Chapter 5
“Well if it isn’t Tennessee. I know you’re not calling to tell me you’re on your way here to win all my damn money and drink up my whiskey again, are you?”
Alonzo laughed at the reference to the nickname Malcolm Jacobs had given him. “Sorry to disappoint you, MJ, but not this time. I may take you up on it another time because it’s been a while.” Malcolm owned Blunt Minded Joint in Las Vegas. The secret club was located off the strip, had a large entertainment lounge, several private smoker rooms, and a section for dice games. MJ had given all his buddies dice reference names. He”d called Alonzo Tennessee—the numbers six and four—because of Alonzo’s height and love for Tennessee whiskey. They’d met through a mutual friend who had invited Alonzo to the club several years ago. MJ also grew his own weed, which was the reason for the call. “Actually, I’m calling because Sonya needs some more CBD.”
“How is your fine sister? That is one beautiful woman.”
“Man, you flirt in your sleep, and my sister is still off-limits.” Though he had two adult children, MJ had never been married and loved women. His photo was probably in the dictionary under playa.
MJ’s laughter came through the line. “Yeah, all right. Does she want full-spectrum, broad spectrum or isolates?”
“Isolates.” Sonya wanted to be sure she was using oils containing only CBD with no traces of THC to avoid any psychoactive responses in her clients. They discussed the amounts and delivery dates. “Thanks, MJ.”
“No problem. Later.”
Normally, he wouldn’t have a problem making the drive to pick it up, but he’d had a long week between work, the spa and making sure Kenya was okay. Every time he thought about what that asshole did to her, he wanted to dig him up and kill him all over again. He couldn’t blame her for being cautious. Hearing her cry did something to him and he’d held her, assuring her that he would protect her from anyone who tried to harm her. He meant every word and realized that his feelings for Kenya ran deeper than he originally thought. Alonzo hadn’t felt this strongly about a woman since his fiancée. When Melanie died six years ago, she’d taken his love with her and he didn’t think he’d ever find another woman to open his heart again. But Kenya had, and in less than a month.
Picking up his phone again, he scrolled to her number and hit the call button.
“Hi, Alonzo,” Kenya said when she answered.
“Hey, baby. How’re you doing and how did your appointment go?” She had confided that she’d sought out a therapist to help her deal with the trauma and had gone to a few sessions. But after her breakdown last week recognized that she hadn’t fully let go and decided to start them up again.
“I’m good and the session went well. I think when I went last time, I was still in psychologist mode and trying to interject my own practices, so now I’m working on turning off that part of me when I go. Not sure how easy that’ll be since that mindset is pretty much ingrained,” she added with a little laugh.
“Yeah, I get that. I think I’d be the same way if I had to see another physical therapist after working as one for almost seventeen years.”
“So what are you doing on this Wednesday evening?”
“I’m at the spa taking care of a few things. It closes in about fifteen minutes, and I’m going to hang out until my sister leaves.” The last employee had just left and Alonzo didn’t want her to lock up alone.
“Aw, you’re such a good big brother. I wish I’d had one. Maybe I could’ve avoided some things.” she added.
He heard the wistful tone in her voice and wished he could take away every bad thing in her life. “I have no plans to be your big brother, but I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe and happy.”
“I’m really glad I asked you to join me that night at the bar.”
He smiled. “So am I.”
“Can you hang on a second, Alonzo? I have another call.”
“Sure.” While waiting, he locked the files in his desk drawer and straightened up the papers and sample brochures.
Sonya knocked on his partially open door and stuck her head in. “How long are you going to be here?”
“I’m staying until you leave. Oh, I called MJ and your CBD will be delivered on Saturday.”
She gave him a bright smile. “Great. That gives me plenty of time to finish making everything. I have to order more bottles and jars, too.”
“I’m back, Alonzo. Sorry,” Kenya said.
Alonzo nodded. “It’s no problem. You sound upset, baby.”
Sonya, still standing there, mouthed, “Baby?”
He pointed to the door.
She giggled, said softly, “We’re going to talk about this,” and walked out.
Alonzo shook his head and turned his attention back to the phone call.
Kenya let out an audible sigh. “Just my father calling, once again, to harass me about the house. GiGi left the house and most of her estate to me, and he’s been pissed. But I don’t want to talk about him. The deed is done and there’s nothing he can do.”
“You sound like you two don’t have the best relationship.”
“We don’t. Cheating on my mother and having his women calling there to cuss her or her two teenage daughters out doesn’t inspire warm and fuzzy feelings.”
Another man who’d failed her. “Damn, I’m sorry.” He wouldn’t even think of what he’d do if his father disrespected his mother in that way.
“My sister and I are used to his ridiculous moods, and I pretty much just ignore him now.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“Just promise me you won’t turn out to be the same.”
“That’s one promise I can make, sweetheart. Changing the subject on you. What are you doing on Saturday?”
“Going through more of my grandmother’s things. Why?”
“You never got back to me about coming to the spa. How about I come over and do the heavy lifting so you don’t end up with back pain, and then I’ll give you a massage.”
“That sounds heavenly. And I owe you dessert, so we can have that, too.”
After everything she’d revealed to him about her marriage, she’d been emotionally spent and they’d completely forgotten about dessert. “We can have lunch and dessert.”
“Sounds like a plan. Ooh, I know what I want. I’ve been craving crabcakes and saw a recipe for crabcake BLTs. We can’t go wrong with crab and bacon.”
Alonzo loved it when she became excited. She seemed to have had so much sadness in her thirty-four years of living. “I agree.”
“We can cook together.”
“That was going to be my suggestion.”
“Why hasn’t some woman snatched you up by now?” Kenya blurted. “I mean, you’re a great guy, you have a good job. Is something wrong with the women around here, or is there some deep secret flaw you have?”
He laughed. “I’ll admit to having a few flaws. I’m not perfect and don’t pretend to be. I can be a perfectionist at times, and I’ve been known to be short on forgiveness at times, but I try to work on myself every day.” It typically took a lot to make him angry, but once someone crossed that line, getting back in his good graces wasn’t so easy. He used to be worse as a teen, however, now as an adult he’d become a little more forgiving. “As to why I’ve never married, I was engaged six years ago. My fiancée died three months before our wedding.”
Her sharp gasp came through the line. “Oh, my goodness. I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to stir up bad memories.”
“You didn’t. I can talk about it now. Melanie was an adrenaline junkie and loved living life on the edge. From bungy jumping, parasailing, and mountain climbing, she did it all. She and a group of her girlfriends were climbing their last mountain before she got married and one of them lost her footing, slid into Mel and took them both down. Her friend died instantly, but Mel hung in there for a day before succumbing to her injuries.” He waited for the deep, searing pain that always followed the mention of Melanie’s name or reliving the circumstances of her death, but this time, it never came. Closing his eyes briefly, Alonzo felt only…peace.
“I am so very sorry for your loss, Alonzo.”
“It was a long time ago, and in case you have any worries about being a replacement for her, you’re not. One, it’s been six years and the love I had for her, I buried with her. Two, you could never be a replacement for any woman. I fell for you because you’re beautiful inside and out.”
“You are so good for me,” she whispered. “I’ve never met a man like you.”
“I feel the same, and I hope that’s a good thing.”
“It’s a very good thing.” They fell silent for a few seconds, then she said, “I should probably let you go. It’s closing time.”
He glanced over at the wall clock. “Yeah, it is. What time do you want me to get there on Saturday?”
“Around eleven would be fine. That way we both can sleep in,” Kenya added with a laugh. “All these late night phone calls are killing a sister. I have no regrets, but having trouble keeping my eyes open when conducting a group session isn’t a good look.”
Alonzo let out a short bark of laughter. “I hear you. I caught myself drifting off in the middle of charting notes a time or two. I guess we’ll have to start our conversations earlier, so you can get a good night’s rest.” It wouldn’t help him, though. He’d lost count of the times he’d awaken aroused and hard after dreaming about them making love. His phone buzzed and he pulled it away from his ear and read a text from Sonya asking for his help. “I need to get going.”
“Okay. You two be safe going home.”
“We will. Sweet dreams, beautiful.”
“You, too.”
Alonzo disconnected and sat for a moment. He’d always made a practice of being upfront with any woman he dated, so there’d be no misunderstandings later. Yet, he hadn’t intended to share his feelings so soon. However, he knew that after all she’d been through, Kenya needed some reassurance that this was no game. Assurances he had no problem giving because he was all in and sensed that she might the one.
Pushing to his feet, he left to find his sister, and found her in her office. “What do you need me to do?”
“Can you help me move some boxes to the storage room?” Sonya stood and pointed out the particular boxes. “And then when you come back, while I’m making one last batch of oils, you can tell me all about your new baby.” She grinned and wiggled her eyebrows.
He shook his head and picked up the first two of the six boxes. It only took him a couple of minutes to clear them out of her office. “Need some help?” he asked, entering the room she used as a lab.
“Sure. Now quit trying to stall and tell me about the woman who’s got my big brother whipped. You can start with a name, where you met her and how long you’ve been dating. Oh, and since you’ve pretty much avoided me for the past month, I want to know what happened with Pamela and the date that never happened.” Sonya had already had water heating in a large pot placed on the portable burner.
“Damn, girl. Why are you trying to get in my business like that?” Alonzo reached for a gallon container of grapeseed oil. She’d chosen that particular carrier oil because it was light and easily absorbed into the skin. It also lowered the risk of allergic reaction common with nut oils.
She lifted an eyebrow and folded her arms. “You’ve been in mine since the day I was born, so I should have the same privileges.”
“How much oil?”
“Four cups.”
Alonzo poured the requested amount in a measuring bowl with pour spot, set it inside the double boiler, then propped a hip against the counter. It would take the oil about five minutes to warm. “First, Pamela was into playing games, so I walked.”
“That’s all you’re going to say?” Sonya rolled her eyes as she stirred the oil. “Was she ignoring your calls, trying to make you spend hundreds of dollars on nonsense, wanting you to engage in a threesome with a friend…what?”
Every now and again—like now—he wished he was an only child. While growing up, she’d been his shadow and asked him a million questions every day. He’d never minded because he loved her as much as he loved breathing. Since they’d become adults, she had started taking it upon herself to police his love life, especially after Melanie’s death. Admittedly, she’d been right about a couple of the women, but some things, he liked to keep private. Tonight, it didn’t look as if he’d be able to leave until he gave up the at least some of the details. Alonzo dragged a hand down his face. “She thought it would be a good idea to deliberately keep me waiting because, in her mind, I’m over forty and desperate.”
Sonya frowned. She added four grams of CBD isolate powder to the oil and gently stirred the mixture until it was clear, then set the bowl aside to cool. “That heffa is out of her mind. I knew she was no good, and I’m so glad you found out before things got serious. I would’ve probably been that person standing up at the wedding when the minister asked if anyone protests the marriage shouting nooo.”
“Sometimes, I don’t know about you.” Alonzo didn’t doubt she’d do it. She had no issues when it came to speaking her mind. Using oven mitts, he carried the pot to the sink and dumped out the water.
“I’m just sayin’. And the new woman?”
“We met the same evening. I stopped by a bar on the way home. I noticed Kenya crying and went to see if she was okay before I left. She invited me to join her and we’ve been dating ever since.” They lined the counter with small bottles to fill. When the oil had cooled, Sonya added twenty-five drops of lemongrass essential oil to the mixture, stirred, then filled the smaller bottles. Alonzo went behind her and twisted on the tamper-proof caps.
“Aww, you always were a sucker for a woman’s tears. Was she okay? Just leave them there. I’ll put the labels on when I come in tomorrow,” she said of the bottles.
He nodded. “She was upset because she’d been stood up.”
Sonya shook her head and washed out the bowl. “What is wrong with people? See, this is why I’m not out there trying to do all this dating. I don’t have time for all that crap. This kind of thing is exactly why I dropped Anthony’s stupid ass. Out here trying to tell me where I can go, who I can go with, and wanting me to check in with him every time I make a move.”
Alonzo shot her a glare. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because he wasn’t worth it. And I need you to be here at the spa and not in jail. But I’m glad you’re dating again. I hope she’s the one. I need a sister.”
He straightened from the desk. “On that note, it’s time to go.” Yes, he was falling for Kenya. Marriage? He wasn’t there. Yet.