Waiting for Jo (7 page)

“I don’t think you should underestimate
anyone, Jo. Out of everyone we talked about, Dickey seems like the
most likely culprit, and I plan on checking him out. What’s his
last name?”

“Moore. His full name is Richard Moore. What
are you planning on doing?” I ask.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to do anything
illegal. I’m going to use public records to find out about him.
Nothing more.”

“Okay, but I seriously don’t think it’s him,”
I say.

“Well, if I dig a little and it doesn’t seem
like he’s a possibility, I’ll leave him alone, and we’ll have
another person to eliminate from the list,” Will says.

“That’s a good point. It will help us narrow
down the suspects.”

“Exactly.”

I take a deep breath and rub where my neck
and shoulder meet. “Can we talk about something else now? Thinking
about this is starting to stress me out.”

“Is there something wrong with your neck,”
Will asks.

“I think I may have slept on it wrong, or
something. It’s really stiff,” I say as I continue to rub it.

“Turn around,” he says. “Let me see if I can
help.”

I turn on the sofa so that my back is facing
Will. He places his hands on my shoulders and begins to massage me.
His strong hands apply the perfect amount of pressure right where I
need it. I feel my whole body relax as he continues to rub my
shoulders. His long fingers move further up my neck. He places his
thumbs on either side of my spine at the base of my head and moves
them in a circular motion. His massage feels so amazing that I let
out a quiet moan.

“You like that?” he asks.

“Yes,” I say in a breathy voice.

Will moves one of his hands down to my upper
arm and strokes it gently with his fingertips. His touch seems
almost electric. It’s as if every hair on my body is standing on
end. I believe that this man is attempting to seduce me, and I have
no desire to stop it.

Will leans in closer to me, and I can feel
his breath on the right side of my neck. I tilt my head to the left
and he trails kisses from behind my ear, all the way down to my
shoulder. I let out another soft moan.

“Turn around,” he says.

I turn back around to face Will. His blue
eyes look directly into mine. He puts his hand on the nape of my
neck and pulls me close to him. He kisses me softly and sweetly on
the cheek and then follows by kissing me all the way down my jaw
line before reaching my mouth. As our lips meet, I feel the tip of
his tongue touch mine slightly. He pulls it back and then slips it
in my mouth farther. I reciprocate, and we kiss like that for
several minutes.

He pulls away from me. “I’ve wanted to do
this for so long,” he says between heavy breaths.

“I’m glad you finally decided to,” I say with
a shy smile on my face.

Will moves toward me and resumes kissing me
as he lightly pushes me so that I’m lying on the sofa. He positions
himself between my legs, causing the skirt of my dress to fall and
my thighs to be exposed. Will and I continue to kiss as he caresses
one of my exposed legs. I feel a rush of excitement between my
thighs, and I want him so badly right now.

“God, you feel so good,” he says. I can feel
his bulge pressing against me from behind his jeans.

His hand moves further up my thigh, and I
feel his fingers on the strap of my thong. He starts to pull my
panties down.

I put my hand on top of his and hold it
down.

“Wait,” I say.

“What’s wrong?” he asks.

I look over at the pile of papers on the
coffee table and think about the bankruptcy. I also can’t help but
think about the fact that Will doesn’t have a steady job, he lives
in his friend’s apartment, he’s basically a nomad, and he probably
doesn’t have any solid plans for the future. I’m no prude, but I
don’t have sex with someone unless I’m serious about them. And
would it be fair to sleep with him when I’m still hoping to get
back together with James? No, I decide. If I have sex with Will
tonight, I’d be sending the wrong message.

“Nothing is wrong. I’m sorry. I like you, but
I think it’s just too soon or something,” I say. I feel bad, but I
don’t feel right about sleeping with him.

Will lets out a deep sigh as he lifts himself
off of me. “Don’t apologize. You never have to apologize for not
doing something that you don’t want to do.” We both resume our
sitting positions on the sofa.

“Thanks for understanding, Will. But, it’s
not that I don’t want to. I actually really, really want to, I just
think it’s a bad idea,” I say.

Will is leaning over with his elbows on his
knees and his chin resting on his clasped hands. “I know. We
haven’t even known each other that long. I’m just so attracted to
you, and I like you so much. It’s hard for me to control myself
around you.”

I smile at him. “That makes me feel really
good.”

“Well, I’m glad that I make you feel good,”
he says. I can tell that he’s trying to be sweet, but he seems a
bit exasperated.

“Maybe I should take off,” I say. “I bet you
have some things to do, and you’re probably tired after the last
couple of days.”

“No. Don’t leave. It doesn’t have to be
awkward. I don’t have anything to do, and I’d really like to just
hang out with you.” “Are you sure?” I ask.

“Yeah. Definitely. Let’s watch a movie or
something.”

“That’s an excellent Idea.”

Will gets us a couple of beers from the
fridge and puts Dumb and Dumber into the DVD player. We have a good
time laughing at the movie and drinking. It’s definitely a good way
to overcome the awkwardness from earlier.

By the time the movie ends, I can tell that
Will is tired. His eyelids look heavy, and he lets out a big
yawn.

“Will, I’m going to take off and let you get
to bed. Thanks so much for letting me hang out here today and for
helping me with my problem. You’re a really awesome guy,” I say as
I lean over and kiss him on the cheek.

“I’m happy to help,” Will says as he stands
up from the couch. He takes my hands and pulls me up from the
couch. “I’m going to walk you to your car, okay?”

“That would be great.”

Will takes Malcolm’s leash and attaches it to
his collar before leading us down the fire escape stairs and out to
the parking lot.

“Thanks again, Will. I really
appreciate--”

Will interrupts me. “Jo, don’t freak out, but
look at your tire.”

I look down at my front driver-side tire.
It’s completely flat, but not due to an accident. There’s a note
attached by a knife stabbed through it and the tire. Will pulls the
knife out, releasing the note. “What does it say?” I ask.

He doesn’t answer me. Instead he folds up the
note and puts in his pocket.

“Will, just tell me. I’ll have to know sooner
or later.”

“It just says ‘SOON.’ That’s it.”

I shudder. This is all starting to get to be
too much for me to handle. I open my eyes wide, knowing that if I
blink I’m going to cry. I lower my head so that Will can’t see my
face.

“Are you alright?” Will asks.

Unable to speak, I just shake my head. Will
takes me in his arms. “It’s okay. You’re okay right now,” he says
as he strokes my back. I finally blink and let the tears run down
my face.

“You’re going to be fine,” Will says. “I
promise. No one is going to hurt you. Please don’t cry, Jo.”

“Can I please just stay here tonight? There
is no way I can go home by myself after this.”

“Of course you can,” Will says as he wipes a
tear from my cheek using his thumb. “Let’s go back upstairs. We’ll
deal with your tire tomorrow.”

Chapter 9

Saturday morning I show up about 15 minutes
early to kickboxing class, hoping Harley has come early too and
that we can catch up. Becoming members at Bridgeport Boxing Club
was her idea. I knew when she suggested it that her main motivation
was the fact that the club is filled with men, and the few women
who work out here aren’t the most feminine. Last year she was all
about the self-defense class, but the guy girl ratio wasn’t in her
favor.

I spot Harley near the free weight area
chatting up some muscular guy. She’s wearing black booty shorts and
a tight pink workout tank, and her makeup looks impeccable as
usual. I can’t help but laugh to myself as she bats her long
eyelashes and tosses her shiny, black hair from one shoulder to the
other.

I manage to get her attention, and I motion
for her to come over to the boxing room. Harley smiles at the guy
and waves goodbye to him as she walks my way.

“Who is that?” I ask.

“His name’s Derrick. Isn’t he hot!”

“Yeah, I guess. Let’s go in before someone
takes our spot.”

We go in and set our water bottles and towels
down in the back, left corner of the room.

“So, what have you been up to?” Harley asks.
“I haven’t heard from you in a few days.”

I take a deep breath and quickly recite the
events of the last couple of days. “A lot has happened. I tried to
quit my job, and I was fired instead. I went to the Alcove on
Thursday night and my stalker stabbed a note through my tire. Will
and I ended up fooling around, and I spent the night at his
apartment. Aaaand Will installed a security camera on my front door
yesterday.”

“Wait. Back up a couple of steps. You and
Will fooled around and you slept with him?” Harley asked. “Give me
some details!”

“No. I slept at his apartment, in his bed
with him, but we did not sleep together,” I say.

“Why the hell not?”

“You know why. He’s just not right for me. I
don’t need to get involved with some artist who’s filing for
bankruptcy.” Harley gives me a questioning look. “I saw the
paperwork in his apartment,” I say. “If I’m going to start seeing
someone, I need them to have their life together.”

Harley puts her hand on her hip and scowls at
me. “You mean someone like James?” she asks.

“Hey don’t give me shit about wanting James
back. You’re the one who convinced me to take the job so that I
could see about working things out with him,” I say
accusatorily.

“I’m all for you exploring things with James.
In fact, I think it would be good for you to figure out, once and
for all, where you two stand, but I don’t think you should ignore
other good candidates. I can tell that you like Will, and he
obviously likes you too.”

I move down to the floor so that I can do
some stretching. I extend my legs out in front of me and bend
forward. “Yes. I like him. I like him more and more every time I
hang out with him. But I don’t think I’d describe him as a ‘good
candidate.’ Maybe I’m being a little judgmental, but I don’t want
to end up with someone who is irresponsible and who will eventually
run away.”

More people start to file into the room,
including the instructor, Manny. He’s a former MMA fighter and it
shows.

Manny smiles. “Hello ladies,” he’s says
looking directly at Harley’s perky C cups.

“Hey Manny!” she replies in her sexiest baby
voice. I roll my eyes in disgust, but I secretly wish that I could
pull off the whole baby-talk thing.

Manny marches to the front of the room.
“Alright. Let’s get started with some jumping jacks. One, two,
three...”

Harley turns her face to me as we warm up.
“Maybe you need to stop thinking about whether this guy is going to
be your lifelong partner and just have some fun with him. Have you
ever thought about that?”

“Ladies. Focus please. We’re here to work
out, not chit chat. This ain’t Starbucks.”

Ughhh. I hate being called out in front of
all the guys. I ignore Harley for the remainder of class and focus
my attention on perfecting my kicks and punches. With the way
things are going lately, I might need to use some of these
moves.

Chapter
10

My phone rings just as I’m getting out of the
shower. Hardly anyone calls me early in the morning. In fact,
hardly anyone calls me at all. I’m so used to getting text
messages. I dry my hands quickly so that I can answer the phone
before the caller hangs up.

“Hello?” I say without looking at the caller
ID.

“Hey, Jo!” I immediately recognize the
cheerful voice as Will’s, and it makes me smile.

“Hi, Will. How are you?” I ask.

“I’m good. Hey, I don’t want to keep you
long. I just wanted to wish you good luck on your first day at your
new job.”

“Thanks. That’s really sweet of you to think
of me. I’ll call you after I get home and let you know how it
went,” I say.

“Well, I look forward to hearing from you.
Have a good day, okay.”

“I certainly will. You do the same.”

“Will do. Bye, Jo.”

“Bye for now.”

I end the call and look at the clock on my
phone. Shit! I only have about a half hour to get ready. At least I
know what I’m going to wear. I picked out a black, button-down
shirt dress that’s professional looking, but still sexy. The belt
cinches the dress in and accentuates my soft curves, and its short
enough to show off my legs without being inappropriate. I’ll add
some black heels to the outfit, and I’ll look amazing. I just hope
James notices.

I finish getting ready with just a few
minutes to spare. I check myself out in the full-length mirror
that’s hung on the back of my bedroom door. Damn! I look pretty
good. I put on my horseshoe necklace, and I say good bye to Malcolm
one last time before I leave. This is it, I say to myself. Time to
show James what he’s been missing.

***

“Welcome,” says an older woman sitting at the
reception desk of the law offices of James A. Parker. Her grey hair
is done in a very trendy, spiky style, and she’s wearing more
makeup than I’d ever consider putting on my face. “You must be
Josephine, our new paralegal,” she says with a slight southern
drawl.