CHAPTER 15
Nedra looked at Sin sleeping peacefully beside her. Lord, he was a beautiful man! He wasn’t just physically attractive. It was more than that. Although he tried to conceal it, his heart and his soul were beautiful as well. He had tried to protect her. He had been willing to put his life on the line for her. The details she wasn’t quite sure of, but she was humbled by the depths of such devotion.
She had tried to live a good life. She served the Almighty, tried to help others and to treat others as she wanted to be treated. She had never expected a reward on earth, but surely this man must be it. Never before had she felt such an unquenchable yearning for one person as she felt for him, and she knew that those feelings were returned. But was it right? Was marriage between them even a possibility?
She had already declared her love for him, but this need for him, this insatiable desire when she was with him was so new, so different, so overwhelming. Their relationship was still in its infancy, still fragile in its present state. Where would it lead? Only time would tell. Until then, was she strong enough to deny herself the luxury of making love with him again? She could only hope.
She caressed his face, encircled the gold stud in his ear, smoothed his moustache; let her fingers trail lovingly down his cheek to rest on his dimpled chin. He stirred in his sleep. She snuggled closer to him. What a test of strength self denial had been. As he promised, they had not made love, but God forgive her, she wanted to, badly.
They had gone to bed around midnight. She was dressed in one of his oversized t-shirts. He wore a pair of pajama bottoms, although he told her that he preferred sleeping in the nude.
Before falling asleep, they lay curled in each other’s arms. She felt such contentment that she couldn’t help but smile.
He kissed her ear lobe. “What are you smiling about?”
“I was just thinking how happy I am. What a range of emotions I’ve experienced in one very long day, and all on Sunday, my favorite day of the week.”
It was Sin’s turn to smile. Her words meant more to him than she would ever know. “Are you really happy?”
She nodded, whimpering in delight as his hands glided lazily down her body.
“Then so am I, because that’s all I want for you, for both of us, a lifetime of happiness.”
Even with those words, Nedra wondered if such an outcome was possible for them. Or, would this love break both their hearts?
It was then that she had looked into his eyes and declared, “I love you, Sinclair. I don’t know where it comes from. I don’t know where it’s going to lead, but I do love you. I’m putting my trust in you and my heart in your hands.”
****
Monday morning they shared breakfast and toyed with the idea of ignoring all of their responsibilities to be with each other. However, reason prevailed. The weekend was over. It was time to face a new day, but this one was different. Neither one of them would have to face this day alone.
Nedra had called Carla the night before to inform her that she would not be returning to her home. This morning she called for an update on Sharon.
“She’s better,” Carla told her, sounding more encouraged than she had yesterday. “And what are your plans for the day? Are you coming back here? Going to work? By the way, where are you, at home?”
Letting the latter go unanswered, Nedra told her that she would be going by the church to pick up any work that she needed to do. “Then, if you’ll drive my car to your office, I’ll drop by and we can exchange. After that, I’ll take my work to your house and keep Sharon company.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
Nedra was reluctant to bring up his name, but it was best to know what they were up against. “Have you heard from Richard?”
Carla’s upbeat mood changed. “Not yet, the rat should be too ashamed to crawl up from the sewer. But, he’ll surface. I’m surprised he hasn’t come by to sweet-talk Sharon out of sending his butt to jail.”
“Did she agree to press charges?” Nedra was hopeful.
“She’s weakening. But you need to work on her when you come over here.”
Nedra heard a voice in the background.
“Jacob’s getting ready to leave. I’ve got to go. See you around ten?”
Nedra agreed and hung up. She had a million things to do today.
Humming a familiar love song, she stood before the mirror in Sin’s bedroom and began brushing her hair. Moments later, he rushed through the bedroom door, dressed for his day at the office. As usual, he looked good. She followed his reflection through the mirror as he moved around the room. Patting his pockets for his keys and wallet, all the while muttering to himself. He was action in motion until he noticed her watching him. He stilled.
Nedra gave him a questioning smile. “What?”
“You.” Coming up behind her, he planted a kiss in her hair. “I like the idea of your being here with me in the morning, getting ready for your day.”
He took the brush from her hand and began raking it slowly, through her tresses. Nedra closed her eyes and leaned back against him. The scent of his cologne teased her senses.
“How’s Sharon?”
“She’s fine. Richard hasn’t shown up yet.”
“And he better not show up around you.”
His harsh tone caused her to turn to him. “Don’t worry. I’m not afraid of Richard. When confronted with anyone who stands up to him, he’s a coward. Believe me, Richard is harmless.”
Sin placed the brush on the dresser and looked at her, not bothering to hide the skepticism on his face. “Nedra, there are a lot of things that life has taught me, and one of them is that any dog with teeth will bite.”
****
Shut in his office, Sin tried to concentrate on the papers in front of him. It proved to be an impossible task. Nedra loved him. She had looked him in the eyes and said the words. I love you. He had wanted to pinch himself to see if he was awake or dreaming.
He didn’t believe in miracles. He had asked for one when his mother was hooked on dope, and she died. He had asked for one when he was moved from house to house, but he found no home, no family. He stopped believing in miracles long ago. But to have Nedra’s love, this was as close as he could possibly come to one.
Earlier that morning he had made several more calls that confirmed her safety. That chapter was behind them. A new one was beginning.
He had everything a man could want, a career, prestige, money, and now, above all else, Nedra. He loved her beyond reason. He had to stop himself from shouting with joy whenever he was with her. She stayed on his mind, constantly. He could hardly concentrate on anything else. Having her in his home, in his arms last night had been perfect. His whole world was different, and changes had to be made.
The sound of his name on the intercom shook him from his musings. It was his secretary.
“Mr. Reasoner, I know you asked me not to disturb you, but Mrs. Trellis is on line one and she sounds very upset. Do you want to speak to her?” Her voice lowered to a compassionate whisper. “It might be about her brother.”
Sin sighed. His mind had been so filled with Nedra, he had forgotten about Eddie’s death. He took the call.
“Hello, Lynn. I’m sorry to hear about Eddie. How are you doing?” He could almost feel her sadness through the telephone.
She sniffled. “I don’t know how I’m going to get through this, Sin. He was the only family I had. I loved him so much.”
Sin’s heart went out to her. He knew how she felt. He’d been there.
“Is there anything I can do for you?”
She faltered before continuing. “I’m so alone. I need someone to be with me while I make his funeral arrangements.”
There was a pause, as if she was waiting for a reply. He offered none.
“I know it’s a lot to ask. I mean, I know we don’t really have any kind of relationship, beyond business, but, I was hoping....”
He had to put an end to this. His reply was gentle. “I understand, Lynn, and I’m sure that one of Eddie’s friends would be more than happy to help you.”
Her voice rose to a childish whine. “But I don’t want them to help me, I want you to. You’re more mature. You’ll know what to do, and Eddie was crazy about you. You asked me if there was anything you could do for me!”
Sin remained unruffled, recognizing the hysteria caused by her grief. “I’m sorry, that’s something I can’t do. Once again, please accept my condolences. I’ve got to go.”
He disconnected before she could said another word, then buzzed his secretary.
“Please find out which funeral home has Mr. Carter’s body and make arrangements to send flowers.”
“Okay, Mr. Reasoner, and how should the card be signed?”
“Sign it, with condolences from Bayland.”
There would be no personal gestures, no attending the service, and from now on, no contact with Lynn Trellis. Eddie was dead. Yes, a lot of changes were going to be made in Sin’s life.
****
Nedra stopped by the church office to pick up the pile of work accumulated during her absence. She then headed to Ryan Advertising.
As she sat in the waiting room, Nedra wondered about Carla’s delay. Her friend was always punctual, but it was past ten and she hadn’t arrived at her office yet. Nedra was anxious to get to Sharon. She had spoken to her earlier and her friend was still in a lot of emotional and physical pain.
Glancing at the clock for the umpteenth time, Nedra laid the magazine she had been flipping through aside. Carla was out of luck. She had too much on her plate to wait any longer. She’d drive Carla’s car back to the house and give her a piece of her mind later for her tardiness. Nevertheless, she couldn’t help but wonder why she had been delayed.
Outside the answer became obvious. Down the street from the office, she saw Carla and her fiancé, Jacob, braced against his car, engaged in a very passionate public display. Nedra couldn’t help but recall her own hormones raging out of control only a short while ago. She approached them and loudly cleared her throat.
“Okay, you two, break it up! This is a city street, you know.”
Reluctantly, they ended their kiss and flashed her sheepish grins. Carla turned in the arms of the man who was to be her husband, the glow of love radiating on her face. Nedra raised a brow at the hair that was mussed, and the unbuttoned blouse. She glared at them accusingly, trying to hide her amusement.
“Where’s my car?”
Carla didn’t look embarrassed. “At my house. Jacob said he would bring me to work, and you could leave my car here. He’s going to take you back to the house.”
“Really? So it took you two over an hour to make a twenty-minute drive to the office?”
Jacob’s boyish looking face broke into a naughty grin. “We stopped to attend to some, uh....business.” He tightened his hold on Carla and planted a quick kiss in her hair. The gesture reminded Nedra of Sin.
“Yeah, I got your business.” Nedra shook her head at the love birds. “Come on, Romeo, let’s go. I’ve got some business of my own to attend to.”
After one last lingering kiss for Carla, Jacob and Nedra headed toward the Berkley Hills. Bopping along to the music coming from his radio, he sang off key.
Nedra liked Jacob Belle. They had grown close over the two years that he and Carla had been together. Six feet tall, he was a handsome man, a light, toasted brown, with a head full of thick curly black hair framing his square-jawed face. Jacob was fun loving, full of jokes and lots of teasing. He was also a brilliant attorney. Nedra had seen him in action in a courtroom. He was dynamite. A star in the Prosecutor’s office, he was destined to move to the top. She loved hearing him talk about his work. It was fascinating.
“Sharon told me that you’re working on a big case involving those people who got shot this weekend.”
Jacob groaned. “Don’t you women keep anything a secret? I told Carla that this was hush, hush.”
Nedra felt guilty for having spoken. “Oh, oh. She didn’t tell me that.”
“Obviously, but I guess it doesn’t matter. Pretty soon things will be going down anyway and then maybe we’ll be able to make at least a dent in this drug war. I don’t need to tell you how much drugs have cost the Black community.”
Nedra nodded. She knew all too well.
Jacob continued. “I hate the bas--.” He glanced at Nedra apologetically. “I hate the leeches making profits off other people’s pain. Eddie Carter was one of them , but that was taken care of for us. We’re going to get some of the hypocrites in suits this time, not just the small-time street hustlers. It’s the so called ‘legitimate’ businessmen and women that I want. The ones who sit in their ivory towers and pretend to be solid citizens, while they make it easy for people like Eddie to operate. They move dirty money through the system so that it looks legitimate, and help keep this whole drug thing going. A lot of big fish are going down this time, from Oakland’s waterfront to City Hall.”
Sin’s Bayland Imports flashed through Nedra’s mind as Jacob was speaking. His business was located on the waterfront. She hoped whatever was about to happen it wasn’t too close to where his building was located, or he might be in danger. Maybe, she should say something.
“But, I don’t expect this information to go any further than this.”
Nedra jumped “What did you say?”
“Hey, aren’t you listening to me, Ms. Preacher? I said you’re to hold what I’ve told you in confidence. I’ve already said too much, and, obviously, I shouldn’t have said anything to Carla.”
“You know that you share everything with her.”
“True, but promise me you won’t share what I just told you with anyone.”
“You can trust me.” None of what was said would be shared with Sinclair.
Arriving at the house, she thanked Jacob, retrieved her briefcase, and headed for the house. He stuck his head out the window before driving away.
“Hey, will you do me a favor?”
“Of course.”
“We drank all of the milk at breakfast today. Would you mind going to the store and buying some? I’ll pay you back.”
Nedra agreed, rejecting the offer of reimbursement. As Jacob drove off, she started toward the house, halted, then glanced down at her overstuffed briefcase, weighing her options. With the amount of work she had to catch up on, and the time she wanted to spend with Sharon, there might not be time to run to the store later. It was best to go now.
Tossing the briefcase into her car, she jumped inside and put the key in the ignition. The engine purred to a start.