“Nah, now that I think about it, that wheel and tire ain’t that bad. Why don’t you get in? We can drive around the corner ... talk. Maybe I’ll change it fer ya. Afterwards.” I jerked up when his hand touched my ass.
“Look,” I said, turning to face him. “You really don’t want to do this. Check my wallet. There’s—”
“I’m already gonna get the money, lady. What I want is between your legs. Now, get your ass in the car.”
He glanced over at Mariah, and I made a decision right then and there. I was not going to let that man rape me, especially not in front of my child, so we were about to see who was stronger. I was about to try to wrestle that gun away from him.
I took a deep breath, but before I could move, someone rushed up behind me and bowled the fiend over. He fell against the fender of my Mercedes, busting his mouth wide open and sending the snub-nosed revolver spilling onto the pavement, along with several rotted teeth.
My sudden rescuer, a very handsome, dark-haired white man, delivered a knee to my attacker’s ribs as he tried to scamper to his feet. Leaving his gun, my personal effects, and the teeth that no longer mattered, he fled up the avenue with his busted mouth.
“Get the fuck outta here!” my rescuer hollered, kicking at the open air in disgust.
“Mommy!” Mariah screamed as she tried to undo her seat belt. I rushed to the backseat, opening the door to check on her.
“Shhh, shhh. Hey, baby, it’s okay,” I said, delivering my best smile to calm her as I brushed her curls aside. “The man fell, and this gentleman tried to help him up.”
“I thought he was tryin’ to hurt you.”
“No, no, baby girl. Everything’s fine. This nice man is going to help us instead. That’s all.”
Mariah looked at the new arrival, waving at him with a warm smile. He returned her smile and waved back. I was still trying to remove my heart from my throat as the adrenaline wore off.
“Thank you,” I offered as he handed me back my purse.
“Glad to help. I was across the street. I didn’t think anything was wrong until I saw him going through your purse. Didn’t know about the gun until I hit him. Whoa,” he said, looking down at the ground as he suddenly realized his mortality in this situation.
“I didn’t know this city still had Good Samaritans. That was very brave of you.”
“My mom would be glad to hear that, but it wasn’t nothin’. I don’t like to see women in trouble,” he said with a smile. He had this rough charm about him, and he was easy on the eyes too. “You still need your tire changed, right?”
“I guess I do. London,” I offered, suddenly self-conscious about how this mom looked after a near-fatal encounter.
“Anthony. But my friends call me Tony,” he replied. “You think we should call the police?”
“For what? So we can be knee-deep in paperwork and waste the next five hours? I think he already got what he deserved.”
“Suit yourself. Where’s your jack?” he said, bending over to get a better look at the tire. I went to the trunk. “Beautiful daughter you have there.”
“Thank you.”
“She obviously gets it from her mom,” he added with a slight change in his voice. Was this white boy flirting with me?
As I smiled, I wondered whether I should even tell Harris or the rest of my family about this. For now, I would clear my head of such things and enjoy the view as Tony rendered assistance—while my husband was across town, once again too busy for me.
Orlando
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