“You idiot!”
Derek pulled the cover from over his face and looked up at Anna through squinted eyes, his lips pouted in annoyance.
“What’s wrong with you woman?”
Anna was glaring down at him; her hands perched on her hips, her brows drawn in anger and annoyance. Derek suddenly felt like he was looking up at his grandmother, like he was due for a beating he very severely deserved.
“What’d I do now?” he turned stiffly and pulled himself up into a sitting position.
“Why didn’t you tell me you didn’t have an extra bed?”
Derek frowned, “you didn’t really give me a chance to.”
“You shouldn’t strain yourself like that with that neck, you could have told me.”
He chuckled, “that’s what this is about…”
“No, I was actually coming to talk to you about something else and … I found you like this,” she waved her hand about her.
Derek smiled, “It’s alright, I’m fine. I actually do have two bedrooms, I just kind of felt like crashing on the couch. You know, you worry too much.”
He tossed the covers aside and flexed his neck, turning it slowly then leaning from side to side cautiously.
“It’s fine see.”
Anna relaxed a little, but the worry line between her brows didn’t fade, she was still looking down at him as though waiting for him to snap his neck and cry out. Derek stared up at her with a mocking smile.
“What is it you wanted to talk to me about?”
Anna sighed and came around the couch to sit on the recliner opposite it, “it’s Raj, he called here this morning sounding really strange, then he apologized for waking me and hung up.”
Derek frowned, “probably wanted to tell you something but changed his mind.”
“I’m pretty sure he was looking for you…” she looked away with a troubled frown, “I shouldn’t have answered your phone, that was very forward of me, but my mind was so foggy with sleep I didn’t have the time to think about it.”
Derek smiled reassuringly, “it’s alright, I don’t think Brad would mind if you crashed here for a night.”
“Oh I think he would, he’s a very jealous guy.”
Derek scoffed, “big deal, you’re your own woman not his, where you spend the night – as inappropriate as it may be – is entirely up to you.”
Anna looked thoughtful “you’re right. I’m not his, Mara is.”
“That’s the spirit, you both need to move on and stop this nonsense.”
“And one other thing…” she got up and returned to the bedroom.
When she came back she tossed a battered, thumbed bible on the coffee table. Derek looked at it blankly, his fingers still clasped below his chin as it was when she’d left him.
“And a sister Charlene called,” she was watching him closely but he wasn’t giving any indication that anything she said rang a bell.
“Your mind must’ve been really foggy,” he said mockingly.
Anna glared at him, “The answering machine took it, I’m surprised you didn’t hear it. Anyway she wanted to remind you about the Pastor’s birthday party, apparently you had to bring the drinks.”
Now he nodded, “yep.”
“Yep? You lied to me and all you can say is yep.”
Derek looked up at her now, his brows drawn, “what’d I lie about?” he asked with wide spread arms.
“Don’t play dumb with me!”
He got up and picked up the bed sheets, “Anna I don’t know what’s gotten into you but it’s really beginning to bug me.”
“Why are you talking as though you know me?”
Derek turned angry eyes on her, his jaw set, “so what, you’re the only one that gets to read everyone else and make your assumptions, based on what? The way I dress, how I walk, talk, my overall demeanor?”
“Why did you lead me on to believe you were some kind of chauvinist heathen?”
Derek shook his head in dismay, “That’s what you assumed Anna, I never led you to believe anything.”
“How long have you been going to church?” she asked suddenly apologetic.
He looked up at the ceiling for a moment, his hands clasped in his hands, thinking about his response; just how much he should tell. With a sigh he lowering his gaze to her and he shrugged.
“I… got baptized at sixteen while I was living with my grand ma, then my drug addict mother came back to live with us and brought her old ‘habits’ too. My grandmother died of a heart attack when I was almost eighteen, stuck it out with my mother – whose guts I hated by the way – until I was almost nineteen got involved with some … bad people. Then I wound up in the hospital at twenty two after one of my home boys ran me over, fought for my life for … a while … I uh guess that’s when I realized I’d been a fool for giving up on God when he never gave up on me,” he looked away for a moment and scratched his chin, “I wasn’t supposed to live but I did, and unlike a lot of people with miracles I knew exactly why.”
He shrugged and got up from the couch, “been serving God ever since.”
An awkward silence ensued, Anna looked down at her hands and pursed her lips, Derek looked at her expectantly.
“I’m sorry… I’m such an idiot,” she muttered.
Derek smiled and reached up to cup her face in his large hands, lifting her eyes to his, “relax Anna Wright, you don’t always have to be right.”
She chuckled, “I really am.”
He nodded, still holding her gaze, he dropped his hands to her shoulders, “I know and I understand. There’re not a lot of people we can trust to say who they are and be honest about it, I’m not very trusting of people myself, mother wasn’t exactly a model. And I guess sometimes I tend to push an idea of myself onto others that isn’t who I really am, I’m not the best representation of honesty,” he smiled, “so thank you Miss Wright for calling me on my foolishness, you had me rethinking a lot of things since the day I met you.”
He let go of her and reached down to pick up his sheets and Anna felt uptight again, it surprised her how just his warm touch could calm her often racing thoughts, how her temperament remained constant when his golden gaze was upon her. Now she could feel the tension she’d been carrying around easing back between her shoulders, all the drama with Brad, her constant concern for Casey and on occasions like these her confusion over what she felt about Derek.
Derek, as though sensing the spiral of her thoughts turned around and graced her with one of his slow warming smiles.
“Say I was wondering, since you’re scared as hell of Brad’s place…
“I am not…” she interrupted incredulously.
Derek grinned, “it’s me Anna, you can be honest with me. Anyway, as I was saying, since you’re here, how about coming along with me to that party, it’ll be fun.”
Anna smiled, “I’d love to.”
“I’m not asking you on a date or anything right?”
She gapped, “why would you think that I would think that?”
“Oh shush, I saw you checking me out last night,” he teased with a wink.
Anna blushed as he disappeared into the bedroom, his sheets tucked under his arms.
The party was at a house not far from Derek’s place, and before they could enter they could hear the sounds of excited celebration; laughter, boisterous chatter and music. Anna was helping Derek up the front steps with the large cooler of drinks, when the front door was opened and a voluptuous woman stood in the door way, a wide welcoming grin on her face.
“Well, look who decided to show up, ya late as usual little boy!” she called out.
Derek smiled and bent to kiss her on the cheek when they were near, “hi Charlene,” he greeted.
The woman’s eyes trailed to Anna, who was looking up at them with a pleasant smile on her face.
“Oh my... is this the entertainment?”
To Anna’s surprise and further confusion, Derek laughed out loud, “
now that’s just typical of you Charlene,” he looked over at Anna with a proud grin, “Anna’s a good friend of mine, just brought her along to meet the family is all.”
“Don’t matter what you say, she’s still gonna be the entertainment. Y’all better come on in.”
She stepped aside for them to enter and then came in after them and closed the door. They stepped into a living room of activity, two teenagers were sitting on the floor looking frantically up at the television screen, their game consoles held tightly in their hands, while the others standing around or lolling off on the couch and chairs cheered them on loudly. When they realized they were no longer alone they looked up at Anna and Derek, the confusion on their faces as certain as the loud crashing noises emanating from the television.
“Greg, don’t just sit there like a big ole polar beer, hibernation’s over, come take this cooler here and take it to the kitchen,” Charlene commanded.
A heavy set man with a jiggling stomach rolled of the couch lazily and waddled toward them while the others stared, the only sounds coming from the neglected game. Anna looked over at Derek, who shrugged and smiled.
“Hey ya’ll,” he greeted animatedly, stepping down to join them.
With Derek’s greeting, sounds of life were injected into the room, as they reached up to shake Derek’s offered hand or to respond to his humorous greeting, skillfully directed at each individual. That seemed to take their mind off the strange woman standing at the front of the door, wringing her hands nervously.
“Come on people, the party’s by the pool!” one of them yelled.
Everyone started getting up from the living room and filed out the glass door leading to the back yard, the source of all the music and commotion.
Derek turned to Anna and offered his hand with an alluring grin, “shall we?”
Anna took his hand and they went out to join the others. The back yard wasn’t very huge, it’s most grand attraction was the bean shaped pool with the slide for the children and the diving board about six feet above the water. As the group from the living room thinned out before them, more curious gazes locked onto them, and they could see people leaning toward each other conspiringly.
“We don’t have to stay long,” Derek whispered, leaning down so no one else could hear.
“Why, ‘cause you think their blatant staring disturbs me?”
Derek frowned, “doesn’t it?”
Anna shook her head, “please, I was my neighborhood’s hottest topic for most of my adult life.”
Derek squeezed her hand, “you don’t have to feel like that here,” he said, “their just curious about you being here with me.”
Anna blushed, and shook her head, “I still don’t understand the….”
“The entertainment joke? That’s typical of Charlene.”
Anna frowned, “why would you bringing a lady along be entertaining?”
Derek smiled, “let’s just say most of the single ladies have seen me as … well potential husband material. I mean I got the right age, a good job, a place to live, all that seems to be missing is that special woman. I have never shown interest in that however, no matter how many of them tried to settle me, so it would be quite funny to see me here with you.”
“So there’s never been anyone special in your life?” she asked, deliberately avoiding his eyes.
Derek smirked, “Oh yes, there was someone. She was an ambitious lawyer, I was an ambitious business man… it didn’t work out.”
“You don’t look very torn up about it.”
He shrugged, reaching for two glasses from the passing waiter, “I’ve had enough time to get over it. Besides she was right, we both needed to focus on our careers.”
Anna frowned, her brows drawn in confusion, “so uh…” she paused and looked about her.
Derek waited patiently.
She looked at him again and took a deep breath, “so Derek um… what are we doing here exactly?”
He shrugged, “we’re having a pool party.”
“No I mean, what are we doing here together…”
He chuckled, “Anna I don’t get it. I invited you and you said yes, what else is there?”
Anna rolled her eyes in exasperation, “never mind Derek.”
His smile faded from his face and he grew very somber, he reached for her arm just as she was about to walk away. “I’m playing. I know what my intentions are I just don’t know if I should tell you what you already know.”
Anna frowned, “Derek you’re confusing me.”
He turned to look directly at her, his eyes unnervingly thoughtful, “we both know Anna but if I were to be the one to say it, it might scare you away.”
She gapped, “what… I …”
He reached up and gripped her arm with his hand, forcing her to look him right in the eyes, “I’ve seen or rather heard what happened to you and that doctor and I ain’t gonna make the same mistake. So you tell me Anna, what are we doing here? How do you really feel about me?”
Anna hesitated, her eyes bright with fear, her palms had suddenly grown clammy and she was suddenly uncomfortable and anxious.
“I… I guess I…”
Derek was looking at her eagerly, his grip on her arm growing tighter with anticipation. He’d never been so excited about someone like this before, but what disturbed him the most was that he knew that whatever she said right now had the ability to break him completely or make him into the man he’d been afraid to become for a long time.
“There you are!” came Charlene’s shrill greeting.
They both jumped and turned to face her with wide eyes, feeling like they’d been caught doing something utterly unacceptable.
“The pastor just arrived, we’re gathering in the house for the birthday cake business, then ya’ll can get back to the barbeque, the pool, the drinks and… each other,” she gave them a mischievous wink and they both grew pale.
Anna looked over at Derek whose blush was just as evident as her own, he smiled uncomfortably and she could see him fighting to regain his usual composure.
“I’m sorry about that…” he started, after Charlene had left.
Anna smiled, “that’s alright; we’ll finish this later,” but she silently hoped they wouldn’t have to. She liked Derek but that was as far as she was willing to let her mind go.
The party was at its peak when Derek found Anna to suggest they leave. She was sitting in the living room with Charlene and some other ladies, the pastor’s wife included, giggling over each other’s jokes and to Derek’s surprise and discomfort a photo album.
“What’s that you got there ladies?” he asked nonchalantly, his tone belying his actual emotions.
Anna looked up at him, her face radiant with laughter; her eyes bright and dancing.
“You never told me you were a geek,” she said with a wide grin.
Derek froze; an uncomfortable grin on his face, “yeah well I didn’t see the relevance of that.”
She laughed and pointed to the album on the coffee table, “I couldn’t believe this was you.”
Derek leaned down and looked at the photo of himself when he was about seventeen, his pants pulled right up to his waist, the multi colored shirt he loved so much, the afro with the curving pat and his least favourite; the thick framed glasses with the neck string.
“Oh come on Charlene,” he moaned, “I want the girl to like me.”
Charlene exchanged knowing smiles with the other ladies, “I don’t think you need to worry about that.”
Anna smiled up at him, “she’s right you know, I think I like you already.”
Derek grinned, “really?”
She smiled, “yeah, you had me at that blue waist coat.”
Derek chuckled, “now you’re just trying to be funny.”
“Yes, yes I am.”
They held each other’s eyes for longer than was friendly. Derek looked at her dreamily, a smile still playing on his full lips. Anna he
ld his with equal interest.
The ladies looked on with approving, knowing smiles.
“I uh… if you’re ready we can…” he finally said.
“Oh yes,” Anna jumped up from the couch and picked up her bag, “I need to get a room, before a wind up with no place to sleep again.”
He nodded, “right.”
“I’ll walk y’all out,” said Charlene.
When they were in the yard Derek lingered to kiss and embrace Charlene as Anna made her way to the car.
“She’s a lovely girl,” she said, cupping his face in her chubby hands.
“She really is a great person,” he replied, “but we have to be realistic you know. I can’t see how this is going to work after she returns home.”
Charlene frowned, “young man you of all people should know that faith and sacrifice is a bigger part of love than logic,” she wagged a finger at him, “don’t mess this one up, and trust me it won’t be that hard to. She’s as messed up as you are darling.” she reached up and planted and kiss on his cheek, “let this be a time of healing for y’all, healing and faith alright.”
Derek smiled, “sure mama.”