Scandalous (9 page)

Jumping up from the toilet, I put my ear to the door.
There was nothing.
Still, I waited just a bit longer, just in case, before I stepped into the bedroom.

It was empty.

The only sign that Roman had been there were the tousled sheets and rumpled comforter that had been tossed onto the floor some time during the middle of the night.

I strolled through the grand bedroom and into the even grander living room.
There was no sign of Roman, but I noticed an undershirt draped over the arm of the sofa.
It took me a moment to figure out what it was and when I lifted it up, I laughed.

Call me any time, and call me often!
That's what Roman had scribbled across the shirt that he'd left behind for me.
Was he kidding?
Shaking my head, I folded the shirt and took it with me into the bedroom.
I was never going to call him.
Last night was last night.
And now it was over.

I stepped inside the walk-in closet, stuffed Roman's shirt into the bottom of my bag, then slid off Hines's ring.
I kissed that big ol’ diamond goodbye before I tucked it into my purse and slipped my real ring back onto my finger.
This was okay
--
soon my boo would be able to afford the best for me.

Turning to my wedding dress, I gently pulled it off the hanger and cradled it like a baby in my arms before I laid it atop of the disheveled sheets of the bridal bed.
Stepping back, I studied the Barber original.
The purity that the designer had captured in that gown did not belong anywhere near the decadence that had gone down on that mattress over the last few hours.

So, I gathered the dress once again, and carried it into the living room.
Roman and I had spent a couple of hours in this part of the suite, but most of the time, I was pinned up against the balcony windows.
The couch was virgin territory.
Gently, I spread out the satin dress over the sofa, then stepped back.

That was better.

It was the quiet and the gown and the opulence all around me that made me realize what I was about to do.
The realization weighed heavy on my shoulders and I had to ask myself, did I really want to do this?
Staring at the dress, I asked that question over and over.

“
Yes,
”
I said aloud.
“
I want to be Mrs. Kenny Larson.
”

I had wanted to be this man's wife for a long time now, and there had to be a reason why we'd lasted all of these years.
We were meant to be and with just a little help, Kenny would become the provider.
He would become the husband that I needed.
I had no doubt that he would work hard on that.
And in return, I would work hard on becoming the best wife I could be.
I knew I would make that promise to him in just a few hours, but I made it to myself right then.
This was my solemn vow.

That pledge made me feel even worse about what I'd done last night, but those blissful hours were in the past, right?
Never to be revisited.
I could start anew.
I could be a good wife; after all, it was in my DNA.
My mother had been the perfect wife
--
dutiful, faithful, respectful
--
until the day she died.
I could be all of that.

The knock on the door drew me away from my thoughts and I scurried to the closet first, slipping into a bathrobe.
By the time I got to the door, the knock had come again.
Glancing at the grandfather clock, I was glad that I knew my friend so well.
It was just a little past six-thirty and Roman had barely been gone fifteen minutes.

“
Jasmine!
”
Kyla squealed, as if she hadn't seen me in years.

“
You're early,
”
I said and hugged her
--
but then my eyes opened wide and my mouth clamped shut.

When Kyla saw me looking over her shoulder, she said,
“
Oh, Jasmine, do you remember, Roman?
”
She stepped into the suite and Roman followed her inside.

Now, I considered myself a proficient enough dodger and liar.
I'd had to keep my life as a stripper a secret and lie to Kenny and everyone else for years.
But in the past, I'd always had time to figure out what to do, what to say.

Roman saved me though.
He spoke before I started babbling.
“
I guess you don't remember me.
From the other night,
”
he said, as if he hadn't made love to me a dozen times in the last twelve hours.
“
I was one of the dancers at your bachelorette party.
”

“
Oh, yeah,
”
I said, hardly able to breathe.
What was this guy up to?
I began to wonder what I'd thought before: was this dude some kind of crazy?

“
I bumped into Roman as I was walking to the elevator,
”
Kyla said.
“
He offered to help me bring all this stuff up.
”

“
You should've had a bellman do that,
”
I said to Kyla, taking the garment bag and suitcase from Roman's grasp.
My hands shook, but it was good that I had something to do so neither one of them would notice.

Roman said,
“
Oh, I didn't mind helping.
I was just leaving the hotel.
”

With my back to Roman and Kyla, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
“
Well, thank you,
”
I said, when I finally had the nerve to face him.

“
Yes, thanks,
”
Kyla added.

The three of us stood there for the longest moments of my life.
Roman looked like he was waiting for an invitation to stay.

He
was
some kind of crazy!
I needed to get this guy out of here.
“
Well,
”
I said, hoping that was a good enough hint.

“
Well,
”
Kyla said, looking at Roman too.

He still stood there, silent.
Until,
“
Oh, yeah.
You're getting married today.
You probably need some time to get ready.
”
He stepped back, and I almost tripped rushing past him to get to the door first.
It took everything inside of me not to reach out, grab his hand, drag him away, and then push him out the door.
But I didn't have to touch him, thank God; he followed me, and when he got to the door, he paused and grinned.
“
I hope you have a good wedding.
”

I glared back at him.
“
Thank you,
”
I said stiffly.

It still took him a moment before he stepped into the hall.
I didn't know if he turned back or not because the moment he cleared the door, I shut it behind him.

“
That was weird, huh?
”
Kyla said.

My best friend had absolutely no idea.

She continued,
“
When I saw him downstairs, he said he was visiting his girlfriend.
”

“
Really?
”

“
Yeah.
It wasn't like I asked him anything.
He just kept talking and I kept listening.
”

“
What else did he say?
”
I really wanted to change the subject, but I felt like I needed to know everything.
It wasn't that I was curious; I needed to figure out just how crazy this dude was.

“
He just talked about his girlfriend.
Told me that she was the love of his life and how she had been engaged to someone else when they met.
”

“
What?
”
was what I thought.
“
Wow,
”
was what I said.

“
I know!
”
Kyla said.
“
Then he started asking me questions.
He wanted to know what I was doing here, and after he had shared all of that, I felt like I had to tell him.
”

She chuckled, but I didn't.

“
I told him that you were getting married today,
”
she continued,
“
but he didn't really remember you
…
which was weird.
'Cause he remembered me and he spent all of that time talking to you!
”
Kyla shrugged.
“
Well anyway, enough about that guy.
This is your day.
And it's all about you.
”
She scurried over and hugged me.
“
Did I come too early?
Did I wake you?
”

“
Nah,
”
I said with my voice so shaky.
My heart still hadn't returned to its normal beat, but I wasn't worried about Kyla noticing.
She would just chalk it up to pre-wedding nerves.
“
I've been up for a while.
”

“
Couldn't sleep, huh?
”
Kyla laughed.
Thank God she didn't wait for me to answer.
She said,
“
It was just like that for me too, remember?
I tossed and turned the whole night before my wedding.
I bet you did that too.
”

Yup, I had done some tossing and turning last night.
But now it was my stomach that was flipping and flopping.

Turning away from me, she said,
“
This place is beautiful!
”
Her voice was filled with wonder as she strolled through the living room.

For the first time since I'd opened the door for Kyla, my thoughts turned to something that could make me smile.
Kyla's reaction was exactly what I wanted.
Everything in her life was always exceptional and next to her, I'd always felt so average.
But today, she would be in awe of me.

“
I would've loved to have stayed here with you last night,
”
she said as she stood at the balcony window.
She pressed her face against the glass, and I cringed a little.
If she'd known what had gone down right where she stood, just a couple of hours ago, she would have backed up for real.
And now that my thoughts were back to Roman, my smile faded.

“
Well anyway, I'm here now.
”
She turned back to me.
And then, as if she was looking at me for the first time, she gasped,
“
Your hair!
”

“
I know!
”
I was so glad to have something else to focus on.
“
But you can hook me up, right?
”

She sighed like it was going to be a big task, but her grin told me that she was up for it.
“
Well, we'd better get started.
We only have,
”
she glanced at her watch,
“
five hours before you become a wife like me!
”
She squealed, jumped up and down and clapped her hands, reminding me of our days together in kindergarten.

“
I'd better get in the shower, I guess.
Serena should be here in a little while, and then the wedding planner said she wanted to go over some things with me.
”

“
Okay. Do you want me to order up something for you to eat?
”

I paused.
When was the last time I ate?
Dang
--
I'd spent all those hours having sex.
Food didn't matter.

And now, I didn't want a thing.
Roman had stolen my appetite.

“
I'm not hungry.
”

“
I'm gonna order you something anyway,
”
she said as she shooed me away.
“
Now get going.
I'll take care of everything.
”