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He had waited nearly nine years for this moment, this opportunity to see Deanna without the shadow of his brother hanging over their heads.
And in just over two hours, he was going to make the most of it.
Chapter 3
Though Deanna had been more than appropriately dressed for dinner—wearing boot-cut jeans, a white blouse and a black velvet blazer—she went back to Uncle Dave’s place and changed. Her outfit now was decidedly more upscale. She was used to dressing up and going out to fancy dinners in L.A., and she relished the opportunity to put something on now that was a little fancy.
Though, as she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she couldn’t help wondering if she had gone a little overboard.
She was wearing a black sheath dress and low-heeled black sling-backs encrusted with colorful jewels. Her hair was short, so she didn’t have to worry about fussing over that. She slicked it back, added some mousse so it would stay in place and concentrated on the features that she liked to accentuate. She added mascara to her lashes, eyeliner and a burgundy shade of lipstick.
Uncle Dave’s wide eyes and low whistle when she came downstairs made it clear she had dressed to impress. “You going to some fancy award show?” he asked her.
Deanna chuckled as she went over to him where he sat on his recliner, then gave him a kiss on the forehead. “No. I ran into an old friend. He’s taking me out for dinner.”
“Hmm…another romance brewing?”
“He’s an old friend,” Deanna stressed. “You remember the guy Natalie and I were fighting over all those years ago?”
Uncle Dave frowned. “Tell me you’re not going out with Marvin!”
“No. Definitely not. His brother, Eric, is the principal at Kwame’s school. I saw him today. And we’re going out now to catch up on old times.”
“Hmm.” Uncle Dave gave her a curious look. “Dressed like that?”
“I’ve got a suitcase full of nice clothes I haven’t had a chance to wear,” Deanna told him. Then she started for the door. “See you in a couple of hours.”
A short while later, when Deanna got out of her car and walked toward Eric where he stood waiting outside of the restaurant, the first thing she noticed was the way his eyes widened as he took in her appearance.
“You changed,” he said, his voice laden with approval.
“I figured I may as well get dressed up for the occasion. It’s not every day you run into an old friend and get the opportunity to get reacquainted.”
Deanna wasn’t sure if Eric even heard her reply, because his eyes drank in her appearance from head to toe, as though he was transfixed. “Wow. Seriously, wow. You are ravishing.”
For some reason, Deanna felt a tingling sensation in her belly. “Thank you.”
Eric made a sweeping hand gesture, indicating his outfit and frowning slightly. “I didn’t get to change.”
“You look great,” she told him. And he did. His black slacks, beige shirt and black blazer looked good on him. He had taken off the tie he’d been wearing at school earlier, which now made his professional look more GQ sexy.
“All the same, I wish I’d been able to vamp it up a notch to truly complement you.”
“Now you’re making me wish I hadn’t changed,” Deanna said.
“Nonsense,” Eric told her. “I’m glad you went to the effort to get dressed up for me.”
“I’m glad you approve.”
His eyebrows wriggled as he offered her his elbow, and Deanna cocked her head as she slipped her arm through his.
What were they doing? Flirting?
The question fled her mind as Eric opened the door and led them into A Taste of Soul. They were immediately greeted with a bright smile from a pretty young woman behind the hostess stand.
“Table for two?” the woman asked.
“Yes,” Eric and Deanna said at the same time.
The woman picked up two menus and then began to lead them into the restaurant. Eric commented, “I wonder if we’ll see Michael Jones.”
“The owner, Michael Jones?” the hostess asked, looking over her shoulder at them. “He’s not here.”
“He’s headed out of town for an away game,” Deanna explained. “My sister went with him.”
The hostess stopped at a four-top table near the window and set the menus down on it. Then she placed her hands on her hips as she looked at Deanna. “Your sister’s— Of course, you’re Deanna Hart.”
“That’s me.”
“I’m Sandra.” She extended her hand, and Deanna shook it. “Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you as well, Sandra. This is Eric, a friend of mine.”
“I’ve never seen Michael so smitten,” Sandra commented. “He’s really into your sister.”
“That’s good to hear, because she’s really into him.”
“Vivian will be your server tonight,” Sandra told them. “She’ll be out shortly.”
“Sounds like it’s going really well between your sister and Michael Jones,” Eric commented once Sandra walked away. He pulled Deanna’s chair out for her.
“It is,” Deanna said, sitting. “It’s almost like they were destined to meet.” Eric helped push her chair back under the table, and Deanna grinned up at him. “Why, thank you. You are certainly a gentleman.”
Eric sat opposite her. And even though Deanna had lifted the menu and was perusing it, she could sense his eyes on her.
“What?” she asked, looking at him and finding that, yes, he was staring. She touched her hair self-consciously.
“Just thinking about how odd it is that we’re both here, about to have dinner. Given that I thought I’d never see or talk to you again.”
“I know. When I woke up this morning, I never dreamed I’d be here with you this evening.” Deanna paused. “Sometimes life offers you nice surprises.”
“You remember all those talks we used to have?” Eric asked.
“Are you kidding?” Now Deanna made a slight groaning sound. “But most of them, I would rather forget.”
“Why?”
“Why?” Deanna repeated, bulging her eyes. “The way I cried over Marvin like a fool? What you must have thought of me.”
“I thought you were a beautiful woman who’d fallen for the wrong man. It happens. A lot.”
Deanna shrugged and again looked at the menu. But she knew what she was going to have. The last time she’d been here, she had contemplated the Cajun catfish with collard greens but passed it over for the gumbo. “I’m having the catfish,” she announced.
“That’s a great choice,” Eric said. “I’m going to have the same.” He closed his menu. “You want wine?”
“White?” Deanna asked.
“White’s good. Sauvignon blanc?”
“Excellent choice.”
Vivian, the waitress, arrived with a basket of warm corn bread, which Deanna dug into as Eric placed their orders. She then promised to be back with the wine momentarily.
Deanna looked toward the stage area, where an attractive young man had just appeared. He looked stylish in a fedora, cream-colored dress shirt with tie, dark jeans and black loafers. A few people cheered as he sat behind the keyboard, which led Deanna to believe that they were already acquainted with this musician.
“So, what have you been up to for the past nine years?” Deanna asked.
“Other than dedicating myself to work?”
“Certainly it couldn’t have been all work, no play,” Deanna said. “You’re not wearing a wedding ring, but that doesn’t mean you’re not married.”
“Why?” Eric asked, giving her a playful look. “You interested?”
“Just wondering,” Deanna said. “A lot can happen in nine years.”
The musician hit a few keys on the keyboard and then paused. “Evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Trey Martinez.”
There were more hoots and whistles. Then Trey began to play. Moments later, he began to sing. He had a sultry, smooth sound and reminded her of Brian McKnight.
Deanna turned back to Eric. “So?” she prompted. “Are you going to answer my question?”
Eric swallowed the piece of corn bread he’d bitten before answering. “Actually, I was married. But it didn’t last long. Not quite two years.”
Deanna looked at him, into his handsome face and bright eyes. Maybe it was the love ballad that Trey was singing, and the romantic atmosphere with two lit candles on the table. But it struck her just how totally sexy Eric was. She hadn’t truly taken notice of this fact years ago, because she’d been so obsessed with Marvin. But there was no denying it now.
Eric was superfine.
Which prompted the question, why would any woman let him go?
“Why did you divorce?” Deanna couldn’t help asking.
And that was when she saw the first sign of discomfort flash in Eric’s eyes. So much so that she quickly said, “You don’t have to tell me. It’s really none of my business.”
“We just…we just didn’t see eye to eye on everything. Irreconcilable differences, if you will.”
Vivian returned with the two glasses of wine. With an amiable smile, she placed them on the table and then went on her way. She seemed to be the type of server who believed in being unobtrusive, and Deanna appreciated that.
“I made mistakes,” Eric went on, still talking about his marriage. “I was focused on my career. I’m not saying I ignored my wife, but she wanted me to take her out to dinners all the time, to the movies, the theater. And we did go out—don’t get the wrong idea. But not all the time the way she wanted. And one other thing she really hoped for that I hadn’t realized when we got married was that I would travel with her during the summer. She had dreams of going to Italy with me, to a cooking school in Tuscany for a few weeks—which I wasn’t opposed to, but the summer after we married was out of the question. I was working on completing my second master’s, and she wasn’t happy that I wouldn’t go with her.” Eric sighed softly. “I knew that I wanted to achieve certain goals by a certain time. I was focused on that. So focused that I didn’t realize I was losing my wife.”
He had recited these facts so casually that Deanna had to wonder if he had been at all heartbroken over the downfall of his marriage.
“You didn’t even make the two-year mark?” she asked.
“One year, nine months. Ellie said it wasn’t working, that we weren’t on the same page. And I agreed.”
Deanna sensed that there was more to the story, something important that he was leaving out. Or was it just that in her experience, things weren’t so black and white? “You seem so…I don’t know—comfortable about everything?” she said to him. “I’m sure it must have been a terrible time for you.”
“Ellie is a great girl, and I wish her nothing but happiness and success. But we weren’t right for each other. We were two friends who both wanted to get married and thought, hey, why not to each other? But we weren’t meant to be.”
“You say that so matter-of-factly.”
“We’re still friends. Ellie has gone on to marry someone else. Now she’s the wife of some cruise ship director, and I understand that they travel quite a bit. She’s happy. And I’m happy for her.”
“I see,” Deanna said. Maybe she was reading into things, thinking there was more to the story than there really was. “Well, it happens.”
“And sometimes things happen for a reason.” Eric held her gaze as he raised his wineglass. “To new beginnings.”
And as Deanna looked into Eric’s magnetic eyes, she was struck once again with just how gorgeous he was. She clinked her glass against his. “To new beginnings.”
The patrons applauded as Trey finished his first song, and he promptly began the second one. “What about you?” Eric asked. “I’ve never heard any reports that you were married, but that doesn’t mean you never tied the knot.”
Deanna shook her head. “No. I never got married.” She paused. “Perhaps I was a little like you. Very focused on my career.”
“I bought your albums,” Eric said. “And I’m not saying this just because I know you, but you’re supremely talented.”
“Thank you,” Deanna told him.
“You have anything new coming out?” Eric asked. “I’ve been waiting for the next album to drop.”
Deanna deliberately lifted her wineglass to her mouth and took a sip. Eric watched her every movement. She felt as though a spotlight were on her as she swallowed, then finally spoke. “Well, not right now,” she answered, hoping he didn’t pick up on the discomfort in her tone. “I was working on some stuff, but…not anymore.”
Eric gave her an odd look, but he didn’t press her for details. Maybe it was obvious to him that she didn’t want to talk about it, and for that she was glad. She didn’t want to get into the story about Brian.
“I’m surprised you haven’t asked me about Marvin.” Eric chuckled softly.
Deanna rolled her eyes in a playful manner. “I think it’s fair to say I did more than enough talking about him nine years ago. I can’t believe how pathetic I was.”
“You weren’t pathetic. You were…passionate.”
Deanna’s eyebrows shot up. “Passionate?”
“Yeah. You used to be so full of fire whenever you spoke to me about Marvin. You got so heated when you complained about him doing you wrong.”
Deanna cringed as she remembered just how often she had complained about Marvin. Had she been smart, she would have dumped him without a second thought the moment she had learned about him and her sister and not looked backward. Instead, she had fought for him—and helped ruin her relationship with Natalie in the process. “Ugh…so young and stupid.”
“Not young and stupid. Young and hopeful was more like it.”
“You always were good at putting a positive spin on everything.” Deanna sighed. “I guess I may as well ask—what happened to Marvin? What’s he doing with his life?”
