brushed her teeth and was reapplying her lipstick when she heard the front door of the restaurant close. She pressed a hand to her stomach to calm the flutters she suddenly felt, then she slipped on her jacket and checked her hair.
Sam’s face lit up with pleasure when she walked into the room. “Hello, Tia,” he said. “You’re looking very beautiful today.”
She found that she couldn’t stop smiling. This man was too fine for words. And he was wearing a charcoal gray, double-breasted suit that fit him so well he couldn’t have gotten it off the rack. “Thank you, Sam.” She extended her hand. “It’s good to see you again.”
Sam covered her outstretched hand with both of his own and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. “The pleasure is all mine,” he said.
She could feel the blush creeping up her cheeks. “I take it you’ve already met my father and Morrison?” she said quickly.
Sam smiled with amusement and said, “Yes, I have. We met yesterday.”
“Oh! That’s right.” Tia turned to her father and Morrison. “Lunch is in the refrigerator,” she said, ignoring Morrison’s huge grin. “Lasagna, spinach salad and iced tea. Just heat the lasagna at three hundred and twenty-five degrees for about twenty minutes and . . . ” She paused. “Maybe I should put the lasagna in the oven and set the timer before I go. That way, all—”
“Don’t worry about all that, baby gal,” Arthur said. “We be alright. Go ahead on and have a good time.”
“Yeah, we going to be just fine,” Morrison added. He winked at Tia. “And we’ll be right here waiting for you when you get back.”
I bet you will, Tia thought. She turned back to Sam. “Well, I guess I’m ready then.”
Sam escorted her to his car and played an Anthony Hamilton song through the radio before pulling out of the parking lot. Tia leaned back and tried to relax as the soulful sounds floated through the car. She promised herself that she would not lose her composure again today. She was an intelligent, sophisticated woman, and she fully intended to behave as such.
Sam took her to Fiola Mare, an Italian seafood restaurant on the waterfront in northwest, DC, not too far from her parents’ house. They had just settled in at a table on the terrace when the waitress came over to take their drink orders.
Tia ordered iced tea instead of her usual glass of chardonnay. She had work to do this afternoon. But more importantly, she needed to keep her head straight so she could deal with Sam.
He ordered a Coke and they made small talk up until their food had arrived. Tia lowered her head to say a silent prayer. When she opened her eyes and raised her head, she found that Sam was staring at her.
“I’m sure you must hear this all the time,” he said. “But you truly are a beautiful woman, Tia. Thank you for having lunch with me today.”
She smiled. “Thank you, Sam. For both the compliment and the lunch invitation.” She speared a scallop and lifted it to her mouth.
“So, are you involved in a serious relationship with anyone?” he asked.
She almost choked on the scallop she was eating. She grabbed her iced tea and gulped greedily, then wiped her mouth with the napkin from her lap. “Don’t you think we should start a little more slowly?” she asked
He shrugged agreeably. “Why wonder about the answer to that question while we’re talking about other things? Wouldn’t it be better to put it on the table right at the beginning?”
Tia realized he had a point. She met his gaze and said, “The answer is no, Sam. At the moment, I’m single.”
He smiled sexily. “So am I, Tia. And that’s the best news I’ve heard all week.” He raised his glass in a toast and waited for her to do the same. “To new possibilities,” he said.
She touched her glass to his and sipped her tea. Her anxiety disappeared as their conversation began to flow. The outdoor setting, which included boats cruising the Potomac River, fostered her relaxed mood.
Sam told her that although he was a native Washingtonian, his parents had moved to Boca Raton, Florida several years back. He also told her that he was an only child, but that he’d briefly had a younger sister who died when she was only three hours old.
Tia reciprocated, telling him that her childhood home was nearby and her parents still lived there. She talked for a few minutes about Monica and Kevin. And in response to his questions, she shared the basics of her legal career with him, leaving out the fact that she had been fired.
“Well, now that you know my entire professional history, don’t you think you should at least tell me what you do for a living?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I’m a regional sales director at Sprint,” he replied.
“Now I’m really impressed,” she said with a playful grin. “And just what does a regional sales director do?”
Sam was explaining his job in broad strokes when the waitress returned with the dessert tray.
See anything you like?” he asked Tia.
She had long since lost her appetite. But she was enjoying his company so much that she said, “The cheesecake looks good.”
Sam ordered cheesecake for her, and tiramisu and decaf coffee for himself. Tia opted for a cup of tea.
“How’s the cheesecake?” he asked after the waitress had returned and gone.
“It’s delicious. Would you like to try some?” Tia filled her fork and held it out to him.
He leaned across the table and stared into her eyes, slowly opening his mouth. And though her hand shook slightly, she boldly held his gaze as she fed him.
“Mmm, that was good.” He flashed a seductive grin. “Taste the tiramisu.”
She opened her mouth to receive the treat and he teased her a few times before inserting his fork. He promptly leaned over to wipe the excess from her upper lip with an index finger, then he lifted the finger to his own mouth and slowly sucked it. “Mmm,” he murmured in a husky voice.
Her face flushed with heat, but she continued to make eye contact with him as she slowly chewed. She couldn’t remember the last time she had flirted with a man so brazenly, but damn if it didn’t feel good.