“I’ll have the jerk pork,” said Bella.
He then turned to me, all bright white Colgate smile against that rich skin. “And what are you having, beautiful?”
“I’ll take the curry shrimp,” I said, not bothering to see how spicy it was. According to my mother, it was the perfect cure for a hangover and horniness.
“Dat all ya want, dahlin?” he asked with a raised brow. I looked at him, puzzled. Defensiveness shouldn’t be my go-to response, but I absolutely hated the assumption that, because I was a large woman, that I was going to eat myself into a food coma.
“Yes, I’m sure that’s enough,” I said, slamming the menu on the table. Bella’s eyes grew wide as she sipped her drink.
Instead of snapping back at me like I anticipated, the waiter leaned down, his locs grazing my shoulder, tickling the strap of my sundress. He whispered in my ear in a panty-dropping tone. “Because I get off in ’bout an hour.”
I felt an uncomfortable heat making me hot in places that I shouldn’t and a heartbeat thump down in my coochie. I looked at Bella as she continued sipping her drink with wide-eyed fervor. I looked down at his starched white shirt and found his name tag. Nigel. Great. Even his name was sexy.
“I’m good... Nigel. Really,” I said, backing away from the melting tones of his voice.
“If you change your mind...” Nigel said as he winked, sliding a piece of paper with a number on it. “I can give you something more filling than some shrimp.” Then walked off to put in our food order.
“Well, damn,” said Bella, fanning herself with the wine menu like a genteel Southern lady. “That was hot! Girl, call him!”
“Girl, I’m not entertaining this waiter,” I declared as I balled up his number and put it in my purse. “Look at this place. How many women has he picked up in here? Probably dozens. It’s literally a sea of beautiful women here every weekend.”
“Who cares!” shot back Bella, raising her brows playfully. “The man wants you!”
“Oh my God, you married women are all the same! You want to live vicariously through us single women, getting us to live out your sexy fantasies so you can get off on it!”
Bella snickered. “Yeah, Ari, you might be right. Married ladies get stuck with the same dick for eternity, doing the same five positions, and you all are out here living the life. So yes, maybe we’re trying to hear about hot, new, and nasty sex.”
My eyes bulged in surprise. “Sex that bad with Zach?”
Bella rolled her eyes, then sighed. “I don’t get it enough to complain about if it’s bad or not. We’ve got the twins, starting my new business, and Zach’s residency. Maybe if I was a patient in need of a facial reconstruction, he’d pay me more attention.”
“Now you know you don’t need a face-lift!”
Bella smiled, throwing her fake ponytail over her shoulder. “Yeah, you’re right. My face is flawless. We look better than any of these twenty-two-year-old chicas in this place trying to find themselves a sugar daddy!”
We both laughed and gave each other a high five.
“But seriously,” said Bella. “You’re too amazing to be alone! Plus, you need to celebrate this job with a celebratory screw. Why not start with the Mr. Bombastic until you get the real thing!”
I smiled at Bella’s relentless pursuit to knock the dust off my nether regions. Bella was one of my best friends. We were opposites but bonded instantly when we were paired as roommates in college. Bella was a gregarious girl with a killer body and killer face, yet down-to-earth, supportive, and most of all, kind. Folks always knew me as “Bella’s friend, you know, the big girl with the cute face.” On the rare occasions that I felt bad about my weight, Bella was always there to brush the negativity away. “You’re perfection!” she would say. “If this was the 19th century, you’d be a masterpiece.” If that kiss with Mary Turner in ninth grade hadn’t sealed the deal in my firm heterosexuality, I’d marry her.
“Actually, Bella, there is something I wanted to talk to you about...”
“Oh!” Bella perked up in her seat, adjusting her perfect ponytail and letting her bangles hit the table with a resounding thud of anticipation. “I’m tipsy enough to receive the tea. So go ahead...”
I twirled a finger around an errant curl, winding it tightly around my finger. “Well, there is this situation... I did something I shouldn’t have. And...”
Just as I was about to spill my guts about last night, I heard someone call my name above the bumping bass of the Damian Marley’s “Welcome to Jam Rock.”
Standing in front of me, in simple khaki shorts and short-sleeved palm-tree printed shirt, was the most delicious thing that wasn’t on the menu. His eyes, the exact color of the trees on his shirt, danced as faint smile lines appeared at their corners.
“Porter?”
Chapter Eleven
Porter
“Porter?” Ari questioned, staring at me with a look I could only describe as horrified.
Her friend looked at me curiously and smiled, then looked back at Ari with a raised brow. I couldn’t tell if something amused or aggravated her.
“Hey, I just saw you over here. I was at the bar with my brother,” I said. I extended my hand to her lunch guest, who I noticed wore an obnoxiously large, but gorgeous, wedding ring. “Hi. I’m Porter.”
The friend smiled and shook my hand. “Oh, I know who you are. I’m Bella La Croix. Best friend. Confidant. Alibi if need be.”
I smiled. So, this was the infamous Bella that Jamal was reminiscing about. I could see why. She was a beauty, but the real stunner at the table was Ari. I watched as she adjusted herself in the booth, her jaw tight with nervousness.
“Ah, Bella. I’ve heard so much about you,” I said, trying to cut the awkward tension I felt. I really didn’t know anything about Bella, but I was trying to be overly polite. It wasn’t clear if my usual dose of charm was working. Bella looked puzzled and then looked at Ari.
“Right!” Bella looked at Ari with a very quizzical look. Their looks, a secret language, told me that maybe I’d interrupted something.
“I’ll let you all enjoy your lunch. I just wanted to say hello. Ari, you look...beautiful, by the way. See you Monday.”
Before she could reply, I turned quickly and went back to the bar where my brother was standing, looking utterly confused.
“Dude, you left me to go talk to a girl! Devin’s got our table ready. I’m hungry as shit!” Todd playfully nudged me as we walked toward our table.
“I was just saying hello to my coworker, Ari.”
Todd peered over my shoulders, sipping on his rum and coke. “Oh, yeah. Ari is the chick you all just hired, right? She’s fine...you know I like them slenderoni.” Todd was looking directly at Bella, giving her a thorough inspection.
“No, Todd... That’s her friend Bella. It was the other girl. In the yellow.”
Todd looked again, craning his neck. “Oh.” And then he fell silent as he continued to sip his drink.