Chapter 13
"So…are you looking forward to tonight?" Gianna asked.
I pressed the phone closer to my ear, smiling as I leaned back in my chair. "Tonight? What's going on tonight, beautiful?" I teased.
She sucked her teeth. "Don't play with me, Remy."
I laughed lightly. "Of course I'm looking forward to tonight. I can't wait to see you. Been looking forward to this since you agreed."
"I'm flattered," she replied. "FaceTime me right quick?"
"Right now?" I sat up surprised.
"Yeah. I wanna see what you got going on."
Biting back a grin I obliged. Seconds later, her beautiful face filled the screen. It looked like she was outside, the sun was shining down on her, making her skin glisten and the brown in her eyes more transparent.
"I wasn’t sure if we were on FaceTime level yet, but I'm glad to know that we are," I said.
She just smiled and shrugged.
"That must mean you like me a lil' bit," I teased again.
She rolled her eyes playfully but she didn't deny it. "So…what's on the menu for tonight, Chef?" she asked instead.
"It's a surprise." I leaned forward with a smile. "But I think you'll enjoy it. And if you don't, I'll bring you back to the restaurant and you can eat whatever you want on the menu."
She chuckled. "Sounds like a plan." She tilted her head to the side slightly, a playful smile on her face. "You look cute today. I like your lil' shirt and tie. You look like a big business boy."
I laughed loudly. "I'll take the compliment. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
There was a pause as we just held each other's gaze for a moment. I could get lost in her eyes.
"Do you need me to pick you up? Send a car?" I asked finally.
She shook her head, still smiling." No, I got it. Thanks though."
"Okay, beautiful."
"I gotta go and I'm sure you need to get back to work," she said. "I'll see you tonight."
"Absolutely. I'll text you the address and hit you up around six to make sure you don’t need anything."
"Alright," she gave me a small wave. "See you soon."
"Be safe, beautiful," I replied.
We ended the call. I placed the phone on my desk and took a deep breath. I was nervous. I hadn't had a date in eons. Everything in dating was different now. Women were different as well. But I pushed the nerves down because if not now, it would never happen.
I had our evening planned perfectly. Being in the restaurant business has its perk.
I was able to secure a spot last minute at this test kitchen.
Had to spend double what I normally would to rent the space, but it was well worth it.
Ms. Tami helped me secure a dope florist to get a rush order on some custom bouquets and her granddaughter was kind enough to offer to decorate the space as long as I promised to tag her on my socials.
Done.
I had to pull this together in two days all while working, parenting, and keeping it from my family.
If things worked out, I'd be happy to share, but at the moment I was going to continue to keep it to myself. I couldn’t even fathom what my mama would say when she found out about Gianna's lifestyle.
I shook the thought off and checked the time.
It was almost time to pick up Melo. I needed to drop him off, prep and prepare dinner.
Rubbing my hands together, I grabbed my phone and keys off the desk, heading out.
I spoke to my managers and head chef for a minute—just letting them know I would busy for the evening and to only call for an emergency.
My manager Brenda looked surprise. She knew that being too busy for my restaurant was never a thing.
Once I checked in on the kitchen and grabbed the packed food, I headed out.
In the car, I received a call from Boogie.
"What's up, frat?" I answered.
"You apparently, bruh," he answered. "Big night. You nervous?"
I exhaled slowly. Paused—then— "Hell yeah," I admitted with a smile.
Boogie laughed. "I know. That's why I'm calling. This shit ain't small for you."
"Nah, it ain't."
His voice dropped to a more serious tone. "You know I trust you, and I got your back one hundred percent. But if you wanna back out now, you wouldn't be wrong."
I squinted at the dashboard, where his voice poured out. "You called to get me to back out?" I asked, eyes returning back to the road.
"No. Just making sure you really thought this through," he clarified.
"You're the one who encouraged me to go on the date, Boog."
He sighed. "I know man. I know. I'm just worried about you is all. You're my brother, Rem. I just wanna make sure you're happy and protected. You've always been a soft ass nigga."
I laughed, stopping at a red light. "You're an asshole."
Boogie chuckled. "I know, but I'm serious," he continued tone getting serious again. "You're a sensitive type. A nigga like me can dibble and dabble without it meaning shit. You catch feelings. Plant roots. Shit is different."
His sincere tone made my chest feel warm.
I knew how much he cared about me. And he was right.
Even in college I wasn’t the playboy that women thought I was.
I dated of course. Had more than a few steamy nights with co-eds, but never on the level that my fraternity brothers did.
And when I met Kendrix my sophomore year, we locked in quick and that was it for me.
"I appreciate you, Boog. And I know you have concerns. Me too. But I swear I'm good. Don't worry."
He sighed again. I could almost see him nodding as he processed my words. "Aight, frat. Have a good night then. I'll drop by in the morning, check on you and my godson."
"Appreciate it. I'll see you tomorrow, bruh."
Absolutely."
We ended the call. For a moment, the thought of cancelling entered my mind, but I knew that was just nerves. I liked Gianna and that was all I needed to proceed.
It didn't take me long to get to my son's school. Melo was a ball of energy as usual when I picked him up. He shoved his impressive drawing of a dinosaur towards me when I arrived. "Look, Daddy!"
I squatted down to his eye-level smiling. "Wow. That's a good looking dinosaur, buddy."
He frowned, looked at the paper than back at me. "It's a dog," he corrected.
Damn. I took the paper, squinting harder. "You know what—my bad, son. That is a dog. "I nodded. "Daddy's just a little tired."
He giggled. "You silly. Can we get ice cream?" He jumped in my arms.
I stood with him and headed to car. "No. But you can have fruit salad. Extra watermelon."
"'Cause I'm Black?" he asked innocently.
I stopped in my tracks staring down at him. "No, because it's your favorite." I stared at him wide eyed. "Who taught you that?"
"Ti-Ti." He shrugged. "We watched a doc-u-meneray…did I say that right, Daddy?"
"Documentary," I corrected gently. "You watched it with Ti-Ti?"
Mmhm." He nodded. "And they said it on there. But I do like watermelon though, Daddy. And I'm Black."
I sighed and shook my head. "So do I son." I placed him in his car seat and buckled him in.
My sister was a political science major, a feminist and Angela Davis reincarnated. She was always watching some documentary about Black history, women's rights and teaching my son facts. I wasn't mad about it. We all did, but she tended to go overboard for his age. She meant well.
We headed straight to my parents' house. Pops was still at work. He owned a construction company, and they were in the middle of building a huge library, so his hours were longer now. Mama was in the kitchen making dinner when we arrived.
"There's my Puddin' Pop." She grinned bending down as Melo barreled into her open arms.
"Easy, Melo," I said gently.
"Oh, it's alright." She waved me off, kissing his cheeks. "How was school my smart boy?"
"Good!" Melo grinned. "Look what I drew for you." He thrust the picture forward.
"Oh, would you look at that," she gushed. "That is a perfect dog."
My brows furrowed and Melo looked back at me like—see Daddy. I shook my head smiling.
"Go upstairs and change out of your school clothes, baby. Mee-Mee is almost done with dinner. Spaghetti sound good?"
Melo nodded quickly and dashed off.
"No running, Melo!" I called behind him. I heard his footsteps slow down.
I turned back to my mom and placed a kiss on top of her head. She had some braids in her hair looking all young and spry. "Who you trying to impress young lady?" I touched her hair smirking.
She laughed. "Myself. Angel convinced me to get them." She touched her hair. "I love them though. What do you think?"
I nodded with approval. "You look pretty, Ma. You always been the prettiest woman to me though."
She smiled warmly and hugged me around the waist. "Thank you, baby." She turned back to the stove. "So you and Boogie hanging out tonight?"
Of course I had to lie. "Yeah," I nodded with a smile.
"That's good. I'm glad you're getting outside more, baby."
"Me too. I'm starting to feel like myself again."
"Good." She looked up at me, her eyes twinkling. "That makes me so happy. Kendrix would want that for you. You know she was a woman who lived her life to the fullest, God rest her sweet soul."
"I know, Ma." I replied quietly, looking off for a moment.
She pulled my face gently back towards her. "Take your time, okay. Whenever you need a break or a night out, you just tell us. No questions asked."
Thank you." I smiled softly.
She reached up and kissed my cheek. "Wanna eat before you go?"
I shook my head. "Naw, me and Boog gon' grab some dinner. I'll check in later. I gotta head out."
"Okay, baby. Have fun."
We hugged, I went up to say bye to my son, made sure he changed and then headed out. Next stop—Gianna. I checked out my reflection in the rearview mirror and let out another deep breath. "You got this dawg. No pressure."
I was praying this night turned out well.