December 2006
The holiday break had been incredible so far. Christmas was fast approaching and Sydney had no idea what she could give Troy besides her heart, which he already owned. Each day, Troy seemed to find new ways to woo her. They caught a movie or two, though they spent most of the time kissing and touching each other in the darkened theater. Once they went to the American Museum of Natural History and walked amid the displays with their hands intertwined. He enchanted her with his deep conversation, attentive silence when she spoke to him, and gentle kisses in between. The cocky genius from her math class was just a front, she realized. Troy Mitchell was really a calm and thoughtful man who was loving her like she was the only woman in the world.
They slipped away every couple of days to Aunt Pat’s apartment. Georgi’s overbearing ways had sent her daughter fleeing to her aunt’s house so often that Pat had given her a set of keys. When she grew weary of trying to live up to Georgi’s high standards, Sydney went there. Aunt Pat was often at work, doing double shifts at the hospital to make extra money, and her cousin Destiny would often be out with her friends. Sydney seized those opportunities to steal away with Troy, doing naughty things in her aunt’s apartment with him. They made memories together during that cold and snowy winter break. Once Troy surprised her, renting a suite at the W for the weekend. She had little trouble convincing her mother that she was going on some college retreat for extra credit. That weekend had been one for the record books. He had made her come alive.
Sydney’s mother had become distracted lately by a man she was dating. He was vice president at a bank in Midtown and he was occupying most of her time these days. Georgi was out on the town with him several nights a week, relishing the feeling of being on the arm of a powerful man again, which was a natural aphrodisiac for her. For once, she was so distracted that she was giving her daughter a much-needed break from her constant scrutiny.
For Troy, it was more than just a physical thing. He was consumed by thoughts of her when they weren’t together. She was nothing like the other girls he knew. Most of the ones he’d encountered had been shallow, self-serving, always with some hustle, some angle. But there was none of that in Sydney. She wasn’t naïve. Not really. But she had an innocence that made him feel protective of her. He wanted to show her the world. His world. The one where he was the prince, groomed for greatness on a level that his father and his uncle had only dreamed of. He could tell that Sydney had fallen for him and he was feeling the same way. He decided to invite her to his uncle Don’s holiday party. It would be the first time he ever brought a girl home to meet his family.
Her cousin Destiny insisted on going with her to the dinner party. She hadn’t met Troy face-to-face, but Sydney talked about him constantly. Determined to have her cousin’s back, she made sure that Sydney RSVP’d with a plus one. Troy said it was fancy, so they should dress up. Sydney worried about what Destiny would wear, but didn’t want to insult her by making suggestions. Destiny had a flamboyant style. Colorful, flashy, and loud were words one might use to describe both her fashion sense and her personality.
To Sydney’s surprise, Destiny arrived at her place looking rather nice in a tight black dress and black heels. Destiny was a big girl with a beautiful face and curves that would make every man in the room do a double take. She couldn’t help it. No matter what she wore, her hips, butt, and boobs entered the room like boom. Tonight, though, she had reined it in. Her braids were gathered together in a neat bun on top of her head. She looked pretty and unusually understated. Sydney knew instantly that Aunt Pat had helped her go shopping. Destiny was usually the type for big, bold earrings and bright colors. Tonight she wore basic black and her only accessories were a pair of pearl stud earrings. Sydney smiled.
Her own look was painstakingly perfect. She wore a winter white wrap dress with a pair of caramel suede stiletto booties. She had saved long and hard to buy those boots and was excited to wear them tonight. Destiny helped her get her hair together.
“So, where’s Aunt Georgi?” Destiny asked. “Usually she’s on you like white on rice. Why is she letting you spend so much time with this Troy guy and she never met him?”
Sydney looked at their reflection in the mirror as Destiny brushed her hair into a cute updo with bangs. “Mommy’s dating again. You know how she gets.”
Destiny glanced at her cousin sadly. She knew all too well. Sydney’s mother fluctuated between two extremes. She was either completely obsessed with every aspect of her daughter’s life when she was single or she was completely obsessed with whatever man was acting as her sponsor at the time. Through it all, Georgi had maintained her stunning looks. While her dad aged drastically during his prison stint, her mom kept it together.
“She tell you where she is this time?” Destiny asked the question gently. She put the finishing touches on her cousin’s hair and sat down on the bed. Aunt Georgi would go to Europe, the Caribbean, or wherever her man took her at the drop of a dime. Often Sydney had no idea until she got a phone call from her mother after days of silence.
“Yeah. Connecticut. Some banquet. She’ll be back late tonight. This one’s kinda nerdy. She’ll be bored soon, I can tell.” Sydney laughed. She knew her mother like the back of her hand. Or so she thought. “But she’s having fun for now and it’s keeping her off my back. So, it works for me.” She sighed. She couldn’t wait to see Troy tonight. She was eager for Destiny to meet him, too. She valued her cousin’s opinion a great deal.
Finally, when they were both satisfied with their looks, Troy arrived to pick them up for the party.
The first real clue that there was more to Troy Mitchell than Sydney was aware of came when he pulled up to get the girls. A black Mercedes pulled up, tinted windows shielding the occupants. The car gleamed against the bright lights of the streetlamps. Sydney watched as Troy slid out of the driver’s side and another man rose from the passenger side. The guy with Troy was big, looming large like a bodyguard as he walked toward them alongside Troy.
Destiny cleared her throat. “What do you know about this guy?” Destiny asked. She was intrigued already. This wasn’t the type of guy she expected her cousin to meet and fall in love with at college.
“I don’t know,” Sydney muttered. Her mind was reeling at the sight of her man, the beauty of that car, and the question of who the hulk was walking with Troy.
Troy greeted Sydney with a light kiss on the cheek. He turned to Destiny, smiling. “Hi,” he said. “I’m Troy.” He extended his hand to her, all the while maintaining eye contact. Sydney knew that scored points with her cousin. Aunt Pat often reminded them that a real man always looks a person in the eyes.
Destiny was impressed. “Hello, Troy. I’m Destiny.”
He squeezed her hand. “This is my brother, Wes.” He gestured toward the smooth chocolate action figure at his side.
Sydney shook Wes’s hand and peered up at him. He had an imposing presence and though he greeted her warmly, she noticed that he didn’t smile much. He had dark, menacing features and his face seemed set in a perpetual frown. Though he was even more handsome than his brother, his facial expression and body language were certainly not as inviting as Troy’s.
Destiny peered around them at the car parked nearby. “Whose car are you driving, Troy?”
Wes managed a tiny smirk then. “It’s mine. You like it?”
Destiny beamed. “Yup.”
Troy laughed. “Wes is letting me drive it for the first time. But he’s acting like he’s my father, telling me to slow down and all that.”
Wes shook his head. “He got a lead foot, ladies. I’m gonna warn you now.” Wes was trying to be nice to his brother. Since their mother’s passing, the gulf between them had only grown wider. He was hoping that by having Troy around him more, he might rub off on him. He believed Troy needed some hair on his chest. Too much college and not enough conflict.
Troy assured them that they were in good hands, and suggested that they get going. “Uncle Don made us promise that we’d get right back. He takes this party seriously.”
Wes was eyeing Destiny’s curves in that dress as the group moved toward the car. “Destiny, you can sit in the back with me,” he said. “Sydney, you sit up front with Troy.”
Troy laughed at that. “Now you can be a backseat driver for real.”
“Just don’t get in an accident.” Wes opened the car door for Destiny.
Troy did the same for Sydney. He squeezed her butt slyly as she slid in past him. Sydney smiled in delight. She was hoping to sneak away with Troy at some point tonight. She wished that Destiny and Wes would somehow disappear.
Troy got behind the wheel and headed for the bridge.
“How old are you, Wes?” Destiny was facing him in the backseat, her eyes searching him for clues. She had plenty of questions.
“Twenty-four.” He looked at her and winked. “How about you?”
“Twenty,” Destiny answered. “What do you do for a living?”
Troy interjected. “Our family runs a chain of businesses uptown. Barbershops, dry cleaners, tailors, that type of thing.”
Sydney suspected that wasn’t the whole truth. A couple of times, Troy had alluded to his father’s disapproval of Wes’s lifestyle. She supposed Wes wasn’t as involved in the family business as Troy was trying to imply. She kept her mouth shut, though, eager to hear the next in Destiny’s litany of questions.
“You cut hair?” Destiny asked.
Wes laughed. “Do I look like I cut hair?” His voice was gruff, but his expression revealed that he was tickled by Sydney’s outspoken cousin and her interrogation.
“You look like an assassin,” Destiny said flatly.
“Aye! That’s not nice! What’s wrong with you?” Sydney craned her neck to glare at her cousin sitting behind her.
Troy laughed loudly.
Destiny held her hands up in surrender. “No offense,” she said to Wes.
He shook his head. “None taken, sweetheart.” He shifted in his seat, his frame too large for the backseat of his own car. Destiny could tell that he was more accustomed to being in the driver’s seat. “What’s your story?” he asked.
Sydney smiled in the front seat. Troy had asked her the same question once. In the weeks since then, they had gotten to know each other quite intimately. Yet she sensed that there was still so much for her to learn. Troy took her hand in his, swept his thumb across hers, and she smiled at the familiar gesture. It had become the equivalent of a kiss when they were in a crowded room. His touch sent shivers through her every time.
“I’m just a girl from Staten Island. Well, Brooklyn, really. But my mother moved to Staten Island when I was a kid. My grandmother followed. Then Sydney and her family came after that.”
Wes nodded. “One big happy family, huh?”
Destiny nodded. “You got a girlfriend?” she asked boldly.
Troy and Wes both laughed. Sydney looked at her cousin like she was crazy. Troy steered the car expertly through the traffic.
Wes finally composed himself enough to nod. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m seeing somebody. But if I wasn’t, you’d be just my type.”
Destiny frowned a little. “What does that mean?”
Wes looked out the window as he spoke. “You seem like you don’t have a problem speaking your mind,” he said. “I like a girl with a strong opinion. I can be a lot to handle, so I like somebody who can withstand a challenge.”
Sydney looked at Troy sidelong. “Sounds like somebody else I know.”
Troy laughed. “I guess it runs in the family,” he admitted. “Believe it or not, I’m the calm one. When it comes to keeping a level head, I’m usually the one who keeps the peace. Wes can be a hothead.”
Destiny’s mouth watered, but she caught herself. Wes was taken, she reminded herself. “Is your girlfriend coming to the party tonight?”
Wes shook his head. “She’s out of town.”
Sydney wanted to pinch her cousin, but she couldn’t reach her. Eager to steer the conversation elsewhere, she cleared her throat.
“Who else is gonna be at this dinner?” she asked.
Troy smirked. “You might see a few familiar faces,” he answered coyly. “But mostly just my family. My uncle, Don. My dad might come through.”
Sydney’s antennae went up. She had just assumed that when he mentioned his family dinner that his father would certainly be attending. She was beginning to wonder if she and Troy had more in common in the parenting department than she had previously known.
Troy regaled them with drunken tales about the mayhem that unfolded at previous holiday dinners with his family. Aunt So-and-So and Uncle Such-and-Such did this and that. Sydney didn’t keep track of all the names. But she did notice the easy laughter the brothers shared as they reminisced. By the time they arrived at the big impressive home where the dinner was being held, they had all grown quite comfortable with one another. The energy between them was lively as they exited the car and walked down the long graveled driveway toward the house.
“This is a really nice house,” Destiny said. She thought Sydney had it good, but whoever lived here had real money.
“Thank you,” Troy said, smiling. “This is my father’s house.”
Destiny’s eyes widened. Sydney, too, was impressed, though she did her best not to make it too obvious. This was nothing like the Harlem she had imagined Troy growing up in.
Wes swung open the heavy doors, ushering them into a large and impressive foyer. Music blared and laughter and conversation could be heard from somewhere down the hall. Sydney looked around. Sparkling wood floors, gleaming white walls, and a large chandelier were the only décor. Still the space screamed opulence and the old house had plenty of charm and character. Sydney couldn’t wait to see more.
A woman appeared. Her natural hair graced her head like a halo as she smiled. She reached for everyone’s coats and Sydney had to resist the urge to hug her. The woman exuded love. “Everyone is having cocktails in the great room.”
Sydney nodded, thanked the woman, and she and Destiny followed Troy and his brother toward the great room. Destiny linked her arm through Sydney’s as they walked.
“What kind of life is this, Sydney?” Destiny gawked at the paintings on the wall. She was no art expert, but they sure looked expensive.
“I’m not really sure.” Sydney’s own eyes darted around the home as they walked. The sounds of voices and music filled the halls, and Destiny snapped her fingers to the beat of Chaka Khan’s “Ain’t Nobody.” Sydney joined in. Having her cousin along made her feel more comfortable as they neared the great room.