Getting Even

“Trevor will be impressed.” She winks.

But will I be impressed with Trevor? For Rhonda’s sake, I hope so. She’s been trying for so long to get us together.

“What time are you meeting him?” she asks.

“Eight o’clock.” That will give me a little time to freshen up after the newscast is over. I plan to meet Trevor at a restaurant downtown. He offered to pick me up, but I politely declined. If I have my own car and things don’t go well, I can leave.

I’m jaded, can you tell?

“You’ll have a good time,” Rhonda assures me. “Trevor really is a sweetheart.”

“I hope so.”

Rhonda gives me a smile then disappears. Knowing I have work to do, I force myself out of my chair. I still have to get my hair and makeup done, and after that, it’s showtime.

Two hours later, my head is still pounding. I’m at the restaurant now, sitting in my car in the parking lot, dreading the thought of going inside. I just don’t know if I should do this. Knowing my luck, this date will cap off a stressful day with even more stress. I should probably just go home and go to bed.

But I am here already, resigned to my fate. I may as well try to enjoy myself. There are worse ways to spend a Thursday night than meeting a potential new boyfriend.

I apply more lipstick before getting out of the car. Then, as I walk up to the restaurant door, my stomach flutters with nerves. I hope I’m not making a mistake. Really, it’s not like I need a man, although I admit that having one might be nice.

“Hello,” I say to the male host once I’m inside. “I’m meeting someone. Crenshaw. Trevor.”

The host peruses his open schedule book. “Ah, yes. Right this way.”

My hands sweat on my Louis Vuitton clutch as I follow the host through the Macaroni Grill. This was Trevor’s choice, and a good one. It’s casual but upscale and has great food.

“Here you go.”

“Thank—” The rest of the word dies on my lips as I see a man rise. For a moment, I am stunned. Pleasantly stunned.

So this is Trevor. Wow. He is tall, very well groomed. A gorgeous dark-skinned brother. I am definitely impressed.

“Lishelle, hello.”

God, that smile must have broken countless hearts.

“You found the place okay?”

I force myself to speak. “Yes, yes, I did.” I smile awkwardly. “Hi.”

I extend my hand, but Trevor steps toward me and gives me a hug instead. “It’s so good to meet you. Believe me, I’m a fan.”

I smile bashfully and wave off his compliment. (I really did smile bashfully. Sheesh, what’s come over me?)

Without missing a beat, Trevor pulls out my chair for me. As I sit, I can’t help thinking that his mama must have raised him right.

“I’ve taken the liberty of ordering some wine,” he tells me, and gestures to the chilled carafe. “It’s white, Riesling.”

“Lovely,” I practically sing. Lovely? Lord, when was the last time I used that word? Really, I need to tamp down on my overexcitement. Trevor is going to think I’ve been dating men from Mars.

Which isn’t exactly a stretch.

Trevor pours me a glass, then lifts his own glass in a toast. He touches it to mine and says, “To new friendships.”

“To new friendships,” I echo, thinking that maybe, just maybe, I have finally hit pay dirt.

Two glasses of wine later, I’m feeling very relaxed. And headache free. Accepting this date with Trevor is probably the best thing I’ve done in a long, long time. I’m even thinking of inviting him home, depending on how things progress. This isn’t like me, but you have to understand, I haven’t had sex in ages, and the fact that I’m sitting across from an eligible man has sent my libido into overdrive.

Trevor has been telling me about what it’s like to work as a lawyer. (Did I tell you I’m intrigued by the legal profession? Especially when it comes to fine-looking brothers who do their best to keep creeps off the streets?) I’m sipping wine and grinning like a fool, hanging on to his every word.

“I couldn’t believe this guy. It was like, every single one of his neighbors testified to the fact that they saw him chasing the guy with a knife, heard him uttering death threats, and he totally denied it. No defense, just a straight denial. And when he fired his lawyer and proceeded to defend himself…Even the jury could hardly keep their laughter under control.”

Trevor laughs, and I do, too. It might be interesting to see Trevor in action—in court. And I’m definitely thinking that it would be very interesting to see him in action in the bedroom.

“Ah, well.” Trevor’s laughter subsides. “Enough about me. I want to hear all about you.”

“Me?” I point to myself, as if there’s any question as to whom he’s referring. “Oh, there’s not much to tell. Certainly nothing as interesting as what you’ve told me.”

Trevor tilts his head ever so slightly and says, “I seriously doubt that.”

I draw in a deep breath to keep my erratic heart under control. “I…I guess I do have some interesting stories. Mostly from earlier in my career, when I was a field reporter.” The truth is, I have a lot of interesting stories. But I’d rather talk about me and Trevor and whether he’s doing anything later. It’s not exactly the time to bring up this suggestion, though. “What do you want to hear about? The streakers or the death threats?”

“Death threats?”

“Oh, yeah. I was covering a story about a feud between two business owners. One guy had a cleaning business in town for twenty years. The new guy set up shop and was stealing his customers. When I asked the new guy about his business practices, he shoved my cameraman to the ground and vowed to slit my throat.”

“Whoa.”

“Nothing came of it. But there have been other instances like that, and I’ve been worried more than a few times. There are some crazy people out there.”

“What else?”

“More stories?”

Trevor shakes his head. “No, tell me about you. Your life.”

My heart flutters. Okay, so he likes me. That’s good to know, because I really like him. “Well,” I begin, “I’m from Idaho.”

“Idaho?” Trevor looks at me like I’m nuts.

“Yep.”

“Wow,” he says. “I didn’t know there were black folks in Idaho.” There are laugh lines around his eyes as he smiles.

“That’s the first thing people always say, but yes, there definitely are.”

“Atlanta’s a far way from Idaho. Why’d you move here?”