Jaded (21 page)

“Rough start?”

“We were young. That’s our excuse. We both played the field but we were like magnets. Could never get too far away from each other.”

The third course appeared before Jade even realized their dishes had been removed, so enraptured was she with Lydia’s humdrum life.

“What do you two do for a living?”

“I own a beauty shop and Leonard owns a plumbing company.”

“That’s great, Lydia,” Jade said genuinely surprised. “You’re both business owners.”

“We do all right. Not rich but not poor. I tell you, girl, I love being my own boss. Nothing like it. I’d rather make a little and be in charge of my own life than to make a lot and let someone else have control. I’m not beholden to no one. And I’m happy, Jade. Not rich and famous like you. But just plain happy with my life.”

Jade was too stunned to respond. She played with her food, glancing over at Lydia, whose cheeks were so plump that it looked as if marshmallows had been stuffed inside her jaw. Instead of seeing a woman who’d lost control of herself, Jade wondered if she was looking at a woman who’d let herself slip into a state of pleasure that she’d never known.

“If you’re so happy, Lydia, why are you here by yourself? Why not bring your husband along? The room would’ve cost the same.”

“Honey, if you had four kids at home then you’d know that the best present a woman can get is two nights of peace and quiet.”

Jade chuckled while watching Lydia poke her fork into her food.

“You want to go somewhere else?”

“Yes, but you’ll still be charged for this food.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Jade raised a hand and beckoned for a waiter. “Check.”

“Tell you what. Since it’s my birthday, why don’t we go to a little place that I love? And it’ll be my treat.”

“We’re all dressed up, so why not?”

If anyone had told Jade the day before that she’d be spending an evening with Lydia Collins, she would have rolled her eyes. But she found that she liked the woman’s company. Twenty minutes later they were sitting in a booth at Tick Tock Diner on Eighth Avenue.

Jade picked up the sticky menu and marveled at the eight pages. “Jesus. Looks like they’ve crammed an entire grocery store onto this menu.”

“Just get the waffles and hot chocolate and ignore the other stuff.”

“It’s eight o’clock in the evening.”

“I know. That’s the fun of it.”

“And that’s sugar. Carbs and sugar,” Jade said. “Carbs and sugar at night.”

“That’s the Jade I remember from high school. Track team standout even though you’re five foot nothing. Debate team. Always dressed to a tee despite being as broke as the rest of us. Prim, proper, and determined. That’s what I remember most about you. You had this seriousness about you that was unshakeable. Like your whole life depended on being the best.”

Just as Jade was about to close the menu, the waitress appeared.

“You ladies decide on a drink?”

Lydia spoke up, “I’m going to have the waffles with a hot chocolate. And pile the cream high on the chocolate. Don’t skimp.”

“We never skimp. And how ‘bout you, miss?”

“I’ll have the same.”

“Really?” Lydia lifted a brow as though daring Jade to stick to her order.

“Really.”

The waitress collected the menus and began to walk away.

“Ah, miss,” Jade called.

“I knew it was too good to be true,” Lydia said.

“Yes?”

“Can you add strawberries and whipped cream to the waffles?”

Lydia’s eyes lit up. “Make that two.”

“Fuck it,” Jade said. “I’m gonna live a little.”

“Yes, you are.” Lydia smiled. “Because after this we’re going dancing.”

“Dancing?”

“Yep,” Lydia said. “That way you won’t have to rush to the treadmill at the hotel to burn all those damn calories like I know you’re planning on doing.”

Jade laughed. “I guess mothers really do have a psychic ability.”

“One step ahead, Jade. The secret to surviving motherhood is always being one step ahead of the game.”

***

Chapter 32

“You cannot be serious?”

“Here.” Syeesha handed Tanya some newspaper. “Let’s wrap the frames in these.”

“Well, are you serious or what?” Tanya took the picture of Syeesha’s mother from her bedroom wall. “Is that blog post about you?”

There was no way she could worm her way out of answering the question, but she might as well give it a go.

“There is nothing special about my life, Tanya. Figured I’d give it some spice by writing about a friend.” Syeesha moved behind the screen in her bedroom. So many books she loved. A few clothes she’d left behind. She picked up an oversized New York fire department T-shirt. Jade would never allow this in her apartment. Syeesha held the T-shirt up to her body. It seemed like it belonged to another woman.

The six-inch nude pumps, Diane von Furstenberg minidress with plunging neckline, and sparkling gold bangles halfway up her arm were now her normal attire. Whereas her hair used to be kept in a neat ponytail at the nape of her neck, today it was straightened within an inch of its life and hung down her back. Her metamorphosis into a temptress was complete.

“Is this friend letting her apartment go so that she can move into the lion’s den?”

Syeesha was glad she was behind the screen so that Tanya couldn’t see her pause.

“I’m not sure what my friend is doing. However, I have to move my stuff because my lease is expiring. I consider myself a lucky girl to have been invited to stay in my boss’s crib for awhile.”

“So what about your friend?” Tanya taped up the box of photographs. “Is she really gonna do it?”

“Would you blame her if she did?”

Syeesha unloaded an arm full of books into a box. Her clothes were already in plastic bins. She’d just carry them down to the truck as is.

“Listen, don’t get me wrong. I think the details are great for a blog. People love blind items. Traffic is increasing. And I can tell from the comments that folks are anxious to know who this rich couple is. But I hope you remember that they’re powerful people, Sy. I don’t want to see you get hurt over a blog post . . . or for some quick cash.”

“I’m not going to get hurt, Tanya, and do you know why?”

“Why?”

“Because it isn’t about me.”

“Who’s the rich woman?”

“She hasn’t told me.”

“You described her.”

“I did?”

“Said something like she’s a pint-size vixen, cloaked in diamonds, Dior, and desperation.”

“I wrote that?”

“You wrote that.”

“Huh. I always hated alliteration.”

The room was almost completely packed up. Until Syeesha could figure out a better plan, everything was going into storage. Thanks to Kiki, she didn’t have very much to move except her bedroom stuff and a few items from the kitchen. Nothing a small U-Haul couldn’t handle. She was so glad to be rid of the place. Though her future alternatives weren’t nearly as bright as she’d led Tanya to believe.

Tanya stood up, wiping dust from her hands. “Just be careful,” Tanya said. “And for God’s sake, don’t do anything stupid.”

***

“
I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” Jade yelled after Lydia. She’d disappeared into the back of her salon. While Jade waited in one of the salon’s chairs, she loosened the protective apron around her neck. She felt as if she were about to choke. It didn’t help matters that she still had the dull ache of a hangover from last night’s partying.

Lydia had taken her to a nightclub. When Jade had seen the name gloriously lit up in bold fluorescent letters, she had wanted to hop back into the cab.

The Fat Black Pussycat.

“How does a working mother of four know about a place like this?”

“I have lots of girlfriends, girlfriend. Every now and then a woman needs to let her hair down.” Lydia had tousled her hair, now brushed free of her updo.

Despite her misgivings, the Caribbean music had pulled Jade inside. Once inside, Jade had bought the first round of shots.

“Happy birthday, Lydia.”

A guy at the end of the bar had winked at Jade. He had made a move as though coming toward her. Discreetly, she had shaken her head. Turned away. Blushed.

The crowd had been mixed in age, but mostly young. The women had worn dresses tight enough to induce fainting. Men had flashed eager smiles. A few had reeked of cologne. After Jade and Lydia had downed their second round of shots, they had made their way downstairs to the dance floor. The music and energy of the crowd had enveloped them. Jade’s inhibitions had been left at the bar. She had shimmied onto the dance floor and spent the next three hours lost in a world free of money-making schemes and suspicious husbands. They had danced until they were breathless. Fatigued, they had drifted upstairs to the Middle Eastern–inspired lounge. Jade had tipped a manager two hundred bucks to boot a couple off the couch they’d reserved. She and Lydia had sipped chocolate martinis and chatted until Lydia had begun to yawn. Jade had so rarely had this kind of fun that she hated to see the night end. But her body had also been calling out for a soft bed with cool sheets.

The evening had ended close to three. They had supported each other as they had made their way to Jade’s suite, giggling and singing the entire way. They had crashed on Jade’s bed, neither of them fit enough to even pull back the sheets and climb beneath the covers. They had slept in a thick slumber until half past noon. After a quick breakfast, Lydia had insisted that Jade come to her shop so she could do her hair.

“It’s Sunday,” she’d said. “No one will be there but us.”

“I wear my wig all the time. I don’t need to get my hair done.”

“Because you wear your wig all the time is exactly why you need to get your hair done. I could just shoot Beyoncé
for making those lace front wigs so popular. Women have stopped minding their own hair.”

“Actually, I got the idea from RuPaul, not Beyoncé.”

Lydia had smirked. “I see the resemblance.”

It had been easier to go with Lydia’s flow than to swim against it. After a quick breakfast, they had taken a cab to Lydia’s spot in Brooklyn.

As Jade waited in the chair, she gazed around the salon
. It wasn’t as upscale as Jade was accustomed to, but it certainly wasn’t a shack in the ‘hood, either. She liked the neutral tones and African decor. Instead of a place of business, the salon felt like an extension of what Jade imagined Lydia’s home would look like. Overstuffed brown leather sofas for waiting customers and paintings of Barack and Oprah decorated the salon. It was impressive, especially for a woman who’d done it all on her own.

“I’m back. What were you hollering so?”

“I was just saying I can’t believe I let you talk me into this. What are we doing?”

“Color. I’ve got a great color in mind for you.”

“I thought you were giving me a relaxer.” Jade ran her hands through her hair, crinkled from being braided beneath her wig.

“Can’t do both today and I think a nice color and chop will really set your cheekbones off.”

“Chop?”

“If you don’t like it, you can always just slap that wig back on. Besides, you’ve got a nice grade. You don’t really need a relaxer.”

Jade leaned back to let her hair hang in the washbowl.

“Damn,” she exclaimed as her hands blindly felt around in her purse.

“What is it?”

“I left my cell back in the hotel.”

“You don’t need it. You’re on vacation. I wish you had your tools with you. Sure would like to have you give me a makeover, too.”

“Rain check. I promise.”

Jade meant it. She wanted to see Lydia again. All the years she’d been busy being a wife to Rodney, she’d never made friends. Women didn’t gravitate toward her naturally. She didn’t know why.

“So tell me something,” Lydia said.

“Yeah?”

“Why is it that a woman like you don’t have kids yet? All that money you and Rodney have. Why not do some good with it and raise a child?”

“Kids are invisible to us. At least to me. I never had a desire. Rodney never wanted them, either. It’s one of the things that makes us so compatible, I guess.”

“Your whole life changes when you have a child.”

“I know. And it just so happens I like my life.”

Lydia’s hands felt good lathering the thick shampoo in her hair. Lydia ran her fingertips across Jade’s scalp so vigorously that Jade shivered at the intense massage. She felt an ease she hadn’t felt in years.

“I like my life with the exception of-“ Was she really going to confide in Lydia? “We’re breaking up.”

Lydia’s hands stopped for a second, then resumed.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Funny thing is, I’m not exactly sure why. Guess we just grew apart.”