Chapter 8-Devon
This what I get for listening to Levi’s ass. He was, without a doubt, going to get an earful the next time I laid eyes on him.
We sat at the table in uncomfortable silence and waited for the waitress to bring us our drinks and appetizers. Hopefully, the Scotch whiskey she ordered brought her ass down to earth.
I didn’t know what Kenya was thinking, but I could tell that I wasn’t what she expected. The moment she touched my shoulder, and I turned around, she seemed stuck, and not in a good way.
Hell, I couldn’t front, because although she was just as fine as her pictures, and thick in all the right places, she was a little more stuck up than I expected … Hell, who am I playing with? She was more than just a little stuck up.
The personality I thought she had must have been left in the car because it damn sure wasn’t at the table with her.
Yeah, I knew from our conversations that she was reserved, and I could deal with that, but what I couldn’t deal with was a female with her damn nose in the air and a stick up her ass.
“How do you know Tobias?” I blurted out in an attempt to start a conversation with the sadity woman whose beauty I couldn’t deny even if I tried.
She was definitely easy to look at. With rich brown skin, full doe eyes, a button nose and pouty lips that brought all of her features together.
She had high cheekbones that made me think she had Indian somewhere in her bloodline.
I could tell she was wearing makeup, but it wasn’t caked on, and for me, that was an added bonus.
Then her body … Damn … Her body was something to be worshiped for generations to come. She was the definition of slim-thick, meaning she was nowhere near fat, yet she had defined curves that could only be possessed by a black queen.
“Tobias is like a brother to me,” she answered. “We basically grew up together.” A smile danced across her full lips, and her eyes softened, letting me know that they were close.
“Y’all grew up together? Like in the same neighborhood? Get out of here,” I said as I laughed. I was two seconds away from shooing her ass off because of disbelief.
Growing up, Tobias and I used to stay in the same area. With just one look at Kenya, I knew damn well that she wasn’t from where I was from.
There was no way. Not only did she not act like it, but back then, I was outside so much that I was certain she would’ve caught my eye at some point in time.
“No, we didn’t live in the same neighborhood. His mother works at my family’s house.”
“Wait, Ms. Francesca is like a maid or something?” No sooner than I asked, a previous conversation came to mind. “Tobias used to tell me that she worked for a millionaire and his family.”
Sitting across from her, the rich girl persona started to make sense because it wasn’t a persona at all. It was who she was. A rich chick.
“We lived a comfortable life, but just so you know, Fancy is much more than a maid to us, especially to me. She’s like a—she’s special.”
Lived comfortable my ass. If Tobias said his mama worked for a millionaire, then that was exactly what my black ass was ‘bout to believe. Jackpot! She was fine, educated, and rich. I could see why she looked at my ass sideways.
Yeah, I had money, and hell yeah, I lived well, but it wasn’t because I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I got mine out of the mud.
“Fancy?” My brow raised at the nickname she’d given her. I’d really expected Kenya to call her ‘the help’. The fact that she used her name instead wasn’t lost on me.
“Yes, Fancy . That’s what my sister and I call her. Honestly, Fancy raised us, although some people said she was just the maid. I couldn’t imagine my life without her, and I dare not think about what my life would’ve been like without her there.”
When she talked about Ms. Francesca, I could see her soften up. Looks like I started the conversation on the right note.
Before I could continue, the waitress came and set down our drinks along with my seafood egg rolls and her smoked salmon dip.
We both said a silent and quick prayer over our food.
I watched her as she unrolled her silverware and elegantly placed the napkin across her lap.
She had me taking notes with my ghetto, country ass.
I wanted to tuck the napkin in my shirt so I wouldn’t get any food on it, but I didn’t want to embarrass myself.
“That makes two of us. I didn’t have the best home situation growing up, and whenever I went around, she looked out for me and made sure that I was good. People like her are what I like to think of as God’s hands and feet,” I acknowledged, and she nodded in agreement.
“That’s Fancy for you,” she said and smiled. “She is a great woman.”
“You said that you have a sister. Is she older or younger?”
“She’s younger than me by six years.”
“That makes sense.” I nodded and took a bite of my food, then set my fork down as if I had the first damn clue about etiquette or good home training.
Normally, I would have been eating my food with my hands, but Kenya made me want to act like I had some sense, so I was eating it with a fork and knife.
“What do you mean by that? Are you sizing me up?” Her poker face was on lock, but her eyes weren’t fully committed. I saw a playful glint in her dark brown eyes, enough to bolster my confidence that our date wouldn’t be a complete failure.
“Absolutely,” I said, as I looked up to see her blushing. “There is a lot that you can tell about a person just by observing them.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Do you have any siblings?”
“No, I am an only child.”
“Would you consider yourself a family person?”
“To an extent; my son is my family, and he is my world.”
“Oh, wow … You have a son. How old is he?” She straightened up, visibly tensed by my response as she cleared her throat.
“He just turned twelve. Is that a problem?” I asked because she was squirming in her chair like it was.
My son and I were a package, so if she had a problem with him, then she damn sure had a problem with me.
Kenya cleared her throat for what felt like the umpteenth time, and I could tell from her uneasiness that she was taking her time to ensure that she chose her words carefully.
Messing with me, that was really her best bet.
I’d never put my hands on a female, but I’d damn sure put her in her place with my words.
Something told me that Kenya had never had a man do that with her. Lucky for her, I didn’t mind being her first.
“I wasn’t aware that you had a child.”
Still, she hadn’t answered my question, and that was an answer in itself.
“Well, I do, and if that’s a problem, we can end this now because my son and I are a packaged deal. If you can’t accept him, then you damn sure don’t deserve me.”
I could tolerate a lot, but a woman who didn’t accept my son could kiss my ass. This date was as good as done. My appetizer was good ass hell, but it was nothing worth sitting across from poor company. I could always circle back and come back without her.
Maybe I can even bring another female with me.
Not allowing her silence to linger much longer than it already had, I stood to my feet and prepared to pay for our food and drinks.
A gasp escaped her lips when I retrieved my wallet and pulled out three one-hundred-dollar bills.
I could tell her response had nothing to do with the cash I was holding and everything to do with the fact that I was willing to walk away.
“Devon, wait. Let me apologize,” she said and took a deep breath, shaking her head from one side to the other.
“I’m normally—like I said, I haven’t dated in years, and I have to admit that I have never dated a man like you.
Typically, I go for men with less flavor , and don’t take that as a bad thing because I don’t know how to peg you right now.
I thought I did, but—I’ve never dated a man with a child—You—I—” She stopped and took a long pause.
Her words were everywhere, and I was amused.
This time, the silence didn’t deter me. What it really did was give me a chance to appreciate her unfiltered beauty.
Kenya was the type of beautiful that you didn’t see anymore.
In a culture where everybody wanted to look like a copy and paste of the chicks they saw on their for you page on social media, it was refreshing to be in front of an unfiltered beauty.
“Do you mind if we start over?” Kenya looked at me with a hopeful gaze, and who was I to break her heart?
I could tell that she was sincere as she extended her hand in my direction, so I offered her a head nod before reclaiming my seat and accepting her truce.
“I’m Kenya. It’s nice to officially meet you. ”
“Kenya, I’m Devon, and the pleasure is all mine.”
She waited until I was good and comfortable before she proceeded.
“If I offended you about your son, I apologize.”
“It’s cool,” I acknowledged.
“No, it’s really not, and I’m grown enough to admit when I’m in the wrong. My reaction was wrong.” She admitted, stopping because the waitress had come back to get our orders. “I’ll have the Caesar salad with grilled shrimp.”
“That’s all?” I didn’t mean to be so rough with it. With my face fixed in a scowl, my eyes bounced from Kenya to our waitress.
“Is something wrong with what I want to order?” Kenya questioned in response, like I’d offended her. If she was offended by that, she hadn’t seen a damn thing yet.
“Hell, yeah. It’s a lot wrong with it, baby girl.” I shook my head in disappointment before I focused on our waitress. “Tell me your name again.”
“Ashley,” the waitress responded.
“Cool, Ashley. Let me get five pounds of Colossal King Crab, and two seafood boils with lobster tail, headless shrimp, and clams. Make one mild and one spicy.” From the corner of my eye, I saw Kenya squirm in her seat. I was sure I’d hear an earful about superseding her order, but oh well.
“Do you want potatoes and corn on the side?” Ashley asked, her wide pupils dancing between my date and me like she was waiting for Kenya to snap.